F ormer Royal Gazette reporter Robyn Skinner is continuing her trek around the world – moving deeper into Eastern Europe. In her third report, she finds out about the capital of Slovenia before jetting off to London and then to the north of England

Crossing over the border from Croatia into Slovenia (which used to be all one state under the name Yugoslavia) was nerve racking to say the least.

We had decided to take the train to Ljubljana (luu-bi-ann-yah), the capital of Slovenia, for the afternoon since we were not so crazy about Zagreb and we had found a cheap flight to London from the city. We also figured this would break up the trip and the guidebook led us to believe it was an afternoon trip.

What would have been an afternoon trip turned into a couple of hours after the Slovenian border police, who made it clear they were looking for someone on the train, stopped our train for 45 minutes or more.

While we waited they knocked on all of the ceiling boards, pulled off some of the panels and opened every bathroom on the train. They had no problem with my passport (the beauty of the Bermudian’s right for a British document) my Canadian passport-holding travel buddy lost his document at their hands.

After what must have been about half an hour we were pretty sure he was going to be taken off the train and his round-the-world trip would end quite quickly. Just as he was about to bolt from the carriage the patrol brought back his document and we continued on our way.

Though Slovenia was one of the six republics of the Yugoslavian state it declared its independence in 1990 through a national referendum. The following year Ljublijana became its official capital and in 2004 the state was successful in joining the European Union and has been using the Euro currency since 2007. Something that has sheltered this country’s economy from the current financial crisis.

I will be honest and say I had never thought twice about Slovenia as a destination or even as a successful state that overcame its ties with the Yugoslavia to become one of the first 10 countries to join the EU. In any case, when we finally arrived around 1.30 p.m. we were ready to take in what the capital had to offer. After checking our bags into a massive locker at the train station we headed to the centre of the town – a 10-minute walk away.

Crossing from the more modern parts of the town to the old town centre is helped by the various bridges which offer their own unique experience. From the dragon-lined bridge, which is near the Market – a long colonnade building – to the Triple Bridge which conveys visitors into the old town.

The triple bridge is made of an old stone bridge from 1842 and two sides that were added in 1931.

After crossing the dragon bridge, which was added to the town in 1901 to replace the Butcher’s Bridge, we were daunted by the Ljublijana Castle which looms above the town. Storming the castle requires a 20 minute wander around the forested hill or a funicular ride to the top.

From above, the city of 270,000 is not as impressive as the walk up, which was riddled with snow and ice from the recent storm. After a 3D film – which was a unique way to learn about the beginning of the city – in the castle we walked the ramparts and headed back down to the river. Then it was a quick stop in the town’s cathedral and then meandering through the little cobblestoned streets that lead to river-bound restaurants and shops. Up and down the river are little streets with shops, wine stores and restaurants catering to all types of taste buds. After a quick stop in a Mexican restaurant (because as cute as the capital of Slovenia was it still adheres to a fairly unappetizing meat-potatoes diet) and we boarded our plane for England.

Next Stop London, England: OK so flying to England was a bit of a change of pace, which is the beauty of travelling around the world, we found cheap flights from Slovenia and since I had not gone to visit my brother and friends who live there and my sister who is up north near York it seemed like a chance to do just that.

The low budget airlines in Europe are quickly becoming a girls’ best friend and these coupled with a generous friend who offered her couch, it was starting out to be a fairly affordable visit to the UK.

So of course London always offers the standard tourist sites from Big Ben to Westminster Cathedral and Trafalgar Square. I enjoyed wandering by all of these sights again, but since I studied here for a semester in College, which I really enjoyed, now I find the highlights of London include visiting the markets and window shopping on Kings’ Road and Kensington High Street.

Though the West End in London is fun to visit to watch the uber-rich flaunt their fur-lined jackets and hope for a sighting of someone famous, our visit focused mainly on East London where I had spent a semester.

Hoping we might be able to actually afford some clothing or at least food we visited Spitalfields Market, which is very near the Liverpool Tube stop. This market used to be, when I was in school there (OK I confess more than seven years ago), a low-end, open-plan enclosed garage where up and coming artists could sell their wares.

This time I almost didn’t recognise the brightly lit centre. Where there used to be a diner there was now a variety of chain restaurants. And space once reserved for indoor football matches are now stalls selling £100 dresses and £50 t-shirts. So much for my neighbourhood market I thoroughly enjoyed visiting when I was in school.

Still I loved the East London experience, with its mosques and doner kebab shops on every corner and the requisite stop for a curry on Brick Lane. Yes, the little lane that meanders from one curry stop to the next was a title for Monica Ali, but Brick Lane has so much more to offer people looking for England’s unofficial national dish.

Also offered in this part of London is Canary Wharf where we met one of my travel buddy’s college friends for breakfast. It was a shock to my back packer’s mentality to see the hamster-like scramble of people to jobs in this business centre. The area, which is mainly a large shopping mall and offices was probably more hectic as the Royal Bank of Scotland had just announced record losses. The chaos felt in this part of town was unlike others which have an air of those with superfluous jobs and family money.

Heading back to the city centre it was a catch up with my brother, who is using his access to a British passport to work and study the hotel business, over dinner at a cafeteria-style Asian food diner called Wagamamas. That was the other beauty of being in England for a while. So the British usually get slammed for the mayonnaise and butter on sandwiches and boring cuisine, but the options London offers are far from boring. From Dutch pancakes on King’s Road to pub experiences near Edgware Road.

What is not so great is the thieving that appears to happen in London with abandon. I expected to spend quite a bit in London; just walking outside costs you about £20 without purchasing a thing. What I did not expect was for someone else to spend all of my money.

It started after I somehow made myself presentable enough to tag along to a private members club (apparently all the rage for those with the money.) Much like in Bermuda I left my card behind the bar until the end of the night.

With what I would imagine were far more impressive cards behind the bar mine was chosen – I must have just looked like a sucker.

Within a week I had charges to the likes of high-end stores like Miu Miu. Apparently, someone had taken all of my details and created an entirely new credit card.

As I saw the fraudulent charges begin to rack up I was envisioning a far faster end to my travels than I ever expected! I quickly called Mastercard customer service who were very helpful and put a stop on my card.

What proved more difficult was dealing with my bank and getting a new card issued, especially because a new card would have to be sent to me in a country where I stayed for more than two days.

So with very little credit to my name and thankful that I still thought to get traveller’s cheques, I figured it was time to leave London, save some money and head north by bus to see my sister living in Yorkshire.

Next Stop: Harrogate, Yorkshire: After a five hour bus ride we arrived in the little Yorkshire town of Harrogate. About half an hour’s drive to York, there was not much to see in Harrogate except the very first Betty’s tea shop, but it was the closest town to my sister’s residence which is on a farm. Yes, I would not say town or village, but well she lives on a farm. An avid horse rider from a young age, she is working on a horse therapy ranch while continuing her riding career.

It was absolutely beautiful green hills and tailored fields that the English countryside is known for, and she is literally in the middle of it. Cows are five feet from her door and horses can be heard neighing in the evening. It was a complete change from the sometimes frenetic pace of London especially with the language barrier. Not sure what language exactly the Yorkshire farmer she works for spoke, but nodding your head and smiling seemed to be an appropriate response, which was a relief.

On the first day, we armed ourselves with galoshes and with some mud puddle jumping we hiked through the fielded countryside before jumping in her car to visit York.

A city that is apparently known as one of England’s most haunted, it has beautiful cobblestone roads that are enclosed by medieval walls and lead to the impressive cathedral.

York Minister is apparently the largest Gothic Cathedral outside Italy. Unfortunately, I thought it was more impressive outside than inside and the medieval walls were closed to visitors by the time we arrived in York.

So we walked down to the river, which was flooding the banks, and found our way into one of the pubs for a glass of wine (sorry to pint drinkers, but being allergic to beer seriously hinders that experience) and some dinner before making our way back to Harrogate.

Next morning we woke up watching one of the little calves break out of his pen through one of the openings and the herding dog quickly approaching to monitor the cows border. Life in the English countryside was beautiful and peaceful and I could see why someone would live there and definitely invest in a vacation there, but it was time to head back to the city.

Five hours on a bus with 15 kids on a school trip back to London was exhausting. The major highlight for the kids was the working toilet on a bus and when we entered the city it was a game of spot the Porsche. Both me and my travel buddy emerged from the bus with more than a few sorrys from the teachers and bee-lined for a cup of strong coffee! We loved being able to visit family and friends (and fake shopping at Miu Miu) but it was time to break away from the pound before it started rising again and head to Italy!