My Experience at the Postojna Caves

Whilst in Italy, well actually Slovenia I visited the Postojna Caves. We crossed the border from Italy and from the coach I watched as the landscape changed. It was nice to see that across the border you could already begin to see differences within the landscape and architecture!

The good news is that the journey took so long that by the end of it everyone on the coach had enough time to learn how to pronounce ‘Postojna’.

After arriving at a very pretty spot, we got our tickets and queued up to enter the caves. On entrance they have photographers trying to take your photograph (I suppose what else would they try and do?) at the end of your cave experience there’s a board of photographs where you can find your photo and then buy it. We looked at ours and it wasn’t what we were wanting. Not that our faces were hideous, we just had better shots of ourselves from our phone cameras. Sorry photographers!

We then ended up having to ride a brightly coloured train which would take us deep into the cave and to the most scenic parts. The train ride was somewhat eventful. My Mum & I feared for our heads. There were many low tunnels and rocks protruding on our train ride. If you were quite tall I’d imagine you’d have felt even more uncomfortable! It gave us the sense that we need to duck down and avoid the incoming obstacles. Other people were calm and collected, just enjoying the ride. I don’t think they realised the peril that faced them! Your head coming towards a low rock at speed is not a good combination! Nobody worried about it, but we did!

After surviving the train ride, we were dropped off at the most scenic part of the cave. We had already passed the big open area where they had a big chandelier hanging. I believe they do concerts there as the acoustics are so good even my horrendous vocal range would sound idyllic.

They had warned us how cold the cave was, but I wasn’t prepared for just HOW cold it was. I was wearing shorts, a t shirt and a hoodie. I still felt cold. I put on my trusty black hat which I carry around in my bag. It wasn’t my best look, but it did help! It still wasn’t sufficient for me, in hindsight I probably should have worn a vest under my t shirt.

The sights within the cave were utterly incredible. A real vision to see. Spectacular. At the deepest point of the cave our guide told us we would be 120 metres under the ground! They also told us that there’s a very rare type of salamander that lives in the cave. It’s blind, albino and apparently it’s called a ‘human fish’ — clearly it’s having identity problems.

Due to everything in this cave being blind we were told that you cannot use flash on your camera as it would disturb the creatures. I suppose flashes cure blindness? Either way these were incredible rare and fascinating creatures! Apparently they can live up to 100 years and go without eating for 10 years! So that means in an absolutely extreme case, one could live 100 years and only have 10 meals in its entire life!

We were advised not to touch the stalagmites as it stops them growing for many years. These pointed rock things grow up all the way to the top of the cave and actually meet with the equivalent stalagmite on the ceiling. So the theory is that when the rock hits something and feels pressure it knows it has finished growing. That’s why you shouldn’t touch them, as it gives them a false sense of accomplishment! I however saw one man on the tour touch one, I thought it was a pretty lame thing to do. Normally the whole ‘Do not touch’ is just there to prevent against lawsuits, but this time there was actually a genuine reason to not touch these things, so therefore I thought that was pretty ignorant.

Visiting the cave was a truly magical experience. I would highly recommend it to anybody who has the opportunity to go there! It’s stunning. There’s a strange vibe down there, it’s a very natural feel as if you’re witnessing the history of the earth. It makes you feel as if it’s a bigger thing than you. Almost out of your control. This happens regardless of who you are and what you do. It doesn’t care about anything. It is the world, and it is bigger than us. A beautiful and worthwhile place to visit.