Rest day Smartno

Smartno is a tiny walled village in Slovenia only a few kilometres from the Italian border. It was first documented in 1317 with the defensive walls being constructed in the 16th century. The houses and church have been replaced over the years so that now the well preserved houses date mostly back to the 17th and 18th centuries.

The first photo is of Smartno from on observation tower / second world war memorial. Our hotel is the square building immediately in front of the town, our room is the top floor left corner.

A lady at the hotel was telling us a bit about the memorial. Because Smartno is close to the border, when war broke out the communities in the region had to choose who to fight for, Italy or the Slovenians, who were with the Allies. They couldn't just stay independent. The result was they knew who they were shooting at - neighbours, friends and even family members.








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