ČIČARIJA
Čičarija are a range of Karst hills in north-east Istria. The highest peaks in the Slovenian part of Čičarija are Velika Plešivica (908m), Mala Plešivica (953m), Razsušica (1083 m), Ostric (1056m) Gorjanski Žabnik (987m) and Slavnik (1028 m).
The residents traditionally worked as sheep and goat shepherds as well as crushing juniper from which they made the remedial juniper liquor. The most important place on the Slovenian side of the border is Golac. Above this village you can also find the hamlets of Zagrad, Gojaki and Brdo. The name Golac is allegedly Celtic in origin and means small place. After 10 years of degeneration, Čičarija is once again alive. The infrastructure has been built and people have started returning to look after their homes. Once again the traditional folk traditions are coming back to life. In September, the initiative Open Borders takes place between Hrpelje-Kozina Municipality and Lanišče Municipality.
Secluded Čičarija invites you to uncover its secrets!
GOLAC
Golac and its surroundings offer a lot of cultural and natural attractions:
We can also meet herds of sheep as we explore. These are the sheep of farmer who lives in the nearby hamlet Zagrad, who still works with sheep and makes products from sheep’s milk.
STUDENEC
The renovated water reservoir at Studenec looked after the local water supply for a decade; today it is an interesting tourist point.
Interesting: As the locals expected, the reservoir did not only assure their water supply but the pond which formed by the reservoir also created a fountain which gave animals drinking water too. The locals divided water dependent on the size of their homes. People from Kajžar received a small amount, whilst larger farms with large homes took water home in special wooden water buckets which carried a lot more water. All locals took care of and maintained the reservoir.
GOJAKI
Whole village Gojaki offers an exceptional feeling, since there is a big geomantic field present. Good house of health is standing on the area of the megalithic facility, which still works and is at least 3000 years old.
RECREATION
House of good health Čičarija offer an excellent starting point for cycling, hiking and taking trips. For more demanding mountaineers, Žabnik (1045m) offers a great opportunity to follow the marked forest paths as well as the surrounding peaks Ostič, Medvižica, Mala/Velika vrata, and Slavnik (1028m). For cyclists, there are numerous cycling paths to the nearby towns (Obrov, Gojaki, Zagrad, Brdo, Poljane) as well as forest paths.