Castles, Ornaments and the Malá Fatra

The sun was shining again and I decided to wear shorts today, after all the sweat that was running down yesterday. It didn't change a lot, though, as the sweat was still running for its life when I climbed the first castle of the day. At least, Lietava Castle was rather easy to access with nice, steady rising paths through the forest. Only the first bit was over a sunny, green hill.
The castle itself was nice to explore as there were a lot of segments of the past castle you could still see. The view was nice as well.
The funny thing was that I saw a Ferrari flag on top of a construction site - so even here the Ferrari mentality is strong haha.
After that I drove to Rajecké Teplice to see the Bethlehem art installation there. However, I could park there and instead parked in the city. There, I found myself in a beautiful park where I ate my lunch. Eating in a park was quickly becoming a habit of mine here. I tried to walk to the Bethlehem thingy, but instead I found a hotel that was a whole art installation itself, so I thought that was good enough.
I drove on to the village of Čičmany which is famous for the ornaments on many of their houses. Here is what Google told me, after I asked why the ornaments are there:
Čičmany ornaments are a folk tradition from Slovakia, where geometric and stylized patterns, originally from embroidery, are painted in white on dark wooden houses to symbolize harmony, stability, and fertility. This tradition began around 200 years ago as a way to protect houses from humidity and evolved into a unique artistic style, notably preserved and developed after a major fire in 1921. The ornaments are now a national symbol, appearing not only on buildings but also in fashion and product design, and the village is recognized as a folk architecture monument reserve.
So, now you know as well. You're welcome.
As the day was still sunny and young, I decided to drive not only back to Zilina but up North to the Malá Fatra to go inside a Gorge.
It was a real adventure, not only for me but for Aluna as well. There were so many ladders, oh God. I hate ladders so much. Especially ones that look like they could crash any minute, at least in my eyes. You don't want to know how many times I muttered "I'm gonna die" climbing them but especially going down again.
Aluna was running through the muddy water of the river as if she never had any issues with water. I mean, I can totally understand. It was so hot all day long - she had even gone into the river in Čičmany all by herself. But then I had to pick her up to go over the ladders and wooden paths that were too risky for her to walk. So, of course it resulted in my top to be a complete mess after the hike. Good that my mom's got a washing machine (mine is broken, otherwise, I could wash myself)🫣🤭.
When the sun set, I got myself something to eat at Lidl and drove to the Budatin Castle to, once again, sit in a park and enjoy my food.
It got fresh real quick, so I packed my stuff and drove back home to check in on my host family and fall asleep at 10 pm once more.Okumaya devam et