My name is Jana, and I will be your host during your stay at the Dormouse House. I will meet you at the house on the day of your arrival, show you around the house, and give you some more tips on places you can visit during your stay. Some of the ideas for day trips are already described on the page Things to Do.
Already in my youth, I became interested in birdwatching. I spent many hours at Lake Cerknica, observing birds and other animals. At that time, the Dormouse House was my family’s weekend cottage, and I spent all my spare moments at the place. I remember warm summer nights when I could just sit in the house at an open window and listen to animal sounds from Lake Cerknica. Bittern, Corncrake. Rails, various species of frogs. In later years, I studied biology, and for two years, Lake Cerknica became my research area. At that time, I still lived in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. But as soon as I was free of study obligations in the city, I moved to the village of Goričice, to the other house at our homestead. Three years later, I moved to a village just 15 kilometers away, where I also enjoy having nature on my doorstep.
I am lucky to be self-employed. It took some courage, but soon after graduating in 2002, I established my own non-profit company, Institute Symbiosis. I mainly work in nature conservation, particularly on invasive alien species and on the management of protected areas. Slovenia, as a biodiversity hot spot in Europe, is an ideal place to explore nature. That led to the development of the ecotourism brand Nature in Colour, under which I offer guided day trips to nature.
My family now lives in the other house, so we wanted to give the Dormouse House a new function. After a thorough renovation, we started renting it as a holiday home in 2019. Many happy guests have been staying with us, and they all liked the combination of old and new.
The name Dormouse House was proposed by my older son. In his childhood, he had a keen interest in dormice and he proposed this name. That fit perfectly. The house has very thick stone walls, which create a special quiet atmosphere, so in this house, you will sleep like a dormouse.
