Marica Jeraj was an enterprising and determined woman. In 1932, she became the president of the St. John Tourism and Beautification Society, a position she held—with some interruptions—until 1939. In 1934, together with her husband Jože, she began building Hotel Bellevue, which opened its doors in the summer of the following year (1935). While she was still the tenant of Hotel Sveti Janez, she commissioned a model of Mount Triglav from Bohinj painter Valentin Hodnik, which was placed in front of the hotel. Hodnik carried around three tons of stones from different locations to create the model, which still stands there today. Jeraj and Hodnik were also connected in another way: the painter depicted her on a humorous postcard titled Futurism of Professions as a character dismayed by modern skaters on Lake Bohinj.
She Built Hotel Bellevue
In the 1930s, Marica Jeraj was likely the most active tourism worker in Bohinj. She made a lasting mark on the history of Bohinj tourism as the owner of Hotel Bellevue, located above Lake Bohinj in Ribčev Laz. When it opened, the hotel had 30 rooms, central heating, and balconies. Its construction utilized stone left over from a nearby quarry used during the building of the Bohinj railway tunnel.
In 1948, while still in her possession, the hotel shared the fate of many private businesses that fell victim to state nationalization.
Information: Anja Poštrak, mag. Barbara Kalan / Gorenjski Museum
Photographs: Gorenjski Museum
