- about Llubljana

Whenever I return from a journey, I take a walk through the old part of Ljubljana , and every time I do that I notice anew the loveliness of the city itself and its inhabitants.

Ljubljana has always been dear to me, and there are certain things which will keep it that way forever: enjoying a cup of coffee with my friends, romantic walks to the Ljubljana Castle at night or in Tivoli Park on sunny days, in-line skating and enjoying an ice-cream in the evenings, exhibitions, theatre shows, weekend parties (which last well into the small hours) at one of the numerous restaurants, bars, or pubs (As, Papillon, Bachus, Emonska klet, etc.).

- events

Regardless of the season, or the time of day, there is always something going on. In May, processions march through the city and whistle, thus opening the season of grand parties and festivities of all kinds; that is not a coincidence - after all, Ljubljana is a university town full of young people.

- sights

In summer, streets become open-air theatres, there are buskers and other street performers on nearly every corner, old customs are awoken on the Ljubljanica river (for example the custom of dunking unscrupulous bakers, who cheated customers, in the waters of the Ljubljanica) ... and sitting and enjoying a cold drink somewhere in the open air sometimes makes you feel as if you were in one of the lively and cheerful Mediterranean countries. The inhabitants of Ljubljana mostly choose to spend their summer holidays at the seaside; festivals, congresses, art, theatre performances, fairs, museums and exhibitions, however, attract many tourists - not surprisingly, because the festivals and events in Ljubljana are well known for their wide-ranging offer. Every year, more than 10,000 cultural events and ten international festivals take place in Ljubljana .

- events

Every summer, the Krizanke open-air theatre hosts the Ljubljana Jazz Festival (June 26-28); numerous jazz bands from different countries come to Ljubljana to participate in the festival. In the last week of June, there is the international festival of open-air theatres, Ana Desetnica; streets are full of improvised stages and performances. Metelkova Mesto is the place for all young people in search of relaxed entertainment; Metelkova Mesto is namely the city's centre of alternative culture of the young. Druga godba ("Other Music"), a festival of alternative and world music (May 25-June 1), and The international Summer Festival of music, theatre and dance, the oldest Slovenian festival and without a shadow of a doubt the number one cultural even in the summer (July 6-August 21), also contribute to the diversity of events on Ljubljana's social calendar. Personally, I can hardly wait for the Trnfest, the KUD Summer festival which takes place in Trnovo in August. Many events (music, theatre, dance, etc.) are free, and offer high quality, diverse and original entertainment. If I am not too far from Ljubljana , I always attend Noc v Stari Ljubljani (A Night in the Old Town ) at the end of summer (August 29), a traditional show with live music and a lot of stalls, which announces the end of the summer and the beginning of school term.

In autumn, discos brim with life. Nightlife (especially student nightlife) is at its best in that season. The smell of roasted chestnuts fills the air. In winter, you can watch people stiff with cold trying to warm their hands on plastic glasses of mulled wine. There are lights everywhere, shops are full of people, the city is full of joy. New Year's parties are a long and boisterous, and offer a taste of what is yet to come: the carnival before Lent, bonfires in May ...

- history of the city

Legend has it that the foundations of the city of Ljubljana have been laid by the Argonauts who fled from the Black Sea to the Adriatic after they had stolen the golden fleece. Archaeologists claim that the strata on which the foundations of Ljubljana lie are around three thousand years old. There is some truth in both theories: according to the legend, Ljubljana lies on the watershed of rivers running towards the Adriatic and the Black Sea , and therefore opens in both directions. Skimming over history one can find out that on the very same place, the city of Emona was established by the Romans at the beginning of the Christian era; it flourished until the Huns destroyed it. At the foot of the Castle Hill, the city was reestablished by the Slavs in the 6th century; five hundred years later, in 1144, the city was first mentioned in documents as Luwigana. (After: Dusa, Zdravko: Ljubljana - Glavno mesto Slovenije)

Symbols of the City

Visitors to Ljubljana tend to remember at least two things about the city, apart from its nightlife of course. One of the highlights is usually the climb up the Castle Hill. The Castle is considered the central and most attractive venue in Ljubljana . The other highlight is the tragic love story of Slovenia 's most famous romantic poet France Preseren. The Preseren Monument is a well-known meeting point of young people and travellers; the statue of the poet gazes into the window of Julija Primic, a lady who refused his love.

There is another man whose life and work gave Ljubljana some of its character and charm. That was the architect Joze Plecnik, born in Ljubljana and educated in Graz , whose work can also be seen in Prague . Although many people do not know his name, there is not a single soul in Ljubljana who has not walked over the Triple Bridge , or bought their fruit and vegetables at the Central Market, or perhaps borrowed a book or checked their e-mail at the National and University Library. Plecnik redesigned the banks of the Ljubljanica river, designed the bridges on it, and thus helped establish the city the way it is today.

And finally, there is another thing which makes Ljubljana such a special place. From Ljubljana, people go skiing to Kranjska Gora, yachting to Izola, horse riding to Lipica, boating to the Krka river; they go to Bled for a "kremna rezina" (popularly called "kremsnita", a dessert made of flaky pastry topped with thick vanilla cream and fresh cream), to Trieste for a cup of coffee, to Venice to an art exhibition and a lenghty break with a frothy cappuccino (by the way, every two years, Venice hosts the famous Biennale d'Arte, a biennial art exhibition; perhaps you would like to take the opportunity and visit it this summer.) It does not take more than two hours to reach any of these venues by car.

Did you know...?

... that an old legend has it that the dragons on the Dragon Bridge (also called the mother-in-laws' bridge) wag their tails whenever a virgin crosses the bridge?

... that in Ljubljana , there is a bridge on which trees grow? And that that bridge is the only one of its kind in the world? This is the Trnovo Bridge .

... that Tranca (Stari trg 4), a popular shop selling roller skating equipment, was a prison in the 18th century? Those condemned to death were executed at a spot nearby by strangulation, drowning, or being burnt at stake.

By Marjeta Snoj, EURplace26 Participant, 2004 

After eating my way through three aeroplane meals (which were surprisingly tasty!) and listening to three sets of flight safety rules, I finally arrived in Ljubljana. I reached the hostel where I was going to be staying which, at first glance, was quite grotty and dull. It was, however, liveable and kindly run by the manager and the staff. I got used to the place and began to feel quite comfortable. A piece of advice though - take a small roll of toilet paper! At the hostel there was lots of tourist information and computers to use. This grotty hostel, however, in no way reflected the beautiful city as I realised in the two days I spent in Slovenia’s capital.

- about the city

It amazed me how much Ljubljana reminded me of Edinburgh! Even though the look and feel was quite different, both beautiful capitals have castles looking down over the city centre. In Slovenia the people are very proud of their national poet whose statue is a common meeting point in the very centre of town (our Robert Burns). There is also a lovely tale about Jason of the Argonauts slaying the dragon that was living in the main river - the river with seven names. The Dragon is the symbol of the capital and can be seen in statue form all around the city. This reminded me a bit of the stories that we hold and admire in our city – the Loch Ness monster and Greyfriars Bobby etc. The obvious differences were the weather and the river running through the capital.

- sights

Even though it was only the beginning of summer the weather was gloriously sunny without any hint of intruding clouds. I would advise that the first thing you do in Ljubljana is visit the Castle. If you are feeling rather energetic then you can walk all the way up a winding path. (I’am told this is used as a running path for physical education students!) However, if you fancy a more bearable way up to the castle then there is a train/bus that takes you from the centre of town directly to outside the castle. I took both options, I walked halfway then got on the train. I found that the walking was manageable plus you get good views on the way. However, the train follows the same walking path and is relatively cheap compared to what Edinburgh would charge! I advise you take your map with you as there is a tower in the castle that has all round views of the beautiful city. It is a fair climb and a feat for those who are scared of heights to the top but well worth it. There is also a virtual tour of the city which tells you stories of Ljubljana. This is a wonderful experience and is an ingenious way of telling people a brief history of the capital. In the courtyard there is a fair wind which was quite refreshing. I found that sitting in the park just outside the castle was very relaxing and gets you away from the heat of the centre of town.

- useful information

In the summer heat it was easy to get thirsty, and I love sitting in cafes especially in a lovely city with great views. Luckily for me there were hundreds of outdoor cafes all around town: all fairly cheap (300 tolas for a glass of orange juice which works out at about 85pence). Some of the cafes sit along the river which provided the best views. There are also many bars and restaurants dotted around the centre of town, again with very reasonable prices. I suggest that you try some of the traditional Slovenian food – my choice was cooked cottage cheese with warmed Slovenian wine as a sauce.

Slovenia being a neighbour to Italy, there are many Italian restaurants serving tasty pastas and pizzas. At many of the cafes there were sweet little birds that joined me. They were perfectly harmless and tame.

Another way to see the city is a ride on a tour boat. I had quite an adventure when I visited – we were left stranded in the middle of the river for a while due to a near crash (I am told that this was not the usual plan for the boat trips)! It was very sensibly managed and we got free beers for it! The trip takes about an hour and a tour guide tells you more about the city. It is very relaxing and you see wonderful views of the city from a different angle.

There are other ways of getting around the city. As it is a small city it is easy to walk around it, and there are places around the city that you can hire bicycles.

If you fancy a fun activity then an idea would be going to the large park at the edge of the centre of town. Here you can play mini golf (!), there is also a leisure centre and many walks that you can go on. Actually it is amazing how much green there is in Ljubljana - apparently 53% is greenery and plants.

There are also many museums and galleries in town. My favourite was definitely the national gallery of Slovenia. There was a wonderful collection of art in this gallery. The old part of the building is full of different styles, portraits and landscapes. All the works are done by Slovenian artists. The 1950s museum was in the large park that I mentioned earlier. Although not much of it is translated into English (this I was surprised about) it is easy to follow. One important thing to remember is that the galleries and museums are closed on a Monday.

- how to get there

There is so much to see in Ljubljana, I will almost definitely be going back to tour a bit further. That is if I can raise the money – the flights were more expensive than the rest of the trip! The hostel was about £11 a night and all the sights were quite cheap. As the capital was quite a small city I got used to it fairly quickly and grew to love it in a small amount of time.

Alice Flatman, EURplace26 participant, 2004