Slovenia

Slovenia is a small country with only about 2 million inhabitants. It was part of former Yugoslavia, and is now part of the EU.

I arrived to Ljubljana (cap) in the evening, and went to a pub closest to my hostel. I had fantastic beer, called 'Lasko' and the friendly Russian waiter got me a 2 for 1 deal. On the menu, at the same bar, was cannabis ice-tea.

I started my first day in Slovenia by taking a 90 minute bus to lake Bled, which is a stunning teal colour and has a medieval church on an island in the middle of the lake.

I am staying at a hostel called the Pod Lipo, which is in Mirje street (thought that was quite ironic)

I strolled accross to the local supermarket to see what was on offer, and voila... a taste of home. Ceres in Ljubljana.

I hired a bike this afternoon to tour around the city and went west through the Tivoli Park (below), which is scenic and they say safe, even at night. Ljubljana is reputed to be one of the safest cities going. Well, its actually a town, as it has less the 300 000 inhabitants.

also took the funicular up to the Castle (Ljubljanski Grad) which overlooks Ljubljana.
Its been wonderfully renovated and is a fantastic mix of old and new, stone and glass.


Below is a pic of the door of the St Nicholas Cathedral, in the old part of the city

Some sights of the town. This is the town hall and in front, the fountain of 3 rivers.

A pic of the 3 bridge, and a feel of what Ljubljana is like

Phew - all of this in 1 day, I'm exhausted and ready for bed.

Taking about beds: I am not sure if this is a central European thing - and at the risk of sounding like the princess in the 'princess and the pea' but so far, all the beds have been hard as rocks. The current bed (and the one I'm sleeping on tonight) feels like metal springs with a sheet on top. I honestly think they forgot to add the padding. In true SA fashion, 'n boer maak 'n plan - blankets and towels will now serve as mattress padding.