Ljubljana, a small quaint city in central Europe you have to visit!
Our free walking tour
At 11 am we join a free guided tour of the city, with guide Helena, we actually pay in form of voluntary tips and this is the 3rd time that we take this kind of tour in Europe.
If you have time, you can book a day tour from Ljubljana to Bled here. This was an enchanting place we had the opportunity to visit.
Slovenia, a country since 1991, Is located in what used to be a lake, then became a Roman town. In 450 AD, Atila from Mongolia, came to the town and burnt the town down, inhabitants flew. After 2 c they managed to rebuild the town in the Middle Ages. With the river on one side and on the other the castle.
The Austrian Habsburgs ruled this area, just came to collect taxes, the reason for the castle not to be very luxurious or richly decorated as in other places.
Most buildings are Italian baroque, as the church
1895, a big earthquake hit the town and the town was rebuilt in the same style.
Our tour starts at the main square.
The main architect Pliźnik in the city decides to add 2 pedestrian bridges to the original one, with a very majestic style.
There is a cozy market with fresh produce, where farmers gather and offer high-quality fruits and vegetables.
Architect Pliźnik uses Greek markets as model to build the market, protecting in winter its visitors.
Pliźnik (main architect in the country) used antique optical illusions, from Greece to counter the perspective effects. So that columns don’t close at the end.
Next stop the butcher’s bridge, as in the Middle Ages the bridge was outside and butchers were located here.
We then visit the 3rd bridge, dragon bridge, dedicated to an Austrian emperor.
The bridge was built after an old wooden bridge was destroyed. They were out of funds and built a reinforced concrete bridge, which was a success, despite not knowing if the material would work for the bridge.
The dragon is the main icon in the city. A mixture of myths explain why dragons are so important for the city.
The cathedral was built at the beginning of the 8th c.
Slovenia was never part of the Ottoman empire, but there is a bit of influence in the culture.
The town hall is built in Italian Baroque.
The inside is a bit older, the courtyard houses a nice sculpture. The fountain of 3 rivers.
The shoe maker’s bridge
The 19th c end of the Habsburgs reign
By Pliźnik , the journey from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge
Open air theater by famous Slovenian architect
Made with sgraffito and other techniques.
Gobova juha v kruhovi skodelici – mushroom soup in bread cup.
Žganci
Kranskja klobasa (traditional sausage)
Buckwheat – štruklsi
Goulash
Gibanica – Slovenian. Specialty with poopy seeds, walnuts, cottage cheese, and apples.
8 pm
The Buena Vista Social club / adios tour. At the cultural and congress center
Some videos so far http://youtu.be/10zVrd1Vldg
We went the next day to the castle of Ljubljana, built originally in the 11th c.
The way up on the funicular offers a nice view as well, on the way up.
In the 19th century it was used as a penitentiary.
We also saw the small chape of St. George, first gothic style and later rebuilt in the Baroque style.
We visited the market and bought some organic fruit and vegetables for our journey. There was also a vending machine where we bought fresh raw cow milk!
The view from the bridge to the neoclassical buildings on the side.
From the riverside, we got this view of the castle.
At the end visited the National Museum which houses a quite good number of tombstones and other items dating back to the roman empire.
Stroll along the quaint streets of downtown Ljubljana to enjoy some wonderful places full of history, wonderful food and lovely views.
Thank you for reading.
Cristina
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