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West Africa, Malta and the Balkans in 1999

SLOVENIA

Bec
2004-09-19 14:35:45

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Ljubljana
After a quick tour of San Marino I bought a ticket for Ljubljana with a change of trains in Venice. I got to Venice around midnight but I missed the connection to Ljubljana so I jumped onto a train that was going to Trieste where I arrived around three the morning. It was a bit rough because the station was closed and I had to find a secluded spot were I could sleep until it opened at 7:30. Hot coffee and doughnuts in the train station restaurant were welcome but it had been cold night and I had caught a throat infection for which I had to take antibiotics for a week. My usual good luck was leaving me.

Finally, I got on the nine o'clock train and arrived here around noon. After a quick exploration of the city center, I changed some money, bought some medicine for my throat, got on the telephone to find a room and took a city bus that brought me here. The Gostilna Zilbert was a bit far from the city center but I had a comfortable room with bathroom and television for only 9$ and the bar downstairs was full of friendly people. I had been travelling nonstop for three days and two nights since Malta so I went early to bed and slept 16 hours.

My luck had indeed left me, after months of nice weather it was raining and cold. I went to town anyway, with my umbrella of course. It's a pity the weather was so poor for Ljubljana is a lovely town with many photogenic spots like this view of the Dragon Bridge over the Ljubjanica River.

The Franciscan church on Preernov trg (Preeren's square), marks the city center. Three bridges next to each other connect Preernov trg to the old town.

The city center is ancient but Ljubljana also has modern office buildings and residential complexes like the one seen in this picture. Slovenia is the most developed and affluent of the ex-Yugoslav countries.

The majority of Slovenes are Catholic like the neighbouring Italians, Austrians, ...