 Let's face it, cemetery has it's own feel, not necessarily pleasant to everyone. But nevertheless, it truly can be a great revelation of understanding the country better. And not to forget a beautiful, peaceful walk through outdoor gallery.
Ljubljana's cemetery, called Žale, is a remarkable piece of work, not only there is a breathtaking Garden of All Saints designed by Jože Plečnik and under UNESCO heritage also the rest of the cemetery is beautiful to see.
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 One of architect Jože Plečnik's finest masterpieces is undoubtedly his realization of what is today called National and University Library, which they started building in 1937. From outside the building looks a lot different than any of its neighbors, attracting views with its mostly orange bricks and almost natural rocks facade. On two opposite facades two big windows are places, with ionic column in the middle. Most of the smaller windows are bay windows that for many interpreters of Plečnik's heritage mean books.  Are you cold out there, wandering on the streets of Ljubljana? Go inside and warm up. We decided to visit Museum of Illusions where we most certainly did warm up...floating under the ceiling, wandering who is bigger,
 Slovenia is rich with waters, we have plenty of good drinking water, some (cold) mineral waters and many hot springs as well. There are more than dozen spas in Slovenia, mostly situated on the eastern part of the country, each known for something special. If you are looking for health resorts than browse spas according to their health specifications. Almost all of them offer medical wellness and wellness and selfness programmes, including different styles of saunas, massages, therapies etc. A few of the spas have even Thermal Water Park.  This years edition of amazing Slovenian Wine Festival is near. On 14 and 15 November at Cankarjev dom centre the 22nd will be held. Last year was record-breaking, both by number of visitors and participating wine producers. There were over 240 exhibitors and more than 2000 visitors.  Above the city, quite typical for a Medieval European city, stands the castle. Ljubljana castle. It was built in 15th century by the Habsburgs, later renovated and in 19th century turned into a prison. Today it hosts a few permanent exhibitions, like Slovenian History and fun Museum of Puppetry, and often changing temporary exhibitions. There are two restaurants, a cafe, wine bar, souvenir shop and during the summer many events are organized in the courtyard.  Let me tell you about my three favorite beer shops. There are more specialized beer shops in the city, but the one mentioned here are the one I enjoy visiting.
 Very serious beer. At least so are the guys from Brewery Tektonik claiming. And when we visited them the other day we got sure about how serious they really are. They are.
 We had a wonderful sunset on a warm autumn day on the top of the highest Slovenian tower named Vinarium Lendava. A clear day, such as it was when we were there, enables you to see into 4 countries, of course Slovenia than Hungary, Croatia and even Austria.
 Among brandy lovers slivovitz enjoys its special admiration. It is one of the most appreciated at least in this parts of the World. And the best one to find in Slovenia is the Brkinski slivovec or Brkini slivovitz.
It has the mark of geographical origin and for this it has to be prepared in the traditional way. The secret lies in a special Brkini cauldron distillation, which has to be done only once.  I love board games. Analog board games that requires good old analog company. If you like them as well, you should check out Slovenia's first #BoardGameCafe.
Dobra poteza, board game cafe, is just behind the main train station in Ljubljana and offers hours of fun  The capital beer, as they like to call themselves, shares it's name and a symbol with a city Ljubljana. Loo-blah-nah is a phonetic transcription of Ljubljana in a slang of Ljubljana residents, for English speakers. And of course, dragon is the symbol.
I visited them on the outskirts of Ljubljana, in Črnuče area, while main brewer Domen was making magic.  It might seem that this will be a post about museum shop. But don't be fooled, what I am sharing with you it is almost unknown Plečnik's work, The ultimate architect of Ljubljana. And you can see it absolutely free.
Since he was a big fan of tradition, it is not difficult to understand that he responded to the request in 1939 to draw the plans for the interior of the shop that was going to sell traditional arts. Its original position was at Kongresni trg Square.  All of you bear lovers, let me present you Bearlog hostel. Don't worry, your love of bears is not relevant for liking this hostel. It is beautifully and stylishly designed and situated in an old house at Kočevje. It is in it's first year, so everything still smells of new.
 Does it sound amazing that they pulled out of the river beds around 2200 year old dugout canoe? Yes, it does sound amazing, because that is absolutely amazing. They found it a few decades ago but you can't just pull out such an old wooden object. It would be soon destroyed in changed environment.
They managed to do so in 2015 and I got to see it last year, well, one third of it, one day before they dipped it into last stage of conservation process, that lasts for about three years.  If you ever had a glass of wine you should be able to differ Cviček from any other wine. Simply by its colour. It is not white, nor red, not even orange or rosé. It is Cviček.
There are many mean stories about this bright red wine from Dolenjska region (Lower Carniola region) and sometimes they might be close to the truth. But, to show you otherwise, I am presenting Cviček od fare, wine created by House of Wines Frelih (Hisa vina Frelih) that received Award Commended in London. This is the first time Cviček got any sort of recognition outside Slovenia.  One of the most common questions I get from foreign visitors is whether it is more beautiful Postojna Cave or Škocjan Caves.
 Snežnik castle is one of the cutest Slovenian castles. Not too big, nicely preserved and in an idyllic environment.
And it is one of the few castles in Slovenia that can boast of original furnishings.  Making selfies in front of touristic sights is one thing, learning how to make one Slovenian dish is taking your touristic experience on anther level.
Sometimes they have cooking workshops on the events, like it was the one we joined, at Metlika on it's biggest festival, Vinska Vigred. |
TjašaAfter writing a blog in Slovenian language for 10 years I have finally come to my sense and started writing one in English as well. Categories
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