Slovenia has an excellent Tourism slogan . . . . . “I FEEL sLOVEnia”. And I have to agree!
Driving into Slovenia from Italy, I’m still trying to get my head around what Slovenia’s part was in the Austro-Hungarian Empire that ended after World War I. There’s a definite ‘Austrian’ feel to the countryside as we approach Ljubljana through tidy pine forests and little farms.
Walking around the little streets and along the river that cuts through Ljubljana, there’s only minor indication of post-war communism. So much is already immaculate and tidy with brightly coloured buildings in a very green setting. Streets parallel the river and are lined with old merchants’ houses that give the area a feeling of old Salzburg.
The old castle overlooks the town. In the lounge of our hotel, conservatively dressed older ladies ‘take Tea’ wearing hats. Maybe it’s a ‘Sunday’ thing?
Lunch by the river has a mix of Italian and Austrian offerings, pasta and dumpling, but also fillet of baby foal which I decide to try for the first time. The meat is tender enough, without as much flavour as beef but the vinegar reduction is pretty strong.
In the evening, street musicians perform on the many bridges that cross the river while along the banks and in many of the quaint side streets, music comes from cafes and bars overflowing with young people.