"It's like living in a fairytale until you realize there isn't much to do," we were told by an older couple we met in Copenhagen. On the train, we mentioned to a German man that we were stopping in Ljubljana because we heard that it was nice. He paused and said, "Maybe." These experiences did not inspire confidence about our upcoming time in Ljubljana, but then we arrived. And we were greeted with the most charming city in the most charming country, and it became a highlight on our European Adventure. Ljulbjana's Old TownLjubljana's Old Town is filled with picture perfect buildings and cobblestone streets. A number of bridges span the Ljubljanica River flowing through town. Along the river banks, cafe tables line the sidewalks and locals sit outside, sipping wine. The Old Town is small but fun to wander through, stopping in cafes, exploring shops, and walking along the river. We spent a couple of warm summer afternoons sitting outside at cafes, sampling Slovenian wine. A particular favorite was TOZD. The symbol of the city is a dragon. Local legend says that the founder of Ljubljana killed a dragon. There are dragons all over the city, including a Dragon Bridge, dragon statues, and dragon souvenirs. I though this was a fun quirk, something different than you encounter in other European capitals. Another thing I noticed in Ljubljana was the number of garbage cans. On the street, I saw receptacles lined up for various types of waste. I learned the Ljubljana was given the "European Green Capital Award" in 2016. The honor is awarded based on 12 environmental factors, including transport, green urban areas, waste production and management, nature and biodiversity, air, water consumption, and energy performance, among others. So, it makes sense that I saw evidence of Ljubljana's efficient waste management while walking the city streets. Ljubljana CastleWhat fairytale would be complete without its very own castle? Ljubljana Castle is perched on top of a hill in the middle of Old Town. It's a majestic stone structure, originally a medieval fortress. There is a funicular that ferries visitors up Castle Hill for a price, but we chose to walk up the hill, which ended up being a nice way to look out over the city. At the top, we did not end up paying the entrance fee, since we were able to look out from the castle walls, walk through the courtyard, and enter a small chapel without a ticket. Looking down over the red roofs of Ljubljana was quite a sight! Ljubljanajam Food TourOne of the activities that we chose to pay for on our European Adventure was a food tour in Ljubljana with a company called Ljubljanajam. I HIGHLY recommend a food tour with Iva, who owns this company. She was very knowledgeable, was very accommodating to food allergies, and put together a lovely food tour that highlighted some traditional dishes from Slovenia. We went for the Ljubljana Essentials Tour, but tours focused on craft beer, Slovenian wine, and desserts are also offered! On our food tour, we stopped by the farmer's market and sampled bear sausage. We tried soup, pumpkin oil, a fish plate, a chicken dish, Slovenian liquor and wine, gelato, and coffee. For a longer summary of our Food Walk, read my full review here. Hanging with localsWe stayed in an Airbnb just across the river from Old Town Ljubljana, right across from the Rog Factory, an abandoned bicycle factory that is occupied by squatters and operates a variety of community spaces. We stayed there during protests in June 2016 against the demolition of the building, and we could hear protesters from our room throughout our stay. Our Airbnb was fantastic! We had lovely hosts who chatted with us, made us feel welcome, gave us a demo record (they were all dancers, artists, musicians), and even arranged for us to come to a small, local yoga class when we couldn't find a yoga class to attend on our own. Our apartment was located on Trubarjeva Cesta, just across the Dragon Bridge from Old Town. Trubarjeva Cesta was lined with shops and restaurants, most of the buildings colorfully adorned with graffiti. Shoes hung from a few of the telephone wires overhead. This street contrasted with the clean and tidy streets of Old Town. I liked the contrast and the visual interest of the graffiti along this street. ModernaIn our never-ending search for coffee, we ended up at Moderna, a minimalist coffee shop located inside the Museum of Modern Art. As we entered the building, we heard some other-worldly sounds, coming from a modern art exhibit, I presume. But Moderna was a lovely treat, with delicious, hand-poured coffee. Curiously, it was served in wine glasses. We spent a few hours relaxing in Moderna, drinking coffee and taking advantage of their wi-fi. If you are a modern art fan, I'm sure the museum would be a fun stop either before or after the coffee shop. We spent two days in Ljubljana, which was enough to explore the central part of the city. The architecture was charming, and the people we met were friendly. There are not a ton of big "attractions" in the city, but we were happy enough wandering through the streets of Old Town and taking advantage of the cafes. The relaxed pace and small feel is a nice break from some of the bigger, busier cities in Europe. The wine is delicious. And there are dragons.
Ljubljana is also a great jumping off point for heading into the Julian Alps. We took a bus to stunning Lake Bled, which took about an hour, but more about Lake Bled is coming in another blog post!
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One of the only activities I planned ahead of time for our European Adventure was a food walk in Ljubljana, Slovenia with Ljubljananjam. Brett and I love to try new foods and get a sense of new places by sampling local cuisines, so I felt that a food walk would be a perfect way to get acquainted with Ljubljana! Ljubljananjam offers a variety of different food walks, from "Ljubljana Essentials" to a craft beer tour to tours focusing on coffee and cakes. To set up the reservation, I got in touch with Iva, the owner of Ljubljananjam. She was very easy to communicate with and very helpful in figuring out our preferences via email. We let her know that we were interested in a "Ljubljana Essentials" tour and would need gluten-free food because Brett was just diagnosed with Celiac Disease. It was great to hear that a gluten free tour would be no problem. We met Iva by the Tourist Information Center in the center of Ljubljana, an easy walk from our Airbnb, though we initially went to the wrong Tourist Information Center. Luckily, she waited for us even though we were a few minutes late. Iva was friendly, knowledgable, and eager to share about Slovenia's food, culture, and history. Iva, Brett, and I spent the next three hours walking through the streets of Ljubljana, trying a wide variety of foods and learning more about this place. We started in Ljubljana's central market, which is set up almost every day and offers stands filled with produce, cheese, plants, and meats. Personally, I love markets, so I had fun perusing the various offerings as we made our way through the market. Iva had some specific stands for us to sample, including a stand that made goat and sheep cheeses and a meat stand where we tried bear sausage! Yes, it is made with real bear meat mixed with pork! From the market, we sat down at a small shop to eat bowls of vegetable soup before heading to a restaurant where we shared sea bream with lemony potato puree and chicken fillet with buckwheat and pumpkin seed oil sauce. Iva warned us ahead of time that we should expect the fish to be served whole, and, sure enough, on the plate was the entire fish, bones and eyes and all. She was nice enough to de-bone most of the fish for us. We learned that pumpkin seed oil is a common ingredient in Slovenian cuisine. Armed with that knowledge, we headed out of the restaurant to sample some pumpkin seed oil. Next, we stopped in a shop that sold a variety of Slovenian products, including pumpkin seed oil and Slovenian liquor. We were able to taste pumpkin seed oil made from raw and roasted pumpkin seeds. I liked the unique flavor of the pumpkin seed oil and ended up choosing it as salad dressing for other meals in Ljubljana. We also sampled some flavors of Slovenian liquor, which came in flavors like honey, sour cherry, and blueberry. Our next stop was at one of the cafes along the river to drink Slovenian wine. Iva picked a Lisjak Sauvignon Blanc for us, which was quite good. Google tells me that Boris Lisjak is a Slovenian winery in western Slovenia, only 16 km from Trieste, Italy. Brett and I typically choose red wines more often than whites, but we both really liked Iva's pick for us. It was highly enjoyable to drink our wine at a table outside, surrounded by the beautiful buildings of Ljubljana's Old Town with the river in the background. We actually went back to this same cafe the following day to relax with another glass of wine in the sunshine. Following the wine stop, we got gelato! After sampling a few different flavors, I ultimately chose a combination of lemon-ricotta gelato and a flavor with pumpkin seed oil, one scoop of each flavor in my cup. The food tour finished with coffee and espresso. Because Brett loves coffee, Iva and the guy in the shop showed him how to make espresso using the machine, which he had never done before. We chatted for awhile with the guy working in the cafe and found out that he is in a band called Koala Voice, just back from a tour around Europe. Throughout the tour, Iva gave us a number of recommendations for food and drink in Ljubljana and marked them on our map. We appreciated hearing where to go from someone familiar with the food and drink scene in Ljubljana, rather than wandering around by ourselves and guessing which shops were good. Our favorite recommendation from Iva was Moderna, a cafe in the Museum of Modern Art. They roast their own coffee beans and were the only shop in Ljubljana that served pour over coffee (or filter coffee, as they generally called it in Europe). Overall, I highly recommend Ljubljananjam Food Walks! Iva really personalizes the tour for each group and provides a wonderful experience. I didn't include the restaurant names in this post because I don't want to give away all of Iva's secret spots! The only name that I included - Moderna Cafe - wasn't actually on the tour, just a recommendation of Iva's. Brett and I felt that the food tour was easily worth the money that we paid, given the variety of foods we tried as well as the personalized service. The food walk doubled as our lunch, since the tour started at 11:00am and lasted until approximately 2:00pm. It was a fantastic introduction to the city of Ljubljana, and it was clear that Iva was happy to show off her city. I recommend doing a food walk early in your visit to Ljubljana, since it will help orient you to the city. You will also benefit from Iva's recommendations for the rest of your stay! If you are headed to Ljubljana, go to the Ljubljananjam website and find the right food walk for you!
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AuthorMy name is Alyssa Good and I have a passion for travel, adventure, culture, and new experiences! I focus on budget friendly travel, trip planning resources, and seeking out new experiences. Archives
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