Ljubljiana is a beautiful and amazing place. After coping with the crowds in Italian cities, it is a very welcome contrast to be in a city that has interesting areas with more locals than tourists. The cost of our food and accommodation is about 60% of Italy and Austria. The people are friendly and have a sense of humour. They cycle on marked areas on the footpath, so pedestrians have to be careful, but it is one of the safest towns for cyclists that we have seen. Very few wear helmets because collisions with cars are rare.
The weather was not as hot today so we spent five hours sightseeing and enjoyed every minute. We walked to the river and crossed the Four Dragons Bridge, taking a photo of the Butchers' Bridge which has all the lovers' padlocks on the wires. Dragons have been symbolic of the city since Roman times.
Like so many European towns, a castle dominates on the adjacent hill so we headed for it, stopping to look at the water bubbler in a surprising form.
There is a funicular car that whisks you up the hill just like Zillertal and Thollon. We got the prime spot to photograph the town and surrounding mountains.
The present castle was built in the 17th century and the latest renovations were completed in 2011. It is a pleasure to wander around with excellent historical information and archeological finds.
This is the model.
The cells used for prisoners in the late 19th century were still able to be visited. There was a display of art by local people and one artist specialised in Escher type drawings. Some were impossible figures:
One used reflection from a metal post to produce a picture of a pantheon.
This column of chain links was all wood.
We walked down the zigzag path back to the river and past the many food stalls selling traditional eats.
The honey stall was particularly interesting.
The town has links with a famous composer, Gustav Mahler.
We sat by the river eating a banana and listening to a jazz group playing the same pieces as U Bouddi at home play.
A section of the river bank was devoted to outdoor photos like the scout ones we saw yesterday. There were about twenty photos of buildings in Slovenia and adjoining countries designed by the architect Maks Fabiani at the turn of the nineteenth century.
This bride thought the area was nice for photos.
On the way back we saw a huge advertisement for the 100% electric Renault. This car is used in Paris for short rentals. It was to be sold in Australia but the company withdrew because our governments showed no interest. Slovenia makes Australia look like a backward country.
It would have been good to spend two or three days exploring the countryside here.
No comments:
Post a Comment