Postcards from Around the World

This week we are remaining in Slovenia, but heading to the capital city the delightfully named Ljubljana, the city of the dragons. And there are literally dragons everywhere: guarding the bridges, flying high on the city’s official flag, and even adorning the drain covers throughout the city.

Dragon bridge

Not to mention bridges. There are in fact 17 bridges crossing the Ljubljanica River.

Triple bridge – Prešeren Square which is actually oval shaped and the centre of the historic old town. The pink church is the Franciscan Church of Annunciation.
Cobbler’s bridge built by the architect Jože Plečnik between 1931 and 1932, was formerly occupied by a covered wooden bridge connecting the Mestni trg and Novi trg squares, two major parts of medieval Ljubljana. The bridge provided space for cobblers’ workshops – hence the name Cobblers’ Bridge. 
Triple Bridge. Between 1929 and 1932, the side bridges, intended for pedestrians, were added to the original stone bridge to a design by the architect Jože Plečnik, who thus created a unique architectural gem of Ljubljana.

Between Castle Hill and the Ljubljanica River is the city’s Old Town, defined by three ‘squares’, which are actually more like narrow, cobbled streets. The whole area is pedestrianised and easily walkable with lots of charm and history.

I have blogged about this city before, but let me introduce you to some more of the interesting and quirky sights on my wander around.

Križanke – Knights of the Cross monastery. The architectural complex of Križanke is a popular open-air venue for performing arts in Ljubljana. The architect Jože Plečnik converted this former monastery between 1952 – 1956. The conversion of the Križanke complex was Plečnik’s last project.
The town hall
The fountain of three carniolan rivers
Skeleton in a cage
Slovene poet France Prešeren and his Muse
The Križanke Summer Theatre with a capacity of 1,400, regularly hosts concerts of various types and is one of the main venues for the summer Ljubljana Festival.

 “Locksmith Street,” is a narrow alley in the medieval old town in the Slovenian capital city. The entrance is marked by a key. In the middle of the cobblestoned street is a gully that appears to be flowing with hundreds of strange little faces. Some happy, some sad, some rather strangely distorted. There are 700 of these bronze faces running through the centre of the alley, culminating in a drinking fountain and a couple other odd sculptures, namely a bronze hand and a skeleton trapped in a cage.

Faces by Slovenian sculptor Jakov Brdar

Ljubljana Grad, is the castle on top of the hill in the centre of the city. It was originally constructed in the 11th century as a medieval fortress, but most of the current structure dates back to the early 16th century, when most of the castle was rebuilt after a devastating earthquake. It’s been used for everything from a military defence fortress to an army hospital and even a prison; as late as the 1960s it was even used as public housing.

Ljubljana Grad / Castle
Funicular to castle
Castle
Castle

A good thing about this European city is that it is not overrun with passengers from cruise ships so although there are tourists it still very much feels like a city where locals live and work and have fun.

Along the Ljubljanica

The city has a vibrant café scene and one of the best places to be on a sunny day is sitting outdoors by the riverside watching the world go by. It feels a bit Mediterranean crossed with eastern European with street cafés, bars and restaurants, lovelocks, open air markets and Viennese Secessionist architecture and 19th-century wooden shop fronts, quiet courtyards and cobblestone passageways.

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Heyjude

I have lived in the UK for most of my life, but when young I definitely had wanderlust and even ended up living in South Africa for several years which was a wonderful experience. I now look forward to a long and leisurely retirement doing what I like most - gardening, photography, walking and travelling.

36 thoughts on “Postcards from Around the World”

  1. I love a compact city, for the very reasons you pointed out. History and architecture are impressive. So is that dragon bridge. I’m really enjoying this travel series, Jude. I hope you’re had a good week🌼

    1. Yes they are much easier to explore than the sprawling cities. The fact that the city centre has banished cars makes it so much more enjoyable. A welcome sunny day today Suzanne, but it’s still been very wet throughout the week.

      1. They, as those in power, are trying to reduce vehicles in Tauranga city centre. I liken it too pushing sh*t up hill with a stick. People don’t like not using their vehicles.

        1. Fewer cars = less pollution and much more pleasant for pedestrians. I like cities with park and ride options.

        2. I agree and since we live in the city it would be great. Just need more efficient public transportation.

    1. Those huge cruise ships cause so much damage to the environment not to mention the crush of folk out on their 3 hour visits to a port. Thankfully Ljubljana is a much nicer place to visit.

    1. Yes, an interesting name. The locals of course use a much simpler pronunciation – Lublana. Basically ignoring the js!

  4. We will be traveling to Ljubljana in May, so this post was very helpful and informative. Thank you for sharing your impressions.

    1. We were rather rushed around by a local so I didn’t get the opportunity to photograph as much as I would have liked, but it is a very interesting city with impressive architecture. I would have liked to visit it in December when the Christmas markets run, I imagine it is rather wonderful then too.

      1. So much world not seen Jude, so I enjoy seeing bloggers travel adventures. Lovely to have photos to look back on.

        1. It is nice to go back through the old photos. My travel days have ground to a halt now and I am not keen on flying any more. But it’s so easy to travel virtually.

  6. Glad to see they have a funicular to get up to the castle. It looks like a great small city to explore, Jude.
    Best wishes, Pete. x

    1. We didn’t use the funicular. I have a vague idea that we went up in a lift from the city, but as we were being taken around by a local I wasn’t able to get my bearings very easily. It is a lovely city though and well worth considering for a city break weekend.

  7. Well, Jude, you’ve really sold Ljubljana well, this is very appealing. We’ve seriously enjoyed our trips to the Balkan states but haven’t yet been to Slovenia and this sounds a great destination for our kind of city break. Now, where’s that very long wish list of mine…..

  8. What a lovely city! I’ve enjoyed my tour of Ljubljana through your marvellous post. And I love that magnificent dragon sculpture!

    1. The dragons are fab. I have no idea why I didn’t photograph a manhole cover as I often did in those days. My only excuse is that we only had a few hours there and most of it was in the company of a local who very kindly showed us around not only the city but also the nearby mountain region.

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