Ljubljana

May 7, 2005-Festive
(photos:David & Judi eating al fresco,
Slovenian army at play)

Wouldn’t you know that when Bush & Putin met in Ljubljana Bush said, “Hello Slovakia!” That really ticks them off. People constantly mix up Slovenia & Slovakia.

The Romans settled Ljubljana in 200. There was an earthquake in 1895, so the buildings aren’t that old. Today it’s a city of 300,000 with a woman serving her second term as mayor. Its beauty is marred by graffiti. Our walking tour was short. The local guide mainly pointed out landmarks & suggested we go back on our own when we had 2 ½ hours free time. There’s a castle high on a hill but she said it would take too long to get there & it wasn’t worth seeing since it’s new. She didn’t particularly recommend the museum either. When asked about a synagogue she firmly said that it was destroyed in the 1600’s. Lucky for us there was a celebration of the 60th anniversary of their liberation from the Nazis. There was a marathon, a band, choir, speeches in the park, a flyover of four propeller military planes, sightings of the remnants of the Slovenian army in a few jeeps, bell ringing, & lots of people watching. The weekly Saturday market was in full swing & provided lunch. We bought a loaf of delicious buckwheat bread, local goat cheese (they had pictures of the goats displayed), a tomato, & strawberries. We washed the fruit in the public fountain & the vendor let us use a knife to slice the tomato. We were handed free bottled water by boy scouts. I asked if they were part of the American scouts & they strongly denied it. One was wearing a communist tie tack. I told him I was an American Democrat & didn’t like Bush either.

There was a police presence but they’re not armed. I saw one of them walk purposefully across the lawn to shut off a spigot that was dripping water. I guess it was a slow day.

On the way back to Bled by bus Viki gave us tastes of their honey brandy. David said it didn’t taste as good as Drambui.

They do have convenience stores here. They’re called 7-21s. That’s a 7-11 using a 24-hour clock. It’s actually a 7-9 store here.

A man in our group said that one thing he didn’t like about Grand Circle Tours was they have too many add-on charges for optional tours & too much free time. On the other hand, Ed Lasher observed that GCT has been able to keep its base price down over the years by making some tours optional & eliminating meals. That gives individuals more control over what they choose to spend their money on.

I think there will be a real contrast when we get to Croatia tomorrow. Slovenians earn an average of $1500 /month & Croats only average $700/month.

Toby