I Was Totally Shocked and Charmed by Ljubljana, Slovenia

Ever visit somewhere you just don’t want to leave, to the extent that you look for excuses to stay? That’s what happened to me on my trip to Slovenia. My visit came about rather oddly in that I was never planning to visit Slovenia. I had a trip planned to Italy, a country I’d been to before. Then it occurred to me: since I was going back to Italy, maybe I should take the opportunity to visit a country I hadn’t been to before. That’s when the planning wheels started turning when I booked my award ticket. I looked at the map and noticed that Slovenia shared a border with Italy. Wow, so much in Ljubljana to eat, see, and do!

When you read about Slovenia it always says its capital, Ljubljana, is a city “made to the measure of man”. It’s fascinating how places describe themselves. Not only is this way of describing Ljubljana totally true, it gives you a window from which to view and then experience the energy and feeling of this city and its people. They are warm, friendly, full of life, and certainly living in a beautiful mid-sized city. Ljubljana lies between Venice and Vienna, which makes for an interesting mix of cultures and cuisines, though I found Slovenia to be uniquely its own place.

Without gushing too much about how wonderful this country is, I want to give you five ideas for what to do and see that — with the exception of one — won’t likely end up on any “must see” lists you’ll find online.

Image by Aleš Kravos | Wikimedia Commons

Postojna Cave

First let’s talk about the site you will see on every list, which I feel is an absolute must: Postojna Cave. Simply spectacular! I suggest renting a car and driving there from Ljubljana. Slovenia’s nature is beautiful. It is one of the seven countries that border the Alps (can you name the other six?), and driving on the back roads to the cave gave us time to appreciate the scenery and not rush through our day.

I had to think back because it’s possible I’ve never been to a cave before, and certainly nothing like Postojna Cave. Postojna Cave set a super high bar for my cave experiences, and now I’m more curious to visit other caves as well. The tour of the cave took about 90 minutes and there were other exhibits to see. We enjoyed an amazing butterfly exhibit. After the tour, the park that houses the cave makes for a relaxing place to enjoy before heading out. We spent about three hours total out by the caves.

You must see Postojna Cave for yourself!

Tivoli Park

The first thing I do when I get to a new city is find a park and walk in it. It’s my way of putting myself in the local scene and getting a sense of the people. So right after I checked into my hotel and took a look at the city map, I walked in the opposite direction of all the touristy areas to Tivoli Park.

Tivoli is my kind of park! Beautiful walking paths that, should you want to go up into the hills and deeper into nature, allow for that. The walking paths through the flatter wooded areas are fun too, with lots of walkers, runners, families with children, and people and their dogs. The museums and architecture are worth a visit, especially the history museums.

Walk all the way through the park and you’ll come to the sports complex area of the park. Wow! As a health and fitness professional, I’m not easily impressed. But Tivoli’s sports complex did, indeed, impress me. The indoor aquatic area was huge, there are lots of tennis courts, buildings ice hockey, basketball, and martial arts. I even saw a miniature golf course for kids.

In general, Tivoli is very family-oriented with quite a few playgrounds for kids. Do take time and stroll through Tivoli. It’s only a 15-minute walk from the historic city center area where you’ll likely be staying.

Everything a park lover could want! Image source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_City_Park

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Eat Fish

I’m not sure what I was thinking, but I didn’t expect there to be so much amazing fish to eat in Slovenia. I know, strange, huh, because Slovenia is on the sea 🙂 My palate for fish is broad and I love fish, so I was ecstatic.

How much fish did I eat? I ate so much fish I may have grown gills! And I found a gem of a fish place called Valentin. As you walk in, you’ll see a fish market to your left, and then a counter with eight seats to your right. Whatever kind of fish you like, they have it and will cook it up any way you like it. There’s a more formal dining room in the back, but I sat at the counter and enjoyed not only the food, but watching it all being cooked to order. I ate there three times! Each time I left the chef would say, “See you tomorrow!”

Notice the prices in the photos: amazing deal. Even with wine or beer, you’ll be hard pressed to spend more than 6 or 7 Euro.

Enter Valentin’s for some delicious fish.

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Drink milk the way it used to taste

Got milk? Got raw milk? If you live in the U.S., I doubt it. Raw milk is still illegal in many states, and even in the ones that allow it, it’s still hard to find. I won’t get into the politics of milk, but I will say that I don’t drink homogenized or pasteurized milk, and so much to my delight, I found a milk machine in Ljubljana!

It’s hard to describe so take a look at the photos. The milk gets delivered fresh every day. You choose either a glass or plastic jug, put it under the dispenser, and for €2, you get a large bottle of milk.

It’s delicious! When I came back to the hotel carrying my jug of milk, the staff looked rather strangely at me. I knew they were curious. I explained that back home, we didn’t have milk machines and that we get homogenized and pasteurized milk, so this was a real treat for me.

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Best Gelato

And speaking of dairy products, I’ll save you a bunch of time and money and recommend the best gelato in Ljubljana! The Slovenes, like the Argentinians, are crazy for ice cream and gelato. At all times of the day, every day, they eat it. Cones, cups, on waffles…… there are many, many places to buy it. Go straight away to Romantica. The woman who owns it is passionate about the quality of the gelato and it’s all made on the premises. She rotates her flavors and usually has at least a dozen flavors in the rotation. And she’s very generous about giving you a taste of any flavor that catches your eye. She even insisted that I try a few flavors I wouldn’t have thought I’d like. I won’t tell you my favorites because she might not have them when you’re there, so sample some and see what you think.

Final Thoughts

I know what you’re thinking……..lots of suggestions about food! For me, one of the most important ways to get to know a country and its people is to walk in parks and eat the local offerings. And then I share what I’ve learned with others. Slovenia was a beautiful place to explore with so much in Ljubljana to eat, see, and do!

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