Ljubly Ljubljana!

Today has been a bit of a revelation, in more ways than one! Didn't start off so well as Ed and Jasper's reports of the showers weren't good. As the campsite is in the winter season, we are using the facilities at the gym which is attached to the site. As ever these days we are the only campers on site, so it's a bit of a lonely affair really. No one to compare notes with, or moan about the showers, or conversely ask which one is the best!!! So Maya and I set off for our showers and as reported by the males in the group, there were indeed no doors, or shower curtains on the cubicles so it was a case of liking it or lumping it! All was revealed; thankfully no-one else came into the showers whilst I was in there!!!

Once we'd recovered from that, we set off on the bus to the city centre. The public transport that we have used from one country to another has varied in price, comfort and style. The worst so far has been the train between Pompei Scavi and Napoli! Today's bus was pretty good, the ticket system was yet another revelation. We had to get a pre-paid plastic card, load it with the number of journeys we wanted to make, and then once on the bus, declare how many passengers we were (we thought being a family of 4 it was obvious!), validate the card on a green swipe machine and then repeat the procedure for the return journey later on. 

We headed into Ljubljana with no idea what we would see. We had a "freebie" city guide from the campsite which contained a map and listed a suggested walk. We got off the bus, located ourselves on the map, and then set off, in a random fashion not following the route at all. The 'Triple Bridge' was the first sight that we saw. Apparently it was built between 1929 and 1932 when two side bridges for pedestrians were added to the main central bridge. The grey skies above and grey buildings around us were brightened by balloon sellers on the central bridge, and then to our surprise we saw an otter on the river banks below. 

Expecting a long walk, we set off. We wandered up the river walk way past markets and stalls, coffee shops and craft stalls. What a delight! We had no idea that we were going to see such a variety of things on offer; all the shops and stalls were selling unique items and at reasonable prices too! Every turn we made revealed wonderful buildings and brilliant colours.

The 'Dragon Bridge' was another great site to see, an Art Nouveau creation built in 1901. So the dragon is the symbol of the city and appears everywhere, even on the drain covers!!! A game of spot the dragon started until we saw the next point of interest.

Legend has it that the dragon landed on the outlook tower of the castle, which we reached via the funicular railway.

Not having a head for heights, I didn't really want to go up it, but as the price was included in the castle tickets, I didn't really have a choice! The castle itself is a fantastic mix of old and new. The castle was bought for the people of Ljubljana by a mayor, it then needed restoring, so they held a design competition! The results of the restoration project are highly evident - from the upper funicular station you enter the "insides" of the castle with its vast steel supports holding the structure above in place. We enjoyed all of the sights of the castle, and learnt lots about Slovenia's past. Lunch followed, and then more wandering about (and a spot of souvenir shopping) before we started to feel the cold and headed back to the motorhome for a cup of good old English tea!

So Ljubljana, we enjoyed your revelations and will return at some point to see some more!

Clare