Search This Blog

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Ljubljana, Part 2

On the way to lunch, we passed numerous alleys.


Near the town hall was an interesting alley with an interesting interactive sculpture. Turn the knob on top of the hand and water flowed.


The water drained to this display, which resembled stool in a ditch. If you look closely, they were actually faces.


Slovenia is very green. There are recycle bins everywhere.


Ljubljana is a relatively flat city. You can rent bicycles to tour the town. There is a subscription fee of €3. The first hour of rental is then free. The next hour is €1. After that, the fee goes up exponentially. I guess they only want you to use it for a short time.

Most of the sights are within walking distance so the bikes are really not necessary.


National & University Library--thought by some to be Plecnik's greatest work. The red and gray color scheme on the building represents the red soil and chunks of granite of the karst region. The library holds more than 2 million books, one for each Slovene. This was the only building that was damaged in WW II. Hundreds of locals formed a human chain to save the books from the burning building.


The main stairway is dark and gloomy and was modeled after an Egyptian tomb. The stairway opens up into a bright and airy room before leading to the library itself. 


The library is only open to the public mid-July to mid-August when school is not in session.



Joze Plecnik House. Plecnik lived here from 1921 until his death in 1957. The house can only be toured with a guide. Unfortunately, on the day we visited, the house was closed. Fortunately, there was a guide who was waiting for an Italian group who had not shown yet so he showed us a small section of the house.


On the walk back into the center of town, we passed a remnant of an old Roman wall.


Cobbler's Bridge was named after the cobblers who set up shop along the river in olden days. This was another of Plecnik's designs.


Funicular to the castle--this was included in the city tour we purchased. Otherwise, it's €2.20 one-way or €4 roundtrip. It runs every 10 minutes and only takes a minute to get to the top. You can also take a tourist train for €4 roundtrip or hike to the top by one of 2 trails. The faster but steeper trail starts near the Dragon Bridge.


Once at the castle, there are great views of Ljubljana. 


The castle is actually a huge complex and it's free to walk around. There is an admission fee to tour the castle itself. The castle was built in the 1940s and renovated in the 1970s and I didn't feel the need to see the inside of such a modern castle. 

There are also several restaurants onsite. Gostilna na Gradu is supposed to have some of the best Slovenian food in town.


Slovenian Parliament with interesting doorway representing the Slovene people conforming to communist ideals.


Serbian Orthodox Church built in 1936 is at the edge of town, near Tivoli Park.



2016 09 05

No comments:

Post a Comment