Ljubljana, Capital of Slovenia

Back to 90-degree temperatures made it a little hard to appreciate walking around pavement and city buildings, but we had a great 2-hour guided city walking tour before it got too hot.

Ljubljana's city flag depicts a dragon, who is said to have been defeated by Jason and the Argonauts (or St. George, depending upon who is telling the story). But legend holds that the dragon is just slumbering under the city.

This is a lively city full of many tourists and young people--there are 50,000 students in a population of less than 300,000. And most of them are riding bicycles on the wide bike/walk boulevards, so you need watch how you walk. At least the old city center is closed to cars. It received the European Green Capital Award in 2016.

The dominant architectural feature is their 11th century castle on a hill reached by a funicular with great views of the city and of the mountains where we're heading tomorrow. The castle was never used for nobility, but for military purposes and later for holding prisoners during wartimes. It is now part museum and part event space, like for weddings and art exhibitions. It has been creatively and beautifully renovated most recently in the 1990s--juxtaposing glass and brushed steel with medieval stone walls and timber ceilings.

The river features predominantly here too. There is a wide promenade along the banks with so many restaurant tables, all full of people any time of day. We took a 45-minute tour boat ride to cool off in the afternoon and saw Nutria, or river rats, swimming (remember them, Erin?).

At the end of the day we played around in their new Museum of Illusions. Fun for all ages!Read more