June 25 - Ljubjana

Ann in front of our hotel.

At 9:00 we met out local guide who took us on a two-hour city tour. Much of her focus was on Jože Plečnik , an architect that designed most of the best known buildings in Ljubjana. She also told us about the local history and culture. We visited the town hall and the main cathedral which had two amazing door which were created in the late 20th century. They looked much older.

We ended the tour at Prešeren Square which was named after the city's best known poet. There is a once controversial statue of him where he is standing under a semi-nude figure of a young woman.

Ann and I were a bit hungry and low on energy so we walked over to a vendor who sold crepes. She had a savory one while I had one with nutella. Then we walked a ways to an open grocery store. (This was a national holiday so most store were closed). We bought some supplies for our bus ride which starts tomorrow. We walked back to our hotel for a short rest.

There was a nice pizzeria/restaurant in the narrow street behind our hotel. When we were hungry again, we stopped there for a salad. I wish we would have discovered this place before. It was very good for lunch. After eating, Ann went to the hotel while I searched for an ATM.

We had a long rest at the hotel which included dozing off from time to time. It started raining around 6:00. We monitored it closely to see when it would be the best time to leave for dinner. I checked the hotel's restaurant and it was closed. The rain let up at 7:00 so we walked a short distance across the Cobbler's Bridge to Marley and Me. There was no devil dog there and we had good meal. I had Slavenian sausage with vegetables and roasted potatoes. Ann had the house sandwich with roasted red peppers, zucchini, melted cheese and prosciutto. White wine for her and a beer for me. The presentation of the food was very creative. Ours and other customers' food was shaped so it came to a peak with the entree on top and the vegetables, etc. underneath. Because of the rain, the were very few people out or dinner. We hardly saw anyone on the walk over. There were only ten of us in the restaurant. That was good for us because it was a tiny place with one chef and one waiter. We got our food in a very timely manner.

We walked back to the hotel in light rain. It is after 9:00 and we have a busy travel day tomorrow. So it's and early bedtime tonight.