" V Ljubljano, v Ljubljano, v Ljubljano gremo mi..."

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I dont know who sings that song, but I remember them playing it as a teaching exercise when I was studying here a few years back, and now it obnoxiously runs through my head whenever I am here. Kind of a weird song about the singer"s car being too small to fit all her friends who wanted to go out to downtown Ljubljana with her.

Anyway, today has been sort of a reorientation to the city. I am staying at the house of my mother" maternal cousins. In the house live Majda (Maria - I will attempt to give rough translations of names and places), her husband Rudi, her sister Anka (Anna), daughter Katja (Katie), and mother Francka (Frances). Majda, Rudi and their grandsons are already on the beach in Croatia; Rudi will come later on this week to pick me up, and we"ll join them there on Sunday... just in time for the World Cup finals, woohoo!

My mother"s cousin Anka was shocked that I actually got up at a normal hour (usually when I visit, I sleep like the dead until midday after I arrive). They have installed a little ribnik, or fish pond, with 30 goldfish in the side yard since I was last here. Ron the dog is still here, and there are about six tiny kittens scampering about. (A good time to try out the "kids and pets" setting on the digital camera!)

I took the bus into the center of town and walked around for most of the afternoon. It"s a little strange to see some of the minor changes that have happened since I was here 4 years ago. It seems like there are more signs in English and a lot more little cafes around the center. Probably because of the whole "Ljubljana is the new Prague" thing. I went to see if anyone good was playing at the Krizanke this week while I"m here (nope) and then got some Fruc and a mestni (meat) burek for lunch. Now I don"t know if you have ever tried burek, but it"s this oily, greasy, meat-filled dough concontion, almost like meat strudel. It"s massive and it falls apart and I absolutely adore it!

In the evening, after I went home, my mom"s paternal cousins, Helena and Marija, came to pick me up to go out for ice cream. This is a tradition, usually followed by a pounding headache from trying to remember so many Slovenian words and declensions. I am surprised how much I do remember and am annoyed at how much I have forgotten. It seemed to go OK, and we had a good time. It does get a bit frustrating, though, for all of us when it goes like this:

Helena and Marija: sentence in Slovenian
Becky: brows furrowed
H & M: explanation, slowly, also in Slovenian
B: I think I understand?, said in Slovenian
H & M: even slower explanation, in Slovenian, or maybe bits of German (which I also do not speak, embarrassingly)
B: I"m sorry, I don"t think I understand, in Slovenian (I"m dumb, and my brain hurts)

They are incredibly patient with me!!! Additional members of the family are picking me up tomorrow for lunch, and I think that I will go on an izlet (day trip) with them on Saturday. Note to self: bring dictionary.

I finished up the night with a chat with Anka outside. Anka"s favorite evening activity in the summer is to sit outside in the quiet with a couple of smokes and a beer. We have pretty good conversations when we sit out there, sometimes for a couple of hours. Just very relaxing. Katja and her friend came outside for a smoke, and then I joined them watching the rest of the France vs Portugal match. Looks like France vs Italy in the finals- should be a good one. Looking forward to seeing it in Croatia on sunday (where many of the neighbors around us will be Italian and screaming their lungs off!) More on the rest of SLO in the next issue...

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Photos

Tromostovje
A nice view of the old town during the day. (My friend Matt's great-uncle designed that bridge!)

Fruc and mestni burek
Heart attack on a plate, or heaven on earth?

Rollin' down the river
A boat goes down the Ljubljanica

Ron the dog
Ron stands victorious, presiding over all the kittens at Majda's house