Ljubljana

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Day 25 - Sun. Oct. 16 - Port of call: Koper, Slovenia. Weather: Fog and the threat of rain in the morning and partly sunny in the afternoon - temperatures of 70°F/21°C



Overnight our ship moved across the top of the Adriatic to dock at the port of Koper, Slovenia. Koper is one of Slovenia’s largest towns and shares a common history with Italy. Both Slovene and Italian are recognized as official languages in this country. The port itself is very much a working container port, which we have experienced elsewhere, and means that it is not particularly lovely or impressive.



For some reason, which was never explained to us, we were required to carry our passports with us today. Normally our ship ID and any piece of government issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, are sufficient to go ashore. Thus armed we set off on our 7-hour excursion to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. After a 90 minute drive inland to Ljubljana we set out on a walking tour through the political, social and cultural areas of the city. The walk skirted the foot of Castle Hill (in reality it is a fortress), but we did not ascend to the top for an overview of the city. After a two hour walk, and as part of the cost of our tour, we were welcomed by a local restaurant where we were served a delicious Slovenian lunch, consisting of a thick mushroom soup, a chicken breast which had been pounded flat and fried, accompanied by mashed potatoes and a mushroom sauce, followed by apple strudel for dessert.



Following lunch we were given an hour and a half free time to wonder about on our own in the lovely city centre. The city has been honoured as being one of the “greenest” cities in Europe. They have deeply embraced and invested in ways to make the city environmentally clean. Cars have been re-routed from much of the city center and have been replaced by electric powered cars and mini busses. Garbage collection is highly controlled and recycling is strictly enforced, and nobody complains about it.



Since it is Sunday the open air market was not functioning fully but there were a number of stalls that were exhibiting locally made clothing and crafts. The Dragon Bridge, one of the many sites near the market, was decorated with four copper dragons protecting the corners of the structure.



Back at our meeting point for the bus we departed for the port and arrived back well in time for our 5 pm departure.

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