All you need is sLOVEnia

Dragon Bridge in the heart of Lljublana

Well. I had a fantastic weekend in the beautiful country of Slovenia. Can't believe that London and a brief stop in Amsterdam are all that's left in my epic Euro-adventure!

I arrived in Ljubljana at about 2:30pm on Friday afternoon. The station was a bit bigger than I'd imagined it would be (good for you, Ljubljana!), and I had a brief "oh shit" moment of thinking I wouldn't be able to find Mat, but it all worked out. He had a car at the station- what a luxury, not having to cart my stuff around on a bus- and our first stop in Slovenia was a department store where I finally found a replacement for my dilapidated combat boots. And only 15€!!

Then we drove to Mat's home in Domžale, where I met his parents, Matia and Blaženka, and his younger brother Jakob. Blaženka had made us a lovely lunch. First the classic "comfort food" of soup- perfect for after travelling- with these little dumpling like things called "kneudels" floating around inside. Then we had some chicken and rice and I broke the news of my annoying gluten allergy. Blaženka immediately went out and stocked up on rice alternatives- the first of many kindnesses I received from this wonderfully sweet woman.

One of the rivers running through the town

This fountain represents the 3 rivers that run through Lljubljana

The hotel we stopped in for a drink at

After lunch/dinner, Mat drove us in to Ljubljana (only about 20 mins away. You can drive across the while country in 2.5 hours) to the music academy he takes voice lessons at. I was in for the treat of hearing Mat and fellow students give a short informal concert. It was lovely and Mat sounded great. At the end of the concert I met Mat's girlfriend Sanja, and the three of us took to the streets of the capital city, both locals pointing things out to me as we went. We crossed many bridges- my favourite the "dragon bridge", decorated with the city's animal mascot of sorts. We saw lively squares, beautiful churches, and ducked into the Art Nouveau styled "Union Hotel" for drinks. There was a Slovenian story-telling performance happening, which Sanja graciously translated for little old English me. (Have I mentioned how stoked I am to be headed to a country where my language is also their's? I won't feel like such a North American jerk anymore).

A little Ljubljana model!

Sanja had to duck home then for a quick study sess (med students. Just as busy in Slov as they are back home), but Mat and I had a bit more time to explore. He showed me some beautiful churches and a little mini model of Ljubljana where I attempted to get my bearings. Then we walked to his car, picked up Sanja and drove to the hockey rink in Ljubljana where Mat was reffing an evening rec league game. Sanja and I so enjoyed each other's company in the stands that I must admit we missed most of the action of the ice.

We chatted about all sorts of things, including Sanja's experiences singing with the World Youth Choir, which is something I'm really interested in checking out for myself. The game ended around 11:30, we dropped Sanja home, and after Blaženka checked that we were happy and had had a good day, we went to bed.