STA, 20 August 2019 - A foreign tourist visiting Slovenian mountains was bitten by a venomous viper at the Dolič hut in the Julian Alps in north-western Slovenia on Monday when she tried to hold the snake.

She thought that there were no venomous snakes in Slovenia and tried to hold the viper, the Kranj police department said in a press release today.

A helicopter rescue team was deployed immediately and transported the tourist to the UKC Ljubljana hospital.

Contrary to unfortunate tourist's belief, there are three species of venomous snakes in Slovenia - common European viper, horned viper and asp viper.

According to the hospital, the hiker's life is not in danger and she is already feeling much better.

What to do if bitten by a snake in Slovenia

This year, the UKC Ljubljana hospital has had four patients who had been bitten by a venomous snake, with three of them needing antiserum.

The hospital treats between nine to twelve cases of venomous snake bites on average per year, shows data from the previous years.

It's quite unlikely a person would get bitten, but if one is, it is important to note the appearance of the snake, perhaps even take a photo of it, clean the wound and seek medical attention immediately. Such bites are rarely deadly, though.

August 20, 2019

In 1910 the official opening of a new, beautiful and large hotel took place in Portorož. At the time Palace Hotel (hotel Palace, but since 2008 known as Kempinski Palace Portorož), was one of the most prestigious and beautiful hotels on the Adriatic Coast, second only to the Excelsior Hotel in Venice.

The hotel, an example of neo-classicist architecture under the influence of the Viennese secession and Italian construction, was designed by the Vienna-based architect Johann Eustacchio from Friuli, and built by the Bruna & Depaoli construction company from Trieste.

During the WWII tourism ended in Portorož, and the hotel was plundered and used by various armies. Renovation works began in 1949, and in 1951 hotel was reopened.

During the 1960s it hosted many internationally recognised names, including Josip Broz Tito, Orson Welles, Sophia Loren, Yul Brynner, Marcello Mastroianni, Rita Pavone, Bobby Fisher, and so on.

During the 1970s and 80s a new Portorož began to form under the supervision of architect Edo Mihevc. Times were not favourable for the decorative style of the Palace Hotel, which also lost its direct access to the sea. The number of guests started to decline, and the hotel was finally closed in 1990.

After the hotel became the property of the Municipality of Piran, renovation and demolition works began in 2005 in cooperation with the strategic partner, Istrabenz. All that was left of the old hotel was its front façade facing the sea, Crystal Hall and its salons, and the main historic stairway. Everything else was rebuilt.

Related: Postcards From Sunny Portorož 

STA, 20 August 2019 - Janja Garnbret has claimed her third gold medal at the IFSC Climbing World Championships in Japan's Hachioji, securing the title in the combined, an Olympic discipline, on Tuesday. The 20-year-old Slovenian is the first ever climber to complete a hat trick in a single championships.

Garnbret had already secured gold in the women's lead discipline on Thursday after defending the title of bouldering world champion a week ago. Her sixth world championship gold medal overall makes her the most successful athlete in the history of the sport.

Combining speed, bouldering and lead, the new discipline has been created especially for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, the first time that climbing will be included in the Olympic Games.

Podium winners in the event are determined by the lowest product of the climbers' ranks after three rounds in each of the three disciplines. Garnbret placed sixth in speed, 4th in boulders and top in the lead, which gave her 12 points.

Silver went to Japanese Akiyo Noguchi, who scored 21, and bronze to Briton Shauna Coxsey, who scored 42.

Garnbert entered the final stage, the lead, from 4th spot, with Coxsey in the lead ahead of Noguchi and Pole Aleksandra Miroslaw, who did best in speed. Garnbret made it to the top, while Coxsey and Noguchi failed.

"It's amazing to have three gold medals at this world championships. I had a lot of fun. I didn't have the best start in speed but I really enjoyed the whole competition," Garnbret said in her first comment.

Despite signs of fatigue after nine days of competition, which reflected in her performance in speed and her struggling on the first boulder, she enjoyed "all the boulders. In the lead I showed what I have and I'm really happy."

The latest achievement brings Slovenia's tally of medals at sports climbing world championships to 18. Another Slovenian medallist in Japan, Mia Krampl took silver in the lead discipline, trumped only by Garnbret.

Over at singletracks.com Brian Gerow has written a great account of a mountain biking trip to Slovenia based at Ecohotel Koroš in Jamnica, the first Mountain Bike Hotel in the country.

The story is in two parts, over and underground, with the latter taking place along a 2.5km track in an abandoned lead mine (Mežica Mine), an adventure that’s only for the most confident mountain bikers.

Above ground Ecohotel Koroš has many less challenging tracks to explore, and the site is slowly gaining a place on the international circuit, having been part of the Enduro World Series in 2018 and hosting the event again in 2020.

You can learn a lot more about cycling in Jamnica (very close to the Austrian border) in the original story, while the website of Ecohotel Koroš can be found here.

STA, 19 August 2019 - Nearly 220 cases of haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), a potentially lethal acute contagious disease spread by rodents, have been recorded in Slovenia so far this year. The number has already surpassed that of the most recent outbreak, when 182 people got sick in 2012.

Among those infected were 66 women and 152 men, as the latter are more likely to work in jobs such as logging, where the risk of infection is higher.

According to the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ), there are two hotspots: 82 cases were confirmed in southeastern Slovenia and 72 in the Podravje region.

HFRS death rate in Slovenia is very low, as 15 deaths have been recorded over the past 35 years, none in the recent years, with the virus occurring in cycles of three to five years.

In May, NIJZ held a press conference advising caution because data had indicated an outbreak was likely this year.

Slovenia is one of the most at-risk areas for HFRS because it is endemic to three hantaviruses causing the disease: the Puumala virus, the Dobrava virus and the Dobrava-Kurkino virus.

The disease has an incubation period of two to four weeks. A person gets infected when breathing in viruses that are excreted by rodents carrying the virus.

When cleaning out spaces that might be infected by rodents, one should air the rooms thoroughly, after which the surfaces should be sprayed with a 10% chlorine solution and left for 10-30 minutes. To prevent infection, the cleaner should also wear a protective mask and gloves.

The related Wikipedia page is here

STA, 16 August 2019 - The number of compulsory car insurance policies has been showing an upward trend in the past few years due to the improved economic situation and the growth of the number of registered vehicles, with revenue from premiums being on the rise for the past three years.

Meanwhile, an analysis by the Slovenian Insurance Association indicates that in general, the value of premiums has seen a downward trend in the past decade.

Slovenian insurers dealing in compulsory car insurance sold 1,914.134 such policies last year, a 4.6% increase compared to the previous year and a record number so far, according to the Insurance Association.

Eight Slovenian insurers were selling third-party liability insurance policies in 2018. They sold a total of EUR 244.2 million premiums, up 6.6% on 2017, shows the association's data.

Stronger competition in the insurance market has resulted in lower premiums. Despite the upward trend of sold policies, the premiums have been getting cheaper in the past decade - by 2.8% per year on average.

However, the past three years saw a rise in the prices, as well as an increase in paying out damage compensation - in 2018, an increase in compensation payouts was more substantial than an increase in charged premiums.

Payouts in 2018 amounted to EUR 159 million, up 10.4% on 2017.

At the beginning of the 1990s car insurance policies accounted for the majority of Slovenia's insurance market, but since then they have been giving way to life and health insurance.

Last year car insurance policies were thus accounting for only 10% of the association members' service portfolio, representing third place among non-life insurance policies.

Motorisation has been on the rise in most EU countries since 2008, amounting to record 466 cars per 1,000 EU citizens on average in 2017.

Slovenia is placed 12th among EU countries according to its motorisation rate and above the EU average, recording record 553 cars per 1,000 Slovenians in 2018.

An average Slovenian spent more than EUR 230 in 2017 for car insurance expenses, which is above the EU average of some EUR 228 - a record figure so far.

Since Slovenia's independence the number of registered vehicles has more than doubled due to the increasing purchasing power. Almost 75% of registered motor vehicles are cars, a trend which has resulted in a decline of public transport.

Check the date at the top of the page, and you can find all the "morning headlines" stories here. You can also ollow us on Facebook and get all the news in your feed.

This summary is provided by the STA:

EU to demand NLB sell its life insurance business

LJUBLJANA - Unofficial information indicates the European Commission expects NLB, Slovenia's largest bank, to sell half of its life insurance business NLB Vita, which it co-owns with KBC Insurance. The business newspaper Finance reported the Commission would notify NLB of its decision soon, estimating the insurer could be sold for EUR 20-30 million. NLB will have to sell its share in NLB Vita because the state failed to privatise its agreed stake in NLB - 75% minus one share - by the end of last year. The privatisation process was completed as late as this June. NLB declined to comment on the unofficial information. NLB Vita posted a record EUR 8.3 million in net profit in 2018 on gross premiums of EUR 76.9 million, up 9% from 2017.

New ambassador wants to make US and Slovenia stronger partners

BRNIK - Lynda Blanchard, the new US ambassador to Slovenia, said she was looking forward to working with the Slovenian government to make the US and Slovenia stronger partners, as she arrived in the country. Blanchard, an entrepreneur and humanitarian activist, succeeds Brent Hartley, a career diplomat who served in Ljubljana between February 2015 and July 2018. Speaking to reporters at Ljubljana airport, she said she was "excited to be here on the sunny side of the Alps" and looking forward to "engaging with everyone and our partnerships". She is expected to present her credentials to the Slovenia president on 29 August.

Speaker wraps up visit to Austria

SALZBURG, Austria - Parliamentary Speaker Dejan Židan wrapped up a two-day visit to Salzburg after working meetings with his Austrian counterpart Wolfgang Sobotka. The pair discussed the Western Balkans, the future of the EU, climate change and a possible joint project with historians from both countries examining the nations' shared history. Accepting the idea, Židan said that Austria had already carried out such a project with the Czech Republic and Sobotka wanted to see whether Slovenia would be interested in doing the same, as the project helped Austrians and Czechs understand each other better.

Foreign Ministry issues travel alert for Hong Kong

LJUBLJANA - The Foreign Ministry advised Slovenian citizens travelling to Hong Kong to be extra cautious as street protests are being held in China's special administrative region, some of which ended in clashes with the police. The ministry advises those travelling to Hong Kong to completely avoid the locations where protests are being held since late March, consistently follow the instructions of the local security authorities, and follow the situation through the local media.

Solutions being found for toxic waste disposal

LJUBLJANA - Environment Minister Simon Zajc met hazardous waste treatment companies to find a solution after a major company in the business, Kemis, had to stop accepting waste after being ordered to remove the facilities rebuilt after a devastating fire in 2017. Zajc told reporters that Kemis's counterparts could step in, providing services for 14,000-15,000 tonnes of toxic waste. The minister urged speeding up waste transport permit procedures and ordered Kemis's appeal to be handled as a priority.

Army trade unionist found guilty of breach of military discipline

LJUBLJANA - The head of the Trade Union of Soldiers (SVS) Gvido Novak has severely violated military discipline, a Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) disciplinary panel found. It thus formally terminated his employment, a measure which will however not be implemented if Novak commits no breach of discipline in a year's time, the 24ur portal reported. Novak came under fire for having publicly criticised the SAF leadership this spring when Brigadier General Miha Škerbinc was sacked as the force commander. Novak and the SVS came out strong against Maj Gen Alenka Ermenc, the chief of the general staff, who had requested Škerbinc's dismissal, and Defence Minister Karl Erjavec.

Kolektor Etra wins EUR 20m deal in Finland

LJUBLJANA - The Ljubljana-based energy equipment maker, Kolektor Etra, announced it had won a deal to produce, supply and install seven power transformers to the Finnish national electricity transmission grid operator Fingrid. The deal is worth EUR 20 million, which makes it the largest in the company's history. The company, a part of the industrial conglomerate Kolektor, is also supplying low-voltage transformers for wind farms under construction on the south-western coast of Finland.

Koper-Divača bridge tender annulment headed for revision

LJUBLJANA - The consortium which had won the public tender for the first of several bridges on the new rail track between the port of Koper and Divača, only to see the tender annulled by the company managing the project, announced an appeal against the decision. In an interview with the weekly Reporter, Aleksander Schara, a representative of the consortium led by Markomark Nival, also rejected the allegations that it had forged its prior experience. He expects the matter to be investigated by police.

Another accolade for Jančar's I Saw Her That Night

BUDVA, Montenegro - One of the most celebrated novels by Slovenia's leading author Drago Jančar, I Saw Her That Night (To Noč Sem Jo Videl), won the Stefan Mitrov Ljubiša Award at the Grad Teatar Festival in Budva, Montenegro, which features various artistic practices, with a focus on theatre. The 2010 novel has also won Jančar the Kresnik Prize for the best novel of the year, presented by the Slovenian newspaper publisher Delo, and the French critics and publishers' association's award for best foreign book.

FeKK festival of short films opens

LJUBLJANA - The 5th FeKK festival of short film got under way with the premiere of Slovenian omnibus Kratki Rezi (Short Deeds) in the Kinodvor cinema and a selection of films from an international documentary workshop in Krško at the Slovenian Cinematheque. Until Saturday, the festival will feature a selection of almost 60 competing short films from Slovenia, former Yugoslavia and other countries, as well as many side programmes and accompanying events.

Top-seed Bedene wins Slovenia Open

PORTOROŽ - Slovenia's best tennis player, Aljaž Bedene, won the ATP Challenger Zavarovalnica Sava Slovenia Open on Sunday, beating Norwegian Viktor Durasovic, 7:5 and 6:3. This is the 16th Challenger series title for the 30-year-old, who climbed ten spots to 80th in ATP world rankings. Bedene is the third Slovenian player to have won Slovenia Open, following Grega Žemlja (2013) and Blaž Kavčič (2014). Last year the title went to French Constant Lestienne.

A schedule of all the main events involving Slovenia this week can be found here

Visiting Ljubljana? Check out what's on this week, while all our stories on Slovenia, from newest to oldest, are here

If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here

STA, 19 August - Lynda Blanchard, the new US ambassador to Slovenia, said she was looking forward to working with the Slovenian government to make the US and Slovenia stronger partners, as she arrived in Slovenia with her family on Monday.

Blanchard, an entrepreneur and humanitarian activist, came to Slovenia more than a year after she was nominated by US President Donald Trump, since her appointment was held up by procedural obstacles related to the election of the new US Congress.

She is succeeding Brent Hartley, a career diplomat who served in Ljubljana between February 2015 and July 2018.

Speaking to the press at Ljubljana airport today, she said she was "excited to be here on the sunny side of the Alps" and she looked forward to "engaging with everyone and our partnerships".

Noting that she met First Lady Melania Trump on Saturday, the new ambassador said the first lady, who is Slovenian, wished her well.

"I look forward to working with her and the government of Slovenia and thus make us as parters stronger," said Blanchard, who is expected to present her credentials to President Borut Pahor on 29 August.

Blanchard believes she will get by easily as ambassador, having worked on the Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, for six years, and in 15 different countries with their governments. "I'm familiar with working with governments," she replied to a reporter's question about her not being a career diplomat.

Her nomination was endorsed in mid-July in a 54:40 vote, with Amy Klobuchar, a Democratic senator of Slovenian descent from Minnesota, voting against.

In her hearing on the Senate committee on foreign relations last August, she described Slovenia as "a reliable US partner" and "a regional leader in implementing democratic reforms" in the Balkans.

She pledged to encourage privatisation, noting that 50% of the Slovenian economy was "under state ownership or control", which entailed "opportunities for increased private investment".

The nominee also argued that US-Slovenian relations needed to continue to improve "through direct outreach and engagement with Slovenian people".

STA, 19 August 2019 - Slovenian authorities have charged more than 100 people, mostly Italians, involved in a scheme that helped lorry drivers bypass red tape and expenses involved in acquiring vocational qualification certificates in Italy, by allowing them to get one in Slovenia. Fines have been issued to nearly 40 people so far.

The Koper-based Primorske Novice reports on Monday that fictitious residence in Slovenia and fictitious labour contracts with Slovenia-based companies enabled the drivers to obtain vocational qualification certificates in Slovenia.

The Koper Administrative Unit became suspicious after more than 100 people moved their official residence to a single house in the small village of Gračišče in 2014 and 2015. None of the persons actually resided in the house.

Six people running the scheme, among them one Slovenian and nationals of Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, are suspected of hiring Italian drivers under fictitious labour contracts.

An employee at a local driving school is suspected of helping them pass the relevant test, Primorske Novice said.

The Koper prosecution has charged 109 people with certifying and helping to certify false declarations. So far, the court has issued 36 punitive order verdicts to Italian drivers and is planning to issue 70 more.

In all these cases, the court has followed the proposal of the prosecution to issue punitive order verdicts, meaning that there will be no trial, unless the suspects appeal against the decision.

Arraignments have been scheduled only for the six people running the scheme. So far two have taken place, with the defendants pleading not guilty to hiring Italian drivers and helping them obtain the vocational certificates.

All our stories on Italy are here

STA, 19 August 2019 - The best Slovenian tennis player, Aljaž Bedene, won the ATP Challenger Zavarovalnica Sava Slovenia Open, the biggest international tennis tournament in the country, on Sunday, beating Norwegian Viktor Durasovic, 7:5 and 6:3, in the finals, which lasted an hour and 38 minutes. This is the 16th Challenger series title for the 30-year-old.

The win counts as Bedene's 25th consecutive victory at tournaments at this level. He clinched victory at the last five Challenger tournaments he participated in, not being outmatched at them since March 2017.

Bedene is the third Slovenian player to have won the Slovenia Open, following Grega Žemlja (winning in 2013) and Blaž Kavčič (2014). Last year the title went to French Constant Lestienne.

The Ljubljana-born player received EUR 6,190 along with the tournament's prize and 80 ATP points, which have raised him ten places to 80th in ATP world rankings.

"It's nice to raise the cup, particularly knowing that I haven't played my best. Many times I kept saving points, but I showed character and fought throughout the match. Luckily, such tournaments allow for more mistakes. At an ATP tournament I would have lost quickly had I played this way," said Bedene after the match.

His opponent in the finals was placed almost 350 places below him in ATP world rankings before Sunday's match, but according to Bedene, Durasovic played better than his ranking would have indicated and will probably make headlines in the future.

Durasovic got in the lead in the second set by 3:0, but then Bedene raised his game to win the next six games and rejoiced in victory in front of the home crowd.

"I knew I needed to step up my game because I didn't want to play a third set once more. I sped up and snatched the well-deserved win," said the most recent winner of the Slovenia Open.

The highlight of the tournament though was not the finals but the semi-final face-off between the two best Slovenian players, Bedene and third-seeded Blaž Rola.

The crowd saw the 30-year-old winning over his two years younger rival, who still rose by some 15 places to 127th after the tournament.

The Slovenia Open's champion used the tournament to prepare for the US Open, which started today, and its hard court surface.

"I've done my task. I played the maximum number of matches and I think that my coaching team and I have come closer to a level of playing I need to continue the season.

"As a result I'm quite tired, I've been playing five days back-to-back and some rest will be welcome," said the 30-year-old.