News
July 7, 2019
You might not have heard of the Trans-Universal Zombie Church of Blissful Ringing yet, but this growing religion is currently the fifth biggest belief system in Slovenia.
The church was formed in 2013 in close relation to the 2012-13 anti-government protests. Originally the Church of Blissful Ringing added “zombie” to its name after the then ruling SDS of Janez Janša labelled the protesters as zombies in its Tweets.
In 2014 this indigenous Slovenian church was registered with the Office for Religious Communities of the Ministry of Culture under the number of order 46.
It currently has around 12,000 members, which makes it the fifth most popular religion in Slovenia, after the Roman Catholic Church, Islam, Christian Orthodox and Lutheran Church. It’s worth mentioning, however, that the current numbers of the other four religions date from the year 2002. After that the Government Statistics Office switched to a much cheaper register-based census (2011), which no longer provides data on citizens’ religious affiliation or ethnicity.
Since its inception the Church mostly operates democratically via its Facebook page. Its holy book was published in October 2014.
A compendium of articles, dogmas, gospels, revelations and other truths explains what the Church is all about and also forms the basis for theological contemplation of its followers.
Translation: Article 20; Every Trans-universal Zombie Church of the Blissful Ringing believer’s duty is ringing bells and creating blissful sounds with pans and holy pots. (Archpriest Rok, June 20, Zombie Year 1, 7 hours and 17 minutes after the resurrection)
But is there an afterlife? The church believes there is.
It was later explained that going to “Heaven in their own image” means that Heaven is what each of the undead considers it to be. If for someone Heaven is a Rammstein concert, that’s where they will end up after they die. Also, there is no Hell.
As it turns out, the Temple of Corruption and Original Sin actually means the National Assembly Building (i.e. Parliament). In the early years of its conception, the church held its holy mass in front of the Parliament building every Wednesday, while at the same time collecting donations in clothes and food for the Red Cross and Slovenian Association of Friends of Youth.
The new Church was met with a mixed response from the public.
A sociologist of religion Marjan Smrke, for example, stated for Delo, that the church is more of a parody of religion than a religion, but that such parodies are as old as religion itself, citing Roman Catholicism as a parody of original Christianity as an example. According to Smrke, the Zombie Church belongs to a new generation of parody religions, such as Pastafarianism and Jediism.
The Ministry also received a protest letter from the Catholic Institute for Family and Culture of Life (KUL), who expressed offence at the Ministry’s decision to register the Church, claiming that the Zombie Church was in fact a “nonreligious” community. KUL saw the recognition given to the Church as part of the Minister Uroš Grilc’ broader “Christianophobic” plot: “In accordance with the secular doctrine of a hateful attitude towards religious communities, with the aforementioned registration the Minister encourages public mockery of religious communities and the spread of prejudices against religion and religiousness in general.”
Gregor Lesjak, the director of the Office for Religious Communities, also replied to KUL’s complains that a joke religion was added to the list of the true religious communities. In an article by Delo, Lesjak was quoted emphasizing that the Zombie Church met all of the required criteria and explained that the law does not call for verifications of “religiousness”.
The problematisation of religiousness with the emerging new religious communities rests, according to Lesjak, on three misconceptions. The first misconception is a belief that the State is a guardian of the sacred: “The State is not the guardian of the sacred, religious communities are.” Secondly, the registration does not mean that the state issues a certificate indicating that the group’s religious teachings are genuine, appropriate or true. Gaining and keeping the trust of their followers is something that rests with the religious institutions themselves. And thirdly, it is not State’s task to tell its citizens what kind of things are good or bad to do, like a mother would tell their child. The State offers its citizens various legal forms of organisation under equal terms. If it turns out that a group of citizens has chosen a form of organisation that hindered the development of their own plans, the responsibility for that rests entirely with the group, not the State.
In an interview for MMC, Rok Gros, Archpriest of the Zombie Church and the Keeper of the Pot and Pan, didn’t deny the similarity with the Pastafarianism, being quoted as saying “we don’t discriminate against anyone. Members of any other religion are welcome in our church, Pastafarians included.” However, he strongly denied that the Church was making fun of anyone, or that the Church was not a real one.
For Sobota info, Gros stated that “Calling us a parody is one of most serious insults to us. We are a very serious church.”
We too had some questions for the Church, specifically how many members does it currently have, whether it gets any public funding and whether it is true that the Church has managed to spread to Croatia. The Church replied with the following explanations.
Bell willing!
Our church has 12,000 members.
We do not receive any public funding, despite the fact that even the court decided that the Ministry of Health violated legislation by religious discrimination for not granting our pro bono clinic in Nova Gorica a status of humanitarian institution, the legal basis for bids on tenders.
In Croatia we have Archpriest Domagoj I the Lionheart, who takes care of spiritual needs of our believers in Croatia (marriages, holy masses…)
Best regards and Bell be with you.
Bong
Archpriest Rok, founder, Keeper of the Pot and Pan, July 1, 7 Zombie Year, 3 hours and 4 minutes after resurrection
For more on Trans-universal Zombie Church of Blissful Ringing, click here for its webpage, where you can also join.
This collection of old photos and postcards shows some of the ways Slovenska cesta (also, for some years, Titova cesta) changed and stayed the same in the century, with each image showing buildings you can still see today as you walk along the newly, and mostly, pedestrianised street, with the only traffic now allowed being bicycles and buses.
Another view of hte Cafe Europa, early 20th century.
And another view, with Figovec restaurant just outside the picture on the left. 1911
Mid-20th century
1950s. You can see Šestica restaurant on the left - open in 1776 and still running today
1950s
1950s, and showing the edge of Kongresni trg / Congress Square
Hotel Slon on the right, 1950s
1959
The edge of the Tavčer Palace on the left, 1959
Old buildings being pulled down in front of Nama department store, 1961
1961
Roadworks, 1963
Another view of the Tavčer Palace, with Figovec again just out of sight on the left, 1965
1968
1968
Other stories in this series can be found here
Surprising no one who’s been following her dominance of the sport throughout her short, but storied career – with the 20-year-old already having won more World Cup Events than anyone else – Janja Garnbret took another first place in Villars, Switzerland. She was joined on the Lead podium by South Korea’s Chaehyun Seo in second place, and Japan’s Ai Mori in third. Two other Slovenian women made the top ten, with Mia Krampl in fifth place and Lučka Rakovec sixth. Garnbret comes on stage at the two hour 17 minute mark in the following video.
Turning to the men’s event, this was won by Switzerland’s Sascha Lehmann, followed by YuFei Pan (China) and Alexander Megos (Germany), with Slovenia’s Domen Škofic having to make do with a fourth placed finish.
STA, 7 July 2019 - Slovenia's organic farming sector continues to grow slowly but steadily. There were 3,320 agricultural holdings registered as organic farms last year, a 4% increase over 2017. The farms produced more organic vegetable and fruit in 2018 than the previous year, which was a bad year for farmers due to extreme weather conditions.
Farms holding the status of organic producers represented 4.8% of all farms in Slovenia.
The country's total organic produce grew by 27% last year compared to 2017, amounting to over 29,000 tonnes, while the amount of produced vegetables (over 1,800 tonnes) increased by 21% compared to 2017, shows the Statistics Office data released on Friday.
The production of grapes (over 1,500 tonnes) and olives (over 550 tonnes) increased as well, by 15% and 31%, respectively.
The 2018 organic production of fruit was almost six times bigger than in 2017, weighing more than 5,000 tonnes.
The number of animals in organic farming was mostly lower in 2018 than in the previous year - on average by 9% - with the exception of honey bee colonies (up by 31% to 2,863), other animals, such as game reared in pens (up by almost 9%) and cattle (up by almost 2%).
The total amount of organically produced meat grew by 26% in 2018 compared to 2017.
The production of organic milk in 2018 mostly increased compared to 2017 - organic cow's milk was up 20% to 6,900 tonnes, sheep milk was up by almost 2% to 181 tonnes, while goat milk was down 13% to 139 tonnes.
The organic production of honey and eggs grew in 2018 as well - by 41% and 26%, respectively.
Agricultural areas intended for organic farming increased in 2018 - by 1,320 hectares or 7% compared to 2017. The organic vineyard area grew by 37%, organic orchards by 14% and olive grooves by 13%, while the area for organic production of vegetables increased by 11%.
The share of permanent pastures and meadows in organic farming is decreasing though, but at a slow pace - the share was at 82.8% in 2017 and 81.7% in 2018.
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.
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
This summary is provided by the STA:
Protesters rally against border fence between Slovenia, Italy
NOVA GORICA, ŠKOFIJA - Protesters from the border city of Nova Gorica and its Italian neighbour Gorizia gathered in Nova Gorica's Europe Square on Friday evening to rally against the idea to set up new border fences as Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini paid a visit to Trieste. A rally was also held near the Škofije border crossing with Italy. The rally in Nova Gorica, where some 500 Slovenians and Italians gathered, was held under the slogan No More Borders. Another 100 people gathered in Škofije.
Radovljica hosting annual party of Slovenians living abroad
RADOVLJICA - Hundreds of Slovenians from abroad gathered in Radovljica for the main event of the annual get-together dubbed Welcome Home. A series of events has been organised since Wednesday, culminating today with a picnic in the Manor Park of the medieval town. About half a million people identifying themselves as Slovenians live outside Slovenia's borders, including in Italy (80,000), Austria (50,000), Hungary (5,000), Croatia (10,000), Germany (50,000), France (20,000) and the UK (5,000). The biggest community outside Europe is in the US (300,000), with many people identifying themselves as Slovenians also living in Canada, Argentina and Australia.
Average speed in Slovenian roads declining steadily
LJUBLJANA - The average speed recorded on Slovenian roads lowered in 2017 and 2018 compared to 2014 and 2015. The strictness of speed limits correlates to the number of violations, with the latter being more common at night. Drivers do not usually exceed the limit by more than 10 km/h, shows a study by the Traffic Safety Agency. Recorded speeds on highways and expressways do not vary depending on the day or night, while drivers on other roads are on average faster during the night.
If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here
Another in our occasional series of Slovenian memes, aka jazjaz ("me me"), to provide relatively simple, relatively amusing sentences in the target language of choice for many of our readers, with a translation under each image. See earlier posts here.
When you finish writing a test and your classmates start telling you the correct answers.
Finally, a parking space for fat people who like barbecues! ("fat" here is "strong", so something of a euphemism)
Him: Why do you never tell me when you've had an orgasm? / Her: I don't want to call you at work.
Nine-year-old me when I saw the moon in the daytime. "Impossible"
This could be us...but the potatoes are not going to plant themselves
Austrians are Germanized Slovenes. Change my mind
Is 5 big? / Depends on the context / Perecentage? No / Grade? Yes
When your cat has watched too much Masterchef
When I was born I had two choices / A big penis or good memory / What did you choose? / I don't remember
Learning Slovene? Check out all our dual texts here
Keep up with the daily news in Slovenia by checking the morning headlines here
This schedule was prepared by the STA:
MONDAY, 8 July
LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - The EU Court of Justice will hold an oral hearing to determine the admissibility of the lawsuit Slovenia is bringing against Croatia for EU law violations stemming from the country's refusal to acknowledge the 2017 border arbitration award.
ILIRSKA BISTRICA/KOSTEL/ČRNOMELJ - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec, Interior Minister Boštjan Poklukar and Police Commissioner Tatjana Bobnar will visit towns along the border with Croatia.
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Commission for the Oversight of Intelligence and Security Services is scheduled to interview the Chief of the General Staff Alenka Ermenc as part of its investigation into the sacking of Force Commander Miha Škerbinc.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Finance Minister Andrej Bertoncelj will attend a two-day Eurogroup ministerial.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Labour Ministry State Secretary Tilen Božič will take part in an EU employment and social affairs ministerial.
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina - President Borut Pahor and Defence Ministry State Secretary Dobran Božič will attend a meeting marking the end of Bosnia's presidency of the South-East European Cooperation Process.
TUESDAY, 9 July
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly will start its July session. The agenda includes, among other things, a second reading of changes to private primary school funding.
LJUBLJANA - The upper and lower chambers of parliament, the National Assembly and the National Council, will host a ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of Prekmurje reunification with Slovenia.
WEDNESDAY, 10 July
LJUBLJANA - Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Rijad Malki will visit Slovenia, meeting his counterpart Miro Cerar and parliamentary Speaker Dejan Židan.
HOČE - The official opening of the Magna Steyr car paint shop. Prime Minister Marjan Šarec and Economic Development and Technology Minister Zdravko Počivalšek will be in attendance.
BLED - The NATO Mountain Warfare Centre of Excellence (MWCOE) will host a conference of NATO excellence centre directors.
THURSDAY, 11 July
LJUBLJANA - The victims of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre will be commemorated with a minute of silence in City Square.
LJUBLJANA - Weekly government session.
LONDON - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar will attend the Global Conference for Media Freedom.
HELSINKI, Finland - Environment Ministry State Secretary Marko Maver will take part in a two-day informal meeting of EU minister responsible for the environment.
FRIDAY, 12 July
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor will host a working lunch for presidents of parliamentary parties and deputy group heads to discuss election legislation changes.
SATURDAY, 13 July
No major events are scheduled.
SUNDAY, 14 July
No major events are scheduled
If you're not in town for the week of this guide (08 to 14 July, 2019) then you can see all the editions here, and if there's event or activity you want to promote in a future edition of What's on in Ljubljana please get in touch with me at flanner(at)total-slovenia-news.com or try and find me on Facebook.
In town and want to follow the news? Check out our regular morning headlines for Slovenia here.
As ever, links to the basic listings are after the following selection, while a comprehensive PDF of events for the next seven days, as prepared by Ljubljana Tourism, is here.
Learn more about The Miha Artnak here
The summer continues to heat up, and you can expect more events each day throughout the season, both free and paid, with the streets coming alive with music, performances and crowds.
Photo: JL Flanner
The biggest thing is the Ljubljana Festival, which continues until 5 September and has a packed programme of world-class concert, opera, and ballet events – see more here.
Other festivals of note include the start of Gala Hala Summer Stage at Metelkova Mesto, running until 31 July and offering bands and DJ sets, with all evenings free. Details here (Slovene only).
Thursday, 11 July, Film Under the Stars begins again, giving the chance to watch some of the leading art films of the past year outside at Ljubljana Castle, each night at 21:30. The full schedule and trailers are here.
Monday and Wednesday there are some concerts of baroque music at Town Hall, in the Old Town, at 20:30 (details here).
Every Thursday in the summer, at Kavarna Plato, Ajdovščina 1 (on end of Slovenska cesta, not far from Nebotičnik) there’s free open-air salsa, starting 20:00.
Same same, but different, every Friday, 20:30, there’ll be free live jazz in Stari trg (Old Town Square).
Ljubljana Castle – Parallel Worlds of Alan Hranitelj runs from July 5 to September 8, showing the work of acclaimed costume designer Alan Hranitelj.
The Summer in Ljubljana Old Town goes on until 28 August. This presents classical concerts, many of which are free, in the churches, inner courtyards and squares in the old city centre. The programme is here.
Running until 1 September is the Mini Theatre’s season for children and young people, with details here.
Volčji Potok Arboretum (Volčji Potok 3) has a rose garden in bloom until 31 August, nature permitting.
If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here
While the Old Town is quaint, and full of music, where does Ljubljana really shop? One popular answer is BTC City, a vast complex of malls, entertainment facilities and more, including more than 70 different food vendors, offering everything from Slovenian to Thai, Indian to Italian, Mexican to Chinese. Check out my recent visit here.
Looking for something different to eat? Trubajeva cesta, running right by Dragon Bridge, has the greatest concentration of "ethnic food" places in Ljubljana, and thus perhaps the country. Check out our walk through guide as of June 2019.
Photo: JL Flanner
- Cinemas and films
- Clubbing
- Live music
- Theatre and dance
- Harm reduction and drug testing
- Things to do with children
- LGBT+ Ljubljana
- Ljubljana Castle
- Museums and galleries
- Other things to do in Ljubljana
- Daytrips
- Getting around & miscellaneous
Cinemas and films
You can read about all the cinemas in town here, while a selection of what’s playing this week is below, and note that kids' movies tend to be shown in dubbed versions, while non-English language movies for older viewers will have Slovenian subtitles.Parents should also pay attention to Kinobalon, which is Kinodvor's regular weekend series of film screenings and events for children, from babies on up, with special parent/child events, "first time in a cinema" screenings, and babysitting. Learn more about it here, and see the current schedule here.
Thursday, 11 July, Film Under the Stars begins again, giving the chance to watch some of the leading art films of the past year outside at Ljubljana Castle, each night at 21:30. The full schedule and trailers are here.
Note - Toy Story 4 only seems to be shown in dubbed versions Kinodvor –This is an arts cinema, not far from the train station, that shows new features as well as hosting the occassional festival.Kinoteka – And not far from Kinodvor you can find this revival cinema, which shows art house classics along with some deep dives in the archives.
Kino Bežigrad - A relatively small theatre, but one which usually has the biggest of the new releases.
Kolosej -The multiplex out at BTC City Mall shows all the big movies, with well over a dozen titles on the schedule, although note that there are far more movies than screens, so some of the older ones mayonly be playing once or twice a week.
Komuna – The cinema in a basement behind Nama department store shows two or three different features a week, usually including the biggest titles.
Clubbing
Compared to some European capitals it can seem that nightlife in Ljubljana ends rather early, especially along the river, but there are still bars that stay open late and clubs were you can dance until dawn, and perhaps the best place to stumble across something interesting is the legendary Metelkova. Be aware it's a grungy kind of place and not for all tastes, but also that there's considerable variety to found within the various clubs there, from death metal to electropop, gay cabaret to art noise. You can read "the rules" of the place here. And if you're curious about how the place started then read our story, and look at some pictures, about last year's 25th anniversary.
Božidar - DJ events aren't too common here, but when they happen they often have a big name.
Channel Zero – DJs shows here include regular dub nights as well as electronic music.
Gala Hala – Another Metelkova venue, you can sometimes hear bhangra and Bollywood here, but more often funk, hip hop, breakbeat and so on.
Klub Cirkus – The more commercial end of clubland, and a venue that aims to serve the student party scene. Expect house, anthems, and bangers.
Klub K4 – The home of techno, old and new, along with various other electronic genres,
Koncertna Dvorana Rog– There are irregular DJ sets at this underground (not literally) venue at the far end of Trubarjeva cesta, and they range from techno to goa to drum'n'bass.
Orto Bar– 80s and 90s throwback nights can often be found here, along with rock-based DJ sets.
Live music
Balassi Institute – Free Hungarian music, when available, from the Hungarian cultural institute just a short walk downriver from Dragon Bridge.
Cankerjev dom – The main arts venue in the country hosts classical, opera jazz, folk and occassinally pop.
Cvetličarna – Regional pop and rock concerts can be found here.
Channel Zero – This Metelkova venue sees live shows from punk and rock bands, as well as others.
Gala Hala – Another Metelkova venue with indie bands of various styles.
Kino Šiška – One of the top live venues in the city, with a varied programme that include indie, rock, pop, experimental, hip hop, and so on.
Klub Gromka – Live music is often metal, from sludge to stoner, death to thrash, while punk bands also appear, as do others.
Križanke – The venue that hosts the Ljubljana Festival often has classical music, and some rock, in the open air.
Ljubljana Castle – Jazz, funk and pop every Friday night.
Orto Bar– The home of live rock, metal, punk and other guitar-based genres.
Pinelina dnevna soba – LIve music is rare here, but it does happen.
Slovenska filharmonija– Classical music in the centre of town.
SNG Opera and Ballet - As the name suggests, here you'll find the best of opera and ballet in the country.
Španski borci - While dance is more common here, they also have some contemporary and experimental music shows.
Theatre and dance
Cankerjev dom- The main arts venue in the country always has something of interest going on.
Gledališče IGLU - IGLU Theatre – Saturday night this group is usually putting on an English improv show somewhere in town, but it’s generally promoted after this is written, so check the Facebook before putting on your shoes.
Kino Šiška – One of the top live venues in the city also hosts some dance performance, often of the more experimental variety.
Mini Teater Ljubljana –The English schedule of varied performances, for adults and children, for the month is here.
Ljubljana Puppet Theatre - Puppetry has a long and noble tradition in Slovenia, and you can see performances for children and adults (including non-puppet shows) drawing from the Theatre's rich repetoire as well as new productons.
SNG Opera and Ballet - As the name suggests, here you'll find the best of opera and ballet in the country.
Španski borci - The home ofcontemporary dance(and the EnKnapGroup) in Slovenia.
Pocket Teater Studio– There are regular flamenco evenings at perhaps the smallest venue town, but note that the number of seats is very limited, and thus you should make a reservation via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 070 325 522.
Harm reduction and drug testing
Drogart is an organization that aims to minimise harm on the party scene, and offers drug-testing services and reports on their webpage. It’s in Slovene, but you can Google translate it or work things out yourself, and our story on the group is here.You can find the latest warnings on fake drugs and high strength pills and powders (in Slovene) here. However, be aware that all the usual drugs are illegal in Slovenia.CBD is legal, though, and our retailer of choice can be found on Trubarjeva cesta - read more about Sena Flora here.
Things to do with children
You can find our Top 12 list of things to do with kids in Ljubljana here. If want to read more about the philosophy behind the wonderful House of Experiments look here, while our trip to the Museum of Illusions is documented here, and there’s always riverside walks, pizza and ice cream. With regard to the latter, take a look at our guide to six places that serve good ice cream in winter, and thus are serious about the dessert.
Mini Teater Ljubljana – The season sees a lot of puppet performances for children, in Slovene, at this theatre not far from Križanke. The English schedule for the month is here.
Ljubljana Puppet Theatre - The puppet theatre near the Central Market and next to the Castle funicular has a full programme or shows, for children and adults, with the schedule here.
LGBT+ Ljubljana
If you're looking for more general links on "gay Slovenia", including a history of the scene and various projects, then you can find that here, while our stories about the community can be found here.
Klub Monokel – This lesbian bar in Metelkova is open every Friday, although sometimes there are other events
Klub Tiffany –And the gay bar next door is also open on Fridays. Other things coulds also be planned, so click on the name to find out.
Pritličje – This seems to be the only "always open" LGBT-friendly cafe / bar / events space in town, and perhaps the country, so it's a good thing it's such a good one, open from morning to night, and with fliers and posters letting you know what's happening outside the narrow confines of, say, a general interest online what's on... guide.
Screenshot from Google Maps, showing the location of the Castle vineyard
Ljubljana Castle
The city’s main attraction is said to be the top tourist draw in the country overall, and to my mind it earns a spot near the top just for the history and views. But beyond that the current owners, the City of Ljubljana, have laid out a varied, interesting and enjoyable programme of events, one that rewards regular revisits. On until 17 November Mighty Guardians of the Past: Castles in the Slovenian Lands, a presentation that delivers on the promise of its title.
I try and get up there every Saturday morning to clear my head and move my feet on the trails, and never tire of that end of the hill. At the other end, where the Castle sits, there’s a lot more than fresh air on offer. There are guided tours, restaurants, a café, Castle museum, puppet museum, a Watchtower you can climb to the highest point in the city, art shows, dances, live music, movies under the stars, festival days and more – enough to reward multiple trips up the hill through the year. All of these activities and events can be found on the Castle website, while on TSN you can see “25 things to know about Ljubljana Castle” here, and “Ten Ways to Enjoy Ljubljana Castle” here.
Museums and galleries
Most public galleries and museums are closed on Mondays, although not the National Museum, and - as noted at the start
Cankerjev dom – On until 3 March 2020 there's an exhibition on Ancient Greek Science and Technology. Details here.
Plečnik's desk. Photo: JL Flanner
Plečnik’s House is worth a visit if you want to learn more about the architect who gave Ljubljana much of its character, and it's also in a really nice part of town, Trnovo, just a short walk or cycle upriver. Read about our guided tour here.
Balassi Institute – The Hungarian culture centre is next to a Spar and Hofer, and not far from Dragon Bridge, and always has something interesting going on. Learn more here.
City Museum – The Museum in French Revolution Square an interesting permanent exhibition on the history of Ljubljana, from prehistoric times to the present day, with many artefacts, models and so on that bring the story alive.You can read about my visit here. On until 25 September is Treasures from Russian Museums, an exhibition showcasing more than 80 Russian icons from leading Russian museums.
The Faces of Ljubljana in the City Museum. Photo: JL Flanner
International Centre of Graphic Art – The 33rd Biennial of Graphic Arts runs until 29 September. It's called Crack Up – Crack Down, and is curated by the collective Slavs and Tartars, with a focus satire and the graphic arts. Learn more here.
Ljubljana Castle on until 17 November Mighty Guardians of the Past: Castles in the Slovenian Lands, a presentation that delivers on the promise of its title.
MAO – The Museum of Architecture and Design has much of what you'd expect, along with some temporary shows and a good cafe. On until 19 September is a show called Creators, on contemporary Slovenian fashion and textile design, which is being promoted with the following image.
Photo: Urša Premik
A new show by one of the best photographers of the city, Igor Andjelič, on the theme of Bauhaus, is on at Galerija ŠKUC until 17 July (here).
Photo: Igor Andjelič. See more of his work here
Moderna galerija – The main branch of this gallery, to be found near the entrance to Tivoli Park, has a good collection of modern art, as well a nice café in the basement. Opening Thursday, April 25th, 20:00, The Visual Arts in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, 1929–1941, which then runs until September 15th 2019. This offers “an overview of painting, sculpture, printmaking, drawing, photography, and film from the time the king's dictatorship was set up (6 January 1929) to the beginning of World War II on Yugoslav soil (April 1941)” - you can read more about it here. The museum's Metelkova branch also has a big new show, runing until at least September 2019, an the art of the Non-Aligned Movement, with an example shown below.
Rafikun Nabi: Poet, 1980, print, 96.5 x 110 cm. Courtesy of the Contemporary Art Center of Montenegro. On display at the Metelova branch of the Moderna galerija
Alan Ford at the National Gallery
National Gallery – The country’s main gallery has “the best” of what’s on offer from the Middle Ages to non-contemporary modern visual arts, and is in a great location for exploring other areas, just by Tivoli Park and opposite the main branch of the Moderna galerija. You can read about our visit to the room containing sacred art from the Middle Ages here. The Space Within the Space: Scenography in Slovenia before 1991 will provide a comprehensive historic, stylistic, visual and theatrical overview of Slovenian scenography until 8 September. There’s also a big show on Alan Ford, one of the great comic books of the Yugoslav era, on until 13 October.
JL Flanner
The real Robba Fountain can be found in the entrance to the National Gallery - the one you see in the Old Town is a genuine fake, as seen below and reported here.
Photo: JL Flanner
National Museum of Slovenia – There’s plenty to see in the permanent collection here, from Roman times, Egypt and more. Running until 3 November is Roma Aeterna: Masterpieces of Classical Sculpture. With sculptures from the collection of the Santarelli family in Rome, ranging from the age of the Roman Empire to that of neoclassicism. Meanwhile, the museum's Metelkova branch, located between one branch of the Moderna galerija and the Ethnographic Museum has some rooms on Church art, furniture and weapons, with the latter including more guns than you'll see anywhere else in town, and quite a thrill if coming from a nation where such objects are not household items.
Natural History Museum – On until the end of December 2019 is Our Little Big Sea, which takes a look at the oceans.
Roma Aeterna: Masterpieces of Classical Sculpture - see below
National Museum of Contemporary History - Tucked away in park Tivoli, in addition to his permanent collection will be showingIn Search Of Freedom: 1968-2018 until 16 August. Until 29 September there also a retrospective on the photographer Edi Šelhaus, which is being promoted with the following image.
Photo: Edi Šelhaus
Slovene Ethnographic Museum – The museum has two permanent exhibitions. One of these is called Between Nature and Culture, and has a great collection of objects from Slovenia and around the world, well worth the trip up to the third floor to see it (as recounted here). From April 18 until October 19 (2019) you can also see a show calledShamanism of the Peoples of Siberia, from the Russian Museum of Ethnography, Saint Petersburg. The place is located near the newer branch of the Moderna galerija and Metelkova. You can read about this fascinating show here. On until September 15 is Petra Šink: The circle between design and nature, in which the award-winning designer takes visitors through the life cycle of useful products for the home which are made from natural biodegradable fungal materials.
Union is "the Ljubljana beer", but now both it and Laško are owned by Heineken. There are many local brews on offer around town, though, if you want to explore IPAs, stouts, wheatbeers, sours and so on Photo: JL Flanner
Union Experience – The Ljubljana-based brewer has a museum showing the history of the company, with the ticket also including access to part of the factory and a few samples of the product. You can read about our visit here.
Volčji Potok Arboretum - Running until 3 November you can see a large collection of cacti here.
It's not a formal museum, but if you're interested in "Yugo-stalgia" then you'll enjoy a trip to Verba, a small, privately run space that's crammed with objects and pop culture items from the era, and is conveniently located at the start of one of the short walks to the castle. It's also a great place to take pictures, if you leave a donation, and you can read more about it here.
Verba. Photo: JL Flanner
Alternative Ljubljana isn't a museum or gallery, as such, but instead turns the city streets into a museum and gallery. Learn more about their tours of street art, history and LGBT Ljubljana here.
Photo: JL Flanner
Other things to do in Ljubljana
Learn more about Ljubljana with "25 things to know about Slovenia's green city of dragons", or take a look at our guide to spending from four to 48 hours here.
If you like the city's architecture then check out this great book, Let’s See the City - Ljubljana: Architectural Walks & Tours, with our review here and a page from the book shown above. We took a walk with one of the authors who showed us how much there is to learn and enjoy if you slow down and pay attention - read about that here.
Open Kitchen brings market stalls selling food and drink from some of the best restaurants in town every Friday, from 11am to 11pm, in the square between the cathedral and the river - just follow your nose and the crowds. Read more about it here.
Photo: Open Kitchen
Ljubljana has some beautiful buildings from the early 20th century, in the Secessionist style, like the one below. Learn where to find them here.
Photo: Neža Loštrek
Photo: JL Flanner
Some view of the city you can only get from the river. If you'd like to take a boat ride then read about my experience here. If you prefer to get in the water rather than on it, then here's a guide to the various open air pools in Ljubljana. Note that it was written last year and so the prices and times may have changed, so do click the links and check.
If you'd like to spend an evening painting with others, then take a look at Design with Wine, which organises painting parties on Trubarjeva cesta,
If you want to see some antiques, then check out the wonderful Antika Carniola, as discussed here. The man behind it, Jaka Prijatelj, has a fine eye for life on this street, as you can see on his Facebook account.
Photo: JL Flanner
If you’re in town and want to go jogging or walking in nature, why not take another look at the Castle, with a brief guide to the trails here. If you want something bigger, head to Tivoli Park.
And if you're bored with the Old Town, why not take a walk, cycle or boat ride to nearby Špica and enjoy the riverside life. Learn more about that here.
visitljubjana.si
Want to stretch and breath? Then check out our list of drop-in yoga classes for tourists, visitors and the uncommitted. We go to Nataraja Studio, by Dragon Bridge, and here's a story about it.
Prefer to have someone else stretch you? The check out the totally legit massages you can get from Sense Wellness - either in one of their spas or in you home, office or hotel. (And - to repeat - these are legit and non-sexual in nature)
There are some golf courses near Ljubljana, but even ones further away are not far, as seen in our list of all the golf courses in Slovenia.
Photo: maxpixel.net, public domain
Daytrips
Most of Slovenia is only a few hours from Ljubljana, and you can easily visit Lake Bled, Lipica Stud Farm, Postojna Cave, Predjama Castle, the coast and other locations, while if you'd like to take a photo of from that bench in Bled, then you can learn how to get there here. If you’re looking for something more ambitious, then check out our recent guide to the 17 members of the Association of Historical Towns of Slovenia. We've also written guides on spending from four to 48 hours in Bled and Piran.
Photo: Google Image Search
Getting around & miscellaneous
If you want to get a Ljubljana Tourist Card, which gives you travel on the city buses and entry to a lot of attractions, then you can read more about that here, and if you want to use the bike share system, as useful for visitors as it is for residents, then you can learn more by clicking this. Visitors with reduced mobility will be pleased to find that downtown Ljubljana is generally rated as good with regard to accessibility, and that there’s a free, city-sponsored app called Ljubljana by Wheelchair highlighting cafés, attractions and so on with ramps, disabled bathrooms and Eurokey facilities, which you can read about and download here. Manual wheelchair users can also borrow, for free, an attachment that will motorise their equipment, as reported here.
Screenshot from a Twitter video
If you’re driving into town and don’t know where to part, our guide to how to park in Ljubljana is here.
There aren't many places to eat after midnight, and most of them are by the train station, as reported here.
Want / need cigarettes but the stores have closed? Here's an incomplete list of bars downtown that will satisfy your craving for the demon weed. While if you’re having trouble with the ATMs then here’s a guide to the Slovene you’ll see on screen. If you get a hangover then find out where to get paracetamol (and prescription drugs) in Ljubljana here, while details on emergency birth control can be found here.
Ljubljana is a small and relatively safe city, but if need to contact the police then there’s a special number for foreigners, and that’s 113.
Photo: JL Flanner
STA, 5 July 2019 - The city councils of all four coastal municipalities have urged authorities to present them within a month a timeline of activities to find a new, safe water source for Slovenian Istria.
Koper, Piran, Izola and Ankaran councillors met on Friday after almost 11,000 litres of kerosene spilled as a train derailed in a tunnel on the Koper-bound railway near Hrastovlje, south-west.
The spill is a threat to the Rižana water source, the only source of drinking water for Slovenia's coast. The greatest threat is heavy rain, which could make kerosene penetrate further into the soil and underground water.
The councillors are worried the state cannot guarantee the coast the constitutionally guaranteed right to drinking water if the Rižana source is contaminated.
They thus demand that all the necessary measures are taken and implemented to prevent the pollution of the only water source for Slovenian Istria.
Supervision of the state in which railway and road infrastructure is in water areas, should be enhanced, the councillors decided.
The railway infrastructure in water areas should be maintained and modernised to avoid any problems with the rail tracks.
The authorities should also make sure that trains carrying dangerous cargo in water areas run at adequate speeds.
Finally, the state should take measures to minimise risks for similar incidents.
If these measures cannot be guaranteed, then the option should be studied to ban transport of dangerous substances through water areas until a new water source is found.
The councillors also tasked the mayors to prioritise efforts to find a new water source and expressed support for the state's efforts to build the second rail track between Koper and Divača.
The session, which Koper Mayor Aleš Bržan labelled "Istrian parliament", was also attended by government representatives.
Environment and Spatial Planning Minister Somin Zajc promised serious efforts would be made to find a new water source, announcing a meeting with Istrian mayors at the ministry's water directorate for next week.
Several possible water sources have been proposed in the past, so it is clear which ones could be suitable, but they will have to be studied again, he said.
While he could not give any detailed timeline, he said "we're probably not talking weeks or months, but a year or two".
To further protect the Rižana water source from kerosene pollution, a special protective foil was laid in the Hrastovlje tunnel on Wednesday after much of the contaminated material was removed earlier.
All our stories on water quality in Slovenia are here
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.
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
This summary is provided by the STA:
Slovenian, Italian ministers discuss migrations amidst protests
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia/TRIESTE, Italy - As several protests were held along the Slovenian-Italian border against new border control measures, above all Italy's plan to erect physical barriers with Slovenia, the interior ministers, Boštjan Poklukar and Matteo Salvini, spoke on the phone as Salvini visited Trieste. Media reports also quoted Salvini as saying that Italy, Slovenia and Croatia would launch three-partite mixed border patrols. In response to the latest developments, Slovenian parliamentary parties and MEPs mostly condemned the announcement of physical barriers if Slovenian-Italian border police patrols, introduced on 1 July, do not result in fewer illegal migrants. Meanwhile, the mixed border patrols continued to divide Slovenian politics. Opposition SDS MP Branko Grims said current developments were "a total disaster" and proof "our government is impotent security- and development-wise", while coalition SD leader Dejan Židan said PM Marjan Šarec should call a meeting of EU and Western Balkan leaders to find a common solution to the Balkan migration route.
Illegal migration up 47% in first half of 2019
LJUBLJANA - The police continue to detect a rising trend in the number of illegal crossings of the Slovenian border, with the number standing at 5,345 in the first half of the year,up 47.1% over the same period in 2018. There is an increasing number of illegal migrants from Pakistan, Algeria and Morocco. The biggest number of illegal crossings of the border in the first half of the year was processed by police officers from the Koper, Novo Mesto and Ljubljana police departments. By the end of June, 2,718 illegal migrants expressed the intention to ask for asylum, a drop of 7.5% over the first half of 2018.
Šarec points to EU enlargement as means of boosting W Balkan economies
POZNAN, Poland - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec said there was a link between the EU's political decisions and the Western Balkans' economic development, as he attended the 6th Berlin Process summit on the Western Balkan's EU prospects. He also regretted the recent postponement of a decision to launch EU accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania, but expressed hope that "adequate strategic decisions" would be taken regarding the accession talks in the autumn, to when the EU had recently put off the decision.
NKBM to pay out EUR 5 million in dividends
MARIBOR - Biser Bidco, the sole owner of Slovenia's second largest bank NKBM, decided to pay out EUR 5 million in dividends, leaving EUR 126,66 million in profit undistributed. The EUR 5 million payout is significantly lower than in 2018, when Bidco Biser decided to pay out EUR 45.8 million in dividends. The AGM also granted a discharge of liability to the bank's management and supervisory boards. The Luxembourg-based company is owned by US fund Apollo, which holds 80% of the company, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Telekom Slovenije starts sales of Kosovo subsidiary
LJUBLJANA - Telekom Slovenije published the notification on the start of the sales procedures of its Kosovo subsidiary Ipko. The move is in line with the national telco's strategy of further consolidation through expansion or disinvestment. Telekom Slovenije became the sole owner of Ipko last year after acquiring 7% of the company still held by minority shareholders. In mid-March 2018, it provided it with a EUR 15m capital increase.
Debate hears new national security strategy too general
LJUBLJANA - A debate on the new resolution on the national security strategy hosted by the parliamentary Defence Committee heard criticism that the document was not specific enough. But Klemen Grošelj, a former Defence Ministry state secretary, responded that these were just guidelines and that concrete measures would follow. According to Defence Minister Karl Erjavec, the new resolution is needed because of the changed security situation on the global scale.
Coastal communities urge new water source after kerosene spill
KOPER - The city councils of all four coastal municipalities urged the government to present them within a month a timeline of activities to find a new, safe water source for Slovenian Istria. Koper, Piran, Izola and Ankaran councillors met after almost 11,000 litres of kerosene spilled as a train derailed in a tunnel on the Koper-bound railway near Hrastovlje, south-west, on 25 June. The spill is a threat to the Rižana water source, the only source of drinking water for Slovenia's coast. The greatest threat is heavy rain, which could make kerosene penetrate further into the soil and underground water. Environment Minister Somin Zajc promised serious efforts would be made to find a new water source, announcing a meeting with Istrian mayors at the water directorate for next week.
Počivalšek discusses neutral economy challenges in Helsinki
HELSINKI, Finland - Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek said that the journey towards climate-neutral economy in the EU is paved with challenges as well as opportunities as he attended an informal session of the Competitiveness Council. He stressed the importance of international economy competitivenesses for climate action. In his address, Počivalšek said that the industry of the future has to be green, creative, smart and cooperative.
Ljubljana Drama SNG building makeover gets under way
LJUBLJANA - After long-time efforts to renovate Ljubljana's Drama SNG theatre building, the first phase of the EUR 43 million project has kicked off. The documentation is expected to be drafted by the end of 2021 at the latest, while construction work is scheduled to start in 2022, theatre director Igor Samobor said on Thursday. The work is set to start in September 2022 and end by 2024 or 2025. Samobor said renovation funds had been secured thanks to Culture Minister Zoran Poznič.
Slovenia joins You're Right consumer protection campaign
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia has joined the You're Right campaign of the European Commission to promote the rights of consumers. Running until March 2020, it will focus in Slovenia on tourist packages, the right to withdraw from a contract in 14 days in on-line shopping, and repair or replacement of products. Presenting the campaign, European Commission Representation head Zoran Stančić said it was particularly aimed at young people, who were especially vulnerable.
Art Stays festival starts in Ptuj
PTUJ - The Art Stays festival started in Ptuj, bringing contemporary art productions by Slovenian and foreign artists to this medieval town in the north-east. According to the festival head Jernej Forbici, the 17th Art Stays, running under the title Future - a Vision of the World, will feature international artists who explore what the future holds. The list of more than 80 foreign and domestic participants include Asian artists such as Gal Weinstein, Jeongmoon Choi, Zulkifle Mahmod, Toru Hamada, Yu Kato, Snow Yunxue Fu and acclaimed photographers such as Edward Burtynsky, Olivo Barbieri and Andrea Botto.
If you're learning Slovenian then you can find all our dual texts here
Summer nights offer many pleasures, but those in Ljubljana present the opportunity to indulge in one that’s rather special – watching movies in the open air, in the courtyard of a castle, with a bar serving drinks and a great view of the city at the end.
It’s that time when Kinodvor takes over the main attraction after the sun goes down, with screenings of some the best art movies of the past year, plus some never seen before in the country. All films start at 21:30 and are shown in their original language with English subtitles, unless the original language is English, in which Slovenian is used for the subs (although note that movies like The Square, which are predominantly in English but have sections in other languages, are likely to be fully subbed in Slovene.)
In case of bad weather the screenings will be cancelled, as announced at kindovor.org and ljubljanskigrad.si by 19:00 on the day of the scheduled screening, with rescheduled screenings taking place the following evening at 21:30 at Kinodvor.
Tickets are 5 euros for regular screenings, 6 for premieres and “special screenings”. You can buy tickets at the Castle and Kinodvor, or online from the links under the the titles below.
Thursday, 11. 07 - My Last Year as a Loser
Slovene language only / Buy tickets
Friday, 12. 07 - Diego Maradona
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Saturday, 13. 07 - Green Book
Sunday, 14. 07 - Woman at War
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Monday, 15. 07 - Colette
Tuesday, 16. 07 - Rocketman
Wednesday, 17. 07 - Pain and Glory
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Thursday, 18. 07 - Maria by Callas
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Friday, 19. 07 - The Dead Don't Die
Saturday, 20. 07 - A Star Is Born
Sunday, 21. 07 - Stan & Ollie
Monday, 22. 07 - Shoplifters
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Tuesday, 23. 07 - Pavarotti
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Wednesday, 24. 07 - Everybody Knows
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Thursday, 25. 07 - The Favourite
Friday, 26. 07 - Free Solo
Saturday, 27. 07 - The Old Man & the Gun
Sunday, 28. 07 - If Beale Street Could Talk
Monday, 29. 07 - The Children Act
Tuesday, 30. 07 - The White Crow
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Wednesday, 31. 07 - Bohemian Rhapsody
Thursday, 01. 08 - Cold War
English subtitles / Buy tickets
Friday, 02. 08 - BlacKkKlansman
Saturday, 03. 08 - Yesterday
