Ljubljana

Charming, compact Ljubljana lures travelers
with its little-known appeal

In many ways a fairy-tale city, replete with a castle, Slovenia’s capital city has as its defining motif a dragon, which you’ll see on flags that flutter from bridges and buildings. The historic center is imbued with striking monuments and generous squares that suggest good urban planning. Graffiti artists mark these public spaces, often branding historic edifices with such unironic one-liners as "Ljubljana is a beautiful city." And it is. Graffiti aside, Ljubljana has a low-key buzz and an air of exuberance that extends to the artfulness of its buildings, statuary, and fountains.

According to legend, Argonauts may have laid the foundations of Ljubljana as they fled along the Ljubljanica River from the Black Sea to the Adriatic with the Golden Fleece 3,000 years ago; certainly the Romans established a city, Emona, here by the turn of the 1st century A.D.

A university town with cutting-edge ambitions, Ljubljana percolates with charm. It's long been a cultural center, home to one of Europe's oldest philharmonic societies, and now also to a swinging alternative student culture, drawing international artists from all spheres. Best of all, the city is small and compact, so travelers can see plenty of it with little effort.

© 2009, Wiley Publishing, Inc.