My experience in Ljubljana, Slovenia, by Eva

Q: How is it to live in Ljubljana? Do you recommend it? How´s the city?

A: It is a college alike city with lots of life, being located between the Alpine and Mediterranean districts. There are a lot of activities (hiking, skiing, other ones related to the sea, in this case the Mediterranean sea) which are located closely, within one hour of driving.

Ljubljana is a beautiful city with a strong cultural heritage (it is a very old medieval city) and has many new art style buildings in it, alongside some apartments designed by Jože Plecnik. You should inform yourself about this architect who´s work had a great impact in the city´s life!

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Students have several reasons to come here: all the university-related buildings are located in the city so it is possible to enjoy the city´s life while trying the cafes alongside the river, studying at the Plečnik Library (which is an impressive architectural example), or enjoy the city´s nightlife at the clubs by the river, as well as in Metelkova.

Q: How much in average did you spend in order to live in Ljubljana?

A: Renting a room costs between 100 to 250 euros depending on the location. Cofee costs between 1, 20 to 1, 60 euros, beer starts at 2, 50 euros and meals start at 7 euros. In shopping malls the meal prices can be a little cheaper, starting at 5 euros. In general, it is cheaper to eat in Slovenia when compared to Austria or Italy. The prices practiced at the supermarkets are the same as in Austria.

Q: Is it difficult to find a room in Ljubljana? Can you give us any advice?

R: I don´t think that it is hard, you just have to be aware of the room´s size when looking for one. Sometimes people rent rooms so small the can´t barely stand up in them.

Q: How´s the food? Do you have any favorite dish?

A: The food is a mixture between Austrian alpine dishes (sauerkraut, sausages, meat soup) e Mediterranean dishes (fish, pasta, pizza). The fast food is generally based in bosnian cuisine like Čevapčiči (some sort of meatballs) and Burek (fat and salty pasta rolls filled with cheese and meat)

For starters I recommend a good meat soup, followed by radish sauce with the soup´s meat and žganci or roasted potatos “tenstan krompir”. If you want fish you can try trout with Trieste sauce. For a vegetarian option there are the tasty "štruklji" pasta rolls filled with cheese, herbs, spinach, walnuts or something similar, everything cooked in water.

For deserts there is the traditional "potica" or "gibanica" or the sweet “štruklji".

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Q: Which places do you recommend to visit while in Ljubljana?

A: The castle, the book shop, the market, the three bridges, the old town...

Q: How´s the quality of Ljubljana´s restaurants? Can you tell us which are the best ones?

A: It turns out to be a little expensive in the old city, the ones there rip on purpose the tourists. You can have good, fresh fish for low prices in the local market (next to the caravans) during working hours. Other good restaurants, including pizza-serving ones, are located in Prule, near the river, next to the river ( a little bit away from the old town).

Q: How´s the nightlife in Ljubljana? Where are the best spots?

A: Metelkova and the Orto bar

Q: What advices would you give to a future student in Ljubljana?

A: Try to barter beforehand with the taxi drivers for the lowest price. Don´t get in taxis which are parked in reserved parking slots since these are more expensive.

If you want to travel and see the countryside you should rent a car for a few days, it is worth the expense. You won´t be able to reach everywhere by only using the public transport system. Try to rent a vehicle trough the smaller companies since these practice lower prices than the bigger, international ones.