Ljubljana and random european fashion musings

Ljubljana. Try saying that three times and not making a local giggle.

I started my day stumped. In Koper, the bus ticket office is in the same building as the train ticket office. In fact, they sit side by side. However, they claim to have NO idea about each others' schedules. What I did discover after visiting both booths was :

1. Buses are less frequent than trains.
2. Buses are much slower than trains.
3. Buses are more expensive trains.

Figure that one out.

Ljubljana a great little town. I took the train here. It's a pint sized capital that packs a whole lot of medieval punch. It features tiny cobblestoned alleys, a winding canal (that they call a river), beautiful 15th Century houses (including two brothels), and a fully restored castle on a hill overlooking the town. What's more, is its got an incredible cafe scene in which the entire town of 300,000 Slovenes partakes. As my dad would say, 'there are more cafes than you can shake a stick at.' I never understood why you would want to shake a stick at anything, but he loves to say that.

The alps are only 20km away, so its freezing here, and my arch-enemies, the clouds, came back to haunt me. Despite the miserable weather, the day was a good one. I wandered the town, taking in the atmosphere and pausing to get a coffee or other beverage everytime my feet ached. There are very few tourists here (and those that are here are either rowdy Italians or subdued Germans) and locals pay very little attention to the foreigners who are around. Communicating is not a problem as the average Slovene speaks 4 languages fluently and can correct my brother's grammar in a heartbeat. And even though it was under 20 degrees celcius, the locals heartily displayed their love of ice cream. In fact, I think there were as many gelaterias as there were cafes, and I was probably the only person not happily licking an ice cream cone.

Today's meals:

1. Capuccino, a banana, and a jelly doughnut (cherry marmalade)
2. A gyro. And it was delicious.
3. Roast Veal and Roast Potatoes, washed down with some curiously chilled local red wine (and I should also mention that they serve their white wine at room temperature).

I'll conclude this post with a couple of random observations on Male European Fashion:

1. Capris are in. Very in. In fact, more men wear capris than women here. I, personally, have trouble trusting a man who looks like he's ready for the next monsoon. If you're going to wear those ridiculously short pants, at least complement them with some rubber galoshes.
2. Men love to wear polo shirts with the collars turned up. Some guys layer their polos in different shades, with each layer's collar turned up. I don't get it.
3. The man-purse is still as fashionable as ever. I know, it's not a purse, it's EUROPEAN!