Happy 20th birthday, Slovenia!

My dear fellow countrymen, my home country Slovenia,

you turned 20 years yesterday and today is the 20 years anniversary of the war, that started a day after the independence was proclaimed. We fought 10 days for our freedom, however we were very lucky - the one who died in those 10 days, may they rest in peace. Please let's not forget the so many innocent victims of the brutal war in other parts of former Yugoslavia, that followed after our and Croatia's decision to embrace sovereignty, freedom, democracy and capitalism. 20 years from today I heard sirens howl all around my hometown and my father and I hid in the basement of our block together with many other people. We had no idea, what will happen. We heard planes flying over the city and shots fired in the distance. Faces were painted with fear and hopelessness, but I was just an 11 years old kid, confused and afraid, not being able to process what was happening.

We were hiding in the basement during the day and went back up to the apartment during night. It were summer holidays, all kids were at home and most parents, too. Life stood still those days. We were watching the news of tanks rolling through our cities and battles being fought, but we prevailed. Partly, because we were 100% determined, that we do not want to be part of a failed communist state anymore, partly because the enemy's army was falling apart. Soldiers were confused about, because they had to fight people, who were previously called their brothers. Yugoslavia died.

And Slovenia was born, an independent one. The roots of our country and nation date back to the 10th century, continuing to grow in the 16th, 18th and peaking in 1848, when the name Slovenija was first used as a possible name of a state, that would unify all by Slovenians populated lands in the Austrian Empire. Throughout history we were ruled by Austrians, Hungarians, Italians, Germans and Serbs, but we survived as a nation, our language and culture persevered even through the tough times of the tumultuous 20th century. And now we are here, 2011, twenty first century, with the destiny in our own hands. Brothers and sisters, we should not fail.

For we should not disappoint our ancestors, who fought for the freedom we now enjoy, yet seldom appreciate. Let's remember all the Slovenians throughout the history, who gave their lives for what we have today. Let's remember those, who had a dream of all Slovenians united in one country and being in charge of their own destiny. Let's remember those, who died before 25th June 1991 and could not see that moment, where we raised our flag and sung our national anthem for the first time in history as an independent nation.

This promotional video remake makes every Slovenian's heart melt. The original dates back to 1986 and it's one of the legendary clips ever made about Slovenia. Check it here>>

No matter where in the world I am, Slovenia is always on my mind. My roots and my blood are from that wonderful piece of earth, my mother, who I miss dearly, is still living in the same house I was raised and missing me, too. When I think of my home country, I think of the people I left behind. I miss the environment, the clean air, the feeling of belonging. I miss speaking and thinking in my own language, but I gave all that up for something different, something I've been longing for all my life. I'm in Taiwan to learn and to grow in order to return home one day, to return a wiser man.

Those back at home, please keep my country they way I left it - keep it clean, safe and friendly. Slovenia is a precious gem that needs to be protected. Today I'm lifting my glass with the finest wine I could find in Taiwan and saying: "Na zdravje in še na mnoga leta!"

For those who want to see beautiful photos of Slovenia, please check the posts on my

»Slovenia Page«

Maribor: City of towers

Proposing a new slogan for my hometown

The 58m tall bell towers of the Franciscan church, Maribor's famous landmark.

Maribor is a city of towers! I'm not sure if any other town in Slovenia has more towers than my hometown. Out of at least 9 medieval wall towers, 4 are preserved in Maribor today. Three are renovated (Water tower, Round tower and Jewish tower) and serve a new purpose, one is in plans to be renovated (Čeligi tower). And then there are the two 58m tall towers of the Franciscan church and the 57m tall tower of Maribor's cathedral. And let's not forget smaller towers, such as the one on the Maribor castle and on top of Narodni dom. I hope that the people of Maribor know how many treasures our hometown hides all over the old center. And we definitely need to preserve them.

The famous old wall towers of Maribor, from left to right: Water tower, Round tower, Jewish tower and Čeligi tower.

✰ Grajski trg/Castle square

Continuing from my previous two posts, where my girlfriend and I started off from Europark shopping mall and then walked along the river Drava to the Main square and from there down to Lent and to the Old Vine. After my girlfriend had her dose of wine and milk, we headed back up to the old medieval center of Maribor. The first part we had a brief stop was Castle square or Grajski trg. She wanted to shop a little and I had a cup of coffee and waited for her.

Castle square is one of the spots, where Maribor people like to hang out.

Maribor castle and the St. Florian monument.

On the left is a monument to St. Florian (Slovenian Sveti Florjan), built in the year 1700 after a devastating fire. Florian is the patron saint of firefighters. Today only the statue on top is original, everything else was reconstructed. This monument is a popular meeting point among people of Maribor, they would usually say "Se dobima pri Florjanu" ("We meet at the Florian").

✰ Mariborski grad/Maribor castle

The building at the center is Maribor castle or Maribor mansion (Slovenian Mariborski grad). This is currently one of the biggest and most significant historic buildings in Maribor and it has a very rich history. It was built in 1478 on the north eastern part of the wall and was meant as an additional fortification, that shall prevent Maribor from invasions from the Turks.

Maribor castle in the 17th century (by Vischer).

In the middle ages, the castle was much larger than it is today. It had four towers and a big yard, it was one of the most majestic castles in the Slovenian lands (see an old painting here). Unfortunately things turned bad for the whole structure in the 19th century. Three towers and the whole western part of the castle were removed and a street was laid out on the former inner yard. In the 1930s the castle was bought by the municipality of Maribor and became the home of the Regional Museum Maribor, which is still found there today. Inside the building, there's also one of the most beautiful staircases in Slovenia. The castle also had some prominent historic visitors, some of them however, could've stayed out of Maribor, if you ask me. Among them were: Leopold I., Holy Roman Emperor (17th century), Charles VI., Holy Roman Emperor (18th century), Maria Theresa, Empress of Austria (18th century), Paul I., Emperor of Russia (18th century), Pope Pius VI. (18th century), Franz Liszt, Hungarian composer, who had a concert in the castle (19th century) and Adolf Hitler, German fuhrer (1941), (Info: Source).

✰ Typical for Maribor

What happened to this castle is very typical for the whole history of Maribor: Things are constantly built, destroyed, fixed, rebuilt, changed, new things added, old things modified. That was the case centuries ago and it's still a common practice today. Most people in Maribor are probably used to that, but at one point we need to figure out what we really want Maribor to be. I'm rather for preserving the old, when it comes to the center, rather than destroying it and replacing it with new.

This is the Slovenian street (Slovenska ulica). Slovenians lived in Maribor since the beginning (first time mentioned in the 13th century), but until the first half of the 20th century the majority of the people in Maribor were of German descent and the official name was Marburg an der Drau.

The Castle square with the view on the Franciscan church.

Another view on Florjan and the Castle square with all the cafés.

Mariborska hranilnica (a bank) building from 1910. Oh, and another tower.

✰ More interesting parts of Maribor

This is my former secondary school named Prva Gimnazija. "Prva" means "first" and it's currently the oldest secondary school in Maribor. The building was completed in 1873.

In Maribor there are 3 secondary schools ("Prva, Druga, Tretja" meaning "First, Second, Third") and there's a rivalry between the First and Second (Third is totally out of the competition), because usually in the post WWII decades the Second had the smartest students, but in recent years the First caught up (especially when I was there in the late 1990s *cough, yeah...). That's why I believe that Prva is the best and most prestigious secondary school in Maribor and if you think you object to that, meet me tomorrow at 7am under the Old bridge and we can settle this.

In the park near my secondary school, there's a statue of one of Slovenia's most important historic figures: Rudolf Maister. He's especially important for the people of Maribor. As a general, he organized a Slovenian army, who took control of the town. He made sure, that in 1918, when the Austrian Monarchy fell apart, Maribor stayed under Slovenia (then part of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs). He's seen as very important and honorable among Slovenes, but for Austrians, he's seen as a controversial historic figure (Info: Source).

Back from my former secondary school to another square near the castle. This one is called Freedom square (Slovenian Trg Svobode). That big sculpture is a monument to those who fought for freedom during WWII and was placed her in 1975. It was designed by Slavko Tihec, a famous Slovenian sculptor. People in Maribor call this sculpture Kojak (Slovenian Kodžak), which named after a very popular American TV series from the 1970s. The detective Theo Kojak, played by the Greek actor Telly Savalas, was bald and hence the nickname given to the round-shaped monument.

Nearby is another famous landmark in Maribor: The Franciscan church. It was completed in the year 1900 and is currently one of the tallest buildings in Maribor, 58m (Info: Source).

After the extensive sightseeing, my girlfriend and I went to Kolosej, the famous black box on the opposite side of Europark, the first multiplex in Maribor. We didn't mean to watch a movie, though. I invited my girlfriend to play some pool with me.

I had to teach her first, but she's really talented. She nearly won and I'm a damn good player. Guess I need to train her well and we can play doubles and win a lot of cash in the future.

Narodni dom (literally "National home") is one of Maribor's landmark buildings, whose tower is seen from many parts of the city. It was completed in 1898 and served as a cultural center of Slovenians in Maribor at a time, when Slovenians were under the Austrian Monarchy. It was also significant in the later years during WWI and II. Today the building is used for various cultural events and gatherings. I remember having dance lessons here and my senior prom was held here as well in the late 1990s (Info: Source).

Back to the river Drava and the Water tower. Read about it here>>

Sun setting in Maribor, late August, 2010.

We really had fun in Maribor, although we were mad tired from the whole Slovenia tour. I think, if my girlfriend could stay longer here, I would show her much more of Maribor. We could see more museums, we could go on top of the hills that surround the town and enjoy the views, we could walk along Drava, go to the Maribor park or go shopping (although that would be more for my girlfriend). Anyway, Maribor is really interesting, especially if you take some time and learn the history and then explore the city by foot. A (at least) three days long stay is a must, if you really wanna feel the relaxing atmosphere of the life in Maribor. And people are mostly friendly, usually much friendlier than those in Ljubljana, so I was told ;-) Oh, and don't forget the towers.

My rating of Maribor:

Great place for photos ✰✰✰✰✰

Well preserved and clean ✰✰✰✰✰

Toilets, parking, souvenirs ✰✰✰✰✰

Friendly to tourists ✰✰✰✰✰

Maribor Old Vine :Before [Slovenia Tour 2010] Next: Graz/Gradec>>

[My MARIBOR page][My SLOVENIA page][All photos by MKL, 2010, except the historic]

Lady Gaga was waving the Slovenian flag!

Croats were baffled, while Slovenians cheered

Lady Gaga loves Slovenia! Well, she probably does not. But that's what Slovenian netizens think today. She had a concert yesterday in Zagreb, in the capital city of our neighboring country Croatia. Since Zagreb is so close to Slovenia, a lot of our people also went to the concert. But the crowd was not only full of Croats and Slovenians, there were many Italians, Austrians and Hungarians, she attracted people from all over the region. Well, the concert would not be so noteworthy, if there wasn't an incident, that left the Croatian fans baffled and the Slovenian fans stunned. A Slovenian female fan, who wrote on the flag "Italian girl from New York, my only love" for her (see here), threw it on stage and Gaga picked it up. She wrapped herself in the flag and continued dancing and singing, but dropped it few seconds later (so it was like nothing...) But those photos are now all over the web. You can imagine that many Croats weren't amused, especially because the relations between our countries have been strained for the past 20 years, but especially in the recent years, when a border dispute (read here) heated up like never before. Slovenian and Croatian netizens constantly provoke each other online, they come to our forums, we come to theirs. Our languages are pretty similar and it's not hard to learn few phrases and go to the opposite forum and be a jerk. And today the provocations continued. Croats were bitter, some angry at Lady Gaga and wondering, if she did that on purpose, while our Slovenians were overly proud and full of silly remarks.

Can't we all just take a chill pill and relax? She probably had no clue which country's flag that was, nor did she care, if she'll upset anyone. She didn't mean to offend Croats, nor did she express love for Slovenia. I hope those Slovenians, who are now full of national pride, would be fine, if she waved a Croatian flag in Ljubljana and I hope that those Croats, who are now offended, would be equally critical, if their flag would be waved in Slovenia. But I'm afraid both sides would react the same, just the roles would be exchanged...

How would you feel, if a singer waved a flag of a foreign country on a concert in your country?

[Read my posts about SLOVENIA][Photo source: Večernji.hr]

Maribor: The old vine and Slomšek square

Let me introduce to you the oldest vine in the world

The oldest vine in the world.

Maribor is famous for being one of the centers of the Slovenian wine industry. And our wine is pretty good and many times internationally awarded, but unfortunately it's just not that famous like French. However many people, who try it are very astonished by the exquisite taste. Then it should not surprise you, that the oldest vine in the world is found in Maribor. Of course I had to show this nature's wonder to my girlfriend and so we headed down to Lent.

The part near the river Drava is Lent, the oldest part of Maribor.

To go down, you have to walk through old passages. It feels like you're in a seaside town.

And voila! This is the oldest vine in the world.

✰ The oldest vine in the world

Stara trta (pronounced as "Stah-rah ter-tah") or The old vine is probably around 440 years old, maybe 450, but definitely over 400 (scientists from Paris have confirmed that, since 2004 Stara Trta is in the Guiness book of records). It was probably planted between 1560 and 1580. The first image of the house with the vine dates back to the year 1657. Isn't that amazing? This vine is older than the United States of America! Imagine, it survived 440 cold winters and hot summers, it survived various devastating fires in the 17th century, a plague, that killed a lot of people in Maribor, two world wars with heavy bombing of Lent in 1944/45. It survived the Austrian monarchy, nazism, Yugoslavia and the communism... It didn't even dry out in 1941, when Adolf Hitler came to Maribor and stared at it with his demonic eyes. It still stands there proudly on that same wall as the oldest vine planted on the planet, as the pride of Maribor and Slovenia. You have to know that the old vine is like holy for people of Maribor.

Every spring there is an official pruning event, where parts of the vine are skillfully removed and the event attracts hundreds of spectators (see a photo here). However the biggest celebration (in the recent years) is held every October, when the grapes are harvested. It attracts many locals and tourists, the mayor of Maribor is present, as well as other important people in town (see video above to get an idea about how that looks like). Not a lot of wine is produced from the stara trta, less than 100 small bottles (0,25 l) every year. The wine is more of a symbolic gift usually given to foreign heads of state. Among the famous receivers were the Japanese emperor Akihito, Pope John Paul II and Bill Clinton.

The old vine from close, in August 2010. "Štiristoletna trta" means "400 years old vine".

The old vine 2 days ago, November 2010. Autumn colored the leaves brown.

✰ My girlfriend loves milk and wine

There's a wine museum near the old vine, (it's free of charge), where you can see the history of the old vine as well as the history of wine making in the region. You can also try some of the best wines from around Maribor. My girlfriend tried a small glass and it was quite expensive (3eur), but definitely worth it. She said it was one of the best wines she ever tried.

After we finished tasting wine and admiring the old vine, we moved to other parts of Lent.

This is the newest day market in Maribor. It's usually open during weekends.

My girlfriend found a "mlekomat" (fresh milk vending machine) again and wanted to drink fresh milk. Was it a good idea for her to drink milk after wine? No further comments on that.

Look at this sassy Taiwanese street model: Shoes Bu Ma, Jeans Li Wai Se, purse Gu Ji, bag Lu Yi Bei Tuo, shirt homemade, glasses Ah Luo Ma Ni, smile priceless. Photographer: Ning Nuo.

✰ Slomšek square, the heart of Maribor

We headed to the Slomšek square (Slomškov trg). This is one of the oldest squares in Maribor and features some very important buildings: The Stolnica or Maribor cathedral (first time mentioned in 1248), the seat of the University of Maribor (which was established in 1975), the Theater of Maribor (Mariborsko gledališče, since 1852) and the seat of the Post of Slovenia (Pošta Slovenije).

A small park with a fountain near the university building.

Stolnica and the seat of the Post of Slovenia.

Stolnica from behind.

After we left the Slomšek square, we headed to other parts in the old Maribor, explored old lanes and lovely old squares. More about that in my next final post.

Maribor introduction :Before [Slovenia Tour 2010] Next: Maribor, city of towers>>

[My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page][All photos by MKL, 2010]

[Info Sources: Travel Guide, Wiki, SloveniaInfo]

Maribor, my hometown

and Slovenia's second biggest town

Images of Maribor

Maribor (pronounced as Mah-ree-bore) is the second biggest town in Slovenia and also the town where I was born. Although I don't exactly live in town now, but few kilometers away, Maribor is still my place of birth and the town, where I went to primary and secondary school, as well as lived over half of my life. And everywhere I go, Maribor is the only place where I really feel like home. I know every corner, every street and all the beautiful and the ugly parts. But of course like any guide and proud citizen, I will only show you the beautiful sides of my hometown. I'm sure you would do that, too.

✰ Introduction of Maribor

Maribor (a town municipality) has around 120.000 inhabitants and is the economic and cultural capital of northeastern Slovenia, with the second biggest university in the country. The town is divided in two parts by the river Drava, the old historic part on the left side, the newer and bigger part on the right side. The town grew next to Slovenske Gorice (literally "Slovenian Hills"), a hilly region famous for wine yards, which surround the northern part of Maribor, which makes the town one of the centers of the Slovenian wine industry. The southern part of the town lays under Pohorje, a famous 70km long mountain range in northeastern Slovenia, that makes Maribor one of the centers of the winter tourism in Slovenia. Every year, there's a women's ski competition in Maribor called Zlata Lisica (literally "Golden Fox"), which attracts a lot of ski fans from all over the world. But Maribor is also in the spotlight in summer. Every June there is a big international summer festival named Festival Lent, which attracts people from all over the world. There are theaters, concerts, performances, parties and a lot of food all along the river bank of Drava at the oldest part of Maribor, that's called Lent. In the same area is also one of the most famous tourist attractions in Maribor and one of natural wonders of the world: Stara Trta or the Old Vine, which is with over 400 years the oldest vine in the world (it made it even in the Guinness Book of Records). If you ask me personally, the most interesting thing about Maribor is its rich history, a well preserved medieval center and of course the friendly people.

There used to be a big castle above the town, that gave Maribor it's name.

✰ The history of Maribor

The Slavs (Slovenian ancestors) settled in this part of Europe in the 6th century and lived in the rural parts all around in the area, that now lays in the vicinity of Maribor. Franks (an old West German tribe) came here in the 8th century with their royals and started to settle and rule over the Old Slovenians. Maribor was first mentioned in the 12th century as in old German Marchburch (1164). The name was related to the castle one one of the hills above the town and is put together with march (old German for "border region") and burch (old German for "castle"). The castle was neglected in the 18th century and gradually disappeared. The name, which officially remained German until the 20th century, later changed to Marburg an der Drau (Drau is German for river Drava). The Slovenian name Maribor was invented in the 19th century by a Slovenian poet.

Read my whole history of Maribor here>>

Maribor's old center from a bird's eye view:

[Show bigger map]

✰ Our Maribor tour

After my girlfriend and I finished touring western Slovenia, we returned back to my home, which is very close to Maribor. We took a day off, stayed home and rested. A day later we decided to have a sightseeing tour around Maribor. Let me show you what we saw that day:

We went to Europark, Maribor's biggest shopping mall, located on the right side of the river Drava. The old medieval part is on the left side, but not so far from here. You just cross a bridge and in 5 min you're already in Maribor's center. I always leave my car in Europark, because it's for free and there's always enough parking space.

Walking along Drava, we saw Kolosej (pronounced "Co-lo-say") on the other side. This modernist black box is Maribor's first multiplex (cinemas), completed in 2004. It was very popular in the beginning, but it's pretty much empty these days, because there's another more popular multiplex on the other side of Maribor.

The railway bridge or železniški most (pronounced "she-lez-neesh-key most"). It was completed in 1866 and replaced a wooden bridge, that was already built in 1846. It was bombed in 1945 and rebuilt again after the war.

The eastern Lent, the oldest part of Maribor. Most of these buildings destroyed during World War II and the area was neglected until the 1980s, where the town started to rebuild and revitalize the whole area.

The Water tower or Vodni stolp is one of the most famous historic buildings in Maribor. Constructed in 1555, it was meant to secure the southeast part of the medieval Maribor. It was connected to the wall that surrounded the town (source).

The Old bridge or Stari most was completed in 1912 and was one of the most beautiful bridges in former Austrian monarchy. Prior to the steel construction, there used to be a wooden bridge, that connected the central part with the other side, called Tabor. The bridge was partly destroyed during WWII, rebuilt after the war and renovated in 1990 and 1998. The bridge is 166m long.

Revolution square or Trg revolucije.

This is Lent, the oldest part of Maribor. The name comes from the old German word "lander", which meant "a harbor for the traditional rafts", that were very common in the area in the middle ages.

Lent is the most picturesque part of Maribor.

Church of St. Aloysius or Cerkev Svetega Alojzija has no bell tower, which makes it pretty special. It's like an "incognito church" and one of Maribor's famous buildings (18th century).

The river Drava as seen from the Old Bridge. There are many hydroelectric power plants on Drava, which transformed the once rushing river into a very slowly flowing waterway.

The Judgement tower or Sodni stolp was a former fortified tower at the end of the protective wall around Maribor, that guarded the southwestern part of town. The original one from the 13th century was enhanced in 1540. The current form is from 1830. There was a prison inside the tower as well as a court, where even women, who were seen as witches, were persecuted in the so called witchcraft trials. The last such trial in Maribor was in 1711.

The Main Square or Glavni trg is the oldest and biggest square in Maribor. On the left is the famous Plague Monument or Kužno znamenje, in the center is Maribor's Town hall (Mestna hiša) or commonly Rotovž.

Part of the Main square looking to the west.

In the next part I will show you the famous old vine and much much more. Stay tuned.

Bohinj :Before [Slovenia Tour 2010] Next: Maribor Old Vine>>

[Info Sources: Maribor.si, Wiki, Maribor Uni][My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page]

[My post about LENT][All photos by MKL, 2010, except the historic drawings]