Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia. It's also the biggest city in the country and the political, cultural and commercial centre. With a population of around 300,000 it has the intimacy of a small town mixed with the cultural heritage and cosmopolitan feel of a vibrant city.

The stunning old town is nestled between a hill topped with a castle and the gently flowing Ljubljanica river. The banks of the river and many other important buildings were designed by local architect, Jo¾e Pleènik (1872-1957). When strolling through the streets of Ljubljana you can see the remains of the Roman settlement Emona, the medieval old town, the many works of Pleènik and modern buildings blended with parks and squares.

The history of the city begins some 5,000 years ago with "marsh dwellers" inhabiting the boggy barje (marsh lands) near the city, and continues through the time of Roman Emona, followed by the medieval city under the castle. Over the last century, Ljubljana has experienced its highest rate of growth, becoming more important as the political and educational centre of Slovenia. With Slovenia becoming independent in 1991, it has become one of the smallest capitals in Europe.

Slovenia joined the European Union on May 1, 2004 and transitioned to the Euro on January 1, 2007.

You can walk through the city in a couple of hours. If you have an entire day you can see almost all of the sights worth visiting. If you stay longer, Ljubljana is a great starting point to see the rest of Slovenia. Within a two hour drive you can see the Adriatic Sea, alpine mountains, the Karst (full of magical caves), the Panonian lowland, and a sub-alpine world of enormous beauty.

From World66 based on work by saich and lpx. Photos by ChrisYunker. Content is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0.