Ljubljana – This city will charm its way into the cockles of your heart

There are so many unique and quirky little things that Slovenia’s capital city brings to the table.
For instance, as more and more roads in the city centre have become pedestrian only zones over the past few years, the old folk in this charming place have struggled to get around town. So the city council decided to give them free chauffers in golf buggies and vans to drive them around. This caught on so well that they decided to allow everyone to use them. These green vehicles zipped around the city centre with locals and tourists taking advantage of the fun little service.

At first, we though it a little silly as the town was so small. But one day we had a craving for Japanese food and had no idea where to go. Then a small green golf buggie drove past us and we chased it (it was moving at a snail’s pace but I was still huffing and puffing once we caught up with it). The driver was super cheerful and helpful (something rarely found amongst public transport officials in Melbourne) as he quickly took us to a sushi train in town. We had some small talk and he pointed out a few local attractions along the way (we were a little too busy taking selfies and giggling to ourselves to pay attention). He dropped us off, gave us a big smile and then left. The whole novelty of being driven around by a local for free was just too much for me. The sushi train was amazing and cheap but I couldn’t get over this masterful form of transport. I wanted these to be in every other place we’d be going next.

This kindness was just one example of how nice the Slovenian people are. Everywhere we went, we were greeted with smiles, high levels of energy and general politeness. I hadn’t met so many upbeat people before. Everything was just so perfect. It almost felt as if I was on the Truman Show. This feeling was only strengthened by the perfectly maintained buildings which lined all of the clean streets. It was as if the whole town was a film set. In the middle of all of this was an old castle perched upon a big hill. It couldn’t be more picturesque.

It was here in this perfectly charming place where I could relax and recover from the chaos of sailing around the Croatian Islands last week. I had caught the infamous ‘Contiki Cough’ so was a little bit ill as well (this is the main reason why I haven’t updated this blog in a while. Sorry guys). I was able to sleep in, walk around slowly, drink all the tea I wanted and still find time to see everything.

This all culminated in the day when my two fellow travellers left to go to Lake Bled (my budget didn’t allow for me to pay for expensive day tours to see castles and lakes) and I stayed behind. I meandered around the main river in town and crossed all of their bridges (decked out with dragons and large concrete pillars) before reaching a small café full of Slovenian hipsters. If hipsters are around, it must be good!! At least that’s my logic… Don’t question it.

It just so happened that the café ‘Tozd’ was very Melbourne (this is a good thing). They served the best coffee I had had in Europe so far. So, naturally, I had three. I spent a good 4 or 5 hours here as I lounged, drank, ate, read and wrote. They even served an avocado toastie (I hadn’t had avocado since I left home 6 weeks ago – I was in heaven). I also had some tapas which consisted of a heap of good cheddar, marinated olives, capers and sundried tomatoes with breadsticks. All up it only came to 12 euros. After a week of drinking and dancing on a boat while being constantly surrounded by new people, I needed this. My body needed rest. My brain needed to be active. Thanks Lubjub (we struggled to pronounce Ljubljana so we had to make an abbreviation).

I don’t know if I’ll be coming back here anytime soon but if I was looking for a quiet retreat in a friendly and upbeat environment, this is where I’d come.

Unforgettable Tapas Tour and Pub Crawl in Madrid

Day 16- 18

Madrid was our last stop in Spain so it was time to go hard with the food and drink. Oh how I’m going to miss cheap sangria and tapas.

Before starting our mini pub crawl, we needed some sustenance so went looking for ‘Casa Julio’ (a small restaurant I’d read about in my Europe on a Shoestring travel book). After taking an easy 5 minute walk from our apartment on Gran Via, we found the spot. Walking into the space, I immediately knew it would be perfect. locals were sitting at the bar having a gasbag and downing a few beers. The walls were covered in old family photos and the whole space just smelt delicious!

We ordered a mini feast as we knew quite a lot of alcohol would be consumed during the night. They had 6 flavours of croquettes so, naturally, we ordered 12 (they were all to die for). We then shared a large slice of tortilla (potato and egg omelette), fried brie with blackberry jam, stewed pork, gazpacho soup, and spicy patatas bravas. Having the necessary beers and sangria to complement our meals, we had a great start to the evening. I was so full!!

Somehow, I mustered some strength and freed myself from the chair once were were ready to move on. Now it’s time to get down to business. It drinking time!

We started wandering around the same area and walked into one of the oddest bars we saw called ‘De Bebes’. It was a dimly lit bar covered in fake human skeletons, sombreros and miscellaneous knick knacks. It was clearly Mexican themed. The only patrons were a fat old Spanish couple and a lonely tourist eating and drinking in the corner. It was quite a dive but we needed to experience such a place. I started off with a mojito (my favourite of all cocktails) while the others had margaritas and beers. The drinks were alright but nothing to gush over. Nonetheless, the quirky atmosphere made it worth the while. We all relieved ourselves at the neon lit loo and moved on.

We then hit a few more bars here and there before ending up at a great little place called ‘Saporem’. Here I had a delicious Aparol spritz for and only 3 euros. One of my girlfriends, on the other hand, had a caipirinha (made with so much care) which was a whopping 10 euros but super boozy and well balanced. A few more beers were also consumed as we soaked up the night and shared our favourite Spanish stories (the time we only just got our flight from Barcelona to Mallorca was not mentioned – no one wishes to relive that near miss).

We were all a bit merry and ready to head home at about 11:30. From what I’d heard Madrid’s night life didn’t start till 12:00 but that was far beyond the bedtime of my fellow travellers. Will just have to come back another time

For one of our last nights in Madrid, we decided to make up our own tapas tour (we were definitely not going to pay to join a touristy one). We moved towards ‘Tapas Central’ otherwise known as the Latin Quarter. It was the older and less grand part of Madrid. I preferred it to the rest of the city. It was full of locals drinking and eating outside in small parks and squares with a few tourists darted about as well.

Wandering about we came across all of the tapas/ pintxos places I had found on the internet/ in my travel book. We started at ‘Txakolina’ and downed their crab, fried egg and jamon, and vegetable pintxos alongside some mini hamburgers and an omelette. All of the food was delish. And of course we had the mandatory sangria and beer. We had to stand/ eat at the bar but that was fine. It made it easier to move on to the next place.

Next came ‘Taberna Txakoli’ which served similar food and drinks. We scoffed down our tapas super quick (so fast I can’t remember what we even ate but I remember leaving extremely satisfied) and ran to our next place. By this time we had eaten a heap of food as we should have paced ourselves from the outset.

We ended at ‘Juanalaloca’ (Yes we only went to 3 places but we couldn’t fit in any more food) and had some more ‘fancy’ tapas. There were fresh sardines (or at least some sort of salty fish), zucchini and some other sort of vegetable as well as truffles and artichokes.

These were probably the best but also the most expensive tapas we had (we could tell this was going to be the case once we walked in and were actually given a seat) but I’m more than willing to splurge when it comes to things like this. I won’t spend a whole lot of money on clothes from H&M or on tacky souvenirs but I’ll definitely put the majority of my money towards good food and alcohol.

We left the Latin Quarter around 10:00 as we were more than satisfied with the moving feast and were in an even greater mood because it had finally cooled down (the city had been perpetually hot before now). I had a little dance with a group of middle-aged, sweaty and slightly obese buskers as we made our way back to the apartment.

I got home with all of the others and collapsed onto my bed and began devouring the takeaway churros we got on the walk back. Breathing heavily (my body was still struggling to digest all the food) and spilling the chocolate sauce all over myself, I finished my dessert and went to sleep right there and then. Nothing better than falling into a food coma.

And yes, we also saw the major sights, during our stay, but they didn’t really impress me. I liked some of the art in the Prado Museum but I got bored by all of the monotonous religious artworks and was overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the place. It was like a labyrinth of art which I just didn’t understand. Park del Retiro (picture below) was big and beautiful but it was too hot to appreciate everything outside in the elements. And the Royal Palace was just a bit ‘meh’ for me.

As a whole I had a great time in Madrid (mostly the eating and drinking) but the city itself didn’t thrill me. I left feeling a bit underwhelmed by everything but the Latin Quarter. Maybe I just didn’t see the right things (I did miss out on its famous nightlife). Maybe I’ll need to return with a local or group of party goers. Still, I love Spain. Italy may be ahead of me tomorrow but I don’t want to leave this country behind.

Taking Advantage of the Cheap Drinks, Free Tapas, and Beautiful Men in Granada

Day 14

Few things in life have made me as happy as I felt once I realised most bars and restaurants in Granada serve free tapas with any alcoholic beverage. This is definitely my kind of city. I had already gotten my dose of formal culture, art and history through my exploration of the Alhambra so now it was time to experience the laid back Spanish life.

Without having many plans as a group, I found myself wandering the streets without a map for most of my stay here. I had no predetermined location but I was still on a mission – Must get as many free tapas during my time in Granada!!!

Spending the entire day by myself, (I needed some more andytime as travelling with 5 other people can get a little nuts) I came across a small bar around the corner from our apartment called ‘La Fontana’. Here, I saw some locals and tourists alike getting some small tapas with their beers and sangrias.

Before I knew it, my body had already sat itself down at a table outside and I was attempting to order their largest beer.

After laughing (with me, I swear) at my butchering of the Spanish language, the friendly waitress brought over a small gazpacho soup (they choose what you get for free) along with my beer. It is just what I needed on this hot and dry day. I admit, it wasn’t the best gazpacho I had, had before but I didn’t really care for I was still super excited by the fact it was free!

As I was by myself and there was no wifi, I was able to focus on the important things (aka consuming as much food and booze as possible while looking up from my glass or plate every so often to watch the people walking by). After about an hour I had gone through 3 beers and 2 sangrias but was in need of more food (small portions will never suffice my lunchtime hunger). Being quite drunk, I knew I wasn’t going to fare well by looking elsewhere for food so ordered some extra tapas at La Fontana (as seen in the feature image above). And they were scrumptious.

I was in the best of moods but my spirits were then lifted even higher by the emergence of two locals who started to play some live music across the road. They played the Spanish guitar. There was some casual rhythmic clapping and the vocalist had a great manly voice full of emotion (Yes, Spanish men are actually able to exhibit all emotions without losing their masculinity. Who’d have known?)

This is my type of living. To onlookers, I may have seemed like a lonely drunk bopping along to some random buskers on the street but I didn’t care. I had just fallen for Granada.

Later that night, (once I had sobered up a little) I decided to socialise a bit more and meet some new people. Dabbling around on Tinder and Grindr, I started chatting to this attractive American guy who was studying Spanish over here. He was bored and in need of hanging out (this is all PG kiddies) so we decided to grab some dinner together that night. I let him choose as I thought he’d know of some great local spots.

In the end, we ended up having Japanese food as he was sick of eating Spanish cuisine. Just my luck. But it wasn’t until I had my first mouthful of sushi when I realised how much I missed it. 16 pieces of sushi (all just for me) later, I was super full and getting along with this guy smashingly.

I was on a date at a Japanese restaurant with an American guy in Granada. How Cosmopolitan of me.

Unfortunately it was cut short by a call from my friends who had foolishly locked themselves out of our apartment and needed my key to let them in. Reluctantly, I pulled myself away from the handsome man sitting across from me and made my way back to the apartment to let the others in.

Walking down the quiet streets was the perfect way to end my night. I could clear my head and simply soak in all the positive energy around me. 

Soon after, I crashed on my bed, in a state of bliss, knowing it was my last night of free tapas. But I didn’t have time to grieve as we were heading for Madrid the next morning.