STA, 14 December 2018 - Slovenian higher education students are one year younger than the average in the EU as they mostly decide to go to university immediately after the secondary school, which is not characteristic of other European countries, according to a survey carried out in all 28 EU member states.

The key points of the Eurostudent VI (2016-2018) survey were presented on Friday by Alenka Gril of the Educational Research Institute.

In the 2015/2016 academic year in Slovenia, a total of 77,354 were enrolled in tertiary education, of which 4,968 or 6.4% participated in the survey.

Their average age was 24.1, which is around a year below the average for students in all other EU member states, which stands at 25. There were more female students than male students in Slovenia, added Gril.

The share of part-time students in Slovenia is 13%, which is one of the highest shares in the EU. A majority of these students do not have a tertiary education background in their families.

"These students are mostly facing financial troubles and come from poorer families," she said, adding that they frequently had to work while studying.

Most Slovenian students also have jobs

The survey carried out by the Ministry of Education, the public institute CMEPIUS and the Slovenian Student Organisation (ŠOS) also shows that most of Slovenian students work during the academic year.

"Almost three-fifths work for the entire week during the academic year and are thus one of the most overburdened students in Europe, as they work and study for 51 hours a week on average," said Gril.

They work 14 hours a week on average, and only in six European countries students work more (15 hours) - Iceland, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Also facing major financial troubles are students with long-term medical conditions, which represent a 5% share in total student population. Half of them believe that they are not provided sufficient support for studying.

Almost half of Slovenian students live with their parents or relatives (48%), while 19% live in dormitories or rented rooms.

On the occasion, the ŠOS pointed out that students face average monthly costs of EUR 500, while the state scholarship amounts to EUR 125, with only a fifth of students receiving it.

"As the survey showed, students are too much dependent on their own work and family. This means it is too difficult to get independent," ŠOS president Jaka Trilar said in a press statement.

The organisation has also detected a shortage of student dormitories, in particular in the western region of Primorska, but also in Ljubljana.

"The state has obviously failed to detect that bigger generations are coming," said Trilar, also noting that international student exchange programmes were mostly being attended by richer students.

It should be regulated at the EU level that more scholarships for mobility go to students from poorer families, he added.

STA, 16 December 2018 - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar called for more involvement by the US in Europe in an interview he gave for the Washington Post while visiting the US last week. Unless the US "make its leadership more visible in Europe" it risks being eclipsed by China and Russia, the paper said on Saturday.

"It's not enough to have good economic cooperation," Cerar was quoted as saying by the Washington Post.

"I tell you, the Chinese come to Europe. As prime minister, I met five times with the Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang in order to discuss political relations and business."

"So I think it would be very good if our friends and allies in the US would be more present in the region," Cerar said.

Related: Cerar – EU could lose Balkans to Russia, Turkey and China

China offers to build infrastructure quickly with cheap money that leaves the country in debt but is too alluring to turn down, he also said.

He predicts many countries in the Balkans and Eastern Europe will gravitate to Beijing and Moscow politically as well as economically. "If Russian or Chinese interests prevail, we will lose the region," he said.

Below is a review of today’s news in Slovenia, summarised by the headlines in the daily newspapers for Monday, December 17, 2018, as prepared by the STA:

DELO

Light pollution
"Less lights in cities for more starry sky": Like a large part of the western world, Slovenia too has problems with light pollution, with no-one of the responsible persons at the Ministry of the Environment performing supervision over light pollution in the last eight years. (front page 3)

Farming
"Products of autochthonous breeds still boutique": Modern farming has limited the range of breeds grown for food to those producing the most meat, milk or eggs the fastest. The autochthonous breeds in Slovenia are becoming endangered. (front page, 9)

OKS president
"Bogdan Gabrovec with unanimous support": Bogdan Gabrovec was re-elected yesterday the president of the Slovenian Olympic Committee (OKS) with no vote against him as the only candidate. He said one of his priorities would be to get back the funds taken away from sport with austerity measures. (front page, 13)

DNEVNIK

Government rating
"Half of respondents satisfied with Šarec's government": The latest Vox Populi survey sees half of the respondents happy with the work of the Marjan Šarec government, which was sworn in three months ago. It is the highest government approval rating in almost ten years. (front page, 2)

Agrokor-Mercator
"Croatians planning takeover of new Agrokor": A consortium is being formed in Croatia for the takeover of Agrokor after the conglomerate was restructured. The names being reported are some major suppliers, the Rovinj-based Adris Grupa and one of the wealthiest Chilean families of Croatian descent. (front page, 5)

OKS president
"Bogdan Gabrovec gets new term at helm of Olympic Committee": Bogdan Gabrovec was re-elected yesterday the president of the Slovenian Olympic Committee (OKS) as the only candidate, receiving unanimous support. He announced for his second term the establishment of a national Olympic institute. (front page, 14, 18)

FINANCE

Retail
"Hofer ahead of Tuš for the first time": With a 13% market share in 2018, discount retailer Hofer has taken third place, following Mercator (29.7%) and Spar (23.1%). This is bad news for the creditors of Tuš (11.6%), which is the biggest victim of the aggressive attack by discount retailers. (front page, 2-3)

Tourism
"Who will own Slovenian hotels: not Kostić, not Jamnik, but the state": Unofficial information suggest that the six hotels owned by Istrabenz Turizem will not be acquired by Serbian businessman Miodrag Kostić or insurer Modra Zavarovalnica, but by the state. (front page, 4-5)

Energy
"Will fuel prices go down for fifth time in a row?": As the strong change in sentiment on oil markets resulted in the prices of petrol and diesel going down in the last four fortnights, the paper wonders what the figures from the last 14 days mean for the new regulated prices, which will be announced today. (front page, 6)

VEČER

Climate change summit
"It leads to a downfall of civilisation": Scientists and environmental NGOs agree that the two-week negotiations in Poland's Katowice involving 196 countries have resulted in some building elements being set up for the implementation of the Paris climate agreement, but not enough. (front page, 2, 6-7)

Football
"The best ones without the best one": The paper analyses which players of Maribor are the most important for the football club winning the first half of the season in the national premier league. (front page, 20-21)

Crime
"Killer's extradition suspended": The Constitutional Court has temporarily suspended the planned extradition to Montenegro of Božidar Samardžić, who was sentenced in Montenegro in 1999 to 20 years in prison in absentia for murder. The main, who was arrested in Ljubljana in September after being on the run for almost 20 years, is afraid of a vendetta if extradited to his native country. (front page, 20-21)

STA, 16 December 2018 - The government should be more resolute in demanding from Slovenia's neighbours to meet their obligations to the Slovenian ethnic minority, the chair of the parliamentary Commission for Slovenians Abroad, Ljudmila Novak, has told the STA.

Unlike when she was minister without portfolio for Slovenians abroad between February 2012 and March 2013, Novak said she can now only bring certain issues to the government's attention and call for action, but there is little leverage to influence how issues are actually addressed.

Although she would overhaul legislation governing the country's policies on Slovenians abroad, she believes Slovenia should more decisively demand from Austria, Croatia, Hungary and Italy to consistently respect minority protection legislation.

She therefore expects that when meeting counterparts from neighbouring countries, the foreign minister and prime minister will intensively promote minority topics.

"The commission's task is to demand from the government to bring minority issues to the attention of interlocutors in neighbouring countries."

Novak, a member of the opposition New Slovenia (NSi), believes Foreign Minister Miro Cerar should have also used his recent visit to Rome to discuss specific issues.

She pointed to the need to change Italy's electoral legislation to facilitate the election of a Slovenian minority deputy to both chambers of parliament.

She also believes "it would only be fair" that Slovenians in the neighbouring countries were guaranteed a representative in parliament in the same way as is the case with the Italian and Hungarian minorities in Slovenia - both are guaranteed an MP in the lower chamber of parliament.

Another issue is Slovenian minority media, which are faced with the abolition of subsidies in Italy and a severe lack of funds in Austria.

Nevertheless, Novak said some progress had been made since she was minister for Slovenians abroad, especially in Austria and Hungary.

She would also like the Government Office for Slovenians Abroad to set up a task force to coordinate activities of all ministries which deal with Slovenians living in neighbouring countries.

Novak is aware the Office, with which her commission cooperates well, always has too little funds at its disposal and most of them are earmarked for the minorities in the four neighbours, so she believes funds should be increased.

She would like Slovenians in Austria, Croatia, Hungary and Italy to preserve their Slovenian identity, culture and language.

But she also wishes for Slovenia to have "good relations" with Slovenians living elsewhere in the world, so cross-border cooperation should be strengthened.

In Novak's view, the know-how and experiences of successful Slovenians living abroad is not appreciated well enough in Slovenia.

Young, well educated people leaving is a problem in the absence of brain circulation, so it is important to keep in touch with them and try to facilitate their return.

Slovenia should let them know that their expertise is appreciated in their homeland. "We need a positive attitude on both sides, also on the part of Slovenia."

The Office of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia for Slovenians Abroad (Urad Vlade Republike Slovenije za Slovence v zamejstvu in po svetu) can be found here

All of a sudden we’re here at the start of the last full week before Christmas, from which we’ll tumble, well-fed and rested, into the last week of the year, with 2019 now turning up on invoices, bills, library stamps and short-term planning schemes. If you’re in town and looking to buy some gifts without visiting a mall then you’ll find plenty of small, interesting items within the pedestrianised area, with a quick look at 10 places to buy toys, candy, drink, books and fashion items here.

In addition to the various free Christmas activities on around town, with the easiest to find being the lights and stalls along the river, one month-long festival that continues this week is the Decembrrr Festival at the former Tobačna factory complex, with 36 free music, entertainment, culinary and social events by Slovenian and international artists. The Facebook for that is here, but otherwise there’s not much online about it. There are also concerts in Novi trg each evening.

As ever, clicking on the venue names in the list below should get you more details with regard to the time, price and location, as well as other events on this week in the same place. Finally, if there's something you want to promote in a future edition of What's on in Ljubljana please get in touch with me at flanner(at)total-slovenia-news.com

Getting around Ljubljana

If you want to get a Ljubljana Tourist Card, which gives you travel on the city buses and entry to a lot of attractions, then you can read more about that here, and if you want to use the bike share system, as useful for visitors as it is for residents, then you can learn more by clicking this. Visitors with reduced mobility will be pleased to find that downtown Ljubljana is generally rated as good with regard to accessibility, and that there’s a free, city-sponsored app called Ljubljana by Wheelchair highlighting cafés, attractions and so on with ramps, disabled bathrooms and Eurokey facilities, which you can read about and download here. If you’re driving into town and don’t know where to part, our guide to how to park in Ljubljana is here.

Want / need cigarettes but the stores have closed? Here's an incomplete list of bars downtown that will satisfy your craving for the demon weed. While if you’re having trouble with the ATMs then here’s a guide to the Slovene you’ll see on screen. If you get a hangover then find out where to get paracetamol (and prescription drugs) in Ljubljana here, while details on emergency birth control can be found here.

Ljubljana is a small and relatively safe city, but if need to contact the police then there’s a special number for foreigners, and that’s 113.

Cinemas and films playing in Ljubljana this week

You can read about all the cinemas in town here, while a selection of what’s playing this week is below, and note that kid’s movies tend to be shown in dubbed versions, so do check before driving out to a multiplex and dropping off the young ones if they can't understand Slovene. That said, parents should pay attention to Kinobalon, which is Kinodvor's regular weekend series of film screenings and events for children, from babies on up, with special parent/child events, "first time in a cinema" screenings, and babysitting. Learn more about it here, and see the current schedule here. (And if you like watching trailers with subtitles as a way of learning Slovene, then catch up on some from earlier this year here).

Kinodvor – The arts cinema not far from the train station, but still rather tucked away, is showing The Children Act, Moomins and the Winter Wonderland (dubbed), Capharnaüm, Den tid på året, and Manbiki Kazoku.

Kinoteka – The revival house at one end of Miklošičeva is showing Ridley Scott’s The Counselor (2013), Jean Rouch’s Moi, un noir and then his La pyramide humaine. Finally, Penelope Spheeris’ Waynes World is playing on Sunday 23.

Kolosej - The multiplex out at BTC City Mall is playing all the big movies, which this week include Robin Hood, The Grinch (with both subbed and dubbed versions), Widows, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Bohemian Rhapsody, Johnny English 3, A Star is Born, Gajin svet, Fahrenheit 11/9, Pat in Mat znova v akciji, Mortal Engines, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, dubbed and subbed versions of Spider Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Kursk and  Aquaman. New this week is Bumblebee.

Komuna – The cinema in a basement behind Nama department store is showing Bohemian Rhapsody, A Star is Born, and the The Grinch (dubbed).

Clubbing in Ljubljana

Compared to some European capitals it can seem that nightlife in Ljubljana ends rather early, especially along the river, but there are still bars that stay open late and clubs were you can dance until dawn, and perhaps the best place to stumble across something interesting is the legendary Metelkova. Be aware it's a grungy kind of place and not for all tastes, but also that there's consideable variety to found within the various clubs there, from death metal to electropop, gay caberet to art noise. You can read "the rules" of the place here.

Channel Zero – Monday night is Dub Lab, and this week the show’s is Domaćica, an open mic event. The dub returns on Friday, with Dubwise Massive!, featuring the Dubbing Sun sound system.

Gala Hala –  Friday there’s an all-nighter called Rx:tx predstavlja: Kode9 (Hyperdub), with a set from the headliner below.

Klub Cirkus – A busy week here. Tuesday night there’s a Christmas party being run by the Economics Faculty. Wednesday it’s the turn of the Sports Faculty to take the floor, while on Thursday it’s a party for all the faculties. Friday there’s music from the New Age Gang, with a live performance from AMN. The week then ends with a an all-nighter on Saturday offering house classics, with Roger Sanchez feat. Kristen Knight.

Klub K4 – The kool kids outside of Metelkova are only having two parties this week. On Friday there’s K4DNB w. Roots in Session, with drum and bass from Roots In Session, YooRonYaa, Rak3ta, Fornax, Spade, and Dominus Diaboli. On Saturday there’s SOLVD w. Nevena Jeremić, moving between minimal, acid and electro.

Orto Bar –  Friday night this rock club is going back the 80s, for a super, mega, 80s DJ party.

Harm reduction and drug testing

Drogart is an organization that aims to minimise harm on the party scene, and offers drug-testing services and reports on their webpage. It’s in Slovene, but you can Google translate it or work things out yourself, andout story on the group is here. One thing they recently warned of were pink Pharaoh pills with around twice the normal MDMA content (measured at 261 mg). See pictures and learn more here, but do remember that all the usual drugs remain illegal in Slovenia, while our in-depth profile of the group is here. We've also heard increasing reports - albeit anecdotal - of women's drinks being spiked in the city, so take care and let friends know where you're going.

Things to do with children in Ljubljana

You can find our Top 12 list of things to do with kids in Ljubljana here. If want to read more about the philosophy behind the wonderful House of Experiments look here, while our trip to the Museum of Illusions is documented here, and there’s always riverside walks, ice cream and pizza.

Mini Teater Ljubljana – December sees a lot of puppet performances for children, in Slovene, at this theatrr not far from Križanke, including: The Frog King, Puss in Boots, Carrot Dwarf and The Little Match Girl. The English schedule for the month is here.

Ljubljana Puppet Theatre - The puppet theatre near the Central Market and next to the Castle funicular has a full programme or shows, for children and adults, with the schedule here.

Photo: JL Flanner

December at Ljubljana Castle

The city’s main attraction, the Castle, has a lot planned for December, including an innovative projection on the walls at 17:00 each day. Learn more about what’s going on up on the hill this month here.

Live music in Ljubljana

Continuing until the end of the month is a programme of free festive concerts in Novi trg, while there are also many street performers around town bringing some seasonal cheer and a chance to be charitable.

Cankerjev dom – The Symphony Orchestra and RTV Slovenia’s Big Band are playing a Christmas concert here on Sunday 23.

Križanke – There’s a free Christmas concert in the Knight’s Hall at 18:00 on Monday.

Gala Hala - Wednesday there’s a live set from Vasko Atanasovski Trio: Tradicionalno Vaskovanje. The next night you can then see the New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble.

Klub Gromka – Thursday you can see a live show from Snake, Srack and Lev Quintet, playing contemporary jazz, along with a set by Tea Vidmar.

Koncertna Dvorana Rog – The alternative to Metelkova has a night of techno on Friday, with Tektonika, featuring DJ Ane Marta, among others.

Ljubljana Castle – Saturday night is music night at the castle, and this week sees a show by Wakili

Orto Bar – Thursday night the Kadilnica of Death team is presenting a release party for Nekrotik, with support from Sweet Sorrow. Friday the Drunk in Public crew takes over, with punky good times from Pink Panker, Billy Clubs, and Cener. Saturday, 21:00, you can see veteran crowd-pleasers Partibrejkers.

Slovenian Philharmonic Hall – Thursday, 18:00, there’s a Christmas concert from the orchestra and choir.

LGBT+ Ljubljana

If you want to learn more about Ljubljana Pride, then take a look at our interview with its president here. If you're looking for more general links on "gay Slovenia", including a history of the scene and various projects, then you can find that here, while our stories about the community can be found here.

Klub Monokel – This lesbian bar in Metelkova is open every Friday night.

Klub Tiffany – The gay bar next door to Monokel is also open every Friday, and every Monday until June 2019 there's tango at 18:00. On Thursday, 20:00, there's the Cafe Evening with a New Year Quiz. Saturday there's then a Madonna-themed Trash-out party, which, per the Facebook, promises the "najbolj queer zabava v mestu."

Pritličje – This is the closest Ljubljana comes to a "gay bar" so it's a good thing this LGBT-friendly cafe / bar / events space is such a good one, open from morning to night, and with fliers and posters letting you know what's happening outside the narrow confines of, say, a general interest online what's on... guide.

Museums and galleries in Ljubljana

Most public galleries and museums are closed on Mondays, although not the National Museum.

Plečnik's desk. Photo: JL Flanner

Plečnik’s House is worth a visit if you want to learn more about the architect who gave Ljubljana much of its character. Read about our guided tour here. Something on for a limited time is Plečnik and the Sacred, showing here until January 20, 2019.

Cankerjev dom – Running until the end of February 2019 is an exhibition titled Ivan Cankar and Europe: Between Shakespeare and Kafka. This is “An examination of Cankar’s art through an analysis of influences and interpretations, and juxtaposition with contemporary European writers. The visually elaborate architectural and graphic layout, supported by audio-visual media, installation art and diverse visual highlights, offers a vivid account of Cankar’s excellence, his comprehensively exquisite aesthetic and artistic vision.”

City Art Gallery – Drago Tršar recently had a show at the main Moderna looking at his monumental works, and now this smaller gallery in the Old Town, not far from Town Hall, is showing some the sculpture’s erotic works, on until January 20, 2019. It’s being promoted with the following example.

City Museum – The Museum in French Revolution Square has an exhibition on the writer Ivan Cankar that’s on until the end of February 2019, with pictures, books and manuscripts, all presented in Slovene and English. It also has a very interesting permanent exhibition on the history of Ljubljana, from prehistoric times to the present day, with many artefacts, models and so on that bring the story alive.You can read about my visit here. Until March 2019 there's a show highlighting the work Elza Kastl Obereigner (1884-1973), a pioneer Slovenian sculptress, with an example of her work shown below.

Photo: M Paternoster

The Faces of Ljubljana in the City Museum. Photo: JL Flanner

Galerija Vžigalica – Saša Spačal has a show here until January 6, 2019 called Earthlink, “working at the intersection of intermedia art, exploration of living systems and audio frequencies, links Earth to the post-human present, that includes both a seed of the future as well as a shadow of the past.” A promotional image is what's shown below.

Simbiom – ekonomija simbioze, 2016 © Dejan HabichtArhiv Moderne galerije

Galerija Jakopič – On until March 3 is Over My Eyes (Na moje oči), an exhibition of photographs from Iraq taken by Iraqi photographers.

International Centre of Graphic Arts – Running from Friday until March 3 2019 there will be a show of posters from Milton Glaser, while until March 3 2019 you can enjoy paintings, drawings, prints and murals from Nathalie Du Pasquier in a show called Fair Game.  The latter is being promoted with the following image.

Ljubljana Exhibition & Convention Centre – Just outside the centre of town, at Dunajska cesta 18, you can see a lot of plasticized bodies at the Body Worlds Vital show, running from October 20 until January 20 2019.

Photo: Body Works Vital

MAO – The Museum of Architecture and Design is showcasing Slovenian designers in a show called Made in Slovenia, lasting until the end of 2018: “The selling exhibition aims to present good practices of Slovenian designers and companies in the creative sector.”

Sam, 1966, fotografija na srebroželatinskem papirju. ©Stojan Kerbler

Moderna galerija – The main branch of this gallery, to be found near the entrance to Tivoli Park, has a good collection of modern art, as well a nice café in the basement, and it's latest exhibition focuses on the photographer Stojan Kerbler, which runs until January 13, 2019, and shows rural live in Slovenia for the recent past.

Museum of Contemporary History – The museum in Tivoli Park has two new shows. One is called Museum's (R)evolution 1948-2018, marking the place's 70th anniversary with an exhibition tracing its evolution through artefacts, photographs and personal stories and running until January 6 2019 (details here). There's also In Search of Freedom: 1968-2018, looking at the 1968 student protests.

National Gallery – The country’s main gallery has “the best” of what’s on offer from the Middle Ages to non-contemporary modern visual arts, and is in a great location for exploring other areas, just by Tivoli Park and opposite the main branch of the Moderna galerija. Running until February 10 2019 is a show called Ivana Kobilca (1861-1926): But Of Course, Painting Is Something Beautiful!, featuring works like the one below. You can read about our visit to the room containing scared art from the Middle Ages here, and see a picture from our trip after the two girls.

JL Flanner

National Museum of Slovenia – There’s plenty to see in the permanent collection here, from Roman times, Egypt and more, with the big draw this season being the exhibition of over 140 items of gold from Ming Dyntasy China, as reported here, and with an example below. This runs until February 15th.

Photo: Wang Wei Chang

Meanwhile, the museum's Metelkova branch, located between one branch of the Moderna galerija and the Ethnographic Museum has some rooms on Church art, furniture and weapons, with the latter including more guns than you'll see anywhere else in town, and quite a thrill if coming from a nation where such objects are not household items.

Natural History Museum – On until the end of June 2019 is Our Little Big Sea, which takes a look at the oceans.

Slovene Ethnographic Museum – The museum currently has a temporary show on Bees and Beekeeping, on until June 16 2019, as well two permanent exhibitions. One of these is called Between Nature and Culture, and has a great collection of objects from Slovenia and around the world, well worth the trip up to the third floor to see it (as recounted here). This place is located near the newer branch of the Moderna galerija and Metelkova.

Vodnikova Domačija Šiška – Until December 29 you can see works by a few dozen Slovenian illustrators at the December Illustration Fair, and also buy some for yourself or as a unique gift.

Union is "the Ljubljana beer", but now both it and Laško are owned by Heineken. There are many local brews on offer, though, if you want to explore IPAs, stouts, wheatbeers, sours and so on Photo: JL Flanner

Union Experience – The Ljubljana-based brewer has a museum showing the history of the company, with the ticket also including access to part of the factory and a few samples of the product. You can read about our visit here.

It's not a formal museum, but if you're interested in "Yugo-stalgia" then you'll enjoy a trip to Verba, a small, privately run space that's crammed with objects and pop culture items from the era, and is conveniently located at the start of one of the short walks to the castle. It's also a great place to take pictures, if you leave a donation, and you can read more about it here.

Verba. Photo: JL Flanner

Alternative Ljubljana isn't a museum or gallery, as such, but instead turns the city streets into a museum and gallery. Learn more about their tours of street art, history and LGBT Ljubljana here.

Photo: JL Flanner

Opera, theatre and dance in Ljubljana

Gledališče IGLU - IGLU Theatre – Saturday night this group is usually putting on an English improv show somewhere in town, but it’s generally promoted after this is written, so check the Facebook before putting on your shoes.

Klub Gromka – Wednesday night, 20:00, theatre comes to Metelkova with Zatiranje v Gromki: Pravljični večer z Mojimi prav(lj)icami.

Pocket Teater Studio – There’s flamenco music and dance this Friday with Noches de Tablao: Urška Centa, Anja Mejač & Žiga Murko. The number of seats is very limited, and so you must make reservations via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and 070 325 522. The price of ticket is 20€ and 15€ for students (state in advance), and this includes wine throughout the whole evening.

SNG Opera and Ballet – Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker is on stage from Tuesday to Sunday, and tickets tend to go fast at this time of year. You can try and buy some here. Note that the performance below is not from Ljubljana.

Other things to do in Ljubljana...

If you'd like to spend an evening painting with others, then take a look at Design with Wine, which organises painting parties on Trubarjeva cesta,

If you want to see some antiques, then check out the wonderful Antika Carniola, as discussed here. The man behind it, Jaka Prijatelj, has a fine eye for life on this street, as you can see on his Facebook account.

Photo: JL Flanner

If you’re in town and want to go jogging or walking in nature, why not take another look at the Castle, with a brief guide to the trails here. If you want something bigger, head to Tivoli Park.

And if you're bored with the Old Town, why not take a walk, cycle or boat ride to nearby Špica and enjoy the riverside life. Learn more about that here.

visitljubjana.si

maxpixel.net, public domain

Want to stretch and breath? Then check out our list of drop-in yoga classes for tourists, visitors and the uncommitted. If you're heading to the coast, check out our interview with a yoga teacher who offers breakfast sessions there, while if you're staying in town (or nearby) and want to try some "family yoga" then you can learn more about that here and maybe get your kids to calm down a moment or two.

There are some golf courses near Ljubljana, but even ones further away are not far, as seen in our list of all the golf courses in Slovenia. Note that these close when the snow starts.

Photo: maxpixel.net, public domain

Daytrips from Ljubljana

Most of Slovenia is only a few hours from Ljubljana, and you can easily visit Lake Bled, Lipica Stud Farm, Postojna Cave, Predjama Castle, the coast and other locations, while if you'd like to take a photo of from that bench in Bled, then you can learn how to get there here. If you’re looking for something more ambitious, then check out our recent guide to the 17 members of the Association of Historical Towns of Slovenia

Photo: Google Image Search

Finally...

You can see all our stories tagged Ljubljana here, while you can watch someone skateboard through the town below.

STA, 16 December 2018 - Slovenia has the largest share of women graduates in sciences, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) among all EU member states, show figures released by European Commission earlier this week.

According to the study Women in the Digital Age, the share of women graduates in STEM stands at 20.5 per 1,000 persons aged 20 to 29 in Slovenia, which compares to the EU average of 13.1 per 1,000 graduates.

The study brings an assessment of the participation of women in the digital economy, showing women lag behind men in several areas in the EU.

Only one in six information and communications technology (ICT) experts are women, and although women represent 52% of the EU's population, only 17% work in ICT.

However, data for the 16-24 age group are more encouraging, as the gap in digital participation between women and men is fairly narrow.

In the age group, 55% of women are active in the digital world compared to 60% of men, with the trend even starting to reverse in certain countries, with women outperforming men in the category.

Slovenia is the 10th best performing country in terms of integrating women in the digital sector, while the leader is Finland, with Bulgaria at the bottom of the list.

Slovenia performed best in specialist skills and employment (3rd place) and worst in the use of the internet (19th).

The Commission's first annual review of women's participation in the digital economy is based on the Women in Digital Scoreboard, which brings together 13 indicators in three fields: internet use, internet user skills, and specialist skills and employment.

It is to serve as a tool for the Commission and national governments to identify shortcoming and take action to improve the situation.

December 15, 2018

Too busy or too late to go on a full search for Christmas gifts and worried that online won’t arrive in time? We suggest ten shops that will save you from your kids' or spouses' tears on the gift unwrapping day, all in walking or short cycling distance from each other in downtown Ljubljana. The shops are chosen according to the variety, quality or originality of merchandise they offer and come in pairs, with two for each festive gift category: toys, candy, books, drinks and fashion.

1.Toys: Ristanc and TojeTo

Ristanc is a small but well stocked shop for the youngest. Mostly made of wood and other natural materials, the toys are appealing to the eyes, hands and ear, and challenge a young mind’s creativity in all of the areas one can imagine. If you get your pre-school kid in there, you might have problems getting them out, while grandparents will be delighted to find things they haven’t seen in years. If you’re not sure what to get to a child of a certain age, the multilingual owner of the shop will be more than willing to assist in terms of developmental advice, as well as to point out the toys which will have the biggest effect without breaking the bank. For the location of Ristanc, and all the other stores, see the map at the bottom.

Ristanc, Gallusovo nabrežje 11, 1000 Ljubljana

TojeTo is a store for children and adults who have outgrown what Ristanc has to offer. Here you can find from the classic to the newest board games, puzzles, and circus equipment, all following the same quality Ristanc has established for the earlier age, which includes the advice of the store's owner, if needed.

TojeTo, Gallusovo nabrežje 29, 1000 Ljubljana

2. Sweets: HlebOsol and Sweet Tooth

Not that sweets are difficult to find in Ljubljana, but in case you got fed up with Balkan classics and German alternatives from Mueller, you might want to take a look at the HlebOsol, a Russian candy store at the entrance of the KOŽ city library, also called 1000 slaščic. Besides the traditional Russian and Ukrainian sweets, Hlebosol offers a variety of refrigerated goods and spirits.

1000 slaščic, Slovenska cesta 47, 1000 Ljubljana

In case your heart beats more for the Western side of the global divide, or if your kid’s been nagging for some candy they’ve seen in their favourite American TV show, there is an American sweet’s shop further down Slovenska Street, called Sweet Tooth.

Sweet Tooth, Slovenska cesta 12, 1000 Ljubljana

3. Books: Konzorcij and Felix

Konzorcij is also on Slovenska cesta, and is the largest bookstore in town, a branch of Mladinska knjiga, with a variety of picture books, comics, novels and professional literature in foreign languages, mostly English.

Konzorcij, Slovenska cesta 29, 1000 Ljubljana

Just around the corner from Konzorcij you can find a budget alternative with some treasure amid trash. This is Felix bookstore on Čopova street, with many bestsellers on discount and mostly English language books upstairs. if nothing interesting is found on the bookshelves, then the store also has a small range of toys, souvenirs and novelties.

Felix, Čopova ulica 7, 1000 Ljubljana

4. Drinks: Štorija (wine) and Že v redu, Primož (beer)

Štorija is a well-stocked wine store on Trubarjeva street, with a good selection of the Slovenian biodynamic, natural and orange wines. For a short explanation of what this means, click here.

Štorija, Trubarjeva cesta 17, 1000 Ljubljana

In case your loved ones prefer beer to wine, one of the best beer stores in town can be found a little further down Trubarjeva cesta, heading away from the centre, Že v redu, Primož?. Primož offers cans and bottles from the growing list of ever-more adventurous Slovenian brewers, to be found on the right side of the store, while on the left are imports. The kind of beer store where a big brand means Chimay, Oedipus or Bevog rather than Heineken.

Že v redu, Primož, Trubarjeva cesta 44, 1000 Ljubljana

5. Fashion: Goldsmith Atelier Kodre and Matea Benedetti

Goldsmith Atelier Kodre (Zlatarski Atelje Kodre), which boasts with about 90 years of tradition of craftsmanship, refuses to succumb to the modern trand for generic machine-made production of jewellery, and insists on manual creation of unique artefacts, which allows for what some might consider flaws in gems to be transformed into unique fairy-tale landscapes. A silver base allows for prices of these beauties to remain within the range of an average generic big brand perfume. And don’t forget, unlike a scent these items are forever.

Zlatarski Atelje Kodre, Tavčarjeva ulica 4, 1000 Ljubljana

Just around the corner from the Goldsmith Atelier Kodre on Tavčarjeva, there is Matea Benedetti’s atelier on Cigaletova, a must stop for every fashionista on their visit to Ljubljana. In the atelier you can get 40% off and more on samples of Benedetti’s latest sustainable high fashion ready to wear collection that includes clothes and accessories made from exotic and classic materials such as pineapple leather and organic silk. Don't forget to contact Matea Benedetti (here  or here) before your arrival, to make sure someone is there to welcome you.

Matea Benedetti, Cigaletova ulica 5, 1000 Ljubljana

STA, 15 December 2018 - Foreign Minister Miro Cerar met US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton in Washington on Friday for talks focusing on the relationship between the two countries and the Western Balkans. Cerar also presented Slovenia's position on the implementation of the border arbitration award.

Cerar and Bolton noted good cooperation between their countries, expressing mutual interest for the cooperation to continue in the future.

According to Cerar, the Americans continue to appreciate Slovenia's insights into the Western Balkan region, which has been opening the door to Slovenian officials in Washington since independence.

Bolton knows the region and the burning issues, the most topical of which at the moment is relations between Serbia and Kosovo, Cerar said.

According to him, Bolton also inquired about Slovenia's opinion about the border talks between the two countries, with Cerar saying that the two countries needed to reach a comprehensive agreement to solve open issues between them for good.

Bolton told Cerar that the US was faced with a bit of a dilemma because some wanted them there and other less, so they were looking for a balanced approach, which was not easy to find.

Cerar briefed both Bolton and Pompeo on Slovenia's position on the border arbitration award. "I explained that Croatia was in fact in breach of international and European law in failing to implement the award," he said, adding that he also told them that neutrality was not enough when international law was at stake.

"Secretary of State Pompeo appreciated my clearly setting out our view and I believe the issue had not been presented to him this clearly before. Going back to talks wouldn't be productive. Croatia's ignoring international law is very bad for the whole Western Balkan region," said Cerar.

He added that he heard ministers and prime ministers from the region wondering how they were being expected to respect international law, while an EU member state, in this case Croatia, was not respecting it. Cerar said that he was assured by Pompeo the matter would be given a thorough consideration.

Cerar and Pompeo did not have time to broach all the global issues, but they did discuss those that Slovenia has a relevant position on. These are issues concerning the EU, relations with Russia, the Western Balkans and the relationship between the US and Slovenia.

This afternoon, @SecPompeo welcomed #Slovenia's Foreign Minister @MiroCerar to the State Department. @MZZRS @USEmbassySLO @SLOinUSA pic.twitter.com/2Bfx0E08OQ

— Department of State (@StateDept) December 14, 2018

The Slovenian foreign minister stressed the importance of EU accession for countries in the Western Balkans as soon as they meet the necessary conditions, while he labelled US presence in the region at the political level as very welcome.

"It is in the interest of Europe and Slovenia and probably also our allies in the US to include this region into transatlantic integrations as soon as possible because of security, stability and also because of geostrategic influences coming from outside the EU," Cerar said.

Pompeo and Cerar agreed business links should be enhanced, while Cerar said that the US did not consider Slovenia's relations with Russia problematic.

"We have a friendly relationship with Russia, which we're developing at the level of the economy and culture. But we're a reliable and responsible EU member. Slovenia joined the sanctions and demands the honouring of the Minsk agreement, meaning that Russia stop violating international law," Cerar said.

The minister also assured his hosts that Slovenia is determined to increase defence spending. The financial crisis caused a slowdown in this filed, but Cerar said the government would continue with the progress seen in the last four years.

Speaking to Slovenian reporters in Washington after the talks, Cerar was confident that his visit opened a new chapter in US-Slovenia relations. He invited Pompeo to visit Slovenia, saying that President Borut Pahor hosting the Three Seas Initiative next year would make a good opportunity.

Cerar was the first Slovenian foreign minister to visit the State Department since 2010.

STA, 14 December 2018 - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec expressed regret in Brussels on Friday over disunity in Slovenia's position on Catalonia, taking aim at President Borut Pahor for receiving Catalan President Quim Torra for an informal meeting during his visit to Slovenia last week.

"I regret our foreign policy was disunited again despite an agreement that we'll act as one," Šarec said after he discussed the Catalan issue with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez on the sidelines of the EU summit.

"It's astonishing the conduct of some who have much longer experience working in foreign policy than I have. At least that's what I had been hearing a while ago," Šarec said in a reference to criticism levelled against him in the 2017 presidential race in which he challenged Pahor.

Related: Catalonia’s president calls on region to follow Slovenia’s example

"Considering Mr Pahor's wealth of experience I would expect a different reaction," he said, referring to Pahor receiving Torra for an informal meeting on 6 December.

"You have to know the protocol, who receives whom, and take into consideration the levels of visits," he said. When asked how he interpreted Pahor's decision, Šarec said this was a question to be put to the president.

Šarec said that there was quite a storm in Spain over the matter, but that he and Sanchez had a constructive debate. Sanchez is coming to Slovenia, he said, adding that the relationship between the two countries was very good.

The prime minister repeated the Slovenian government's position on the issue of Catalonia's independence: Spain is a sovereign and democratic country, the Catalan issue is Spain's internal affair and Slovenia's independence cannot be likened with Catalonia's.

He said that Slovenia's independence was made possible by Yugoslavia's 1974 constitution, amendments to the Slovenian constitution adopted in 1989 and a referendum in 1990 in which the turnout stood at 90%.

Related: Slovenian Foreign Ministry to educate Spanish Ambassador on the nature of the country’s independence

He noted that at the time 88.4% of Slovenians opted for independence, which made the referendum very legitimate, while Yugoslavia was not a democratic country at the time.

The situation in Spain is very different, he said, considering the Spanish constitution does not make independence possible. If they reach some other agreement in the future, it will be a different situation, he added.

Šarec also responded to questions from Spanish reporters today, underscoring that the situation in Slovenia in 1990 could not be compared to the situation in Catalonia today and that Slovenia's conduct was always peaceful and lawful.

He also said that Slovenia was unhappy that its case should be abused in the independence efforts of half of Catalonia's population. "We are legalists and we respect Spain's internal affairs," he told Catalan journalists.

Sanchez did not talk about Torra's visit to Slovenia in Brussels today. However, Spanish diplomatic sources say that Sanchez and Šarec discussed the issue yesterday, that their talk was positive and that the Slovenian prime minister supported the Spanish government.

Torra, who visited Slovenia at the invitation of MEP Ivo Vajgl (ALDE/DeSUS) and former Slovenian President Milan Kučan, caused an uproar in Spain after urging Catalonia in a speech in Brussels on Saturday to follow the example of Slovenia in its push for independence.

Apart from Pahor, National Assembly Speaker Dejan Židan also received Torra informally last week.

STA, 14 December 2018 - Researchers at the Chemistry Institute have found a faster way to regulate the functioning of human cells, reducing their reaction to an external signal from hours to minutes. Their research has been presented in the journal Nature Chemical Biology.

"Although we still do not understand the functioning of our cells completely, we can alter them to make them respond to select signals from the environment, which is very important, especially for the use of cells in medical treatments.

"Finding new ways of cell manipulation is an important branch of synthetic biology. In the last decade, scientists have managed to introduce new ways for manipulating cells but the cells' slow responsiveness was a significant restraint," the institute said in today's press release.

The institute's researchers have managed to achieve a cell's fast response to input signals, reducing its reaction time from hours to only a few minutes.

They achieved this with precisely monitored protein interactions and their post-translational modifications.

Thus, they avoided slow processes while preserving the ability of parallel and consecutive processing of information and forming logical circuits in cells.

The mechanism resembles natural processes such as blood coagulation and should be useful for diverse medical and non-medical applications.

The project, whose presentation is available at https://rdcu.be/bdbGi, started as a student team project for a 2016 science competition.

Only weeks before the publication of the Slovenian research, a similar project by a group of scientists from the US university of Caltech was presented in Science.

According to Jan Lonzarić, a co-author of the article, this is a confirmation that a "significant problem has been broached" and that "we've found a robust solution".

Roman Jerala, the mentor of the group of students that started the project, added that due to the difference in the mechanisms of the systems, the Slovenian system was faster and allowed for wider usage in different cell types.

This is the third article by researchers of the institute's synthetic biology department published in a Nature journal in a month, which is very rare even among the best teams of researchers in the world, the institute said.

The research was financially supported by the Slovenian Research Agency.