Somehow the leaves turned and mostly fell without us noticing, which means we ought to get out more often, especially since this is a great time of year for dressing nicely, with a hat and scarf but without gloves and the fear of death by freezing. It’s also a beautiful time to enjoy the city, as it’s full of trees and you can not only savour the yellows, golds and browns, but also the new views that are afforded once the branches are bare.

The Ljubljana International Film Festival (LIFFe) is still on, with a varied programme of movies from around the world, ranging from high art to the blood spattered, with more details here, while something we added last week was Ten Ways to Enjoy Ljubljana Castle, with our favourite, as a long-term resident of the capital, being free. If neither of those appeal then check out our incomplete list of what's on around town, which starts after the general 

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. 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, witrh 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 and here).

As noted in the intro, the Ljubljana International Film Festival continues all week, with a long list of varied features, shorts, documentaries and works of fiction. You can see the official site and schedule here, and an overview along with some trailers here.

Kinodvor – The arts cinema not far from the train station, but still rather tucked away, is showing a lot of the LIFFe movies, including Jean-Luc Godard’s The Image Book, Shin'ichirô Ueda’s One Cut of the Dead, and Person to Person.

Kinoteka – The revival house at one end of Miklošičeva is showing a lot of movies from what was once Czechoslovakia as part of LIFFe, which will have Slovene subtitles. These include Spalovač mrtvol, Lásky jedné plavovlásky and Ecce homo Homolka. There’s also a series of films from Germany’s Christian Petzold, such as Barbara, Pheonix and Yella.

Kolosej – The multiplex out at BTC City Mall is playing all the big movies, which this week include Bohemian Rhapsody, Hunter Killer, Halloween, Hell Fest, Johnny English 3, Venom, A Star is Born, Gajin svet, Night School, Mamma Mia! 2 and The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, The Girl in the Spider's Web, and Overlord. New movies are the French Santa & Cie, Little Italy, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, El mayor regalo, and The Grinch.

Komuna – The cinema in a basement behind Nama department store is giving itself over to LIFFe this week.

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.

The biggest name of the week is Norman Cook, better known as Fatboy Slim, an early-adopter of rave who’s been helping people rush on their pills for more than 20 years. This week he’s playing at the Ljubljana Exhibition & Convention Center, Saturday, at 23:00, with tickets here, and a great mix from 2001, below.

Channel Zero – Monday night is Dub Lab, this week with an event called Haris Pilton: Gipsy Side Of Dub No.10. Friday there’s another all-nighter, SUBØ: Bojler w/ Manara (UK), supported by a whole bunch of DJs, Manara (Night Slugs, BBC AZN Network / UK), cl_tr & Playboi Cati, Peglasus, Futon, and TMA, with the visuals provided by Smech. The week then ends on Saturday with Kung Fu Techno, with music from Glia, Illman, and Adamm and visuals from Mesec.

Gala Hala – Friday night there’s live and DJ’d rap with Rx:tx in Rapetek: RAS_G & the Afrikan Space Program ft. MC Kahil. Saturday it’s time to get your smiley face on with Rave Voyeur, with DJ Tolstoyed.

Klub Cirkus – The more kommercial end of klubland has two all-nighters this week. Friday there’s TRIP ft. Kosta Radman, while on Saturday it’s TUTTI Frutti: 90s & 00s Hits, with Matthew Z vs DJ Dey.

Klub K4 – Meanwhile, the klub for kool kids is also offering two all-nighters. On Friday the event is K4DNB w. Critical Sound, The Upbeats, Kasra, Misanthrop and others, playing drum’n’bass. Saturday you can then enjoy SOLVD w. Bronski.

In Metelkova news, psychiatric treatment has been recommended for the man who burned down Jalla Jalla, as reported here.

Photo: Neža Loštrek

Kurzschluss – Friday there’s an all-nighter, Cocoon with Sven Väthom, which is promising Ibiza in Ljubljana.

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Pritličje – Saturday night the vinyl will be spun by Thon Kland.

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. 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.

Photo: JL Flanner

Fun facts about Ljubljana Castle

The city’s main tourist attraction is the Castle, and you’ll enjoy your visit a lot more if you know what you’re looking at, so take a look at our 25 Things to Know about Ljubljana Castle and learn, among other things, what the holes shown below were used for. Whjile

Photo: JL Flanner

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. We recently also published an interview with the LGBT activist and writer Suzana Tratnik, talking about - among other things - the occupation of Metelkova. The big event this week is probably Tuesday set of events focusing on transgender issues, starting at 15:00 in Argentina Park and ending up at Pritljiče, as noted below - details (in Slovene) here.

Klub Monokel – No events are being promoted this week, but that’s no reason not to head to this lesbian bar and see what’s happening on 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.

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, and open from morning to night. You can read more about it here. This week, on Tuesday 18:00 to 19:00 there's Trans Mic, an open mic evening for the transgender community and their allies. This is then followed by a poetry and writing event at 20:00.

Museums and galleries in Ljubljana

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

Ljubljana Castle has an exhibition on the history of dragons in Slovenia and around the world that runs until November 11, and there's plenty more to see and do when up there, including some nice walks in nature. Note that the bathroom is in the basement and rather difficult to find.

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.

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 – The gallery in the Old Town, just a few buildings down from City Hall (and thus near the beautiful, but fake, Robba Fountain), has a presentation at 19:00 Tuesday  new show from Tuesday on “Calliope - In Corn We Trust”, a project by Maxime Berthou and Mark Pozlep that will start as a restoration of a traditional paddle steamer, to cruise the 1712 miles of the Mississippi River from it source in Minnesota to its mouth in Louisiana.

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 recent 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

International Centre of Graphic Arts – Running until November 11 is an exhibition of works by Riko Debenjak, including prints, drawings, paintings and illustrations.

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.” The same venue has an exhibition based on Slovenia’s Pavilion at the 16th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, called “Living with Water”, and on until November 25.

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.

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, funiture 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 objects.

Slovene Ethnographic Museum – The museum currently has a temporary show on Bees and Beekeeping, 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.

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: Alternative Ljubljana

Live music in Ljubljana

Cankerjev dom – Tuesday evening there’s live music from Teo Collori and Momento Cigano, which is being promoted with the following video.

Ljubljana Castle – Friday night is music night at the castle, and this week sees a show by Femi Temowo.

Orto Bar – Monday there’s a live show from  Zeal & Ardor and NYOS, promising black metal, blues, gospel and soul. Tuesday you can then enjoy death metal with Aborted, Cryptopsy, Benighted, and Cytotoxin. Thursday there’s another Kadilnica of Death event, with live sets from Moshead and Amber Lilies.

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 evening there’s music and dance in Metelkova with Za crknt: klovnovski mjuzikl. A clip from aan earlier, different show, is below.

Pocket Teater Studio – Friday this little venue offers A Sentimental Education - Songs and Stories, with Carlos Pascual on the microphone and Carlos Yoder on the piano. “Storytelling in English and songs in Spanish from the Latin American tradition in order to illuminate a world that seems completely gone.” Saturday there’s then an evening of music and dance for World Flamenco Day. Note this is a small place and tickets should be bought in advance.

SNG Opera and Ballet – Bizet’s Carmen will be staged Tuesday and Thursday , while Verdi’s Macbeth is here Wednesday and Friday.

Other things to do in Ljubljana...

From November 2 to 30 there’s the Gourmet Ljubljana Festival, with a full programme of culinary events, as detailed here, as well as the St Martin's Day wine festival in the streets on Saturday, as noted in the intro.

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,

Breg Embankment, just opposite the Old Town and by the river, has a small flea market open every Sunday morning. Learn more about it here.

If you can't make it to Breg on Sunday morning, but still want to see some antiques, then check out the wonderful Antika Carniola, as discussed here.

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

Flickr - Dave Rosenbaum CC by 2.0

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.

Photo: maxpixel.com, public domain

Daytrips from Ljubljana

Photo: Google Image Search

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

Finally...

We love Trubarjeva cesta, and last week we published an interview with Alja Hafner Taha, who runs a Lebanese restaurant on the street. You can read more about that here, and enjoy some of the warm and colourful pictures from the places below, all of them sourced from Libanonske meze in drugi užitki.

The covers and editorials from leading weeklies of the Left and Right for the work-week ending Friday, November 09, 2018.

Mladina: Cerar pushing Slovenia to the right on UN Migration Agreement

STA, 9 November - The left-leaning weekly Mladina says in its latest commentary that Foreign Minister Miro Cerar is actually criticising his former self as prime minister as he is changing his mind on Slovenia's support for the UN Global Compact for Migration.

In the commentary headlined Cerar against Cerar, editor-in-chief Grega Repovž notes that Cerar had said that "Slovenia endorsed this spring the Global Compact for Migration, but that the circumstances have changed since".

"'Slovenia must make sure ... that the present way of life, the European way of life is preserved'", Repovž quotes Cerar, wondering what is the European way of life he was referring to, adding that "we are in a serious trouble".

If you take a look at the list of countries which decided not to endorse the document, which is expected to be adopted in Marrakesh in December, one can see that it is not a list of countries of the European way of life.

"Hungary, Poland, Croatia, Austria - is this the company Minister Cerar would like to push Slovenia into?", Repovž wonders.

UN document clearly separates migrants and refugees

What is funny is that Cerar speaking about "changed circumstances" reads like criticism of Miro Cerar as prime minister, who agreed with the European Commission acceding to the Global Compact for Migration.

"As long as the accession to the Marrakesh agreement was something the European Union expected us to do, this had to be done. How provincial and typical."

But immediately after the right started expressing doubt about the document, the foreign minister was quick to talk about changed circumstances.

Cerar and Prime Minister Marjan Šarec should actually defend the agreement and stand behind it, present it to the public, introduce it into public discourse as a positive shift. But Cerar is obviously not taking the document seriously.

It is actually a very though-through, relatively conservative document, which very clearly separates the issues of refugees and migrants. Politicians could use it to stand against the rightist agenda which abuses migrants for populist purposes, concludes the commentary.

Demokracija: UN Migration Declaration Will Spread “Eurabia”

STA, 8 November 2018 - The right-wing magazine Demokracija sets out its case against the UN Global Compact for Migration in its latest editorial, asserting that signing the declaration without seeking people's endorsement in a referendum first would be high treason.

Referring to the 2005 riots in France, the terrorist attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine and Muslim ghettoes in Europe, such as Molenbeek on the outskirts of Brussels, editor-in-chief Jože Biščak argues that European countries are losing the battle against the spread of "Eurabia".

"Pockets of little Eurabias are scattered throughout the western part of the continent. Whenever right-wing politicians try to restore state jurisdiction over their territories, violent unrest follows.

The only solution is to use “brutal power” to remove immigrants

"The planned signing in December of the Marrakesh Declaration, which is irreversibly taking away countries' sovereign right to decide on migration flows on their territories, could seal the fate of Europe as we know it. This is why signing the declaration without having asked people's opinion in referendum will be high treason."

Biščak says that the way for Europe's Islamisation was paved by the 1975 Strasbourg Resolution, backed by 200 members of parliament from West European countries.

The resolution said that Arab immigrants to Europe had a right to transfer their culture, customs, way of life and religion to Europe.

"The native population tried to preserve their customs and traditions, but the political authorities did not demand of the immigrants to integrate in the western society, but rather let the Muslim immigrants, joined by blacks from Africa, to create their territories (little Eurabias) where they live by their rules. An the Marrakesh Declaration will legalise all that."

Finally, Biščak says that the only solution is to use "brutal power" and to have the army surround these Little Eurabias and move all the immigrants out of the country.

Some weeks ago I was at one of the Pivo & Burger Fests in Ljubljana, researching Slovenia’s flourishing craft beer scene. Six months earlier I’d paused my investigations, overwhelmed by the number of breweries and beers that were turning up on my radar each month, anxious to reduce my drinking (and spending), and – to be frank – bored of IPAs.

Learn more about Slovenian craft beer here

It was thus with delight that I found a much evolved selection of beers at the festival, with a broader range on offer, including wheat beer, lager, porter, gose and, my new obsession, sour (and Bevog’s Lolita in particular). But beer wasn’t my only discovery that long and hazy weekend, as I also came across a stall offering samples of chili sauce – another market that’s seen a boom in Slovenian producers in recent years – and one these, the fiery but flavourful All Stars had an effect I can only describe as making me high.

A disclaimer on personal taste: I like hot food, with a preference for Indian, Sichuan and Thai, but I don’t like pure heat. Instead I crave a more rounded flavour, with bass notes to accompany the highs. I also have, like everyone else, a level of heat that tickles my brain in just the right way, just on the right side of pain to release the endorphins and have me putting down the fork, spoon or chopsticks and taking a little time out to enjoy the waves of pleasure and distress, before diving back in again and feeling the heat.

It was this level that Gorki’s All Stars hit, and I went back a couple of times to just try another dab on a breadstick, each time getting that same rush and happy high that left me smiling like a loon. I bought a bottle on the spot, and a gift pack of samples of their other sauces, and a bag of dark chili chocolates that, like the sauce, had a balance of flavours that went just far enough out of my comfort zone to flood me with joy, and that I finished the next morning with coffee.

I got talking to the two guys who run the company, Igor and Rok, learned that they produced everything in Koper, had won a big hot sauce competition in America, and were willing to give me an interview, as follows:

How did you start with chili farming?

We started four years ago, first as a hobby, simply because we love spicy food. We started with a few plants that we grew at home. Rok made a hot sauce out of the first chilies he grew and all our friends and family were enthusiastic about it. With their support we decided to grow more plants - a lot more – make more hot sauces and try to put them on the market. In the first place because the Slovenian market at that time didn't offer a lot of hot sauces or other chili products. And those few on the shelves weren't “the real thing”, in my opinion.

What problems did you face when starting your business, and how did you overcome them?

We were new to the business and there were really a lot of things to think about – taking care of the plants, cooking the sauces, creating our webstore, packaging, storage, creating a label … Somehow we managed to solve all those with good organizing and planning of the work.

Then in the fall 2014 we first created three hot sauces with different degrees of heat and started selling them through our webstore. By spring they were all gone, which was a really good start.

Two of your sauces came second and third at the 2017 World Hot Sauce Awards. Can you tell me a little about that.

We first entered the World Hot Sauce Awards competition in 2015. Back then our hot sauce Choco came third in the Latin style category. For us it was a clear sign that we were on the right track. A year after our hottest sauce, All Stars, came second and last year it was third. It’s an extra hot sauce, but besides that it tastes really good. We believe our products are special because we always put taste in the first place, rather than the heat. We choose the ingredients very carefully, we try to be creative when cooking and do as much testing as needed in order to achieve the right flavor. All this we believe is the key to quality.

Which of your sauces do you enjoy the most?

It's very hard to answer this question. You know – it's like when a father is asked which child is his favourite. To us all of them are delicious, each in its own way, suitable for a different dish or for a different kind of chili lover, from beginners to real chiliheads.

That’s what keeps this exiting, not the one “best” sauce, but searching for new tastes, creating new products, meeting new people, having face to face contacts with our customers at fairs and festivals, where we can give them advice and have interesting debates about chilies.

What are some of the other chili products you sell, beyond the sauces?

Hot paradajz is one of our bestsellers that also requires a lot of time to prepare, because it's all handmade. It consists of spicy dried tomatoes in extra virgin olive oil with garlic, capers and spices. Once you try it you can't live without it, really. We also make two types of BBQ sauce, hot marmalade, spicy chocolate, and spicy extra virgin olive oil which was named world champion at last year’s World Hot Sauce Awards.

What are your plans now?

We plan to start selling our products on foreign markets, and of course keep on developing new ones. But for the moment everything is available in Spar and InterSpar all over Slovenia, in some small gourmet stores, and of course in our webstore. We also supply a lot of restaurants and pizza places with our sauces.

Anything else you’d like to say?

Yes, our philosophy in growing chilies and producing hot sauces has two main goals: quality and taste. Of course we want our hot sauces to be hot, but the flavour is always number one. We are happiest when our customers tell us that they enjoyed our products not because they taste like fire, but because they’re delicious.

You can find Gorki products in stores, at markets, and online, with the official website here (in Slovene, English and Italian), and note the neither TSN nor myself received any compensation for this article, just a few samples at that beer festival which were enough to turn me on to this story.

STA, 9 November - The 25-year-old man who set a popular club at the Metelkova alternative culture centre in Ljubljana on fire in June has been ordered by court to undergo psychiatric treatment. He will remain in custody until the decision becomes final.

Jalla Jalla went up in flames in the early hours on 6 June after the perpetrator had set the club's porch on fire, which spread quickly to completely destroy the club, causing some EUR 50,000 in damage.

The fire also spread to the roofing of the adjoined building, but firefighters contained it before it could do serious damage to the woodworking workshop in the building.

Psychiatrist Branko Brinšek, an expert witness in the case, has told the Ljubljana District Court that the perpetrator had been in a state of diminished capacity during the act due to a personality disorder and drug addiction.

All our stories related to Metelkova are here

The court thus could not order a prison sentence, sending the man instead for psychiatric treatment in a secure institution on a proposal from the prosecution.

The newspaper Delo reported that the 25-year-old told the court on Thursday that "I want to change myself and my life" and that he had wanted to cause only minor damage as he had been angry at the people running the club.

"When the fire spread, I panicked. I did not have a phone on me and I went towards the nearest restaurant to call the police," he was quoted by the paper.

Andrejo Boršič, who represented the affected party, said that the perpetrator had threatened those operating the club even before the fire, including with a cold weapon.

According to the media, the perpetrator returned to Metelkova two days after the arson after being released from a psychiatric hospital. He reportedly bragged about setting the club on fire and continued with the threats.

Jalla Jalla has been undergoing renovation works and is expected to be opened soon.

STA, 9 November 2018 - Slovenia's largest bank, NLB, fetched EUR 51.50 per share in the initial public offering, the bottom of the offering price range. The state will initially sell 59.1% of the bank for just below EUR 609m, but taking into account an over-allotment option that stake could increase to 65%.

Based on the pricing, the market capitalisation of NLB will be approximately EUR 1.03bn at the start of trading on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange and the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange on 14 November, a release from the bank and Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH) said.

The book value of the share capital at the end of June was EUR 1.51bn and the final offering price represents 68% of the share's book value. The SSH set the IPO offering price at EUR 51.50 and EUR 66 per share. The offering price in the aborted IPO last year was set at EUR 55-71.

The release says that the seller is making an additional 1,18 million NLB shares available pursuant to the over-allotment option which, if exercised in full, would increase the offer size to EUR 669.5m, representing 65% of the share capital on admission.

A stabilisation mechanism, the option is said to have been made available on the demand of large international investors. Stabilisation managers Citigroup and WOOD & Company will retain a portion of the shares to close deals within 30 days from listing in order to stabilise the price.

The shares are to be floated on the Ljubljana and London stock markets on 14 November when the settlement of shares is to take place. Investors have time to pay for their shares by then.

According to the pricing notification issued on NLB's website, the biggest single institutional buyers of shares are US financial fund Brandes Investment Partners (7.6%) and the EBRD (6.3%).

Since information on the buyers of shares in London are not public, detailed data on the dispersed structure of foreign owners will not be available when details are to be presented on 14 November.

Unofficially, the demand considerably outstripped what SSH was willing to accept in a bid to avoid the most predatory investors while forming a buffer if anything was to go wrong.

"We are very proud of having completed the offering of NLB's shares. Today's announcement represents a significant milestone in the privatisation process and in fulfilling our commitments to the European Commission," SSH chairman Lidia Glavina was quoted as saying in the release.

NLB chairman Blaž Brodnjak hailed the pricing as "another important milestone in the process of privatization". "We are looking forward to opportunities and challenges that the listing on the stock exchange will bring to the bank."

The government committed to sell the bank in exchange for the European Commission's approving a EUR 1.56bn state aid for the bank in late 2013.

While the state is to keep a controlling stake of 25% plus one share, it committed to sell at least 50% this year and any outstanding share of up to 75% minus one share by the end of next year.

Until the sale commitment is met in full, the bank will need to implement at least part of compensatory measures, including closing down offices in Slovenia, with 14 slated for closure in early December.

Moreover, since the state sold this year will be less than 75% minus one share, the bank will also have to start procedures to sell NLB Vita, its insurance subsidiary.

In addition, NLB will be able to approve new loans only if receives the minimum yield from equity instruments. NLB cannot do leasing business or make acquisitions either.

The bulk of shares in the IPO was offered to institutional investors. Retail investors were able to subscribe at least 10 shares at EUR 66 apiece. Unofficially they paid in some EUR 30m. The overpaid amount will be returned by 15 November.

The shares were also bought by members of the NLB supervisory and management boards. NLB chairman Blaž Brodnjak acquired 1,136 shares and the head of the supervisory board Primož Karpe 606 shares.

NLB paid out a total of EUR 378.2m in dividends to the state in the past three years. The state aid in 2013 amounted to EUR 1.56bn.

November 9, 2018

St. Martins Day or martinovanje is the Slovenian (and Croatian) harvest festival, mostly focused on wine, although a roasted bird shouldn't be missing from a festive table, preferably duck or goose, whose patron St. Martin is. One of the stories explaining this patronage points to St. Martin’s Day, November 11th, coinciding with the time of the geese migration, presumably, to avoid being eaten.

Concluding from its name, one might thing martinovanje was a Christian holiday. However, the purpose and decadent mode of its celebration reveals that it is actually one of those pagan festivals that the church tried but failed to incorporate into its own holiday cannon. Just like Mardi Gras, which celebrates the end of winter and the beginning of the farming season, maritnovanje is a harvest festival celebrated by drinking, eating and misbehaving, which includes poking fun at authorities, mainly the clergy.

The most popular Slovenian wine festival

The common wisdom of martinovanje is that on this day the saint turns must (grape juice) into wine. Now this does not just happen on its own. The must first needs to be cleared of all the sins which make it cloudy and only then can it turn into clear wine.

The “baptising of must” is usually performed by the owner of the cellar or any other local character who dresses up as a priest, bishop or even a cardinal and performs a ”ritual” that concludes with the communal young wine tasting. Below you can watch an opulent Catholic example, followed by a much more modest, probably Protestant version of the ceremony:

The day will be celebrated in towns, vineyards and homes all over Slovenia this weekend, with the main event in Ljubljana,happening in the centre of town on Saturday (the 10th), while there are also major celebrations in Maribor,- home of the world’s oldest vine, Nova Gorica, the Karst, Brda, and Koper.

Na zdravje!

All our wine stories can be found here.

Slovenian History: “Life for Tsar” Exhibition Reveals Work of Russian POWs During WW1

STA, 8 November 2018 - The Park of Military History in Pivka has marked the centenary of the end of World War One with an exhibition on Russian prisoners of war, whom Austro-Hungarian authorities brought to Slovenian lands to work on a number of infrastructure projects.

Speakers at Thursday's ceremony preceding the exhibition were unanimous in saying that it sheds light on a chapter of national history that is yet to be fully researched.

Janko Boštjančič, the museum's director, said "Life for Tsar" tried to fill a void in events marking the centenary of World War One in Slovenia by highlighting the fate of tens of thousands of Russian POWs on Slovenian territory.

Related: Ceremony Honours Russian POWs Who Died Building Vršič Pass

This comprehensive exhibition, the first of its kind, offers a number of photos, videos and documents from that period, giving visitors insight into the lives of the POWs.

Boštjančič stressed the PWOs had been brought here to work on a number of infrastructure projects behind the Isonzo Front line and further inland, especially railways and roads.

And due to a general lack of workforce - many Slovenian men were fighting on fronts abroad - the POWs also helped farmers and worked in forests, coal mines or factories.

With the Russian Chapel being the main symbol of the Russian POWs' hardships in Slovenia, the exhibition features a scale model of the chapel as the main artefact.

Predsednik republike je danes slovesno otvoril razstavo "Življenje za c(es)arja" v Parku vojaške zgodovine Pivka. pic.twitter.com/TXgpY2Pn9O

— Borut Pahor (@BorutPahor) November 8, 2018

Boštjančič symbolically thanked all the Russian POWs for all they had contributed to Slovenia, noting that without being aware of it, we still use some of the infrastructure they had built, mentioning for instance "a Russian road" in the Pivka region.

Delivering the keynote, Evgen Bavčar, a France-based Slovenian photographer and philosopher, pointed to "the ethical need to remember" the overlooked chapters of our past, including the Russian POWs as well as many Slovenian soldiers who had often fought for other nations.

"When we focus on POWs, we defend the civilisational norm of remembering," he said, adding "those we were killed should be given the honour of memory and history" and should have their dignity restored.

Bavčar urged President Borut Pahor as the supreme commander of the Slovenian Armed Forces, who later opened the exhibition, to erect memorials to those fellow countrymen who had fought in foreign armies.

All our World War 1 stories can be found here

The museum has put up the exhibition in collaboration with Slovenia's Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage and the Kidričevo History Association.

The show is based on a comprehensive study the institute's Centre for Preventive Archaeology has carried out over the past few years, identifying almost 400 locations associated with Russian POWs in Slovenia.

The last in a series of the museum's events marking the centenary of WWI, the exhibition will be accompanied by an extensive digital catalogue, which is also expected to be published in print by the end of the year.

The museum’s website, in English, is here.

The Russian Chapel. Photo: Wikimedia - Dage - Looking For Europe CC by 2.0

STA, 8 November 2018 - Interim head coach of the national football team, Igor Benedejčič, presented on Thursday the roster for the last two matches in the UEFA Nations League, against Norway on 16 November and Bulgaria on 19 November. The roster does not feature star midfielder Kevin Kampl, who has announced his retirement from the national team.

Presenting the roster at a press conference in Brdo pri Kranju, Benedejčič said that Kampl had informed the Slovenian Football Association about his decision last week.

The 28-year old, who plays for Germany's Leipzig, debuted for the national team in 2012, scoring two goals in 28 matches for Slovenia. His last match for the national team was on 6 September, when Slovenia lost at home to Bulgaria.

"I regret that he has made such a decision. He is an excellent player, which he has been proving for years in the club," Benedejčič said, expressing hope that Kampl would change his mind and help the team turn the things around.

This is not the only problem for the new coach, as the team will also be without veterans Bojan Jokić (injury) and Josip Iličić (yellow cards).

Slovenia are at the bottom of Group 3 of League C of the UEFA Nations League with one point and are in serious danger of being relegated to League D. Slovenia are facing the opponents who are at the top of the group with nine points each.

"We are aware of the position we are in. We are facing two tough matches, with both opponents fighting for the first place. It is up to us to give our best and try to stay in the group," said the coach.

* Slovenia's roster for the matches against Norway and Bulgaria:

- goalkeepers: Vid Belec (Sampdoria), Aljaž Ivačič (Olimpija), Matic Kotnik (Panionios);

- defenders: Jure Balkovec (Hellas Verona), Miha Blažič (Ferencvaros), Bojan Jokić (Ufa), Luka Krajnc (Frosinone), Miha Mevlja (Zenit), Nemanja Mitrović (Jagiellonia), Nejc Skubic (Konyaspor), Petar Stojanović (Dinamo Zagreb), Aljaž Struna (Palermo);

- midfielders: Jaka Bijol (CSKA Moscow), Domen Črnigoj (Lugano), Amir Dervišević (Maribor), Josip Iličić (Atalanta), Rene Krhin (Nantes), Rudi Požeg Vancaš (Celje), Rajko Rotman (Kayserispor), Leo Štulac (Parma), Benjamin Verbič (Dynamo Kyiv), Miha Zajc (Empoli);

- forwards: Robert Berić (St. Etienne), Roman Bezjak (Jagiellonia), Andraž Šporar (Slovan Bratislava), Luka Zahović (Maribor).

STA, 8 November 2018 - Brigadier Alenka Ermenc, deputy chief of the general staff of the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF), will be promoted to the rank of major general as the first ever woman so high up the army hierarchy.

The proposal for Ermenc's promotion was endorsed by the government on Thursday after she was named deputy chief of the general staff in March this year, the highest rank for a woman in the army.

Ermenc graduated from the Royal College of Defence Studies in London in 2008 and got her master's degree a year later at the King's College University of London.

Before that she graduated from the Ljubljana Faculty of Social Sciences. In 1991, she was actively involved in the ten-day independence war as a member of the Territorial Defence, the army's precursor.

Ermenc has been employed in the SAF for 27 years. She was promoted to the rank of brigadier in May 2011. She holds a number military honours, including NATO Medal for participation in peacekeeping operations and the Maltese Order pro Merito Melitensi.

Below is a review of today’s news in Slovenia, summarised by the headlines in the daily newspapers for Friday, 09 November 2018, as prepared by the STA:

DELO

Delo business award
"Polycom shines brightest": Polycom from the town of Škofja Loka won this year's Delo Business Star Award, having won over the judging panel with its growth in the automotive market, investment in digitalisation and education of staff. (front page, page 10)

Real estate tax
"Real estate tax on the back burner": Karl Erjavec, the defence minister and the leader of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), says that the real estate tax cannot be the coalition's priority at the moment. (front page, page 3)

Child heart centre
"Child heart surgery into the hands of home specialists": Health Minister Samo Fakin has decided that heart surgery in children will be conducted by domestic experts. (front page, page 4)

Early start to Christmas season in Koper
"Popovič's Wonderland to glow up": Koper will switch on its new festive lighting tonight for an early start to the Christmas season. The EUR 0.5m Wonderland is thought to be part of Mayor Boris Popovič's campaign ahead of the 18 November local elections. (front page, page 4)

DNEVNIK

Public administration
"Tobačna staff to go on strike on Monday": Staff at the Ljubljana administrative unit at the old tobacco factory will go on strike on Monday, initially by quitting work as soon as office hours end, regardless of the number of people still waiting. (front page, page 8)

Local elections
"Domžale: Toni Dragar's victory cannot be taken for granted": A poll commissioned by the paper suggests incumbent Toni Dragar will win his fourth terms as mayor of Domžale, a town just north of Ljubljana. However, this time he is likely to be forced into a rather uncertain run-off with Metod Marčun. (front page, page 10)

FINANCE

Disposable income
"How rich are Slovenians and where do we put our money?": Slovenians' disposable income hit a record level last year, but the nation remains among the thriftiest in the EU, having more that EUR 18bn in bank accounts. (front page, pages 2, 3)

NLB sale
"Sale of 75% stake in NLB unlikely": After Bloomberg reported yesterday about sufficient interest to sell 75% of Slovenia's largest bank, Finance says its own sources have indicated that not all of the stake will be sold. (front page, pages 6, 7)

Ljubljana pharmacy chain
"Janković's MOL not taking its hands off Lekarna Ljubljana": The Ljubljana city council has adopted a new decree on the incorporation of the city's pharmacy chain Lekarna Ljubljana, which a private pharmacy owner says contravenes new pharmacy legislation. (front page, pages 4, 5)

VEČER

Local elections
"Who has a recipe for Ptuj?": Nine candidates standing for mayor in Ptuj set out their plans for Slovenia's oldest town at a campaign debate at the city's theatre last night. (front page, pages 4, 5)

Best restaurant award
"Hiša Denk takes Gold Pan": The newspaper's judging panel selected Hiša Denk in Zgornja Kungota as the winner of Gold Pan for best restaurant in the Štajerska region, while Oštirka in Celje was declared as the most popular restaurant in the north-eastern region. (front page)

Maribor central market
"Another winter under umbrellas": The construction of a new roof above the Maribor central market is being delayed until next year. (front page, pages 8, 9)

Ballet
"Death in Venice": A new ballet production of Mann's novella Death in Venice will open at the National Theatre in Maribor tonight. It has been choreographed by Prešeren Fund Prize winner Valentina Turcu. (front page, page 17)