Sights in Ljubljana - Croatia and Slovenia - page 872

of unusual and delicious artisan ice cream flavors. The menu changes from day to day, but
highlights can include balsamic vinegar with vanilla or strawberry, very dark chocolate,
Kanada (with maple syrup and walnuts), and Greek yogurt with honey and nuts. The han-
diest location is about an eight-minute walk from Prešeren Square, and comes with a de-
lightful stroll along colorful Trubarjeva street (ice cream available summer only, Mon-Fri
8:00-19:00,Sat9:00-13:00,closedSun,Trubarjeva44,mobile[phone]).Don'tconfuse
this sweet shop with the Rustika gift shop.
More Ice Cream: Ljubljana is known for its Italian gelato-style ice cream. You'll see
fine options all along the Ljubljanica River embankment, but many places serve ice cream
only in summer. Favorites include Rustika, the courtyard garden at Gostilna As (summer
only), and Zvezda Kavarna (all described earlier). Fétiche Patisserie, along the riverfront
café embankment, is another good choice, with some unusual, powerful, Asian-themed fla-
vors.
Ljubljana Connections
As Slovenia's transportation hub, Ljubljana is well-connected to both domestic and inter-
national destinations. When checking schedules, be aware of name variations: In Slovene,
Vienna is “Dunaj” and Budapest is “Budimpešta.”
Getting to Croatia
To reach Istria by public transportation, you have two relatively straightforward options: In
summer, two direct buses depart Ljubljana for Rovinj each day (at 9:30 in July-Sept, and
at 13:45 in late June-mid-Sept, details below). From mid-July through August, there's also
a train connection to Pula (Thu-Sun only, 4.75 hours, transfer in Hrpelje-Kozina); once in
Pula, you can connect by bus to other Istrian destinations. On off-season weekends, you
might have to get creative (try connecting through Rijeka).
If connecting directly to Croatia's Dalmatian Coast, you have three options: Train to
Zagreb (2.5 hours), where you can catch a cheap Croatia Air flight or a bus (see “Zagreb
Connections” on here ) ; take the long, once-daily train connection from Ljubljana to Split (9
hours,requires achange inZagreb); or,much slower,take the train toRijeka, then cruise on
a boat down the coast from there.
By Train
From Ljubljana by Train to: Lesce-Bled (roughly hourly, 40-60 minutes—but bus is bet-
ter because it goes right to Bled town center), Postojna (nearly hourly, 1 hour), Diva č a
(close to Škocjan Caves and Lipica, nearly hourly, 1.75 hours), Sežana (close to Lipica,
nearly hourly, 2 hours), Piran (direct bus is better—see below; otherwise allow 4 hours,