Metelkova in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Cool Bars & Converted Prison as Hostel in Former Army Barracks
Taken over by squatters on independence from Yugoslavia, Metelkova is a seriously edgy place for a long drinking session amongst underground arty types. I think…
Happy memories?
They say with some places that if you can remember anything about them, then you didn’t do them properly. I sincerely hope this applies to Metelkova in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Former army barracks and converted prison as hostel
A former army barracks, Metelkova was taken over by squatters when Slovenia became independent from Yugoslavia. It is a seriously edgy place, with a few grimy-but-cool bars and even a converted prison as a hostel (the Celica). It is, apparently, where Ljubljana’s underground arty types hang out – a rough equivalent to Christiania in Copenhagen, Denmark. This I had to see.
Long drinking session
Unfortunately, it was around 1.30am after a long drinking session down by the river in the Ljubljana city centre that I decided this. Now usually I am annoyingly diligent about taking notes about everything when I travel – a curse of the profession – but this time I appear to have been a little slack.
Notepad: Lots of young people?
My notepad reads, in barely legible writing, as follows: “Equiv Christiania. Graffiti everywhere. Falla Falla Bar. Past 2am. Lots of young people. Absolutely f***ing terrifying.”
Train to Zagreb
Ahem. Call it my Woodstock moment, but the rest of the night is a complete memory blank. I somehow got onto the train to Zagreb at 08.35 in the morning, with all my luggage, but it was a disturbingly close run thing…
