Archives for “Shopping” tag

“To je to” means “That’s it”, and that is definitely THE shop I like the most.

Situated between two coffee bars on Gallusovo nabrežje it is a perfect place for each and everyone who is an explorer by heart and game freak. One step inside the shop and you dip into the magic world of puzzles, party and table games, cards, toys, rubik’s cubes, magnets, kaleidoscopes, kites, juggling equipment such as diabolos, flower and firesticks, yoyos, juggling balls and lots of other stuff.

I don’t like to go there too often, because every time I visit the shop I find something I’d like to have. Just observing all the things is tiring, and afterwards I usually relax in one of the neighboring bars.

I have already written about a very nice games and toy shop on Galussovo nabrežje called TOjeTO. Only few meters along the street stands another interesting shop. It is called Ristanc. The owner of both shops is Ms. Sašek, a very kind lady who works from time to time in one and another shop. Ristanc is in fact a mother shop to TOjeTO. Why is it so special you may reckon?

All the toys and games are made mainly of wood. Wooden puzzles, cubes, highways, cars, helicopters, dolls, swings, pinwheels, jenga, skipping ropes, and many others. I remember I used to come here as a child. I was amazed staring and gazing at all this wonder. Sometimes mama bought me something and I was happy. I still think wooden toys are much better than any other “plastic fantastic” stuff and recommend you to pay them a visit. If not to buy something then to smell, touch, play. Toys are full of stories, just listen to them. Listen carefully.

Casa Slovenija is a new souvenir shop on renovated Kongresni trg square. You will notice it has a Slovenian flag hanging above the entrance door and “ciza” – a traditional carriage decorated with flowers or pumpkins or whatever is growing in that season. It’s right next to Cvetličarna Emporia Flowershop (check the Cvetličarna Emporia article).

What makes it different from the rest of the shops is that it’s made as an old Slovenian house. When you enter the shop you enter past centuries. In the middle there is a ceramic stove which was common around Slovenia and even I have a warm memory about my grandmothers’. Next is an imitation of a “black kitchen” where many sausages used to be smoked and the place is fully decorated with old furniture.

You should drop by this shop for three reasons. To see it, to buy hand made Slovenian arts & crafts which are hard to find elsewhere and to get a shot of blueberry liqueur – our traditional welcome drink.

What used to be a tiny bookstore called Azil (Asylum,) is now a bookshop café that combines two bookstores and a café. Azil has a bookstore sister called Beletrina next door and a café inside and outside this place. Novi trg or New Square is surrounded with beautiful baroque palaces, so visiting this place will also give you a possibility to see one of the palaces from the inside.

Azil is run by the Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, so what you can mostly get there is academic literature on humanistic and sociological sciences in Slovene, English, French and Russian. The atmosphere here is truly cozy and you can almost smell all the knowledge that the shelves store.

There’s a really good English language selection on philosophy. You can also find books on cultural studies and anthropology, arts, history, gender studies and even comic books. Check out for books by Slavoj Žižek, the most prominent and notorious Slovenian philosopher of all times! Azil is also a bookcrossing zone, so you might even find some free books or leave your own behind.

Maximarket is the first department store in Slovenia. It was established in the year 1971, when Maximarket first opened its doors and later became one of the biggest department stores in former Yugoslavia. For over more than forty years, Maximarket has taken place in people’s hearts and it is nowadays simply known as Maxi.

Visitors of Ljubljana can find Maxi right in the heart of the city center. The building itself has more than 14.000 m2 of shopping area and its interior is a fine example of socialist architecture. Apart from numerous shops, one can find many bars and restaurants inside, ranging from very affordable buffets to expensive à la carte restaurants, where you will be served with top quality Slovenian wine and special foreign cuisine.

Because of its position, Maxi remains one of the key points in the city, where residents and visitors meet, socialize and enjoy the pulse of the city. As people, who live in Ljubljana, would say: Let’s meet in Maxi!