HILLY WORLD ALONG THE DRAVA RIVER
In the north-eastern part of Slovenia, in the area of quiet Alps begins the hilly world along the Drava river and its tributaries. Although the Styrian region is not only hilly, but it is, as such, the best known. The region is characterized by densely populated settlements with church bell towers, and around the surrounding fields, orchards and vineyards, interrupted by forests and rivers with floodplains.
The region’s main town is Maribor, second largest Slovene town, which, due to its numerous sports and cultural events, is developing into a strong tourist center.
Every January the Maribor Pohorje Ski Resort, situated on the outskirts of the city on the slopes of the Pohorje mountain range, hosts the women’s slalom and giant slalom races for the Alpine Skiing World Cup known as The Golden Fox. And every June, the two-week Lent Festival (named after the Drava waterfront district called Lent) is held, with hundreds of musical, theatrical and other events.
The oldest Slovene town Ptuj, lies just like Maribor along the river Drava. It was already inhabited in prehistoric times, but the Romans added real value to the empire. An important place in the Middle Ages is today known for the largest carnival in Slovenia. Here people live for the carnival almost the whole year. Who does not know famous Kurent the most famous traditional carnival figure of the entire region.
THE MAIN RELIGION
The main religion in Slovenia is predominantly the Catholic Church and through the centuries many churches in different styles were built. Today we have over 2300 churches dedicated to various Saints. The most frequently used is the Virgin Mary and over 300 churches are dedicated to, few of them are pilgrimage. On our way to Ptuj stands on the top of a hill one of the best-known pilgrimage churches in Slovenia, known as the Church of the Virgin of Mercy. There are not many pilgrimage churches in Europe with the Virgin Mary opening her mantle of mercy so generously.
WINE GROWING REGION
The Drava Wine-growing Region is the largest wine region in Slovenia. Wine growing is a deep rooted tradition which hails back to Roman times. Nearly 97% of the wine made in the Drava Valley region is white wine. The Ljutomer-Ormož Gorice ranks amongst one of the most famous Slovenian wine growing landscapes. It produces some of the best examples of Drava Valley wine. It is always worth to visit one of wine cellars, where you can taste different wines with local specialties like “tünka”. Tünka is a meat product, conserved in minced lard. Traditionally, it was kept in wooden dishes, which the countryside people call »tünka«. By maturing in minced lard, the meat gets a special taste, appreciated by the connoisseurs of this culinary specialty. Traditional food is strong in order to allow the farmer to stay on his feet from early morning to evening. Dinner on a traditional tourist farm is obligated and must be finished with national specialty “gibanica”. Layered pastry contains poppy seeds, walnuts, apples, raisins and quark fillings.
I like to visit these places. People here are more Pannonian, more open and free minded.