Wow, that was one hell of a (buzz)party in Graz! Booking an early morning buzz, oh, I mean a bus (still a bit buzzed!) to Maribor was hardly the brightest move ever, but hey, I am a traveler deep in my fishy beer-soaked soul! And since you’ve read some posts from the party, all green in envy for not coming and feeling blue for staying home, or you even sneakily stalked the Telegram or Discord groups, you know all the publishable bits of what you missed, and some rumors perhaps. I won’t waste your time with that, and unveil a sneak peek of Slovenia instead. I witnessed the firefighters' revolution there. They were swapping flags for some reason.
The town felt oddly empty with no amazing Hiveans around – and I was in a melancholic mood after sleeping just a few hours (I’d slept even less if the only bar sheltering night wanderers of Graz didn’t shut at two sharp - Sleep’s overrated!) to catch my bus. It dropped me right in front of a house where Nikola Tesla allegedly stayed – just a boring real estate agency nowadays. I felt more in need of surreal estates than these real ones, though, and left it behind for others to explore.
Rather than ticking off the usual tourist spots, I wandered the streets and the city park randomly—I’ve always preferred being a traveler to a tourist—so here’s an unconventional report of what caught my eye in the park. Like a fish swimming alongside a turtle.
They chilled in a pond in the park, which even apparently @ninaeatshere approves. I guess its just the perfect spot for picnics.
I nearly took the Via Crucis path through vineyards on the Maribor outskirts, but I wasn’t prepared to face the midday sun atop Golgotha Hill—no desire to add my skull to the others on the Hill of Skulls. Oh yes, it's somewhere up there!
Instead, I took the promenade back downtown, passing what looked like another god—or perhaps just a nude kid with a drinking problem, who am I to judge?—before heading straight for a piano to snap a shot for @mipiano.
Art in the streets, you say? Oh, there’s plenty of that in Maribor. Let’s start with some words of wisdom adorning bland walls.
Other walls are invaded by giant ants.
Let's move forward to the nook of vice with a genuine 1990s sex shop. It is no match for the 24/7 kurwa & sex toy place in Graz!
And now for something serious for a change: the Old Bridge and its riverside bank, where I ended up playing frisbee with the founder of Maribor’s top spot. Stay tuned for my next Beersaturday post—yes, it’s a craft microbrewery (did you expect anything less?)—and keep an eye out for the swan that collects toll at the foot of the little pedestrian bridge below the old one.
If you ever find yourself walking the riverbank, don’t miss the world’s oldest grapevine. It’s been growing and bearing fruit for over 400 years. Not a typo, it has been there for 4 centuries.
So much for wandering the town. Stay tuned for the brewery :)