The Slovene people are divided over whether the country or the city is a better place to live: in fact, unusually, there is an even split of people living in either area: 50% live in the country, 50% in the city!

The countryside in Slovenia is very important to the people who live there: about 8% of the land is actually protected, so people like you and me can go and visit there in the future knowing that the area will not have been damaged by other visitors or by big industries. The largest protected area is the Triglav National Park, which is 848 sq km.

But Slovenia is not just known for its national parks. There are lots of other great areas to discover in the country.

Mountains, Forests and Rivers

Slovenia is quite mountainous, and is quite similar to Austria and northern Italy... and what do you get with mountains? Snow! And where there's snow there's skiing! This is great fun and is a very popular sport in Slovenia. It also attracts a lot of tourists. In the winter months, for those living in the cities, skiing in the mountains can be only a matter of an hour's drive.

About half of the country is covered with lush forests. The Mura, Drava and Sava rivers are the main ones flowing through the forest areas in the north-east area of the country. This is a very beautiful place and there are many alpine villages where Slovenes live.

Caves

Slovenia has the largest caves in Europe! In fact, only 35 minutes' drive from the capital city some of the best caves can be found. Do you know your stalactites from your stalagmites? Which go up, and which go down? It's hard to remember, isn't it? Well, there are plenty of both in Slovenian caves. The Skocjan caves are on the World Heritage list for UNESCO (that's the United Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) so that they will be protected for future generations.

Wildlife

In Slovenia you can find many different types of animals. In fact, did you know that there are more than 50,000 different animal species and 3,000 plant species to be found there? You can find bears, wolves or even lynx living in the forests!

But what about living in the city?

Ljubljana, 'The White City'

What does the capital city have to offer? There are about 330,000 people living in it, which actually isn't that many. Ljubljana is a medieval city which only became the country's capital in 1918, but there are lots of things to do despite it being small. It is well known for its 1,000-year-old castle, which has the most amazing views of the city from its highest tower.

Ljubljana has a university, its own orchestra, theatres, concert halls, art galleries and a great summer festival. The city also has a great deal of history, and the oldest part of the city has some great-looking buildings.

So which place would YOU prefer to live in, the country or the city?

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