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Slovenia

Driving Directions Slovenia

SLOVENIA is a small republic that, before 1991, was part of the for­mer Yugoslavia. It is a mountainous country, bounded by Croatia in the southwest, Hungary in the east, Austria in the north, and Italy. Slovenia also has a short stretch of coastline (45 kilometers or 28 miles) bordering the Adriatic Sea, where Koper’s port is is located.

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Most of Slovenia is situated in the Karst Plateau and the Julian Alps (Julijske Alpe). The Julian Alps are in the densely forested, northwestern part of the country and contain the country’s highest mountain, Mount Triglav (2,863 meters or 9,393 feet). The Julian Alps are renowned for their scenery, and the Karst Plateau provides spectacular cave systems.

Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana, is situated relatively centrally within the upland region.

About half of Slovenia’s people live in small, rural farming communities where cattle and sheep rearing are significant, but crops are also grown. The northeast of the republic is famous for its wine production.

Mineral resources include oil, coal, lead, uranium, and mercury, while iron, steel, and aluminum are produced. Although farming and livestock raising are the chief occupations, Slovenia has also established many new light industries. This has given the country a steady economic base for the future, with unemployment lessening and industrial output increasing.

Tourism is also an important industry.

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Slovenia has a short coastline on the Adriatic Sea in the southwest. Still, the Alps are the dominant topographic feature throughout most of the country, especially in the north and south. In the east is the Pannonian Plain.

Slovenia has only about 47 kilometers (29 miles) of coastline, all of which is on the Gulf of Venice at the northern end of the Adriatic Sea. The sea around Cape Madonna near Piran reaches depths of 37 meters (120 feet) and is a national marine reserve.

Slovenia’s only beaches are near Koper; the coast between Izola and Piran is lined with cliffs that reach up to 80 meters (260 feet).

Did you know about Slovenia?

The irregular limestone terrain known as karst gets its name from the Kras Plateau in Slovenia. In the Middle Ages, with an ancient word for stone (karra), the term was transformed from the Slovenian grast to the Croatian kras to the German karst, which became its final form.

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