More questions from a foreigner.

I'm looking to send some documents quickly to Ottawa. If these documents get lost, I'm completely screwed. As much as I love the Slovenian Posta, I have a somewhat shaky confidence in it. So far one letter has gone missing in transit and one got ripped open before delivery.

I'm looking into courrier companies, but they mostly seem to be located in Celje and Maribor. Does anyone know of any places in Ljubljana that could send documents safely, quickly, but without too great an expense? I just looked at the price of express posting an envelope from Canada and it was $90, which made my heart stop beating.

Alternatively, is there a class of mail I can get from the Posta that would be insured, guaranteed and quick? So far, asking for "Priority" has meant ten days to a month, and possibly the vanishing of the envelope into the ether.

Updated to add: Well, it looks like this year, my Christmas present to myself will be...drum roll please...sending six sheets of paper over the Atlantic for 42 euros via DHL (TNT only does business post, apparently).

Mind you, I should count my blessings. Last week, after a dismal visit to a certain government office, I was contemplating possibly having to hand courrier the documents to Canada myself, which would have cost a bit more than that. So, bright side and all that. Thanks for the advice!

A little translation help?

Hey y'all,

Yes I am indeed here and I'll be back to posting soon. The jetlag kicked my ass for a good week and I've been running between offices with forms and photocopies, so I've been feeling a little uninspired in the blog department. But on to practical things:

How do you say "Sorry, wrong number?" in Slovenian? I've got the "sorry" and the "number" part of the equation, but I'm having a little bit of trouble putting it together.

Some old dude keeps calling, wondering if this is Spar. He's got the general geographic coordinates right, but I can't quite seem to transfer his call to the grocery department.

Would you care for a Dickmann?

No? Then perhaps a Super Dickmann?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Oh, man. That never gets old.

It's that time of year again.

No, not Christmas, although that is fast approaching as well. I'm referring to the slew of term papers I have to write. Five in total, rather than the six I originally thought. They are all manageable and I will make time to enjoy Ljubljana while it's shrouded in winter. However, my posting will be irregular once again.

One interesting observation, though. Just as soon as the dishes are washed and the leftover turkey is entombed in cellophane after Thanksgiving dinner, businesses begin to bombard the public with Christmas ads. The Canadian Thanksgiving is in October, people. OCTOBER! That means for two months the Canadian public is forced to listen to Bing Crosby rattling in their ears and corny commercials guilting them into buying gifts for their loved ones.

This is why I don't watch that much television.

Anyway, we're well into November and I have yet to see a massive ad campaign for Christmas crap in Ljubljana. I don't watch television here so I'm not sure if there's holiday commercials playing in rotation. The local supermarket has some decorations but I had to double-check to make sure. It's quite . . . peaceful. I like it. The quiet reminds me of when I came home from work and savouring the silence after being swamped with invasive ear-piercing noises all day.

Thank you, Ljubljana.

Well, look who's here.

I , for one, couldn't believe it, but our cat Salvador actually made it across the Atlantic Ocean with the minimum of fuss. He is the bravest cat I know. Lisa did an incredible job bringing him here, but she tells the story far better than me. Once the jet lag wears off I'm sure she'll enlighten us. Salvador, on the other hand, doesn't seem affected by the whole ordeal. He's already found his favourite perch, which is pictured on the right, and he comfortably wanders around the flat like he already owns the place.

Oh, and today he had burek for the first time - he liked it. No surprise there.

Gandalf in Slovenian politics.

BoingBoing has blogged about Janez Drnovesk's profile in the London Times:

"Slovenia’s President is a recluse. Told he had cancer, Janez Drnovsek moved alone to the woods and embraced his inner spirituality. His Government despises him but he is a hero to his people."

Canadian punk rock in Slovenia.

Nomeansno, one of my favourite punk bands from Victoria (they now reside in Vancouver) played in Ljubljana on Tuesday. I'm saving money at the moment and I've already seen them play dozens of times, so I didn't completely miss out. Did anyone go? Do you have pictures or anecdotes to share?