01 February 08

City Focus

City focus Maribor

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City lives

Great year-round fun and a new sense of pride are helping make Maribor a hot new destination

“I may spend much of my working life on radio and TV in Ljubljana these days, but there is no doubt where my heart really lies. I am Maribor born and bred, it is the city I love and Stajerska is my region.

Things have not always been easy for Maribor. We have had to compete with our bigger rival, the capital Ljubljana, and when Yugoslavia broke up in 1991 our industry lost many of its markets. These were dark days and unemployment was high. Things are much better now and Maribor is a city on the rise — just look at all the new gleaming shops, cafés and restaurants. People have money in their pockets, whether they choose to spend it in the mega Europark shopping mall or in the more interesting shops in the old city.

“The old city is my favourite part of town and is where tourists should head first. And remember to look up, so you can admire all the grand architecture that we are so proud of. People are also much friendlier here than in Ljubljana, and we want to make sure you are having fun in our city. The new Ryanair flights have been great for us. Now we can easily get to Britain, but more importantly tourists can come and discover our city.

“One of the best things about Maribor is that there is something to do all-year round. In winter, I head to Mariborsko Pohorje, where there is great day and night skiing. In summer, the Pohorje is great for hiking during the day, while the Lent Festival in June is one of Europe’s great parties.

“I think the future is as bright as a sunny summer Maribor day. We are very determined and much more confident in our city than we used to be. Take my recent Guinness World Records radio broadcast. People said I couldn’t do it, but I stayed on air for 122 hours, 1 minute and 22 seconds. In Maribor, we have a saying: “Don’t write off the small guy.” And we mean it.

Listen to Marko on Radio City, www.radiocity.si, or watch him on Kanal A,www.24ur.com