Ljubljana Castle

<p>The castle has watched over Ljubljana from its wooded hill since the Middle Ages, rebuilt many times and used variously as a fortress, a barracks and, in the 19th century, a prison. It is reached in a minute by funicular from the market, or on foot in fifteen up any of several paths through the trees.</p><p>Inside are the Museum of Slovenian History, a puppetry museum reflecting the country's strong tradition in the form, a Gothic chapel with painted heraldry, and restaurants in the courtyard. The reason most people climb, though, is the Outlook Tower: a spiral stair to a walkway with the whole city laid out below, the Ljubljanica winding through it, and on a clear day the Kamnik–Savinja Alps along the northern horizon.</p>