Fairy Bratislava

The alarm on my phone rang the second time. It was only 5am, but I had to get out of bed – no matter how hard a task that was. But I was excited about the facts I’m going to Slovakia! And really… about half an hour later I was in a car rushing towards the northern border on onward to Vienna and some 60km forth. It was not 9 o’clock yet when we were approaching the Austrian-Slovakian border. Still from Austria I already saw a beautiful castle behind numerous wind turbines. “Is this Bratislava already?”

 

Yes, it was Bratislava. The closer we got, the more impressed I was. Soon after arriving to Slovakia I was in the new part of town, crossed the bridge over Danube to the old city, with the magnificent castle dominating the view. Driving past the presidential palace and the fountain of peace didn’t impress me at the time, for I was mostly looking at the map, road and streetcars passing me by.  

The first adventure day begun by getting up to the castle hill and visiting the castle first mentioned in 907. The current and magnificent image of the castle is the work of Empress Maria Theresa. Entring the inner atrium and castle cellar is free. The interior is not all that fascinating. I preferred the excellent view from the castle itself! From one side you can see the wind turbines on the Austrian side, with mountains far in the background. But on the other side… there you get to see the beautiful old city on the left bank of Danube, which separates the new and old part of the capital. Underneath the castle I stopped for a beer and believe it or not, for two (half little) jugs of beer we paid less than 3€. A half an hour walk through the forest path we arrived to Slavina – the monumental memorial sight for fallen victims of World War II. The monument is not only interesting for the past it represents, but also a nice and quiet getaway where local and foreign students love to come to study and recharge their batteries.

 

Bratislava is also proud on another beautiful castle. It’s the Devinski castle up on a cliff at the place where Morava flows into Danube. Today the castle is the symbol of Slovakia, which can be found on stamps and money. To reach it by river (with is a unique and great experience) it will cost you 8€. 

You simply have to fall in love with Bratislava. The old part of the city is rather small and can be navigated easily on foot. You enter it through the Mihael’s gate. That’s one of the oldest buildings of the city and although it looks only 300 years old – due to its baroque style – it was actually built in the 14th century. In the late medieval period this was one of the four entry points to get into the city. Before entering the city through the gate, you can see – on your right – the narrowest building in Slovakia and the second narrowest in the world. It’s only 1.3m wide! What is inside and how they live – I cannot imagine.

 

Entring through Mihael’s gate I reached the Michalska street, the most expensive street in the city. If I just said, how cheap I got the beer, I can say that the same brew cost me 10€ now. OK, it’s the famous street, which also features the Mozart palace, where the famous composer harvested all the glory of his first concert. Michalska street then continues to Venturska street where we can find the seat of Academie Istropolitane. Today here’s the national university library and the palace of the Keglevič family, who often hosted Beethoven.

 

I especially loved the city for the bronze statutes. There should be four, but I only found two. There’s the paparazzi leaning on the house corner and Napoleon’s soldier (one of those who burst into the city two centuries ago) leaning on the bench. Most of you probably know Tchumi, who’s bending down in the canal and peeking at people on the street. You can see his photos on many travel catalogues. But I was most charmed by the old Naci, who’s standing in the middle of the street and invites you with a hat in the hand. It’s supposed to be a real gentlemen, a posh citizen, who was visiting the restaurant behind the statue. He was bowing down to the ladies, with the hat in the hand, inviting them to come in. When he died, the owner and staff missed him so much, they decided to make a bronze statue of him.

I kept exploring the city along the Venturska street, followed by Strakova. At the end I turned left and walked around the charming Hviezdoslavov’s square. The broad street is reserved for pedestrians only and offers many good restaurants on the northern side. The middle of the road features a promenade of trees and benches, which are perfect for a short rest or to soak in the city. Personally I prefer sitting down in the park, watching the locals pass by and listen to their language to try and feel the city beat. The central part of the avenue turns into a market in the afternoon, where they sell many souvenirs, you just can’t resist. It ends at the Slovakian national theatre, which stands opposite to the statue of the Slovakian poet Hviezdoslav, across the avenue. If you’d follow the trams from the theatre southbound, you’d reach the Danube banks. I walked following the flow of the river with the might Danube on one side and numerous faculties of Bratislava’s University on the other side. The other bank is much more appropriate for a visit, as it offers swimming opportunities and is surrounded by swimming pool complexes and a modern shopping mall. But instead of going into a shop I’ve decided to turn around and head back to the city. 

My exploration continued, for I wanted to see the Blue church, the locals recommended to me and said it really is unique and beautiful. As the name suggest I was looking for a blue building, but could not even imagine it to be soooo blue! The exterior, roof, interior… everything was blue. I do not belong to any religion, but I have to admit this sacral object fascinated me, because it hides its might in its simplicity. You should also visit the Hodž square, which I didn’t pay much attention to when I arrived, but have spent so much more time at it now. There are two things I thought very interesting about it. First is the presidential palace in the rococo style, where the president of the Slovak Republic lives. Tourists cannot enter the palace, as there are no guided tours, but you can see through the tall fence the facade and the two soldiers on guard duty, for whom I wondered, how long can they keep up the job if it consists of marching in place, a little turn to the left and back. But the fountain of peace in front of the palace is all the more fascinating. 

… is what our grannies used to say. And since a person can get mighty hungry after a day of exploration, lunch really hit the spot. To get to know Slovakia better I decided to go to the “Slovenska (we’d use the same adjective to say Slovenian as the Slovaks use to say Slovakian) krčma,” not far from the palace. As the name says this is a pub, made up as a barn, with traditional folklore attire hanging on the walls. I really suggest you to try the garlick soup in bread – known as cesnačka. And when I ordered potato dumplings potatoes were coming out my ears, so big was the portion, of these dumplings filled with sheep cheese, bacon and sour cream. They also offer potato pieroge with sheep cheese, made in a special way. As I’ve said, by the end of lunch, you will have a mouthful of potatoes for a week at least. It’s not that it wasn’t delicious, it really was, but it was sooooo much and soooo filling. Traditional drinks are more or less similar to our own. Slovaks will offer you mead, and hard liquor made from either plumbs, pears or blueberries. For the latter at least, I believe there is much better to be found back in home cellars in Slovenia.

 

After two days of exploring Slovakia’s capital my time in the city has ended, but my tour of the country has just started. But let this suffice for now. I hope you’ll get a chance to visit Slovakia and enjoy it as much as I did. A hint – they say it’s absolutely gorgeous in the winter-Christmas time.