Bratislava, Slovakia
Friday, September 22 – Wow, we left home a week ago today. Seems much longer–sign of a good vacation!
Well, while the hotel bed would have qualified as extra firm in Bedrock (I think Fred and Wilma might have complained) it was still a gorgeous morning to get out for a run.
The sun was up before I got out, but I generally only encountered other joggers, bikers and a slew of delivery trucks. Nice to be up before the general populace.
Hotel had an excellent breakfast selection and cappuccino rated 8.5/10 on the Chris meter. Made up for the mattress that could register on the Mohs scale.
Dan and I covered the entire historic center by lunchtime–it’s a relatively small city and the sights are close together.
Speaking of togetherness, inadvertently got up close and personal with another tourist at Bratislava Castle. We were in a congested overlook when a large (both in number and girth) conveniently blocked all egress, moving at tortoise level speed. Mr tourist (you just knew it was going to be a wayward husband, didn’t you?) busy taking photos of his wife was not paying attention (color me shocked). Guess he didn’t like the angle, so just kept backing up, not thinking about the fact that someone might be trapped behind him because of the aforementioned tour group. Fortunately, I am not exactly waif like and he pretty much hit a brick wall–best of all, I didn’t have to say a word. His wife laid into him–I didn’t recognize the language, but I sure knew the tone…made me smile…
The rest of our exploration was uneventful, and we had a lovely lunch along the river. Afterwards, Dan relaxed a bit while I decided to hike up to Slavin, located in a residential area high above the city.
Slavin is a memorial and cemetery of soldiers of the Soviet Army killed while liberating Bratislava near the end of WWII. It is quiet and evocative, a reminder of how many countries suffered during that period.
After my late afternoon coffee break, we strolled out for dinner at a lovely place that the family vegetarian would have hated. Very good dinner followed by a stroll back in the city lights. Fine end to a great visit.
Tomorrow, on to Bulgaria–via Ryanair–I probably should be sedated…
31,920 steps, 15.7 miles
Hotel:
Roset Hotel & Residence:
Most SNP (“UFO” Bridge):
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/ufo/
Highly visible, can’t miss it.
St Michael’s Gate:
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/michaels-gate/
Only city wall gate left, entrance to historic city center. Can climb tower for a fee.
Bratislava Castle:
Bratislava Castle
Gardens and grounds are free, fee to tour interior. Roughly 15 minutes’ walk
Church of St Elizabeth (aka “the Blue Church”):
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/blue-church/
St Matin’s Cathedral:
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/st-martins-cathedral/
Free to enter, about 10 minutes’ walk
Eurovea:
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/eurovea/
Modern urban development–park/mall along the river with shops, restaurants and recreation. About 10 minutes’ walk.
Capuchin Church:
https://www.gpsmycity.com/attractions/capuchin-church-28376.html
Free to enter, 5 minutes’ walk.
Slavin:
https://www.visitbratislava.com/places/slavin/
War memorial commemorating the city’s liberation in April of 1945 by the Red Army including memorials and graves. Visible from city center, it is about 30 minutes’ walk, free to walk around.
Bratislava sights are more of a “pop in” variety — no “must sees” but a lot of interesting stops along a nice walk.
My guidebook indicated entering Bratislava Castle wasn’t worth the fee, so we toured the grounds and gardens.
Everything else had no fees at all and were free to wander in and around. Slavin was a bit of a hike through some neighborhoods, but I was glad I visited — very interesting and a side of WWII history Americans don’t get.
Keep an eye open for the various bronze statues in the streets, the most famous of which is Cumil the Sewer Worker:
He is easily located by the crowd of tourists waiting to get their selfie with him!
Breakfast:
Excellent breakfast buffet at the hotel.
Lunch:
Clique:
Nice cafe with outdoor seating along the river in Eurovea.
Dinner:
Carnevalle:
Definitely NOT for the vegetarians, but some excellent dishes. In a lovely row of restaurants near the old city.
Dinner
A lot of posts I have read on tour forums indicate that Bratislava should be a day trip from Vienna or a quick stop between Budapest and VIenna. We both agreed, we were happy to spend two nights (essentially 1 1/2 days). While there are no blockbuster sights, it is a nice place to stroll, it isn’t jammed with tourists (honestly, the Cumil statue was the busiest place in the city), and it had a relaxed vibe.
I would definitely recommend trekking up to the Slavin Memorial. At one point, had to pull out the GPS as I wandered through neighborhoods, but it was well done. It was interesting to ponder both the gratitude of the citizens towards the soldiers who liberate them mixed with the decidedly negative feelings about the many years of Soviet dominance that followed.