Remembering Bratislava

Slovakia is not often included in people’s Euro Tour. But the country has a lot to offer, from castles to churches to green meadows and mountains. And above all a culture which is unique.

Especially if you visit Vienna, a trip of a day or two to Bratislava must be considered. A ticket from Vienna to Bratislava generally costs 5 Euro and even cheaper tickets can be found. I was given a free voucher by Flixbus for Christmas that worth the same price. So my trip to Slovakia was a gift from Flixbus.

So my bus was from Vienna Erdberg. I somehow got bit late due to some miscalculations of time, so I was running through the station finding the international bus terminal. As soon as I reached the terminal, luckily the first bus there was the one I needed to take. Just in an hour or so, I was in another country- well that’s why I like Europe.

It was the kind of trip in which I didn’t have any clear plans regarding what to see and where to go first. I was more eager about my trip to Bojnice since I really wanted to visit the Bojnice Castle which is among the most famous and the most visited castles of Central Europe.

Coming back to Bratislava for now, I got off the bus and spotted the St. Martin’s Cathedral and kind of above it was the famous Bratislava Castle. Therefore, then I knew where to go. The Church itself is one of the main destinations of the Old Town and date backs to mid 15th century. Itis a Roman Catholic Church with a Gothic architectural style.

I saw the Church and was just taking a walk around it looking at different statues and that’s when I saw something very disturbing. There was this woman with a small daughter who apparently had to pee urgently. Like I tried my best not to be judgemental but BEHIND A STATUE!! I mean are you kidding me!! And that statue was of the first and the great Slovak Poet Jan Holly. That guy even had “Holly” in his name, well it may be slightly different than “Holy”. Like find a bush or a tree woman!

Well I continued roaming around the old town for a while. There are some interesting statues there like the “Man at work”. I also saw the main Slovak Holocaust Memorial. It may seem as mere sculpture of steel, granite and stone but the history it depicts is terrifying- A dreadful holocaust taking 105,000 lives. No, I have not mistyped and put an additional zero mistakenly. This is the correct figure!

I will not talk more about the cruelties of past, all I wish is that we learn a lesson and made our presents peaceful.

Anyhow, I continued my walk ad climbed up to the Bratislava Castlewhich is the most remarkable and known symbol of Slovakia. The history of the castle dates back to 8th century however it was ruined and reconstructed and renovated a few times. Since it is located somewhat on the top of the hill, it provides a good view of the city and the Danube River. And well not only Bratislava, in clear weather, parts of Hungary and Austria can also be seen from the Castle.

The National Council of the Slovak Republicwhich is actually the Parliament is located just next to the castle at the hill.

I stayed there for a while, enjoyed the views and then decided to take a walk to the train Station from where I had to take my next train. I still had a lot of time till my train, so I visited numerous sites which came along way such as Capuchin Church and Monastery. I even got a chance to go inside and experience the peace and holiness of this Church.

Just a few steps away

were the Trinity Church and the Office of national Council.Actually this was the building used for Slovak National Councils until it was shifted to the new building near the castle in 1994. Which means this is the place which witnessed the notable events of Slovak history such as the Declaration of Independent Slovakia back in 1939, and the finally in 1992.

I then came across the Grassalkovich Palacewhich serves as the residence for President of Slovakia. A fine building! And well I found the guards really attractive, as if they just come out of some old royal era. Or in other words, it was not the guards but the uniform they were dressed in that I found attractive.

I then visited the gardens of the Palace located just behind. A great place to jog or sit back and relax while enjoying one of the fountains! Talking about the fountains, Bratislava has above 140 fountains, most of which are located in the Old Town and actually serve as Tourist attractions.

I then continued my walk and soon reached the train station from where I was supposed to take my train to Prievidza. I think my adventure in Prievidza needs a separate blog. So see you in my next blog J

 

 

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