Bratislava - Slovakia's Capital

On our second to last full day of our brief European journey, we took a day trip to Bratislava, the nearby capital of Slovakia. It's only about an hour from Vienna by train, and the trains run about once an hour (with no need to book tickets ahead of time), making for a really easy day trip. Europeans are lucky to be able to just hop on a train and be in a city with a different culture and a different language so easily.

The train station in Bratislava needs an upgrade! It reminded us of the Lusaka Airport in Zambia.

The area right around the train station is a bit of a cluster****. But it's a short walk to the historic center.

It was a hot and sunny day, but we decided to climb up a big hill for out first stop, the Slavin Memorial. It's a memorial and burial ground for the Soviet soldiers who liberated the city from the Nazis in 1945. The monument is built in a striking Stalinist architectural style with a big plaza and commanding views of the city. It's a worth a short visit, as it's an interesting modern historical counterpoint to the other attractions in Bratislava.

Carving on the Slavin memorial

Huge empty plaza - a very Stalinist design.

View from the memorial towards modern Bratislava.

1960 communist interpretation of neoclassical architecture.

More views down toward the city, with the red roofs of the historic center visible, and the "UFO" bridge tower.

It was about a 20 minute walk winding down the hill back toward the main part of the city. We passed by Grassalkovich Palace, built in 1760 and currently the residence of Slovakia's president.

A lot of the residential streets looked about like this.

Grassalkovich Palace

Some friendly tourists took our picture in front of the fountain and palace.

It was another short walk to the historic center of Bratislava, the main tourist district. After World War II, the communists gained control in what was then Czechoslovakia. The local interpretation of these principles included ignoring the past and the historic center fell into disrepair. We read that people were so disinterested in maintaining the historic center that even the cobblestones were sold to German towns rebuilding after the war.

Today, post ascension into the EU and return to democracy, the city center is a charming area with medieval buildings full of restaurants and shops. It's clearly become popular in recent years, and we saw a number of large tourist groups exploring the sites. We wandered around for a while, stopped for a snack, and then visited St. Martin's cathedral. The cathedral was completed in 1452, but has been altered throughout the years, with much of the current structure from the 1700 and 1800s. Unfortunately, the communists built a huge road right in front of it, so it was hard to get any nice pictures of the facade.

We made it to the adorable historic center.

Historic buildings of old town Bratislava.

Michael's gate, part of the medieval city wall from 1300.

The main square. You can't tell in this picture, but it was bustling with tourists. Bratislava is firmly on the tour group map!

We stopped for some blueberry chocolate cake and mint lemonade on the main square.

The impressive interior of the cathedral.

The choir seats had these neat animal sculptures.

After spending time in the old town, we walked across the bridge over the Danube River to the "UFO," an observation platform perched on top of the bridge. It offered great views across the city and up and down the Danube and in to Austria. After enjoying the view and the breeze, we crossed back over the bridge and had lunch.

Walking across the Danube. Pedestrians and bikes have a level below the cars.

A newer area along the river on the edge of the old town, still under construction.

The view of the newer parts of town from the UFO.

Bratislava Castle and the Danube.

A leafy street on the edge of the historic center.

Traditional Slovakian food at Koliba Kamzik. It was good!

Paul had a "Zbojnícky horiaci čaj," a very strong aperitif made with Slovakian tea and herb flavored grain alcohol lit on fire! 

We also tried Slovakian beer.

Lamb and sausage with dumplings.

A sewer worker statue that is popular for some reason.

The "blue church." Creative name, right?

We weren't able to go inside, but the outside was covered with blue glass pieces.

In Soviet Russia, plaza makes you!

Unfortunately, most of the museums were closed since it was a Monday, but we still enjoyed our time walking around Bratislava for half a day. We know we didn't do this city (or country) justice by only visiting for a few hours. I'm sure we'll pass back through sometime in the future as we're criss-crossing Europe. To end our day, we took an early evening train back to Vienna and prepared for our final day in Europe.