After a nice morning in Budapest, we hopped on an afternoon train to Bratislava.
I hadn't heard very good things about Bratislava (mostly from my brother) but it was in between Budapest and Vienna, and we had never been to Slovakia, so we decided to go for a night!
Bad idea. I LOVED this city. I could have spent 2 or 3 nights here!
Whoa! I know where God lives!
I believe this is Visegrad Castle, up on the hill. It was built by Bela IV in the mid 1200s after the Mongol invasions. But really! Random super cool castles up on the hill as you pass by on a train? It doesn't get much cooler than that!
Welcome to Slovakia! Why, thank you!
While our train ride was super easy, and the train station wasn't nearly as scary as I had heard about, we foolishly thought we could take the bus to our apartment. ("The bus stop is right across the street and it's only two stops away!" they said!)
But see... Bratislava doesn't have a metro or train system. They only have buses. And taking a bus from the main train station toward downtown was obviously crowded. And you know in Europe they don't have any kind of queuing or order to anything... it's every man for himself. So when our bus stop approached and we tried to get off with our suitcases and children in tow, people trying to get ON the crowded bus blocked us and the doors closed before we could get off. I had a TOTAL MELTDOWN. I mean it... Clark Griswold style. Mother effing this and mother effing that. ("Dad, do you need an asprin?")
Kind of like this. Ok, exactly like this.
It was duly noted that we would ONLY take taxis or Ubers from now on, when we had suitcases. So we got off at the next stop and walked our way back with the suitcases. NOT HAPPY. But our apartment WAS in a great location and super modern and clean (here mom, have some spiked eggnog!) We walked just a couple of minutes to the old town. Above you see the famous St. Michael's Gate tower. Michael the Archangel is slaying the dragon on top, on this tower that was built in the mid 1300s.
The Zero-Kilometer plate shows the distance from Bratislava to 29 world capitals (and two poles!) is directly beneath the archway of St. Michael's Gate.
The North Pole is a mere 4,667 kilometers away!
You might not even notice this very small building directly adjacent to St. Michael's Gate. It occupies the space that used to be between the fortress wall and the city. This empty space was used by soldiers to get around the city. Now, some say this is the narrowest house in the world... other's, the narrowest house in Europe. I don't find any evidence that it is either, except people's claims. The frontal facade is 130 cm. I'm not sure what the upper stories look like, but the ground level business had bumped out into the space to the left in this picture and was much larger than the front of the building. The smallest building in the world actually goes to the Keret House in Poland which ranges from 72 cm to 122 cm. (Other claims include a home in Scotland which is 119 cm and one in Brazil that is 97 cm). While disappointed it's not the "smallest," it's certainly in the top 5!
Michalska street, the main drag leading south from St. Michael's Gate. I found Bratislava to be very clean and full of friendly people!
Wait... you have "free alko?" Ha ha. They really meant, "Alcohol Free."
We grabbed some dinner on the main street in Bratislava, and while we finished our drinks, the kids said they wanted to "dance" on the street for money. Yes, my kids wanted to dance for money. So they went over by these big wooden doors across the street and just started dancing. (Whatever you want guys, just let us finish our drinks!)
Todd and a pretty green building in Bratislava.
I love the story of this guy- the Schöner Naci statue. He was a real man named Ignac Lamar who walked the streets of Bratislava in a top hat and tails and would say to the women, "I kiss your hand!" Rumor has it that he was in love with a woman who did not feel the same toward him, so he went a little crazy. He became sort of a legend, and got himself a statue on one of the corners of the Hlavne Namestie. If Schöner Naci made everyone happy on the streets of Bratislava, ice cream does the same for my kids!
Another fun Bratislavan statue is Cumil! Cumil has been cleaning the sewers and has come up for a breath of fresh air... and perhaps to look up the ladies skirts!
Creeper at work!
Pretty architecture and fine shopping in Bratislava.
The street that Cumil is on (Panska) has some pretty colored buildings.
We wandered around Bratislava (in the rain a bit - this was the only day of our entire vacation that we had rain!) and came across St. Martin's Cathedral. We didn't get a chance to go in (it was evening and closed) but it was certainly pretty from the outside!
Coronations for the Hungarian Kingdom occurred here at St. Martin's Cathedral between 1563 and 1830. Interestingly (and sadly), there is a major road behind this church, and the traffic vibrations have caused the church to deteriorate.
Quiet, rain soaked Bratislavan street.
Old medieval walls of the city. (Next time, I want to walk around and see more of this!)
I spotted the UFO tower and everyone agreed that was something they wanted to see. See the highway here? This is the same one that is causing the deterioration of St. Martin's Cathedral.
A view of the Danube on a very, very gray evening in Bratislava as we crossed the Novy Most bridge.
It was INCREDIBLY windy at the top of the tower, but the views were really pretty! Here, facing northwest, we see Bratislava Castle.
Due west. I can see Austria from the UFO Tower!
Part of the Old Town Bratislava area.
It's windy at 95 meters up! Todd was freezing. I can't even see Natalie's face. Is that you, Nat???
Old Town Bratislava, including St. Martin's Cathedral on the left.
The VERY colorful Petrzalka neighborhood. It was built in the 1970s (obviously) under the Soviet socialist regime. It's a pretty typical Eastern European concrete block housing, but at least it has plenty of color!
All righty then! Don't tell Donald Trump!
Here are Daddy and Natalie walking across the SEVENTH largest hanging bridge in the world, the Novy Most (or... New Bridge). SEVENTH! It's 430 meters long.
Wandering back to Old Town, we walked through Hviezdoslav Square and Todd met up with his buddy Hans Christian Andersen. "You have lived a very pleasant life," observed the snail. "Certainly. Everything was given to me," said the Rose Tree. "But more still was given to you. You are one of those deep, thoughtful characters, one of those highly gifted spirits, which will cause the world to marvel."
The Old Town Hall in the Main Square (Hlavne Namestie). The tower was built around 1370.
This entire stretch made my OCD go off the charts. The tall church tower. The random overhang above the archway with multiple colors. The archway itself. The white walls with plain windows. The gray wall with arched windows. The windows with the multi-colored (yet not the same as any other) mosaics surrounding it. My brain doesn't know where to go!
This is Hubert. He was in Napoleon's army, but fell in love with a girl in Bratislava, so stuck around to make wine. Directly behind Todd is the French Embassy. Some say Hubert is turning his back to the French here.
Almost. Alllllmost.
Todd and Grant on our way back to the apartment near St. Michael's Gate.
Instagrammed Bratislava.
Trinity Church is actually outside of the city gate. It's Baroque style and built in the 1700s*.
*This particular church was built in the 1700s. As with most churches in Europe, there had been another church on this site (St. Michael's) which was torn down in the 1500s.
Totally random, but I thought the chandelier on the ceiling of the bedroom in our apartment cast the most beautiful shadows.
Our second (and last) day in Bratislava started with crepes. There was a wonderful "pancake" place next door to our apartment. Mmmm. Cinnamon and sugar crepes with cappuchino. I had two of each. I'M ALL JACKED UP!
More strange signs of Europe. WTF is right!
'Merica.
Pink buildings are pretty even in the rain.
Our destination was St. Elisabeth's Church or "The Blue Church," as it as known to many.
Not only is it blue, but it has some very pretty blue mosaic tile work in the detail. It kind of looks like a cake with fondant icing!
Very sadly, this is an abandoned maternity hospital across the street from the Blue Church. Think of all of the people who started their lives here! There are plans to rebuild and make it into new health facilities (as well as apartments and offices.)
My little family in front of The Church of Saint Elisabeth. There is a mosaic of St. Elisabeth above the door. She is the patron saint of bakers, countesses, death of children, falsely accused, the homeless, nursing services, tertiaries, widows and young brides.
The inside is ALSO blue! This church was built in 1906-1907 and is considered Art Nouveau. We don't see a lot of Art Nouveau in Europe, so this was really different from the traditional baroque and classical churches we have seen.
The small but incredibly lovely St. Elisabeth's.
Saint Elisabeth was born in Hungary and married Louis of Thuringia and had three children before he was killed by the Crusaders. She sent her children off and became a nun, building a Franciscan hospital in Marburg, Germany. Saint Elisabeth of Hungary died in 1231.
The most interesting thing? She was only 24.
The most interesting thing? She was only 24.
Looks like the gates to the city above the street!
Pretty building, communist building, pretty building. The juxtaposition is sometimes striking.
We went back to the Main Square to the Old Town Hall because we were searching for the cannonball that was embedded in the wall. OH! There it is! This was shot into the building by Napoleon's soldiers in 1809.
More views of the Main Square in Bratislava. Todd did not like the yellow building, which is the Hungarian Exchange Bank. He thought the upper part was pretty, and the lower part was totally Cold War concrete that they tried to dress up.
Admittedly, not all buildings in Bratislava are pretty. I'm fairly certain this one needs to be condemned. But doing a little research, it was originally built in the 13th century and upgraded in the 17th century. So this building is OLD! It was owned by a wealthy Bratislavan (or Pressburg, as the city was known to the Germans) family, perhaps the Himmelreich's.
They have such pretty manhole covers!
If there's one thing Grant loves to do, it's chase pigeons. Here is is, mid flight, totally determined to catch those pigeons.
Todd and Natalie at the Town Guardhouse which stood in the southern part of the square from 1767-1860.
Until next time, Bratislava!!!
