My only regret in Bratislava is that I left after one night. The capital city of Slovakia, the eastern half of the former Czechoslovakia, has a beautiful, walkable old town center that I enjoyed very much even though drizzle fell through the 40 degree air during my entire 24 hours in town. Bratislava was the third of six places I visited in Eastern Europe.
I rode the train from Prague to Bratislava, an easy 4 hour trip for $30. There’s a tram stop right outside the train station, and I rode 15 minutes to get downtown. Another block of walking and I arrived at my Airbnb which is on the top floor of that skinny building to the left.
The old town of Bratislava is a lovely mix of wide (and wet!) pedestrian areas lined with both high end stores as well as local cafes and bars…
…and narrower alleys that cut under and through buildings. It feels slightly more modernized than many old towns throughout Europe with smoother surfaces on the streets and renovated buildings. It is also smaller and easier to navigate. Despite the rain, it was very enjoyable, and, as you can see, I basicalIy had the place to myself. For restaurants, I especially enjoyed Urban House which was a cool, comfortable place to have coffee, beer, dinner, read a book, and whatever.
Right across the street from the Urban House is the Cafe Studio Club, a more traditional bar and music venue. I moseyed in around 9pm to catch some music – a solo singer-songwriter who was pretty good but he played for 30 minutes then took a break for 30 minutes…or I should say that I left 30 minutes into his break. I don’t know if or when he resumed.
I was intrigued by a couple of interesting sights in Bratislava. I climbed the panaromic streets and pathways up to the Bratislava Castle. Bosorka (Slovakian for witch) proudly sits on a terrace that overlooks the city. She honors all the previous “witches” who were ridiculed and put to death.
I’ve seen a lot churches in my travels, and, while they are beautiful, I don’t feel the need to visit every majestic cathedral. But the Blue Church is different, as you can see. This art nouveau style is so cool, a bit like a comic book church. I really wanted to go in but the doors were all locked. Yes, I checked them all. Google Blue Church and you will see that the inside is blue too – perhaps the most creative, inviting church I’ve seen.
The next morning I awoke and went in search of breakfast but was largely unsuccessful. I wandered around a mostly empty city and finally settled for a bag of nuts and coffee to go. I gathered my stuff from the Airbnb and made the 10 minute walk to the bus station. I had arrived by train and remembered at the last minute that I was leaving by bus, meaning I had to go to a different station. Fortunately I remembered in time and embarked towards the fourth stop of my trip, Budapest.