Bratislava, Slovakia

Eastern Europe has been an object of my curiosity since I studied World History in high school. For me, the countries in Eastern Europe represent the rustic and culturally diverse old Europe. I was quite fortunate that this year, I visited two Eastern European countries: Slovakia and Budapest, but in this entry I will be describing my trip to the capital city of Slovakia, Bratislava.

From Germany, we drove southwest traversing Austria where we passed by at some

interesting man-made structures like giant turbines which were scattered all over the fields like humongous space electric fans and wine storage cellars which looked very much like houses of Hobbits (in case you are familiar with the movie).

Bratislava, I would say, has not reached the grandeur and popularity of its “sister city”, Prague. It’s a small city and the choices of what to see are rather few. Historically and culturally speaking, I would say that Bratislava is very rich and has so much to offer.

The city’s main square contains most of the important offices like embassies, shops, cafes and restaurants. Several churches, mostly new architecture, and a very few antique ones frequent the entire city square. I think Slovaks are quite religious.

The most interesting view for me are the very old rugged-looking buildings that look abandoned. Those remind me of the communist time in this country though I am sure they have nothing to do with it, but it’s just my impression.

One thing that is really good about Bratislava is that the prices of food and services are rather low compared to other European countries.

 

For example, Hotel Mercure, a 4-star hotel, was fantastic. It was very affordable for its category. The staff were friendly and the whole hotel I would say was very clean. The shower was spacious, but water can flood the room so we had to use our towels to prevent that. The hotel is very strategically located and from there you can walk a few minutes to the centre which was a breeze for me. For tourists who have cars, they can use the free parking spaces along the street where the hotel is located, so it's pretty convenient.  

So, what did I find interesting in Bratislava?  They are the main square, the restaurants at the basement, the opera house, the old churches and the old buildings. The palace, I didn’t find so interesting because it’s very new and it doesn’t have the touch of the old Europe which I like.