Bratislava

I have never been to Bratislava, or even Vienna for that matter. Why do I mention Vienna? A few months ago I found cheap flights to Vienna, however, I only had two days off from work. Bratislava is about 80 km/50 miles east of Vienna, and its own airport isn’t very busy. Some travelers opt to fly into Vienna and take a bus into Slovakia. I figured I would be short on time in Vienna with just two days, and having never been to Slovakia, I decided to go to Bratislava for a few days.

Sunday

Flew to Vienna’s airport with Austrian Airlines, and we landed about 10 minutes late. I needed to catch a bus across the border to Bratislava, but fortunately there were regular busses. Grabbed a pair of sandwiches to go at the airport, then made my way to the bus stops. Luckily there was a bus waiting there already, and a couple of minutes after I got on, we were already on our way. I had rented a room in an airbnb apartment, and the bus station in Bratislava was within walking distance. Made it to the apartment at 9:45 PM and met the owner. Hassle-free.

Monday

Got breakfast at a nearby café, U Kubistu. I ordered a dish consisting of beans, toast, fried eggs and bacon.

Then I walked over to the Blue Church, quite close to the apartment. The door was open, so I slipped inside for a few photos.

It was built in the early 20th century, and there’s 50 various shades of blue in use for the design.

I continued towards the Old Town, namely the Hlavne Namiste Square, passing the Man at Work statue on the way. There’s a few medieval buildings and several embassies on the main square of Bratislava.

With plenty of cafes nearby with outside seating, it’s a pleasant spot for enjoying sunny weather.

Further west of the main square is St. Martin’s Cathedral, built in the 14th century.

It’s got a simplistic interior with some detailed decor, and a small treasury as well. Nineteen royal coronations have been held here.

The cathedral is located along the road that runs across the Most SNP bridge. At the southern end of the bridge is the UFO Tower, a flying saucer sitting above the highway.

Built in 1972, it is one of a long list of landmarks left by Bratislava’s 45-year exposure to communism. There’s a restaurant inside the UFO, and an outdoors observation deck on top.

There’s even windows to the outside in the bathrooms, so you can take in the view while you go about your business!

Having crossed the Danube River already, I continued towards the Petrzalka neighborhood of southern Bratislava. Being the main residential area, there’s not much here in terms of actual sights. If however, like me, you have a weird fascination for communist architecture, this concrete jungle with colored apartment blocks from the 1970s makes for a nice stroll.

Having walked several kilometers south of the city center, I returned by bus. Most buses in Bratislava criss-cross through the central old town area somehow, so it’s a very practical option.

Stopped at a station just past St. Martin’s Cathedral, in order to walk to a Slovak restaurant named Modrá Hviezda by the Bratislava Castle. Had some beef slices with toast for an appetizer, and potato dumplings covered in sheep’s cheese and bacon as the main course.

A short hop north of the restaurant was the Museum of Jewish Culture. The museum is dedicated to the history of Jews in Slovakia, who like so many other European Jews were affected by World War II.

A Torah, the holy scriptures of Judaism.

Staying in the theme of World War II, my next stop was the Slavín War Memorial. It is part memorial, part cemetery on a hill north of the city.

Remembered here are 7,000 Red Army soldiers who died fighting Nazi Germans for control of Bratislava in 1945. Many soldiers are buried here too. It’s a controversial monument in a country that is now far past its East Bloc history. Out of respect the memorial has been left untouched, with many Soviet symbols still in place. Locals like to come up here for the views of the city, which may be another reason for the preservation of the Memorial as it is.

Another part of Bratislava’s socialist history is the upside-down pyramid Slovak Radio Building, built in 1983. It’s hard to miss this odd shape in downtown Bratislava.

The building has even been named one of the ugliest in the world, although many local architects have defended it.

I continued south past the Grassalkovich Palace, which is the home of the President, and a pair of parks, towards my last stop for the afternoon.

 

This was the Monument of Slovak Uprising, dedicated to the 1944 uprising against the German occupation forces. It was organized by a number of Slovak underground resistance movements. They weren’t succesful in overthrowing the collaborationist government, but they continued operating until the Soviet Union drove out the German forces.

I returned to the apartment to relax for a couple of hours. My host had recommended going to the nearby Eurovea Mall and its promenade for dinner. I went there in time to catch the sunset from a nearby bridge.

It was however relatively difficult to pick a restaurant between the two dozens in and around the mall. I’m not a picky eater, I just always try to get some local food. Honestly, I didn’t travel to Slovakia to eat sushi. Slovak isn’t exactly a distinct cuisine, but I found a restaurant that served a mix of European dishes. Close enough.

I decided to take my desire for local food in a literal sense and ordered a wienerschnitzel. With the namesake of this dish (Vienna) being 80 km west, I suppose that’s considered a local dish. Sort of.

I had planned to visit the Kamzik TV Tower north of town at nighttime after dinner. It closes at 10 PM, and I was running short of time. Public transportation stops at the foot of the hill, and from there it’s a considerable uphill hike. I elected to go by taxi. It took a bit of persuasion to convince the taxi driver to take me up there. Not only did he incorrectly assume that the restaurant/bar in the tower was past closing time, he insisted that I was nuts for going up there so late at night.

Admittingly, it was very quiet when I got there. It was definitely open, but I was the only customer in the TV Tower’s bar. That was however to my advantage, as I could simply tip the waiter one euro to turn off all the lights, which allowed better pictures. Still, the pictures I got don’t really do the view justice.

Upon leaving, I simply hiked downhill to the nearby bus stop, as I was no longer in a hurry. I even spotted a couple of deer on the way, but it was too dark to photograph them. I don’t use flash when taking pictures of animals.

Stopped by the apartment for a quick shower and a change of clothes. Then I went to a nightclub in downtown Bratislava for a few hours of dancing and fun.

Tuesday

In the morning I checked out of the airbnb flat, and walked over to the nearby bus station. I wasn’t leaving Bratislava yet, but I needed somewhere to drop off my carry-on sized trolley for the day. The station is within walking distance of the flat, and I needed to get to the bus station eventually, so it was a logical choice to use its lockers. Even better, the lockers at the bus station were simply locked with a safe code, and they were free to use.

Another reason for going to the bus station was that I still needed breakfast. I simply picked up a sandwich to go, and walked over to a regional bus headed for Devín Castle, 10km/6 miles west of Bratislava.

There are just ruins left of what used to be a castle from the 9th century. There have been some sort of settlement here for almost 2,500 years. The main, “upper” castle was unfortunately closed for renovations. Apart from a small exhibit on the history of Slovakia inside another part of the Devín Castle, there wasn’t much to do. However, the ruins themselves were definitely worth the trip, and if nothing else the surrounding nature was nice too. The castle is situated next to the Danube River, which marks the international border between Austria and Slovakia in this location.

After the Devín Castle, I returned back to Bratislava and its own castle. The Bratislava Castle was also built in the 9th century, and was an important fortification for the defense of the city.

The original castle was ruined in a fire in the early 1800s, so the current renaissance-style castle is a rebuild. It houses several on-site museums on the history of the city and Slovakia as a whole.

Celtic coins found in a Roman building near Bratislava.

For lunch I went to a place serving traditional Slovak food just north of the old town. The restaurant is actually run by a microbrewery, with a bar serving their products on the ground floor. I chose a Slovak soup called kapustnica, containing onions and pieces of sausage for an appetizer.

A trout with a potato salad was the main course.

After my meal, the next stop was the Old Town Hall and its City Museum. It displayed a very detailed look into the origins of the first Celtic settlements, then the Roman presence, and finally what became Bratislava as we know it today.

A medieval map of Bratislava.

Unrelated to the rest of the museum, there was an odd temporary exhibit on medieval torture instruments in the basement.

My last stop in Bratislava became the Michael’s Gate & Tower, a part of the city’s former city walls from the 13th century. There’s a weapons museum inside, and you can go all the way to the top for views of the old town area.

Around 5 PM, most museums and sights close in Bratislava outside of the summer season. As it had become 5 PM, I decided to already walk back to the bus station.

Furthermore, I needed to have dinner before my flight, so getting to Vienna’s airport a bit earlier was quite practical. I booked a ticket for the next bus to Vienna’s airport, and I was on my way 20 minutes after that.

Just a few hours later, shortly past 8 o’clock, I was flying back to Zurich with Austrian Airlines.