Bratislava, a walled national capital, shares its borders with Austria and Hungary. Situated between the Danube River and the Little Carpathian Mountains, its location places it at the heart of Europe. This strategic position made it a crucial crossing point for ancient European trade routes. Bratislava Castle, perched on a hill, gained fame for remaining impervious to marauders precisely because of its advantageous location.
A day trip from Vienna
We were already in Vienna after having driven through Slovakia. But we had skipped Bratislava, its Capital, since it would make for a day trip from Vienna.
The highway from Vienna leads us through what was once a motorway border checkpoint between Austria and Slovakia. No one to stop us for immigration or customs formalities for Slovakia since it is now an extension to the Schengen zone.
There is a huge mall with a McDonalds and an extensive parking area where we can park for free. Parking in the old town of Bratislava could become complicated.
We walk to the bridge, that crosses the Danube, into the old city. The bridge is wide and two tiered. We walk across the bottom level which is poorly lit in some places. The gloomy walk ends on the other side with the colourful old city.
A well known character
The beautiful streets lead us to the main square with the old town hall and whimsical statues, including one of Hans Anderson surrounded by statues of some of his characters like the goose. (Wondering what the fairy tale author has to do with Slovakia, I find that he had visited the city in 1841. The statue was built to commemorate his 200th birthday).
The most picturesque buildings are the old Town Hall with its green tiled mosaic like roof. Its tower has a chronological table at the bottom to indicate the high water level experienced in the 19th century when the Danube flooded.
Almost within a few meters is the Primates Palace. The exterior of the Primate's Palace is attractive, pink in colour, featuring a pleasant facade and allegorical statues upon the roof. The two 19th century penny farthing bicycles in a bike rack in front are certainly an attraction. Content to watch two young people trying them out, we enter the palace courtyard that has a fountain with a statue of St. George slaying a three-headed dragon. There are also five angelic statues within the inner courtyard. The building is said to house a rare collection of 17th century English tapestries, which were rediscovered during restoration work in the early 20th century. We skipped that.
Even more well known characters
Also in the old town is the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel. The hotel, originally named The Swan, with its various restorations at different times has been on this site since the 13th century. Until World War II when the German army took over the hotel, then known as The Carlton-Savoy, it earned a reputation as one of the finest in Europe. Renowned figures like Thomas Edison, Theodore Roosevelt, and Alfred Nobel are said to have been its patrons.
Delightful deviation
The castle sitting on the hill, seen from almost anywhere in the old town, is too tempting to miss. My companions are not interested and so we continue to traverse the quaint old streets that house museums. Venturing a little further we come across two more modern buildings. One of them is the huge post office, arguably the largest in the world. The starkness reflects Russian architecture. Had we entered the building we would have been impressed because it is supposed to be beautiful. The other is a more attractive baroque style President's Palace and its gardens.This official residence of the president also known as Grassalkovich Palace, happens to be extremely popular among tourists and Slovaks. The arcades and balconies as well as the manicured gardens behind are a soothing respite.
Back to the final point
We make our way back to the Rudnay square with the plague memorial in the vicinity of the unmistakably medieval Michael's Gate. The Plague column is ubiquitous to European cities for it is erected in memory of the end of the terrible plague epidemic that wiped out large populations. Michael’s Gate was built in the 14th century. The roof of this 14th century baroque green onion-domed Gothic tower is 51 meters tall and has seven floors. Considered the only well preserved gate of the city fortification, it houses the Museum of Arms. Without a doubt the topmost terrace provides a panoramic view of the castle and the enchanting Old Town.
Adjacent to Rudnay square is St. Martin’s Cathedral. The Gothic cathedral is the oldest church in Bratislava (1452). The church’s 85 meter spire soars above Old Town. The church was actually built into the city’s medieval walls.
My companions are tired and take a rest outside the Synagogue Memorial. That's when I spy a path that goes underneath the road towards the castle. As I walk out of the underpass I'm met by impressive medieval walls. .
Clop clopping all the way
A path, cobblestoned for the most part and flanked on the valleyside by houses, takes me up a gentle slope, the Cathedral spire acting like a beacon. Before long, in about 15 mins, I'm at the bottom of a zig-zagging flight of stairs that takes me to the beautiful Vienna Gate facing one of the castle towers. As I turn around to marvel at the castle I get an amazing view of St Martin’s Cathedral, the picturesque Old Town, and the modern city beyond. Austria and Hungary are also visible. A walk in the huge landscaped garden reveals the surrounding buildings, including an armoury. The rococo style castle I see now is the result of restoration after various tragedies from war and fire. It is hard to believe that it was once a military garrison. There is a feature that is atypical. One of the staircases leading into the castle is broader and gently sloped. It seems some of the staircases within the castle also have similar dimensions. The reason? The queen wanted to be able to ride her horse into the castle and up to her apartments!
When I get back down we take a walk along the Danube's boardwalk. A river cruise craft is moored at the pier. If we had had more time we would have walked to the botanical gardens.
Suspen(d)se
Walking towards the SNP bridge to cross it and get back to our car we realise the uniqueness of the initially non-descript bridge. Impressive dimensions but not a single support in the riverbed. The steel structure, all 550 tons of it, is suspended with steel cables from only one support that rises above the bridge that is connected to 2 pillars on the other side of the river! At the top of the tower/support is the flying saucer-shaped structure housing a restaurant, familiarly called the UFO.
Missed
Where is Çumil? How big is he? I keep looking at every corner we turn or every street we cross. Surely a crowd will be around it. It should be easy to find. But…! The ‘sewage worker’ remains a delusion to me. We simply did not thoroughly search the city centre!
We did not walk further enough to delight in the Blue Church.
Insurance:The accident
We have been warned about rash driving in Eastern Europe. Young men with new expensive cars throw caution to the wind. So far we have driven defensively. We reverse the car cautiously only to hear a slight ding. We have been hit by a huge expensive car. He speeds away. We check the damage. It's not going to affect driving. We know that we cannot do anything from all that we have read about the local procedures and so we leave it to our insurance for the rental car which is pretty high for Eastern Europe. Even then they did charge us 500 Euros for damage to the body.
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