Bratislava

Didn't really know what to expect and hadn't found much was going on but what a great city! Smaller scale than Prague etc and although touristy in the Old Town, it didn't feel cramped. Lots of great cafes/bars/restaurants and lots of sights to see.

Even though we arrived from Brno on Saturday at 3pm we headed straight for another free walking tour at 4pm. The first thing we learnt was that people often mistake Slovakia for Slovenia. A mistake apparently made by George W. Bush when talking to a Slovak reporter in 1999. Now I have a little sympathy as Slovakia is "Slovensko" in Slovak and therefore a similar spelling to Slovenia ... but as we had recently been to Slovenia we could happily say we could tell the two apart.

We learned that Slovaks love Statues. There are countless statues in Bratislava and some really quite random, including a man called "Cumil" popping out of a manhole. Is he taking a break from working in the sewers or looking up women's skirts..? Who knows! Apparently if you are female and sit on his head you will fall pregnant within a year. Needless to say I ran away from that one :)

There are also statues of Hans Christian Anderson and Napoleon amongst famous Slovak personalities whose names I wouldn't dare try to pronounce. But I have included a picture of a Slovak poet's statue found in the square named after him in the Old Town. Our Slovakian is about as bad as our Czech and so I am just generally smiling a lot. I stupidly told the guide that I would really like to learn some basic words - as I hadn't had a chance to consult the vocab section in the guidebook before coming out - and she later had Stuart and I up in front of the group to practice. Namely "stick your finger through your throat" .. "Strč prst skrz krk". Not that sticking your finger through your throat is a 'thing' in Slovakia but just a saying without a single vowel. Needless to say we sucked at that.

According to our tour guide, local wine is only available in Slovakia as although they produce around 300,000 gallons per year, they consume about 900,000 so there is none left to export. My recollection of the exact volumes and figures may be tainted by the subsequent trying of said wine along with a chap called Henry from the walk. But I do remember that the wine did not disappoint! Our guide had also recommended a restaurant so we headed there to try a local dish called Bryndzové halušky. It is potato dumplings with sheep's-milk cheese and bacon. Sounded so wrong and tasted so right! Bit like Slovak Mac n' Cheese.. mmmm

Today we wandered up to the castle which was reconstructed in 1953 based on a former incarnation that burnt down in 1811. They've done a really top job and although there was a storm looming overhead today, the gardens and the view were beautiful.

If I can say this from the (what seems like) hundreds that I have seen this trip so far.. I think I have found my favourite Church! It is nicknamed the "Blue Church" but its real name is the Church of St Elizabeth. Once you see the photo you will understand the name and it is blue in and out. In the middle of the suburbs, it is a real change from any other church we have seen and a really stunning sight!

One sombre lesson in the history of Bratislava (and Slovakia) was the treatment of the Jewish community internally and externally. Of approximately 15,000 jews who lived in Bratislava only just over 1,000 returned after WWII and even before that they were persecuted on countless occasions throughout history. The main holocaust memorial stands in the place of a former synagogue remembering the Slovak jews who were killed. Walking along one of the streets earlier I had noticed three brass plates amongst the cobblestones which had names and dates written on them. I took a photo, having an idea of what they could refer to, and my guess was confirmed by a google search this evening. They are called Stolperstein and they are "inscribed with the name and life dates of victims of Nazi extermination or persecution" (thank you wikipedia). Quite harrowing but a reminder of what horrors people faced during the Nazi regime. Apparently they are part of a project in Europe and I am sure it may be something we find more of as we continue on our trip. There was also plenty of information about Jewish history in Bratislava within the old city walls but we didn't have enough time to study it in more detail.

Another reason to add to the list of why we would most definitely come here again.

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