#2975 vacation memories: Day 5 - Bratislava, Slovakia (9 Sept)

ussie in the Old Town Square, Bratislava

 The cruise from Budapest to Bratislava was the longest of the trip. We left Budapest around 10 pm, I'd say, and we arrived in Bratislava around 2 pm. While we were having breakfast, it was announced that we would be going through a lock and that everyone was welcome to go up to the sun deck to check it out, so we did.

approaching the lock

Of course I have heard of locks, but I've never had the experience. It's basically a boat elevator. The ship pulls in to this cavern (the lock), then water from the river is pumped in and the boat raises to the next level of the river (and vice versa, I guess.) The thing that was most interesting was how close we got to the wall on the left side of the ship. I'm talking less than a foot between the ship and the wall. Why so close? Because another ship pulled into the lock with us.

two ships in the lock

That gate/door you see in the background closed and water came in and the ship slowly, slowly started rising to the top of that wall you see there. It was a really cool experience. There are eleven locks on the Danube between Budapest, Hungary and Passau, Germany. We passed through most of them overnight, but I think I was awake for three of them. None were as cool as this first one, probably because the weather was so delightful and I was excited to be on the river heading to a new place. 

we are in Slovakia!

I think this is a good time to tell you that I had a big crush on the captain of our ship, Tomas. He is tall, dark, and handsome with jet black hair, an awesome beard, and an effortless hotness that never failed to make my heart go pitter-pat. I also admired his skill at getting the long ship so close to the wall. At one point, he was leaning out over the rail and I worried he would scrape his beautiful head on that wall. I stared at him every day, and it's not a stretch to say that my overall enjoyment of the cruise had something to do with seeing him daily. 

Okay...

We had lunch on the ship (I had fish and chips that day) and we sailed along to the capital of Slovakia, the city of Bratislava. Slovakia was part of Czechoslovakia until 1993, when the two countries separated. Slovakia joined NATO and the European Union in 2004, and it's main economic money maker is auto manufacturing. I had no idea.

Here's my first glimpse of Bratislava:

Bratislava, Slovakia

A rather unusual thing in Bratislava is the UFO Observation Deck/restaurant. We didn't go there, but we saw it from the ship.

UFO Observation Deck

I just mention it because it's unusual.

We had a walking tour of the old town that took us past a bunch of pretty buildings, one of which had a cannonball embedded in it that was from the time Napoleon Bonaparte bombarded the city. Besides Napoleon,  the Nazis were there in the 1930s, then the Communists came and didn't leave until the late 1980s. The place has seen some stuff.

When the tour was over, Lizzie and I explored on our own. Lizzie had a few places on her list for us to see. Our first stop was a cute shop that sold locally made crafts and things. I bought some postcards and a darling little watercolor, plus a couple of stickers. The next stop was a nice, modern bookstore in the not-touristic part of the city.  (Fun fact: Lizzie and I went into bookstore in every city we visited!) The bookshop in Bratislava was two levels. The first level had books in different languages, mostly Slovak, but also German, Hungarian, and English. The second level had more books and a really cute café.

café in the bookshop

cute!

Walking back to the older part of town, we saw a street lined with trees, restaurants, and shops so we decided to check it out.

Lizzie looking sassy in Bratislava

We happened upon a restaurant that Lizzie had tagged in her notes called Bratislava Flagship Restaurant. We saw a empty tables outside and decided to stop for a drink and maybe a snack.

Bratislava Flagship Restaurant

We were more likely in the pub part of the restaurant. I think part of it was a monastery and the monks brewed beer, as is pretty common in this part of the world. An interesting thing about most cafes in Europe is that you sit down and a server comes to you. You don't wait around for them to show you to a table, or you'll be standing around looking like a dumb tourist for awhile. Most of the time a server comes over right away. That was not really the case at this café, but a young woman did eventually come to take our order of "pivo and chipsy." Pivo is a draught beer, and chipsy is potato chips that come with a freaking delicious garlic dip.

Lizzie is delighted with pivo and chipsy!

This little snack was really, really good. The chips were freshly cooked, the dip was fantastic (I'll be looking for this recipe!), and the beer was excellent, so good, in fact, that we ordered another round. We were surrounded by folks walking home from work and school. People were out walking their dogs. Kids were running around and playing in the little park across the way. It was lovely.

After our snack, we walked back to the old town and looked at a confectionary shop that was absolutely beautiful and had gorgeous cakes. I didn't take a photo, though. (I don't know why. Maybe because there was so much décor I couldn't focus on any one thing.) From another shop, we bought something called a bajgel. Yes, it is similar to a bagel, but in Slovakia it is filled with "something," typically poppy seeds (very popular in Central Europe) or walnuts or other things. We bought one filled with walnuts in sort of a sweet mixture. It was tasty, and I bet they are delicious when warm. 

On our way back to the ship, we walked down a pedestrian walkway that was shaded by lots of trees. There were fountains and pots full of flowers hanging from the lampposts. There were benches full of people enjoying the late afternoon. The walkway was bordered by restaurants and cafes that were starting to fill up for drinks and later, dinner. I was charmed.

pedestrian thoroughfare

We got back to the ship and were rewarded with a glimpse of Hot Captain Tomas in shorts and a t-shirt. I think he got a fresh haircut in town, too. He has lots of tattoos, which just added to his allure. I'm surprised I didn't trip walking onto the ship. 

For dinner that night, Chef George prepared a traditional Slovak dish called halusky.  It might be compared to macaroni and cheese, but the "macaroni" is made from potatoes and flour, like gnocchi in Italy, and the cheese is not cheddar, but a sheep's milk cheese. We were told that the dish is usually topped with bacon crumbles, but Chef George topped his dish with crispy onions. I won't lie: it was astoundingly delicious.

halusky with a glass of sauvignon blanc

I enjoyed the day in Bratislava very much. I loved going to the non-touristy part of town to see what the locals do. There was one thing, though, that Bratislava is known for, and that is the big castle on the hill. We didn't go up there, and I think if I ever had a chance to go back to this city, I would go to the castle. It's said that the view is lovely and the gardens are nice. 

As we sailed away that night, Lizzie and I were on the top deck toasting the city with a glass of prosecco. The castle was all lit up, shining a bright white with a dark orange roof. We were excited to take a photo as we sailed by. We heard the church bells chime 10 or 11 times, and then...poof...the lights on the castle went out! So here's a pic of the dark castle:

Bratislava Castle

 I thought of something to add to the posts: how many steps I took and number of miles walked each day.

Tuesday 9 Sept - Bratislava: 12,408 steps, 5.05 miles 

Monday 8 Sept - Budapest: 13,476 steps, 5.53 miles

Sunday 7 Sept - Budapest 10,117 steps, 4.23 miles

Saturday 6 Sept - travel day Amsterdam to Budapest: 9,636 steps, 3.93 miles

In the next post I'll tell you about my day in Vienna, Austria. Vienna was city number 2 of the Big Four Central European capitals. Spoiler: Vienna is grand and awesome and I want to go back!