Blogs from Bratislava, Bratislava Region, Slovakia, Europe - page 5

On the 24th of April 1944, two Jewish men named Rudi Vrba and Alfréd Wetzler arrived in Bratislava, Slovakia with an incredible story. They claimed to have just escaped from a German concentration camp known as Birkenau located in Poland. The escapees met secretly with Jewish leaders and over the next two days they wrote highly detailed reports regarding the operations in Birkenau and provided detailed drawings of the gas chambers and crematoria there. By this time, Slovakia, an ally of Germany, had already sent 60,000 of the country's 87,000 Jews to their deaths. The publication of the report in Swiss newspapers later that year was too little too late and by the end of the war it is estimated that only 300 Slovakian Jews had survived out of the original 87,000 children, women and men ... read more

Geo: 48.1484, 17.1073 GÜN 46 GÜNLERDEN PAZAR : Şaka maka 46 gündür yollardayız.. Güzel ve insanın içini ısıtan güneşli bir güne uyandık .. Bulunduğumuz kampın ağaç ve toprak örtüsü insanı keyiflendiriyor.. Her taraftan kuş cıvıltıları yükseliyor .. Bu kamp, çok büyük olduğundan en yakın sakinler 50-60 metre uzaklıkta .. Herkes tam bağımsız ve özgür bir yaşam sürdürüyor. Ben ,bütün sabah, keyiflerimi yaptım . Bugün OFF günümüz.. Bildiğiniz gibi arada kendimize tatil veriyoruz ve bir günü tabiat içinde dinlenerek geçirmeyi yeğliyoruz. Çok yakında bir AVM ye uğrayıp eksikleri tamamladım . Geçen gelişimde bu arazi boştu ..Şimdi kocaman bir alış veriş merkezi olmuş.. Pazar sabahı, millet yememiş içmemiş alışverişe gelmiş.. Bu sosyolojik bir olay ..... read more

Sunday 1st June 2014 Well, we did it again. We changed our minds on where we were going next, we have decided to go through Slovakia to Bratislava, before going to Vienna. It was just by chance that we saw that trains go that way and as we were only in Bratislava for less than 24hours in 2001 decided to renew our acquaintance. We arrived at the station in Valtice just before 1000 and then became a little worried when there was no-one else there for the first morning train at 1016. As it was Sunday we thought there may be a different timetable. Our worries were unfounded, people started to arrive and when the train did arrive there must have been 20 people there. At Breclav station we had to wait a little while before ... read more

Drove to Devin Castle, half an hour away from the city centre. From there, we saw the Danube River and the point where Danube and Morava River joined together. The view was spectacular, but then again, I've been saying that everywhere I've been so far. There, we also saw a monument of the Iron Curtain. We drove back to the city and parked in a shopping centre. From there, we crossed a bridge, which had the UFO on top. UFO is a tower built on top of the bridge during the communist era and is now home to a very expensive restaurant. We walked past the university building of Bratislava and after a few turns, arrived at St. Elizabeth, also known as the little blue church. It is hidden in the middle of the city, even ... read more

3 weeks in Budapest makes me stir-crazy. Also, I never thought I'd be spoiled enough to utter those words. But here I am, and here we are. In January I had to spend $200 to get a new computer battery because mine died, and Apple products in Budapest are expensive, and the postal service isn't reliable enough to order a battery from the states. Therefore, I was poor. But also stir-crazy. Compromise? Bratislava. On Saturday morning, Darcy, her friend John, and I boarded a train (for 17.5 euros round trip), got a car, and chugged towards Bratislava. In typical fashion, Darcy booked everything, and I had no idea what was going on. However, we got to take the train during the day, which was a first for us! We passed small villages and mountains, and everything ... read more