Experiencing Interesting Bratislava Slovakia

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Today was a day we could have used those bicycle wheels. We covered a lot of territory on foot, first to reach our destination for the night and then all the ground we covered sightseeing.

We left our hotel in Vienna before six o'clock to catch an early train to Bratislava. Since we would only be spending one day here we needed to arrive early enough to get in everything we wanted to see. We arrived at our hotel with ease to drop off our luggage and begin out busy day here. We are staying in the heart of Old Town which makes reaching the sights quite easy but there are many to see and involves a lot of walking. Walking is usually not an issue but with 97 degree temperatures it's a little more challenging.

We came to the conclusion that catholicism is the major religion in Bratislava. We visited a number of Catholic Churches today. We listened to an organist and violin player rehearsing in one church. They were practicing "Ave Maria" and doing a beautiful job with it. In another of the churches we participated in reciting the rosary which was just beginning when we got there. Some of the other churches we were able to go inside and others had locked doors so we could only wonder about the beauty that was behind those locked doors.

Old Town is layed out in a circle with lanes and narrow roads leading all around the circle. The roads are all constructed of cobblestones. Occasionally a car would appear from somewhere but the majority of the area was pedestrian traffic. There are old palaces, most of which are now museums. The Old Town Hall is an example of a former seat of government which is now a museum. All along the roadways are shops, cafes, restaurants, ice cream shops and statues, There are also a few water fountains mixed in.

Tonight after dinner we picked up our tram tickets to get us to the railway station in the morning before heading to Budapest. We need to be prepared because they can not be bought on the tram and most places will be closed in the morning when we leave here. We have to walk out to the main road since there is no public transportation in the circle. I mentioned dinner. Again it was very good. I had chicken with mushroom gravy and rice and Rich had spicy chicken with rice and fries. We enjoyed both dishes.

We've been so busy we are going to need a vacation to rest at home. We try to squeeze as much as we can into the day. Tomorrow is no exception since it's on to Budapest!

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