Another country is just a train-ride away...

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I’m a bit behind in my posts, but intend to catch up a little here in the next few days. Time flies just as quickly here as it does in the U.S. :-)


On Sunday, October 15th, a group of four of us made a day-trip to Bratislava. Bratislava is an easy day-trip from Vienna by train. The ride there is just over an hour long, so really you could just go there for a night on the town if you wanted! We’d heard that everything was cheap in comparison to Vienna, and found that the food certainly was. I can’t verify the other merchandise. First off, the exchange rate is incredible if you’re coming from Vienna to Bratislava: 1 euro = 37 Sk’s. We weren’t, however, told that Sunday is a poor day to go shopping in Bratislava.


Since almost all of the shops we could find were closed, we explored the city center instead. There were many restaurants open, each with a different style of food. We had found our way to the tourist information shop, where the lady suggested we try a restaurant called “Slovak Pub” if we were interested in traditional food for a decent price. Thanks to my friend, Owen, I know the name of the dish I had is Bryndove
Halusky (without the accents). I would describe the dish as being comprised of noodles (something like gnocchi), a cheese sauce, sausage, and fried/smoked fat on top. The sausage was packed with seasonings, which was quite a contrast with the relatively bland cheesy-noodles it was on. I thought it was pretty good, but I’m not sure all of the members in my group would agree. My friend ordered a garlic soup, which came in a bread bowl and was packed with flavor, as well.


We explored the city center and found a tower from which we could get a bird’s eye view of the city. St. Martin’s Cathedral was a lovely sight. We entered the church to see the inner embellishments, but also to get a break from the wind. An organist was practicing while we were there, which gave the church a convivial feeling.


I would say that the Bratislava Castle was my favorite thing that we visited. The Castle is probably the city’s most prominent landmark. It is located on a hill overlooking the Danube and the city itself. We didn’t actually go inside as it was later in the day and we just wanted to enjoy the view and fresh air. We enjoyed the sunset from the top of the hill and then made our way back into the city to find some supper.


During our wanderings, we came upon numerous statues which are placed throughout the city center. These are statues that look like people, but are posed as though they are actually a part of the surroundings. One was a man resting his head on his hands while sitting in a manhole in the ground. The other one we had fun with was a photographer, though I think he looked more like a spy, personally. We each had a photo with him, but my personal favorite is the last one. One of our friends was acting like a model while the other was the photographer. We had a good time. :-)


To me, the biggest disadvantage was the language barrier. However, it seemed like the places we went, the people either knew a little bit of English or a little bit of German, or both. But still, just getting around everything was in Slovak. It reminded me of when I was in Greece and wasn’t able to understand any of the signs. The alphabet was so foreign to me and had no clue how to pronounce anything. I think that whenever you go to a new place, one of the biggest obstacles to overcome is learning and understanding the language. Language is what we use to communicate, and when you’re in another country, you make good use of not only verbal, but physical communication, as well (i.e. hand gestures). You learn to get by with what you have and know.


More to come soon!

Annie

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Photos

Bratislava
Here's a view from the tower. The silhouetted structure in the back right of the photo is the Bratislava Castle.

Inside St. Martin's
The organ is back by the stained-glass window.

Going Up?
These are the steps up to the Bratislava Castle.

Bratislava Castle
This picture doesn't nearly do it justice. I would suggest searching for a another image on the internet if you'd like a better idea of what the castle looks like.

Guy in Manhole
He wasn't actually in the street, but in a corner of the sidewalk.

Comments

[Kali]

:)
I absoluetly love the sculptures! They are just great! :)

[Ryan wu]

I LOVE your posts!