Bratislava: Fifty shades of blue

It may have been our daughter's wish to spend her half term shut in her room, but her cruel parents felt she should widen her horizons, so we trooped off for a short business/pleasure trip to Bratislava, the business part being Ted's visiting a collaborator and giving a talk. The drive was long (for Europe), five and a half hours. We crossed Slovenia, then drove all the way through Austria, turning right at Vienna to hit Bratislava, not far over the border.

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia, if you are scratching your head (I admit, I had to pause and think about it when Ted first mentioned going). It has been known by various names - Bratislava was only fixed after the 1918-19 revolution. Actually, it was nearly named Wilson City because of the support Woodrow Wilson gave to Slovakian self-determination. I suspect they would have reconsidered that during the Cold War.

Saint Michael's Gate

For a while, Bratislava (only it was called Pressburg then) was the coronation and legislative site of the Austro-Hungarian empire, because the Ottomans were marauding through Hungary. In consequence, several Austro-Hungarian emperors/esses were crowned here, including Maria Theresa. It's also on the Danube, which is only blueish, at least in winter. The old part of the city is small, packed, and easily navigable.

Our first excitement in Bratislava was getting slightly lost trying to follow the satnav (GPS) instructions through the city. Turning the corner and realising we were going the wrong way down a pedestrian zone on the tram line was a particular highlight for Ted. The second excitement was the apartment. I had booked a two bedroom place, but we got a three-bedroom, two-bathroom deal. With a bathtub!! We only have a shower in our Koper apartment, so this was luxury. Our daughter cheered up immensely on finding she basically had her own wing.

Ted's host kindly met us on our arrival. It was already getting dark, but he took us on a quick moonlight tour of the city, and out to a local restaurant a little off the tourist path, located in what used to be one of the old defense towers. On the way back, he pointed out the old socialist police headquarters. Two lions flank the top of the door, and he told us that, back in that era, if you were called to go to the lions, you knew you were in trouble...

Sunday morning, I got up promptly and went to Saint Martin's cathedral for Latin Mass because I am always up for a Latin service, and not for completely spiritual reasons. I love hearing the Latin - and I love that you are sharing the same service with people across the globe. The service was beautiful, with an organist and cantors (the ones who lead the chanting). But boy, was it cold - I could see my breath. I am counting one shade of blue as my fingertips (or is that ten?). I just tried to think of it as freezing for Jesus. I bet the priests had thermal underwear under their cassocks.

Devin Castle, plus the blueish Danube and brownish Morava

Back to the apartment to warm up, add layers of thermal underwear, and then meet our host and his wife, both Prof. Jajcay,  to drive to Devin castle, just outside the city on the border with Austria. The castle is on a natural lookout, so its origins stretch back to the ninth century, with evidence of settlement since the Neolithic age, but it was destroyed in the Napoleonic wars, so all that is left is a romantic, partially reconstructed ruin. The wind was brutal, but luckily we were fortified by the hot currant wine for sale at the entrance. Every castle needs a legend, and this one (with variations) is the princess who refused to marry the man her father chose, and was locked in a tower overlooking the convergence of the Danube and Morava rivers. Our host told Alcuin she was rescued, but I think that was a retelling for a three-year-old, because most versions have her jumping to her death. But he asked if she was dead, anyway.

Another warming-up break, this time for lunch, and back to the base of the castle to the site of the old Iron Curtain, where there is a monument to those shot trying to cross the fence. When our hosts were young, this was a no-go zone unless you owned property in the vicinity. Now, it's a local recreational area. Here we are at said monument, with the Maiden tower, the Danube, and Austria in the background.

(While we were being blown off our feet, our hosts' daughter took our teen out to lunch and around the city, which was far more fun for both of them.)

Monday was work and a talk for Ted. I let Beatrice sleep in and took Alcuin out to the park in front of the presidential palace (Grassalkovich Palace), but had to spend a long time persuading him that no, you can't run off and play hide and seek in a strange place. He had fun until he suddenly decided he was freezing. After another, now traditional, warm-up in a cafe (about every third shop in Bratislava seemed to be a cafe), we headed for the Art Nouveau Blue Church aka the Church of Saint Elizabeth. It's only open for services, but we got to peek through the glass doors at the sky blue interior (sorry about the little bit of glare on the screen).

After lunch (Subway - my daughter had a craving, don't judge), we bundled up again and headed for Bon Manufaktur, a sweet shop where you can watch boiled sweets (hard candy) being made on site.

The window display

We looked around just as long as Alcuin could stand to wait before getting to eat the lollipop he had chosen in the first thirty seconds, then I persuaded our teen that we should go up the UFO, a flying saucer-shaped tower on top of the SNP bridge, with supposedly fantastic views. We crossed the Danube, entered the base of the tower, paid, got into a suspiciously mid-renovation lift and whizzed up...

... but did I mention the wind? When we got out and entered the final staircase, the blast was rattling the steps. We were taken aback because the website pictures hadn't indicated that the lookout was in the open - they just showed photos of people lounging comfortably in the bar and restaurant. We were even more suspicious when the young couple who had ascended just in front of us immediately turned and came back down. Beatrice vacillated all the (shaky) way up to the top, then promptly turned and took Alcuin back down. He might have been more scared, but he was still assiduously licking his lollipop. But I had paid, dammit, and I was going to look around. I lasted about 5 minutes trying to appreciate the views. Definitely a waste of money for us. (Coincidentally, that same day, Facebook posted a memory photo of me on the London Monument observation deck eight years ago. My thought - Wow, I really need to diet.)

On the way back, Alcuin fell asleep licking his lollipop.

Tuesday, Ted got the morning off, so the two of us went back to the cathedral. It was interesting, but not in the league of many of the European cathedrals we have visited. Sadly for us, the Medieval crypt  was closed (a hazard in this part of the world outside the tourist season). But there was a little, almost hidden, treasure up in the choir: the choir stalls with their fantastical, whimsical animal carvings.

A little culture in the afternoon. I had originally intended to walk the half hour up to Bratislava Castle, but the 3-degree weather and the ever-present wind made it clear that Alcuin at least would be miserable, if not all of us. So instead, we tootled off to the Palffy Palace art museum, mainly for the Matej Kren installation, the Passage, representing the infinite world of knowledge with its arrangement of books and mirrors. Here is where, morally, my daughter got her revenge for my being superior at the UFO lookout, because, I took one look at the seemingly bottomless pit - and I was scared to go inside, even though intellectually I knew it was a mirrored floor below me and not infinity. Anyway, Bea and Alcuin hung out there for several minutes, and I did make it across and back once, with much nervous giggling.

Otherwise, the exhibitions on the lower floor were the next best part, especially since the walls are stripped back to show earlier incarnations of the building. They included a collection of Celtic coins alongside remains of an excavation below the palace. The general exhibition did not stand out to me, but by then, Alcuin had about had enough, so there was not time to appreciate it. I did like the modern interpretation of Saint Sebastian, though (he's the one that got shot full of arrows).

The reward for being cultural was a visit to an Austrian-style cake shop, which turned out to be quite a posh tea room, but they didn't evict us on sight, so that was okay. I let Alcuin go with his choice for us: a mini Sachertorte. We did not finish it.

I love the mix of pleasure and nervousness on Alcuin's face.

One final thing that made traversing the city fun was all the murals - you never knew when one might pop up round a corner. Apparently they have an urban art competition every year, ostensibly to revitalize some of the old/abandoned buildings. Here's a selection:

Home with Slovakian wine and sweets, and a mountain of British tea from Tesco (expat radar at work). And a big thank you to the whole Jajcay family for being unexpected and generous hosts, who made our stay so much more fun and informative. I could have filled several blog posts with all the history and personal stories they shared.

Touristy stuff: For me, one of the advantages of having to take things slowly with a small child, is that there is always an excuse to go back to a place. I like to get a little familiar, and then explore more deeply, so some day I'd like to get back to Bratislava, maybe in the autumn or spring. Those without young children can probably see everything they want to in two or three days. Bring your thermal underwear if you go in the winter! Here's the link for our apartment. There were lots of AirBnb options, too, but (maybe because we were booking at the last minute) I could not find a good option for a family.

Here is the website for the Bratislava tourist board. I downloaded their app and used it every day, mainly for the easy links to Google maps. This is also a good general website. When I was getting ready to go, I also watched a few random Youtube videos, and found them useful. (P.S. In the UFO's defense, it is being renovated, so it might soon be a much better experience.)

In the event you are driving your own, or a borrowed (not rented) car, be aware of the rules for tolls. Slovenia, Slovakia, and Austria are among the countries that now use vignettes (stickers) instead of having toll booths on their highways. if you are going to be driving on toll roads, you need to purchase short-term vignettes, or risk the large fines. You can buy them at the border e.g. at the petrol station, or, for some countries, you can pay online beforehand and have it linked to your licence plate. Here is a general guide to European road rules from the AA, including tolls.