I’m spending four nights in the capital of Slovakia with my Supperclub buddies in honour of a recent birthday milestone.
The Ryanair flight is less than three hours and we arrive on time to our free airport pick up which Jennifer has scored through Booking.com. It’s about a 15/20 minute journey to our hotel which is fantastic. It’s called Hotel Loft and it’s a really cool building with “Fabrika” brew pub attached.
We decide to eat at Fabrika tonight as it’s fairly late and I get started on the list of local foods I want to try. Cabbage soup – doesn’t sound too appetising but it was delicious and had homemade sausage in it.
We have booked ourselves on a walking tour of the city, so after breakfast next day, we walk towards the old town to meet our guide. His name is Samuel and he gives us lots of historical information about the town. Among other things, we learn that Bratislava was once called Pressburg.
The entryway to the old town is through Michael’s Gate and it’s significantly busier here than it is in the newer part of town where our hotel is.
We walk through the old square and zig zag through the winding streets (this town is definitely not built on a grid). Entering the square in front of the beautiful Opera House, we are treated to some music from the fujara, a traditional Slovak overtone flute. Delightful 😁
We make our way to St. Martins cathedral. Mass is on so we have only a brief peep inside!
We climb up to the castle which dates to the 13th-century and houses the National museum. We are so lucky with the sunny weather.
From the castle we get a great view of the town and the Danube river. I remember seeing this bridge, which has an impressive viewing platform, when I was here last in 2019, but Samuel reckons it’s overrated and overpriced and the locals hate it… fair enough, we won’t go! We also see a group of wind turbines – they’re quite close but they are actually in Austria.
We’re almost three hours in, and Samuel is beginning to repeat himself (through spittle 😱), so we’re about ready to go when he announces he has a surprise for us… oh lord!!! He takes shot glasses from his backpack along with a flask of tea and a bottle of rum. Seems like an odd combination but we down it, thank him, give him a tip and off we go!! We head back into the old town and have a beverage in a café, sitting outside in the sunshine. We try the potato dumplings and fried cheese (more local food staples ticked off the list!)
We walk back to the square to visit the Franciscan church, as some pre-trip research tells me the incorrupt body of St Raparatus is in there. It’s a beautiful baroque church but we can only peer through the locked gates, and listen to the Franciscans praying. We’ll have to come back.
After a little rest in the hotel, it’s time to head out for dinner. Earlier Jen found a restaurant that she liked the look of – it’s called Divney Janco and we are delighted with our meal. Apparently in 1844 a Slovak poet, activist Janko Matúška, wrote a very famous protest song here. We have the Hungarian goulash, which is insanely flavourful, served with giant dumplings and a nice bottle of white, then a nice bottle of red! We are happy out!
We decide to go for a drink and happen upon this very local looking bar. We get chatting to a jazz pianist called Denis, who’s mad to chat to us and says he knows Irish people and they are the best. He’s got a good few drinks on him but his English is good and it’s very entertaining conversing with him. He says that he is so happy to chat to anyone, even idiots, but we are “fucking great people”!! The owner of the bar is a voluptuous, very well put together lady, with no English but a very big smile. At last orders, she gives us a round Becherovka, a Czech digestif, that is very popular here. It has a hint of cinnamon and is actually very tasty.
Next morning we explore more of Bratislava. We see the upside down pyramid which is The Slovak Radio Building and enjoy other buildings and statues and of course churches (although they’re rarely open to go inside). We also notice how clean the city is.
This afternoon we are going to a spa for a “splish and splosh” and a massage. It’s a beautiful facility,called Golden Kinaree, in the Sheraton hotel and it’s absolutely fab. We have the whole place to ourselves until one man arrives to use the sauna… we are all just a little bit stunned that he appears to have just a towel wrapped around him and he removes it in the sauna and starts doing leg crunches and stretches… seriously!!! When I go into the sauna he quickly grabs his towel and covers up… it’s a glass door, did he think we didn’t see him! 😱
We are on the waterfront at Eurovea City (a giant complex of shops and restaurants) and we’re hungry so we check out Kolkovna for a glass of wine and an appetiser. We have the most delicious Gruner Vetliner wine, not from Austria, but the Slovakian, Veltlinske Zelené. It’s so good and it’s actually the cheapest bottle we have bought so far (€16!)
We tidy ourselves up and head back to the old town for dinner. After looking in a few places, we settle on The Farmhosue and have a very nice meal with more local wine. We call into the Half Blind Pig for a cocktail before calling it a night.
After breakfast next morning, we take an Uber to Devín Castle. It’s approximately 12 km away. The ruins are extensive and it is such a lovely day as we walk around.
The castle was built as a fortress in the 13th century to protect the western frontier of the Hungarian Kingdom.
The scenery all around is stunning, on this glorious sunny day.
Slovakia is landlocked but connected to the sea via the Danube river. From the castle, we look out onto the confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers.
After a fair amount of climbing, it’s time to come down and have a snack. Poppy seed cake is on the “must-try” list and they have a Gruner… delish!
We decide to continue our rural exploration and head to Marianka, a village in the foothills of the Little Carpathians. The village is the oldest pilgrimage site in Slovakia and the first pilgrimage site dedicated to the Virgin Mary – this sounds right up my street! We start with a visit to the church where there’s a rehearsal for a concert, starting shortly.
There are many small chapels around and in one of them I get “talking” to the parish priest. The problem is he only speaks polish and while I’ve said I don’t understand he continues to speak at me… pointing out paintings on the wall and who they are, what they mean (I assume!). Then he tells me to sing…. 😱. He’s intimating that the acoustics are good so I should sing…. Oh lord, I’m mortified but bust out a verse of Ave Verum!!! Thankfully the girls have arrived for backup and he ropes in a young man who translates for us…. Now he’s really in his element and starts telling us about the water from the near-by well and how it has apparently resulted in some miracles!!! I’m loving this but it’s hard to get away. Eventually we thank him and make a run for it!!
Grace had read that there are relics from the children of Fatima here but I couldn’t see them in the church so I go back in to check them out – they’re so tiny they’re barely visible!! Still, you know I love a relic!
Back outside we walk around the pilgrim area.
There’s a large group doing the Stations of the Cross which line the hill and we catch some of their singing. All in all, a weird and wonderful afternoon in a holy place. Love it!
Back in the city we visit the famous “Little Blue Church”, an iconic symbol of the city, built by a revered Hungarian architect. It’s very striking among the grey surroundings.
We’re all “churched” out so decide to visit Bratislava Flagship, a huge restaurant in an ornate old theater, with traditional Slovak fare & house-brewed beers. A glass of beer and a nibble on some potato pancake and fried cheese will keep us going until dinner.
The office of the president:
For our final dinner, we go to a restaurant called Pulitzer and I have a schnitzel that, as you can see, is giant!
Next morning I climb up to the gigantic Slavín war memorial, which is visible from much of the city, before enjoying a final hotel breakfast (which has been excellent btw).
We pack our bags and walk into the old town for a final look around. The Franciscan church is still closed so I’m sad to report I didn’t get to see St Raparatus.
We pick up some poppy seed cake at the famous Pressburg Bajgel, to be had on the flight home.
Grace and I decide to have some Thai pampering which is dished out on two low mattresses on the floor…. We fear the room may have seen some happy endings but I enjoy a foot massage while Grace goes for head, neck and shoulders. Quite the little adventure before heading home.
It has started to rain and there’s just time for a final bit of Slovakian grub at Koliba Kamzik. I try the garlic soup…. very garlicky, surprise surprise!! A lovely restaurant though, with really nice staff.
So off to the airport with us. The birthday girl is happy and we have had a fun filled, fantastic four days!
odohertyelaine 