Bratislava - Capital of Slovakia!

Finally we arrive at the Bratislava post. Isn't one of my favorite places. hehe cuz it's a city... so a little more dusty... & dad was having a rash from the sun. So I don't think he was very comfortable. However, he's a better sport than I am... so it didn't stop him from enjoying himself. On hindsight... I wish I was nicer. Less grumpy and all. Mostly, I wish he was with me at the beginning of my exchange when I haven't yet tired of traveling. And we could explore the places and procedures together... hm..


Well This is our hostel. My only gripe is that it's next to a major road - so it was rather noisy even at night. But I sleep well anywhere la. haha Dad had a sudden tummyache. So i put the sheets on for both of us. There. Nice and cosy.

We got lost on our way to the city. Cuz of a road name that was similar to the one that we were supposed to turn left yet. Ironically, I was the grumpy one after having taken the wrong turn :( Oh well. we got it right eventually and never got lost there again. I have no idea why I didn't have proper pictures of the streets + tram tracks in the city center... maybe cuz we went to get cream for dad's rash straight away... But that street reminded me a little of a more bustling and city-like Cambridge. Not as quaint though.


Bratislava, like most major cities in Europe, has a river flowing through it... The Danube in this case =) haha but the river ride to Devin castle is too long. and boring. Grin dad was probably a little bored with insufficient activities... so he suggested the river ride. Oh well.. more about it later..


Sights of the city. The concert hall, a globe fountain, evil mentos advert and yellow pages in slovak? =) The power of icons. hehe I knew Yellow Pages instantly.


Art in the city. =) Bottom Left: Mozart w his clavi-chord. Bottom Right: a graffiti depicting a little boy with a cap leaping from point to point - path traced. hehe I loved it!


Gothic parts of the city and its main church + a few misc.


Had to cross a busy road and walk uphill to this castle. I'm sorry I'm not terribly informative at this point but it's difficult to be after so many months. hehS makes a great case for blogging upon returning. In any case, we had to stop by the foot of the uphill path because there were two roads ahead. The lady at the bar was nice enough to point us in the right direction =) So here we are and there happened to be some VIPs around hence the guards.

1st. I liked the gate motif very much. 2nd. The view reminded me of Singapore. It was unfortunate dad was traveling with the me who was missing home tremendously...


Another motif I liked a great deal. This was a building that looked somewhat abandoned. There were paintings of people at each window however - as if depicting personalities living in each quarter. Thought it was a pretty cool thing to do.


Streets of Bratislava. The cobblestone path that I was just beginning to take forgranted.. the greyish stone buildings of history. The graffiti on the walls. Dad looking up at I'm not sure what.. =P


And we took the boat ride to Devin Castle. Truly, the ride wasnt much. But the castle on Devin Island more than make up for it. =) It was again another not-so-easy-to-locate-place. We followed other groups of people who seem a little less clueless, glanced at maps that we don't exactly comprehend - grin ya and dad said it's easy to read maps. hahaha NOT ALL MAPS ARE USER-FRIENDLY! In any case... we got to the vicinity of the castle. LOoK!

Er. Yeah. Dad was still fascinated by plants, trees and fruits in particular at this point. =) He wilingly trudged across wet grass patches to reach these trees for close up shots. hehe If we lived in a suitable climate and a suitable place, we would have fruit trees in our garden.

There. The castle and its surroundings. I thought it was all very pretty... We didn't have much time before we had to leave by the next boat. But I guess it's enough to explore the charming little place.

Quite off tangent here. But here's food eaten at Bratislava. No we didnt Eat Tesco. We got our supplies from there. hee Bratislava hostel - being a city hostel - didnt have perks like free breakfast (though there was free internet). So we got ourselves milk and cereal for breakfast instead. Economical and good. hehs comes from traveling around quite a bit. =)

At the point where we were supposed to turn left for the city centre... we turn right early morning.. to catch the train to our next destination. Prague, the city that I've heard so much about and yearned to see. Perhaps one day... I'll catch it with the Music fest in Spring...

Last note: I think what I wish for now... would not be a graduation trip with friends. I would very much like to take a short trip with my whole family... Even Malaysia would be good. =)