Bratislava

On Monday we visited the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava. We arrived by a short ferry ride down the Danube which took about 1 hour. Bratislava is bordered by both Austria and Hungary, and has a long political and cultural history. The old city centre is actually quite small so visitors are able to do several walking tours to see the major cultural sites.

Here is a picture of the Brataslava castle which is built on a hill top that has been inhabited since the stone / bronze ages. The first stone castle was built in the 10th Century, and had various renovations until it was destroyed in 1811, it then laid in ruin until the 1950's when it was rebuilt in the former Baroque style.

Unfortunately we were unable to go inside when we visited as it was closed for a private function. The castle had some beautiful gardens with a picture of the view of Bratislava from the garden walls below.

We also visited the parliament, which is protected by 2 armed guards which are in the picture below (although probably too small to see here).

After many hours of walking around Bratislava we caught the train back to Vienna. The train trip back only took 1/2 hour - but we waited on the platform for a 1/2 hour in Bratislava before the train left. No explanation was given for the delay - passengers just had to sit an wait! Here I am waiting for the train to leave, after I gave up trying to decipher the departure board outside the window.

View all our pictures from Bratislava by clicking on the picture link below.

Bratislava