Europe 2014: Bratislava, Slovakia

It seemed fitting to leave Warsaw in the dead of night. I had become so attached to the city that my only way out was to slink away on the night train to Bratislava - another morning and I might never have left.

This was my second experience of a sleeper train and although it's something to be able to say I've done I think I'll draw the line at two. Not only did I get very little sleep, I was awoken at 5am by a gruff Polish man telling us that our stop was in half an hour and, in no uncertain terms, to get up. I've never been so asleep yet so awake in the same moment.

Like zombies with suitcases, we dragged ourselves to our hotel which thankfully had a 24-hour reception. However, although we were able to unburden ourselves of our lives on wheels, our check-in time was about eight hours into the already warming Slovakian day. We set out into the city in search of coffee and/or breakfast and I'm not quite sure what happened next.

Well I do - it's all just a bit daft. Our first impression of Bratislava was that we had landed in some party hotspot, with stag nights and hen parties spilling out on to streets and bottles of beer being consumed under the early morning shadows cast by churches. Never have I wanted beer less, or my bed more.

Our hunt for coffee was called off when we reached the Danube where we sat on a bench to collect our thoughts and put together a new plan of action. In the 20 minutes we were sitting there I managed to have a ham sandwich, my friend opened a half bottle of wine for a friendly hobo and we taught another of his peers how to count to 10 in English. We also found out from these two rather friendly, if unkempt, individuals that the presidential inauguration was to take place the day after in the city. 

Without those chance - and I must admit, initially alarming - encounters we might not have known. Thanks to the homeless people of Bratislava - I suppose. Coffee was sourced at an early morning McDonalds, where we reflected on what was ultimately the most bizarre morning of the whole trip.

As for Bratislava, it got normal during the day. The narrow streets of the old town bustle with tourists and locals alike. It's difficult to get lost in the main part of the city (although we did manage to mis-read a map on that very same morning, leaving us in an industrial estate rather than a public park) because it's quite a compact place. It's an attractive place, but having seen the city as it was that morning, some of the magic was drawn out of it all.

 The presidential inauguration was good fun to be at the heart of - we even made a brief appearance on Slovakian TV - but I would imagine those don't happen every weekend. We also took a trip out of the city to see Devin Castle which was a beautiful setting on the convergence between the Morava and Danube Rivers. Other than that, I wouldn't say that there is very much to do in Bratislava.

Overall, this is a nice city with some charming aspects to it. It managed to provided a few of the highlights of the holiday for us, but those one-off encounters and experiences would not be enough for me to rush back. The accommodation (Loft Hotel) was brilliant, if you're thinking about going. I would recommend a visit to Bratislava, but only for a few days. Then move somewhere bigger and better - like Vienna!

Thanks for reading,

Martin