He Who Wanders

So I obviously didn’t come to Bratislava for just breakfast. In fact, I arrived in the late afternoon and headed straight to the Hostel Blues where the friendly staff told us all the sites to see. Although I knew of Bratislava, I knew nothing of its sites.

Turns out Bratislava is a small, cute city with very few sites to see. You could absorb all of this little Slovak capital in a day or two. Even so, it’s a city worth seeing. I joked that if ever I was wanted by the government, I wouldn’t mind coming to Bratislava to start a new, quiet life. After all, Slovak is similar to Russian. I’m sure I could learn the language within time.

Since I arrived late, I took a brochure and just walked to all the tourist spots I could reach before nightfall.

As you can see, Bratislava has some lovely churches. Much like the city itself, they are stunning in a humble sort of way. Unlike much of the baroque, extraordinarily gaudy architecture I’ve seen in Russia, the churches here were grand, but not in an excessive manner.

During my walk, I found an outdoor mall with a long, cobblestone path split by a tram line. While you shop, you get to see the Bratislava Castle in the background perched on its hill. It’s an odd feeling to have a castle hundreds of years old share your line of sight with an H&M.

I continued onward. While lost in an alley, I found this cool graffiti. What is it? I don’t know. Ask Patrik P. Still looks cool.

Speaking of which, here is an upside down pyramid. Cool, right? A bit more industrial than in Cairo, but I doubt the Slovaks bury anyone in there.

I made my way past parks with fragrant lilacs  and blooming trees. Kids played on the grass and couples sat and cuddled. But along the street, there was no. Even when I made it to the Parliament building, I still so few people. Strange.

Later, I found the president’s home by accident. His gated house sat on a square between the main roads of the city. People casually strolled by, apparently apathetic to the regal home in front of them.

I woke early the next morning, not by my own choice, but at least I got to see a few more churches; one of which was located in a cute square alongside the French embassy and several eccentric statues.

My main stop of the day was the Budapest Castle. I found a nice courtyard while on my trek. It’s not related, but look how peaceful.

After trudging up and up and up, I at last came to the castle. You can see the interior of the castle. Though, honestly, the view from the castle was more interesting than the castle itself. If not for a Chinese tourist screaming “WOW!!!” I could have fallen asleep up there. You could see the UFO bridge and the foggy hills with red-roofed houses tucked under the trees. Ahhhh

Oh yeah. Then I had breakfast at a cafe at the outdoor mall. But that’s not so interesting unless you’re interested in tea and croissants.