Out of sheer chance, I ended up visiting Slovenia and Slovakia in the same year, probably the two countries that people confuse the most. To recap, Slovenia was part of Yugoslavia and its independence came after a 10-day standoff that could have ended up in war; Slovakia was part of Czechoslovakia and its independence came when the federation split peacefully at the beginning of 1993. Like the Czech Republic, Slovakia was under foreign rule for most of its existence: first, the Hungarians from the 10th century, then the omnipresent Habsburgs before joining Czechoslovakia after WWI, and falling into communist hands after WWII.
Slovakia promotes itself as “Little Big Country” and little it is: the country’s maximum length is 265 miles (~428 km) and its maximum width is 121 miles (~195 km). The Western Carpathian Mountains cover most of the country’s territory and forests account for almost 40% of its land, making Slovakia a good destination for hiking, skiing or rock climbing. I’d have checked some of Slovakia’s nine national parks but freezing my butt outdoors in winter is not my idea of a fun vacation so I stuck to the capital Bratislava, a compact city whose main sights can be seen on a single day. We ended up staying 3 days, however, thanks to the hospitality of our friends Barbara and Joachim, who welcomed us like family and made it hard for us to leave.
Bratislava is the only capital in the world to border two countries: Austria to the west and Hungary to the south. It is less than 37 miles (60 km) from Vienna, making them the two closest capitals in Europe. They are sometimes erroneously named the two closest capitals in the world, but that title actually goes to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Brazzaville in the Republic of the Congo, only 1 mile (1.6 km) apart.
Bratislava straddles the Danube, with one bank nestling the medieval inner city and the other reflecting the communist years. The historic Old Town contains the typical winding streets and ancient buildings, and its main attraction is Bratislava Castle on a hill above the Danube, from where there are great views of the city, both old and new.
The castle is not the most photographed attraction in Bratislava, however; reputedly, it is a bronze statue of a man peeping out of a manhole, known as Cumil (The Watcher), one of a few quirky statues put in place to enliven the city. He has his own “Man At Work” sign, and you can only imagine it’s some kind of joke about the way things used to work under communism…except that he wouldn’t be smiling.
Speaking of which, communism left a heavy imprint on Bratislava: almost 25% of the Old Town was razed to make way for a bridge connecting the old to the new part of town. The bridge opened in 1972, and became known as the UFO Bridge because it looks like a flying saucer parked there. The spaceship is actually an observation deck cum bar/restaurant and according to its website “In 45 seconds lift will take you from ground level to the point “wow”. In hight of 95 metres and with visibility upto 100 km unique experience can start.” Desperately needed: a good marketeer and someone who can spell English.
The communist and English-challenged bridge leads to another communist legacy: Petržalka, a concrete gray housing monstrosity that seemed to be all the rage among tasteless communist planners. 115,000 people (~25% of Bratislava’s population) live there, and the complex used to be called the Bronx of Bratislava due to the high crime rate and drug dealing. Statistics indicate that the crime rate now is at the same levels as other boroughs’, and some of the buildings got a colorful paint job to make them less gloomy. So will the Bronx of Bratislava shed its shady past? Time will tell. All I can say is that I avoided Petržalka like the plague.
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