An Afternoon in Bratislava

We spent an afternoon in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Bratislava is one of the youngest capitals in Europe and the only capital that borders two other countries -- Austria and Hungary.

For those of you who are behind in your geography, you may recall the country called Czechoslovakia. Due to the end of communism and the growth of nationalist tensions, in 1993, the country split into two -- the Czech Republic (which we visited yesterday) and Slovakia (which we visited today).

Smiles all around -- me, Ferit, and Dilek.

Me, Napoleon, and Dilek.
This is one of four popular life-sized sculptures in the Old Town.
The sculpture is a reminder of Napoleon's first visit to the city, in 1809.

Here is Dilek, sitting on Cumil.
This bronze guy is poking his head out of a manhole.
It's unclear whether he is cleaning the sewer, resting, or looking up skirts.
Dilek was smart not to wear a skirt today!

Just another awesome statue/fountain, tucked away in a little courtyard.

Ferit got quite cozy with this couple.
There were couples like this sitting on benches all around the Old Town.

We were quite surprised to come across this building,
all decked out in American patriotic attire.
This building, the Slovak National Theatre, had a big sign out front that said "Welcome President Wilson."
Wilson and the US played a major role in the creation of the original Czechoslovak state back in 1918.

Dilek gets her read on.
These fun bookshelves, wrapped around trees in the Old Town,
offer an easy way for townspeople to exchange books with one another.

We walked around town some more.
After dinner, we were all in the mood for some tea.

So, we stopped in at the Gorilla Urbana Coffeehouse.
Unbeknownst to us, in fifteen short minutes, we would be entertained by
a "Triban Dance Chaftah," hosted by this charming chap.
The only thing we could understand him say was "Let's do it" as they kicked off the dancing.

We were entertained by bellydancers...

...and this woman, who was twirling these laser things.

When we get back to the hostel later in the evening,
Ferit shows us his turkish technique for putting a duvet cover on a duvet.
He has a "turkish technique" for everything!

I really enjoyed visiting Bratislava. Compared to Prague, it was way less touristy and way more "overall hip."


[Photo Credits: All photos were taken by Ferit.]