Bratislava, Slovakia and Vienna, Austria

I did a solo mission to Slovakia on ridiculously cheap fares. Cost me 30 quid I think return including all taxes!!! Crazy.

Flew in to Bratislava on Friday morning. Bratislava is pretty small and very pretty, a perfect weekend trip. I stayed in a pretty quiet hostel just out of town, easy walk to everything.


Fountain in the old town

Plenty of cobblestone backstreets to explore.

The main sightseeing draw is the castle.... which was closed and undergoing renovations. But you could still walk around the grounds and aee it from the outside.

The castle gate

Cool stair up to the entry


Freerunning kids doing their thing

Sitting on the castle wall


This is the view back over the old town from the castle gardens.

A bird taking a rest whilst the labourers had their lunch.

Stair somewhere around the castle.

I only spend a couple of hours up there as the castle was closed, and completely obscurred by scaffolding, so not a lot to see.

Back in Bratislava, one of the main streets.

There are hundreds of cafes set up in the middle of the streets which are pedestrian only, not unlike some parts of Italy. Stopped at one for a long lunch and a few cuba libres, I was happy to just watch people go by and take photos for the afternoon after doing the 6am Stansted flight again.

Wandered around some more and stumbled on some kind of festival where everyone was making these soups in huge pots over an open fire. There was music and beer as well. Spent the rest of the day there.


Soup pots

This guys looked like one of the best.

There was a table of oldies getting right into it, singing old songs eating their soups and having a ball.

There are a series of statues around Bratislava of various people interacting with the city. I photographed them all, but this guy coming out of the man hole is the most interesting. Apparently, he is the most photographed thing in Bratislava.

Bratislava is just a good drop-punt away from Vienna, Austria. I heard there was a ferry you could take that took about an hour that went right into the city. Sunday morning I got down to the dock at abot 10 and got a ticket, completely unexpectedly, for Austria!!

The ferry ride was brilliant. It winds its way down the Danube passing a few little villages and fishing shacks on the way. Beautiful day for photos.

Some old, ruined fortifications along the way.




The boat veered off the Danube River into the Danube Canal on its approach to Vienna, a much narrower body of water.

Guys doing legals as we pulled into Vienna

Vienna.

Stephansplatz, central Vienna.

I only had the afternoon to look around, so I got walking and covered a fair amount of the city, without really knowing everything that I was looking at. Still, got a nice feel for the city, it is extremely grand, there are very few ordinary buildings around.

Another photo that could be from 100 years ago.

Around Stephansplatz

After walking what felt like miles and miles, had a few beers and lunch in pride of place, right in the cetre of town. Heaps to see, could've stayed there all night. Buskers, tourists, music, the church just across from me and all the hussle of normal people going about their day.


A nice one looking down one of the streets to the Hofburg.

Fountain near the Opera house

On the way back to the dock, I found the cutest family of ducks ever. Took photos for ages, the ducklings were hilarious, so panicky as soon as their Mum was out of site.


They kept slipping down the slope trying to follow her.

Nestled in the lillies.

Jumped back on the boat and was back in Bratislava in no time. Well worth the trip, highly recommended.

The main square of bratislava at night time.

Same square the next morning in brilliant sunshine.

And that was it! Quick visit to tiny little Bratislava, and massive, grandiose Vienna, just a stones throw apart.