A Weekend in Bratislava and Trenčín
In the still cold early spring, my boyfriend and I ventured to Bratislava for a weekend. Central Europe is quite dreary when the weather is still cold but the abundance of cozy coffee shops and bars are welcome places to retreat in such times. Although we did not spend much time in Bratislava, we still felt like we saw what we wanted to see in a short period of time. This includes the clock tower, the castle, a stroll near the Danube, and a walk around the old town.
The clock tower in the old town is one of the main highlights as it offers a variety of traditional Slovakian weaponry across the centuries as well as a stunning 360 view of the old town from an elevated position. Because it is in old town, one can easily get there from the main square. As for the square itself, I can imagine the square isn't too different from the liveliness of Poland's main squares in the summer months but unfortunately the cold wasn't really enticing for bustling outdoor cafes during the spring. While on our stroll, we did manage to spot a few rather peculiar but iconic statues lurking the old town that stood out. This included a man crawling out a gutter and a napoleonic soldier leaning against a bench. More information about these statues can be accessed here.
The castle is a little bit of a hike/walk as many European castles tend to be because historically, the positioning would be advantageous for people to easily see an incoming invasion. There wasn't too much to see on the exterior of the castle in my opinion but the view of the city was well worth the hike up. As we were late arrivals and the castle was closing, we didn't actually go inside the castle so our opinions are slightly meaningless.
As for food, we ate at an overpriced tourist restaurant called Segnerova Kuria which is very close to the clock tower. We went there out of laziness but the portions were huge and as big as our appetites are, we couldn't even try to finish the 2 dishes we ordered. Thus it was overpriced but delicious and warming. You can see the menu here. Another restaurant we visited was a local brewery called Slovak Pub. It was mostly locals
inside and it sold beer in 1 liter glasses as well as traditional Slovakian food. On the weekends I believe they also have live music.
After Bratislava, we joined up with one of my friends and decided we would drive back to Krakow. Along the way we took a quick pit stop in Trenčín to take a peek at its iconic castle. Unfortunately, they closed early because it was Sunday and we were left with nothing but disappointed faces and a few shots from around town. I'm not so sure the town sees many tourists but it was nice for a little stopover. It has a rather nice synagogue and bright yellow church off of the square as well as some cafes and shops that are probably quite lively in the summer season.
Check out the gallery below to see more photos of our short but sweet trip in Slovakia.
