Bratislava; Monday, 29 July, 2013

…Sadly setting the air-con at cold didn’t appear to make much point once we entered Slovakia as the power being supplied was clearly different to that in the Czech republic. The lights were all a little dimmer and the air-con went down to an asthmatic wheeze, thankfully it was only about 30 minutes from crossing the border to getting off in Bratislava, so I didn’t worry too much.

I walked the short distance from the station to the hotel and checked in. My first impression of a modern hotel was almost immediately called into question as I went to press the lift call button and the power failed across the hotel. Thankfully it was only for about 30 seconds, but it was with some trepidation that I got in the lift.

After dropping my stuff off I caught a trolley bus into town and then went for a long wander through the old town, eventually ending up at the New Bridge. I walked over the bridge to the pylon at the other end, on top of which is a viewing tower and restaurant.

I took the lift up the tower to take in the views of the old town, the communist housing development that is in stark contrast to the beauty of the old town, and the mighty Danube winding its way through the countryside. As it was a relatively clear evening it was possible to see all the way across into Hungary about 15 miles away, and across into Austria, about 3 miles away.

I descended back down to bridge level and crossed back over to the old town side and had a bit more of a wander, before stopping at one of the restaurants on the main street to have a very nice traditional Slovakian meal.

I wandered back through the old town and picked up a bus back to the hotel, where my air-conditioned room was now at arctic levels.