For the kids' fall break (25 - 29 October), we planned a 3-country road trip to finally start seeing a bit of Europe. This was our first family trip out of Poland due to Ron's work schedule and covid restrictions in place over the past year. Our travels took us through Bratislava (Slovakia), Budapest (Hungary), and Vienna (Austria). It was an excellent trip that we were excited to finally take. Below are a ton of pics and several comments scattered throughout. Such a cute and fun little town that was charming and relaxing; we LOVED our time in Bratislava. Enjoy the post.
We hit the road around 6am for the 6+ hour drive to Bratislava. The kids went straight from their beds to the car for our early morning departure.
Kobe was a trooper, eating and drinking during the drive and going to the bathroom when we made our pitstops.
Upon arrival in Bratislava, our first stop was for lunch with friends from Warsaw. Both families visited Bratislava for 3 days before they headed on to other countries.
We stayed just off of the main square in Bratislava's small old town so here are a few pics as we walked to our AirBnB.
Kobe had company as Bella traveled with our friends from Warsaw.
The kids and Ron went up to the viewing level on the clock tower of the old Town Hall building. It provided the best view of Old Town and one of the best views of Bratislava.
Bratislava castle on the hill in the background.
One item that was hard to capture is all the stores and restaurants on the various streets that snake through old town. Every street has it's own personality with shops, bakeries, restaurants, and other attractions to enjoy.
Bratislava castle from a distance.
Halloween decorations down one of the side streets. Ron stopped into the Chimney Cake shop on the right for a sweet treat...no regrets.
Ron went for an early morning jog around the perimeter of old town (~1.8 miles) and snapped these morning photos.
Remnants of the original old town wall with guard tower fortification originally constructed in the 13th century.
The UFO tower, which is 95m tall (311 feet), houses a fancy restaurant with an observation deck on the rooftop. There's an elevator that runs up the angled steel columns for those visiting.
Not sure of the significance of this statue in the old town square but it's popular for pictures.
Breakfast at a tasty pancake shop with friends.
Kids entrapped in their own dungeon at one of the apartments.
The following day we visited Devin castle, which is about 20 minutes from old town and was an awesome experience. The castle was first built in the 800s and referenced in written format in 864. This was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.
Fresh water well used for the old castle, it was built in the 15th century and is 55m deep (180 feet). There was a water source just out of picture where you could fill up cups to dump water into the well. It takes 6-7 seconds for the water to splash down at the bottom of the well.
The beautiful Tambo ladies with the Danube River behind them.
One of Ron's favorite pictures of the trip. You can see the "Maiden Tower" below near the water, it's one of the most photographed items at the castle. Legend has it that a bride jumped to her death from the tower on her wedding day when her family killed her husband who they did not approve of. On the cliff to the right you can see a cave entrance that runs through the rocks under the castle. The caves were used for shelter during times of war or attack.
A smaller castle (royal residence) on the compound but separate from the larger upper castle.
Jonathan and Eddie; buddies.
Jonathan was hoping to have us crop out the grass so it looked like he was rock climbing high above the background :)
Kaitlyn wanted to get in on the fun as well.
Inside the royal residence...or what's left of it.
Pictures back in old town Bratislava.
A popular statue (?) in old town that is frequently used for photo ops. The sign next to it (out of picture) says "Man at work".
Next we traveled to the Bratislava castle and viewed grounds and views from there.
The gardens were beautiful, I wish the sun was shining more on the garden for better photos.
The "Blue Church". Inside was all blue as well (altar, pews, etc.)...there was a lot of blue!
On our last morning in Bratislava, we traveled to the UFO tower to check out the observation deck (of course we had to check it out). Michelle and Kaitlyn kept their feet on the ground with Kobe while Ron and Jonathan went exploring.
After a 45 second elevator ride and several short flights of stairs, we made it to the observation deck. Spectacular views!
Final photo is a panoramic picture that looks much better enlarged. We all loved Bratislava and agreed it was our favorite stop on the trip. Small enough to not feel overwhelmed by the hecticness of a large city and large enough to entertain us for several days.
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