In between my love, Vienna, and my new obsession, Budapest, I got to spend a quaint couple days in the beautiful Bratislava, Slovakia. Now, I wouldn’t say if you come to Europe this is a must see city but if you are working your way around the Central European cites you should defiantly add this gem to your trek. 

Instead of my usual Top 10 I’m gonna do a Top 5 for this sweet, little city. 

Dear Bratislava,

You were fun, you were quick, your were gritty and I enjoyed my stay in your little city. See what I did there… 😜

Top 5.

1. Wild Elephants Hostel. Straight to the gritty, I guess. No words really describe my stay at the Wild Elephants, but I’ll try and do it justice. This hostel, well … it’s not for everyone. Remember that college house you partied at…it was kinda gross, a bunch of gnarly dudes lived there, the walls had odd drawings/paintings, black lights, marijuana posters, it perpetually smelled like sour beer and the carpet…ugh, the carpet. For some, this might sound like a nightmare. But remember that time I lived with 5 dudes in college, yep it was kinda like that. For me it was familiar, homey, slightly uncomfortable (in the good way) and reminiscent of a simpler time. Sigh. But enough about the aesthetics, the people really make this place awesome. They wined me – with an interesting pub crawl. They dined me – with the yummy Magician’s Bread – whatever that was?! They thrilled me – with the abandoned hospital tour. And they reminded me of home. Thanks, Wild Elephants. All the hugs and kisses. 

2. Oh, the people you will meet. But seriously, there are some interesting folks out there. I enjoyed coffee with a lovely gal from Australia, explored the city with two college girls from German, exchanged travel tools and websites with a strange Australian in a duster coat (still thinking that’s a ridiculously large item for a backpack), partied it up with the long – lost British Olsen triplet, salsa danced with my Hungarian friend who spoke zero English and let the hostel staff claim me as one of their own just for one night. In such a short time I met some wonderful friends. Friends … that I’ll probably never see again but for one day we were the best of friends.  

3. Abandoned Hosptial Tours. I always enjoy adventures that involve trespassing in creepy building, ALWAYS! It was not really a tour more of a B&E exploration. Good thing I didn’t get arrested, huh? Heck, even if I got arrested it’d be a good story. Ok, maybe not. Either way, it was all the thrills. Graffiti filled walls, 50 year old patient files, squatter’s apts, abandoned breast pumps, you know the usu… But the best part was the roof top views. As I white-knuckled the ladder to the roof (cause, eeek-heights), I was reminded of a time when I loved being thrilled, loved being nervous and scared. My soul craves adventure but my brain tends to pull me back from it. Ultimately, I know this can be a good thing but sometimes I just wanna be reckless. Reckless like Jenny Humphrey.   

4. Walkathon. I kinda like having two nights in these smaller cities. You get one night, one full day AND night and then you move on. And for me these cities end up being a bit of a walkathon. I walked over 10 miles on that full day and night. And just like Ben Lee says, “and that’s the way I like it.”  Guys, remember that song? If not, here’s a little musical snack for your ears: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AIWgvL7tLfI.   

5. History Lessons in Bratislava. Seriously, I think I missed like 546 days of history class. Whoops. Check out Bratislava on the Google and be amazed at their epic history. Like who owned them and when. Thank you, Jesus, they can finally be a free republic and give me yet anther country to check off ye olde bucket list. Ha! But, all joking aside Google it! 

Bonus: Bread Bowls. Nothing says comfort food like soup in a bread bowl. Garlic soup … in a bread bowl. And as I said before, I’m making a pretty serious effort to acquire The Type 2. YUM!

All in all, I love me some Bratislava. 

❌⭕️❌⭕️

Em