Slovakia

Welcome to the land of castles and caves! We arrived in the Slovak capital of Bratislava by train, and our hotel was only a short kilometre walk away. After a quick check-in, we wandered out for some food and supplies and then settled in for an early night. The next morning we were rested and ready for the next few days of adventure. We picked up our rental car, and headed out on a round trip tour of the country…it was a remarkable experience, that got off to a rocky start.

I’m going to admit to my embarrassment the rental car story. The agency dropped off the car, and left, only for us to realize that it was a standard. No problem, we’ve owned many standard transmission cars when we were younger; my first car was a 1972 Volkswagen Beetle, which I still miss to this day, but thats a different story. The car was parallel parked on a downward slope with cars in front and behind. The problem, I couldn’t find reverse, and with every attempt the car crept closer and closer to the vehicle in front. With panic setting in, I was ready to get out and push it back up the slope, but my wife was able to figure out that you needed to push the shift down and then into gear to engage reverse…I was relieved, humbled and proud at the same time; so much for any machismo on my part.

Once we finally got ourselves sorted, our first stop on our way north was at Bojnice Castle. This spectacular structure towers over the local town of the same name. We weren’t able to get inside because of a wedding that was going on, but the outer walls and surrounding gardens were still worth the visit. We ended our stay with a stroll through the local town and then pushed on to Tercova; a small skiing village in the mountains where we planned to stay the night. By the time we arrived late that afternoon we were tired, and in need of sustenance. We checked into our hotel and headed next door for some food. Unfortunately, it was clear from the moment we walked in that they had no intention of serving us, and we ended up leaving and heading back to our hotel. Luckily we always travel with some provisions so we had some snacks and headed out early the next day. I really have no idea why we got the brush off, but suffice to say it was disappointing.

Fortunately for us, that experience was the worst of our troubles, and everything afterward got progressively better. The next day, we headed to the Važecká Caves in the village of Važec, with a quick stop over at Orava Castle. Slovakia is known for their spectacular caves, and this one was no exception. Locally known as the great bear cave, it is named for some fossilized bones found at this location. The cave itself is really well preserved and lit, which highlights the amazing stalagmites and stalactites contained within. Its unfortunate that language was a barrier, so we missed most of the tour narrative, but its still worth the visit.

Once we finished at the caves, we headed to Levoca to spend the night. We stayed in a hotel located in the old town square, which is encircled by the original fortification wall, and is designated as a world heritage site by UNESCO. Once we checked in, we dropped our bags and headed straight for Spis Castle, one of the largest castles in central Europe, and also a world heritage site. The castle is walled with weathered, white rock that makes it stand out against the horizon perched atop a mountain. Even from a distance the castle is an imposing structure and clearly projects an air of regal authority. We had a nice surprise when we arrived at the castle and found that it was a local holiday, and admission was free, so we spent the next several hours exploring the ruins and grounds. I highly recommend this location, it’s unbelievably impressive, and the views from its walls, and watch tower are breathtaking. We ended the day with a great meal in old town and woke up the next day feeling energized. We used the morning to take in the old town square in Levoca and check out the historical fortification walls, before hitting the road for Banská Bystrica.

Banská Bystrica is a modern city, but they have done a great job of preserving the history and charm of the old town, which is where we checked into a small hotel within walking distance of the town square. We spent the day checking out shoppes and local attractions, before heading out for a lovely dinner with some of my wife’s relatives. Although language was a challenge, google translate is a wonderful thing.

Slovakia was one of the highlights of our trip. The sheer volume of castles, and historical sites was amazing, but I was really struck by the fact that Slovakia feels like a country in transition. Juxtaposed to visiting quaint villages, we drove on very modern highways, witnessed city development and saw numerous factories along the way; all of which points to a country that is coming into its own as part of the European Union. There was certainly more to see, and I hope I can go back before more of the old world charm is lost to modern day progress; but for now, we had one final leg of travel to complete. The next day we headed back Bratislava to catch our train to Vienna, followed by a rail connector to our last destination in Europe; Budapest, Hungary.