Discovering Bratislava 🌳
Last week, we had the pleasure of visiting Bratislava, Slovakia, to meet up with some friends. We stayed for a total of five days, including a day trip to Vienna, from where we flew to Vilnius.
Bratislava wasn’t the most impressive capital we visited during our journey. The city has some beautiful buildings, but not many standout monuments. When we arrived by bus, we could see the sunset over the lush green landscapes around us. However, once in the city, we were met with many grey and somewhat dirty buildings.
After dropping off our bags at the Airbnb, we headed straight to a bar to meet all the friends we hadn’t seen since the start of our Erasmus. It was such a joy to hang out with everyone again. The next day, we planned a picnic in a park in the north of Bratislava. We were lucky with the weather and enjoyed a bright, sunny afternoon filled with food, music, games, and stories from the past two months. After this relaxing and joyful start to the afternoon, we returned to the city to walk around and do some sightseeing. Our friends took us to Bratislava Castle, where we enjoyed a stunning view.
After walking for quite a while, they had us try a Central European specialty: chimney cake. It's more like a sweet bun covered in sugar and filled with whatever you like. I went for apricot jam, while others opted for Nutella.
By then, we were already halfway through our trip, and time was flying. That evening, we went back to the bar but didn’t stay too long, as an exciting event awaited us the next day.
On April 6th, 2025, our friends Laurent and Chloë participated in a marathon and a half-marathon, respectively (which is why we had to go to bed early). They started running around 9 a.m., but due to the massive crowd, we couldn't catch them at the start. Instead, we went to strategic spots along the route to cheer them on and held up signs so they could spot us.
That evening, we met once again at the bar to celebrate Chloë and Laurent’s races. The following days were more relaxed — some people explored the city, others played padel, and a few went thrifting.
This trip was truly fabulous, and it was incredibly refreshing to reconnect with friends after months apart!