The Beauty of the Danube (7th-10th March 2014)

Let's get started then :)

Every photo tells a story and every album is a collection of them. This is a collection of stories in the city known as the beauty of the Danube.

Bratislava, Slovakia, 1 of 16 cities that the Danube River passes through. Along with Vienna, they are the 2 closest capitals in Europe (Rome and Vatican City does not count!)

Realized that looking through photos (almost) a month after visiting the places they were taken helps you appreciate it even more. This was as "spontaneous" a trip as anyone could find. The 3 of us just decided and that was it!

Considering the fact that Slovakia has Ukraine as its neighbour, it was probably good that I didn't tell my parents exactly where it was located on the world map, just in case they might over-react.

Arriving late into the night at a very run-down Bratislava train station brought our expectations to a whole new low. Wary that we might get robbed (or some other bad thing), we hopped onto a scam-mode cab, checked in at the hostel to rest for the night... And so it began, the collection of short stories of Bratislava from 7th to 9th March 2014!

 

Obama and Putin cannot agree on the Crimean issue. Obama gestures towards his Russian counterpart, blaming him for invasion. But Putin, clearly isn't interested.

Portrayed by my friends, Jason Lee and Alan Teo.

The Hrad Bratislava sits atop an isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians, "overseeing" the rest of the city.

It's amazing how much slower the pace of life in Europe is compared to back in Singapore. As a Slovakian chats on her phone, there are no signs of stress or worries, even the statue has taken a break in the cold weather.

The Old Town Hall of Bratislava is now the oldest museum here, the Bratislava City Museum.

 

The statue was meant as a joke, and so was Jason's foot.

The old Slovak National Theatre has a modern theatre building built along the Dunabe but still retains the opera and ballet ensembles as residents.

As the cold wind blows, the Slovak flag dances along with it.

The Blue Church (Church of St. Elizabeth) is not easy to find on foot, which is why people often don't see it. Apparently, it has the most accurate clock in the city.

Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave (Comenius University in Bratislava): Most renowned as the building behind “The Bare-chested Man in Front of the Occupiers Tank” in the photo by Ladislav Bielik

Hrad Bratislava and St Martin's Cathedral lighted up by spotlights from a distance and seen from atop the "UFO" on Most SNP (Bridge of the Slovak National Uprising)

The River Danube and the night lights that surround it.

Resisting the strong winds that were threatening to blow me off the UFO to get a shot with the Hrad Bratislava in the distance

The gothic St. Martin's Cathedral, a Slovak national national cultural monument, has been affected by the modern day traffic closeby and requires restoration and preservation to maintain it.

The Most SNP (Bridge of Slovak National Uprising) along with its UFO is to date the only bridge that belongs to the World Federation of Great Towers

UFO ready for take off?

View from under the bridge with the Bratislava coat of arms

Enjoying lunch with Alan and Jason, which was yet another Slovak "stuffing". As Alan loves to say, "Worth it!"

The Franciscan Church has an adjacent chapel Chapel of Saint John the Evangelist which is considered one of the most significant works of Gothic architecture in Slovakia

Slow but still ahead of you, tram!

Posterized Hrad Bratislava bathing in the evening sun

It's like the knights are always on guard

The Bratislavský Hrad hosted the press conference during the Slovakia Summit (between George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin) in 2005. It's been 9 years, and as seen in the earlier photo, America and Russia aren't on talking terms.

On much higher ground than earlier in the day with a much clearer view of the Danube

St Elizabeth of Hungary with the Bratislava Castle as the background. She took a vow of poverty and devoted her life to caring for poor and the sick after her husband died.

From a Distance, you look like my friend, even though we are at War

A little bit of sunshine is way better than freezing yourself off on a metal seat at the bus stop

Still awaiting the arrival of Spring...

Silhouette of a portion of the ruins of Devin Castle

Trust me, one day I'll be famous!

I can Go the Distance!

Looks small from up here but that's the Maiden Tower above the confluence of Danube and Morava rivers

Amongst the ruins of the Devin Castle

 Amongst the ruins of the Devin Castle (Jason's shot)

The Velvet Divorce (Dissolution of Czechoslovakia) taking effect from 1 January 1993.

Devin Castle's ruins after being blown-up during the napoleonic wars in 1809

Much to be seen, much to be explored, much to be missed. Bratislava was most definitely better than I'd expected. There's so much more here that hasn't been seen yet but there should be another chance. Incredibly thankful to be blessed with travel companions like Alan and Jason. I thank God for you guys always watching my back!