I couldn't do justice to a two week trip with one blog entry, and we spent an entire day in Bratislava, Slovakia, which we traveled to on the Danube by boat. From Wikipedia, Bratislava is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000—approximately 140% of the official figures.[5] Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia at the foot of the Little Carpathians, occupying both banks of the River Danube and the left bank of the River Morava. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital to border two sovereign states.[6]
The city's history has been influenced by people of many nations and religions, including Austrians, Bulgarians, Croats, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Jews, Romani and Slovaks.[7] It was the coronation site and legislative center and capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1563 to 1783.
Today Bratislava is the political, cultural and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak president, the parliament and the Slovak Executive. It has several universities, and many museums, theatres, galleries and other cultural and educational institutions.[9] Many of Slovakia's large businesses and financial institutions have headquarters there.
It was a long, very hot day, but such an interesting city, and we had a tour guide for the first hour. The last two hours I rested in the coolest place that I could find, first with Chinese tea and then a cold glass of white Austrian wine while we waited for the return boat!
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