| Bratislava - General Information |
The City
It would be hard to think of a city more perfectly enmeshed in the
heart of Europe than Bratislava. Indeed it forms a bridge between
East and West, sitting on the banks of the Danube, very close to
both Hungary and Austria. This makes it the perfect place to enjoy
Viennese café life, Hungarian goulash or excellent Czech
beer. But Bratislava is more than just a mishmash of influences
from other cultures. It has a compact, beautiful Old Town with picturesque
cobblestone streets, baroque palaces and Viennese merchant houses,
all presided over by a 15th century castle.
The gargantuan state-housing complex south of the Danube may be
a reminder of more repressive times. But Slovakia’s close
proximity to Western Europe and its low prices have attracted many
large businesses keen to tap into new markets and this investment
has created a new buzz of optimism and entrepreneurship in the capital
city.
Given its geographical position, encircled by so many larger countries,
it’s perhaps unsurprising that Slovakia – and Bratislava
itself – have had such a turbulent history. Though traces
of human habitation suggest that this stretch of the Danube has
been populated for 4000 years, the first large settlement, “Oppidum”,
was built by the Celts in the 1st century BC. They were eventually
driven out by the Romans, who ruled until the 4th century AD, when
they in turn were usurped by the Slavs. The settlement then grew
into an important citadel of the Slav’s Moravian Empire and
was called Brezalauspurc. In the 10th century, however, the Slavs
were defeat by Hungarian Magyars and it mutated into “Pressburg”
– an administrative centre of the growing Hungarian kingdom
for the next 700 years.
In the 16th century, with Turks encroaching upon Hungary from the
south, the Hungarian capital was hurriedly moved to Pressburg and
the town grew immensely in prestige and influence. It was during
this period that the grandest baroque and Renaissance architecture
sprang up in the Old Town, built by wealthy burghers, wine merchants
and Viennese aristocrats. Bratislava became one of the most prosperous
cities in Europe, with a vibrant artistic life, to which Haydn,
Mozart and Beethoven contributed.
In the 18th century the Turks were expelled from Hungary and the capital
was moved back to Budapest, with the Austro-Hungarian Empire being
established some time after. This event signalled a downturn in Pressburg’s
prestige and matters were not helped by damage inflicted on the city
by Napoleon’s army. However, industrialisation kept the city’s
economy afloat in the 19th century and this period saw a burgeoning
sense of national self awareness.
Pressburg emerged relatively unscathed from World War 1, but the
city was soon absorbed by the new state of Czechoslovakia in 1919
and given its modern name: Bratislava. The relative harmony of the
inter-war years came to an abrupt end in 1939, when Bratislava was
occupied once again, first by the Nazis, then by the Soviets. The
following decades saw the city brutally modernised and its residents
subject to the shortages, state repression and, above all, boredom
characteristic of life in Communist satellite countries.
Czechoslovakia’s ‘Velvet Revolution’ of November
1989 banished the Communists but stirred up old antagonisms between
Slovakia and the central government in Prague. It was therefore followed
by a ‘Velvet Divorce’, with the Slovak Parliament rejecting
a treaty that would have maintained a federal state.
On January 1st 1993 Bratislava once again became a national capital.
The period since then has seen the city extensively renovated, with
the Old Town streets recobbled and the grand historical façades
repainted.
Today Bratislava possesses that special vibrancy you find in many
Eastern European cities – a sense that the energy unleashed
in recent years has been made all the more intense by the decades
of repression that went before. The museums are some of the finest
in the country, the restaurants offer increasingly adventurous international
cuisine, the bars and clubs stay open until dawn and the beer is
excellent, plentiful and cheap by Western standards. Unsurprisingly
the city has become an immensely popular destination for weekend
breaks and stag parties.
The logical starting point of any visit to Bratislava is the Old
Town, north of the Danube. This dignified enclave, bordered by the
Castle Hill, SNP námestie (square) and Hviezdoslavovo námestie,
is small enough to make your way through in half a day. Here you’ll
find Michalská and Ventúrska streets, which together
make up the main thoroughfare of Bratislava. This is a lively, vibrant
avenue of busy cafés and restaurants, lined with designer
shops and beautifully restored baroque palaces. From here the city
spreads northeastward in the form of the new town (Nové Mesto)
and the bland, high rise suburbs beyond it. South across the Danube
via the striking hypermodern New Bridge (Nový most) is the
model socialist suburb of Petržalka. Home to over 100,000 citizens,
it’s a world apart from the Old Town but worth venturing into
if you want an insight into the bad old days that modern Bratislava
– with its resourceful, upbeat, fun-loving atmosphere –
has so brilliantly eclipsed.
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Eating & Drinking
Traditional Slovak food displays strong Slavic,
Hungarian, Austrian and German influences and tends to revolve around
many different kinds of soups, boiled and stewed vegetables, roast
and smoked meats, and dairy products. Traditional dishes that are
still popular include kapustnica, a hearty cabbage soup with smoked
pork sausage and mushrooms, bryndzové halušky, or sheep
cheese dumplings, bryndzové halušky (small potato dumplings
topped with sheep’s cheese and fried bacon bits) and gulášová
(a traditional goulash). All of these can still be found in Bratislava’s
restaurants, but the trendier establishments now offer good quality
international dishes alongside them. The best cafés and restaurants
are concentrated in the old town.
As for beers, Zlaty Bazant (Golden Pheasant) is the standard native
brew. It's actually made by Heineken, and is very drinkable. Corgon,
Topvar and Smadny Mnich (Thirsty Monk) are quality beers that are
often sold for less. Kelt, also produced in Slovakia, is a slightly
more refined brew and is a step up in price. Nevertheless, the famous
Czech beers – Staropramen, Pilsner Urquel, Krusovice –
are also available in Slovak pubs. A pint of local beer is relatively
cheap compared to other European Countries.
There has always been a strong wine making tradition in Slovakia.
On the sunny slopes of the Small Carpathian Mountains grapes have
been cultivated since pre-Christian times. Red wines from the southeast
lowlands have the same full bodied appeal as Hungarian brands. Sparkling
wines from the Bratislava region are also popular.
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