Good Bye Bratislava

Beautiful Altenberg

We have been here just a few days and we already like Altenburg. The European countryside is so beautiful that you almost fall in love with some places. We have now renamed the Stockle lady who runs the hotel we are at, “Sathe kaku”.

As we sit down for breakfast, she comes and greets us. We take this opportunity to ask her if she could make an omelet for us. I have never cooked an omelet before, but with the confidence of a celebrity chef, I request her to mix onions and tomatoes’ in the batter. I also ask that she add some chilly to the mix, but as people from outside the subcontinent go, she was rather scared of the chilly and refused to add it. In the end we are treated to a perfectly roasted golden brown omelet and a delightful breakfast.

Altenburg: Sunday Market

We now assemble for a photo in the yard where we also invite the daughter in law to pose with us. She asks that I should request her mother in law first. Oh My! Sathe Kaku is an authoritative mother in law indeed! And this Austrian daughter in law seems to be as obedient as any Indian “Bahu”.

We begin our journey and are now carving our way out of town, Milind seems to have jumped off his bicycle suddenly, looking at the sight in front of us! We are witnessing a European flea market. There are hawkers hawking almost everything under the sun on a large empty field.  Electronic devices, clothing, shoes, cosmetics, home decor, various artifacts, just name anything and it is available here. Of course, it is the “जुना बाजार” (Old Bazaar). As I stroll down the market with Chandan, I see some artifacts which look almost Indian. I am confused. And suddenly the seller asks me if I am from Kerala. I say, “We are from Mumbai.” He narrates that he is from India and has been living here in Altenburg from past 30 years. This is mind blowing. A countryman living in this small town of Austria for almost half his life. Indians no doubt are everywhere. 

Narendra and Sharvari

Making for lost time, we hurry to get back on our route. We are going to Bratislava today. The capital of Slovakia. We are excited because we would be crossing international borders on our route. The route is excellent and the weather moderately cool. We now want to reach Bratislava as early as possible, so we could do some sightseeing before the day ends.

With Altenburg behind us, we now enter lush green fields.

Picture Perfect

Everyone is tempted to click pictures in the green fields under vast blue skies. Sangita is as ever, ready to pose and Shekhar is always there to click. The duo makes most of the picturesque surroundings.

As we progress on our route, we meet people from different nations. Many of them have loaded up all their luggage and are cycling cross country. Some of the cyclists are in groups on weekend picnics. It is amazing to witness firsthand, the flourishing cycling culture in Europe.

A border less world

We are now close to the border of Austria. We simply see a small board at the border, mentioning we are now entering Slovakia. There is no check post. No one to verify our documents. It is a borderless world.

The route is great. It is amazing to see the diversity of route. We pass through the green fields, sometimes on the dikes and sometimes besides the Danube. Sachin does not trust the maps and consistently asks the other cyclists if it is the correct route. As we tell him  that he does not have to take the trouble of asking, he says, ‘this is my way of making friends. I am  getting to interact with so  many  people for another continent and it is in fact a pleasure.’ We realize, it is a great thought after all.   

Amazing Route

As we get closer to Bratislava, we see many more local cyclists. Groups of friends and family cycling together on a weekend. We have now entered the city, there are several bridges on the Danube, and we wonder, which one of them is blue. We debate the shades of blue of the different bridges. Finally, we find the blue bridge that leads us to Hotel Apollo. It is already past mid-day and we are fighting for time. We dump our bicycles at the hotel to find a bus stop for a bus that would take us to the castle. With some difficulty, we manage to get bus tickets from a machine.  As we try to absorb the persona of this young city, we are slightly disappointed. 

The confluence The city is still developing, the bus system reminiscent of the PMT (Pune Municipal Transport). A total waste of time. We change several buses to reach our destination. The castle is huge, the view is beautiful. However, we have seen gigantic castles in Vienna and hence, the Slovakian castles pale in comparison. We decide to visit Davin’s Castle next. This castle overlooks the confluence of the mighty Danube and the Morava a tributary of the Danube. This time we completely mess up our bus routes. Changing multiple buses and walking for miles to finally make it to Davin’s castle. We are relieved, but at the same time not sure if we made it to the castle in time.  Some of the group decide not to climb up the castle, but Chandan, Sachin, Sharvari, Narendra and I decide to risk it. We quickly rush to the entrance and as we climb up, we witness a spectacular view. The expanse of two rivers and the confluence of blue and grey waters is amazing. We try to absorb everything with our two eyes and capture the rest with our camera lenses. It was certainly worth the effort. This fort is very similar to the ancient forts of the Sahyadri. Tough and raw.

Good Bye Bratislava

We climb down and finally begin our journey back to the hotel. A co passenger is able to anticipate our dilemma of finding the right stop to get down. Although he cannot understand our language he helps us with the stop we are supposed to get down, our expressions surely convey our gratitude.

It is already 7.45PM by the time we get back and we are hungry. We decide to have a quick bite at the restaurant and get back to our rooms.

The next day begins with an elaborate breakfast. Delicious pancakes, fruit and an assortment of juices to fill our stomachs.

We begin our journey to Gyor and Mosonmagyaróvár crossing the same blue bridge. Bratislava is not as welcoming as other European cities. It was like wandering in a maze to me. I am not sure I’d like to come back here. I would rather spend more time exploring Altenburg. However there is something nice about this journey on two wheels. You leave the bitterness behind as you push the peddles hard and fill your mind with the joys of the trip as the wheels rotate. 

 Hence for now, Good Bye Bratislava and Good Day Gyor !