We have had our fair share of thrilling experiences and been to our fair share of somewhat dangerous locations over the years. Great White Shark cage diving in South Africa, a face-to-face encounter with a wild hyena in Botswana, exploring Medellin and Nairobi…all things others might see in a guide book and skip. Yet of all the experiences that may result in my demise, I believe the red-eye flight is the most dangerous/miserable.
We left Boston at 6:00pm. We landed in Dublin at 11:45pm Boston time. That math just doesn’t add up if you try to include sleep in the equation. We checked in to our flight to Bratislava, then kiddo and I slept on the airport floor for 80 minutes. I am too old to sleep on the floor, but MUCH too old for 80 minutes to count as a night’s sleep. I tried sleeping on the flight to Bratislava, too, but the man next to me woke me a few times, first to help him open the bottle of vodka he brought on board, and again when we were landing because he was so incredibly drunk that he couldn’t understand how to buckle his seatbelt.
Anyway, we got a taxi, dragged our exhausted husks up to our penthouse room, and barely said goodnight before enjoying the best 3-hour nap in the history of humankind.
This hotel is stunning. Hotel Arcadia. It’s quite old, with ancient Roman artifacts regularly turning up on the property, and architectural and decorative elements from the Renaissance, Austro-Hungarian, and Habsburg eras. Like most places we go, finding a room for 3 was tricky so we ended up at one of the nicest hotels in the city (yet reasonably priced!). No complaints! It’s comfortable, spacious, and has a cool multi-century history.
After our life-saving nap, we went out for coffee, a walk, and dinner. Bratislava calls itself the “biggest little city” and I can see why. It’s got a tiny footprint, but packs a lot into that space. And Old Town is so gorgeous. So gorgeous that I was recreating the scene from Despicable Me where Agnes grabs the stuffed unicorn and squeals “It’s so fluffy” as she struggles to contain her joy, except I swapped fluffy for adorable.
We took a walk through Old Town (so cute!!!) and then over the UFO bridge. It’s sad that 2/3 of Old Town and the Jewish quarter were destroyed in the 60s and 70s to make way for this bridge, but at least there are nice views from it.
We stopped for dinner at a place near the hotel and sampled Slovakian wine (not bad, but I would suggest the rose over the red). Although my guide book says nobody speaks English, we’ve had no trouble finding English-speakers (of course, we are in Old Town which is the main tourist center). Our server at dinner was asking where we are from and why we chose Bratislava, which makes me think American tourists are not that common (wouldn’t surprise me, since most American tourists prefer more mainstream destinations). He was friendly and spoke excellent English, so we are giving a five-star review for our first evening here.
After what I expect will be an amazing night’s sleep, we will hit all the sights tomorrow!
Vacation Days 