A perfect day for a nap.

I had good intentions, I really did. Thanks to my new roommates who rummaged around my room bright and early, I was awake and out the door by 9:30 ready to tackle the day. I decided that I was going to take a day trip to Devin Castle, which is outside of Bratislava, and then come back and walk around Bratislava Castle which is in town but supposedly not as nice.

Then I stopped at Tesco for some breakfast. Then I got lost getting to the bus station. Then I walked up a really big hill and it was not the right hill. When I finally got to the bus station, the morning was wasted and the next bus to the castle was an hour and a half away. I suddenly didn't feel like it anymore.

I didn't want to do anything. I didn't want to go to the castles. I didn't want to be in Bratislava anymore. I didn't want to look for a restaurant so I popped into McDonald's because it was there and I didn't have to think. I ate and people-watched and contemplated a day of napping.

People watching at its best.

These are the times I wish I had a traveling partner because when you are alone, it is hard to get out of a funk. I sat there for a while, going back and forth on what to do. Finally, I imagined myself telling people at home about my travels in Bratislava and saying, yeah, I didn't see any of the castles because I didn't feel like it. It seemed lame. That thought made me go climb the hill to Bratislava Castle. It wasn't the good one, but at least it was something.

I walked around the castle grounds. I went around town. I checked out a few stores. I sat in a coffee shop for a while and wrote some fiction, my eyes drooping at first, but then I got into a nice flow. I walked back to the hostel, my mind bubbling with ideas for my story. There was no one in my room when I arrived and so I took a nap which I could only describe as delicious.

When I woke up, I was full of energy. I walked around the city one last time--it was beautiful outside for once, the rain stopped, the night air comfortably cool. People had come outside, milling about the streets. I felt incredibly happy. Funny how a little bit of sleep can make all the difference.

Bratislava Castle.



Bratislava is a city of many statues...the watcher is the most famous.



I like this this one, too. Reminds me of Mr. Monopoly.

This place ain't bad.

Bratislava at night.

When I told people about my trip and that I was planning to visit Bratislava, I always got two reactions. The first reaction, usually by experienced travelers, would be them wrinkling their noses and saying, "Don't go there. There is nothing there." The other answer, usually by Americans, would be "Where's Bratislava?"

In case you don't know, Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia, which is a country in Europe, which is one of the seven continents, planet Earth.

I had zero expectations for this place, therefore, it is absolutely amazing. Then again, things can only go up after Brno. Yeah, it's small. Yeah, there is not much to see. Yeah, it was freezing cold my first day, pouring miserable rain my second, but I like it here.

After I arrived, I walked around the charming and winding streets of Old Town in an hour, where I felt like I saw almost everything I needed to see, and then I hibernated in a restaurant and a café for most of the day because it was too cold and windy to stay outside any longer.

I also spent some time in this mega-store called Tesco, which is the Euro version of Wal-Mart but insane. It is multi-floored and inside is everything you would want to buy among many things you wouldn't. I drifted throughout the store for about an hour in complete daze, trying to take it all in. There was the grocery store where they had giant barrels of fresh bread, where old ladies wearing handkerchiefs duked it with macho blue-jeans-wearing men for the best loaves. Pushing and shoving and reaching, I never seen such a frenzy.

I walked by rows of Christmas trees (already?) and household appliances, cosmetics and nail polish, plant shops and restaurants, an internet café and toys, and rack after rack of clothes. The mass quantity of goods, the juxtaposition of some of the items (should those pills be by these baking products?) perplexed and entertained me.

I went to my hostel to find other travelers escaping from the cold, and after talking a little bit, I agreed after some coaxing to go on a walk with Rose from Austraila and this guy from Brazil.

"Come on," said the guy from Brazil. "We're in Bratislava. We can't just sit inside the whole time. You could do that in New York."

He was right, so we walked in the cold, and we wondered why we thought it would be a good idea to come here in the fall. We walked around the same streets of the old town, which confirmed that I did see everything already.

"I didn't see the castle yet," I said.

The kid from Brazil smirked. "Well, don't look at it now or you will have nothing to see tomorrow!" He was not a Bratislava fan.

The three of us couldn't stop laughing. Even though I was completely sober, I can't really remember what was so funny, but I laughed so hard, my stomach hurt. Maybe it had to do with the fact that the Brazilian kid was carrying a bottle of beer the size of a two-liter bottle of Coke.

This morning, I met a Canadian girl from Vancouver named Shannon. She is an artist who is currently working as an au pair in England and taking some time off to travel. I liked her right away (how could I not, after she gave me a pair of badly-needed gloves!) and so we decided to brave the pouring rain and see the Bratislava Castle together. Only we never made it. The rain was unbearable, we were so cold and wet that we couldn't hack it all the way there, so we hid in a restaurant and a cafe (sound familiar?) and we had nice conversation as our pants and socks (kind of) dried. We went to this Slovakian vegetarian restaurant that was kind of cafeteria style and items were crossed off the menu when they were out of them. We both had a bowl of this tomato soup with vegetable dumplings and potatoes. It was warm, so it was good.

I said good-bye to Shannon (she's off to Budapest) and holed up inside in my hostel planning my warm Croatia trip, the rain steady and hard outside. I checked Weather.com and it looks like the rain will stop for a few hours tomorrow. I hope to see the castle then.

Questionable fashion at Tesco.

Rose and the guy from Brazil with the giant beer.

Under cover with Shannon.

The Itinerary.

Me and a statue friend in Bratislava.

I am a Libra, which is the sign of the scales, which means that I often see both sides of a situation. It also means that I cannot make a decision.

On the phone last night with my mom, while I was in my dorm room in blistery middle-of-nowhere Brno, and she in unseasonably warm 80-degree New Jersey, she said that I might be spending too much time in each country. Two weeks is too long.

She might be right.

My intention for this trip was to concentrate on a few countries. I didn't want to spread myself too thin, visiting 20 countries and coming back home barely remembering any one of them. Instead, I really wanted to sink in and see what each place was really like--by visiting the big places and also finding the little gems along the way.

But after two weeks in CR, I was over the country. Aside from Brno, I enjoyed all the places I visited, some better than others. I really have a good sense for the country, which is a nice feeling to have. But maybe I am too focused. By spending so much time on the small places, maybe I am missing the bigger picture.

"You should go see more countries," my mom suggested.

After a few days in Slovakia, I was planning to conquer Hungary in the same way as Czech Republic. I am meeting Dan in Budapest in two weeks, so that means I can't venture out too far. I planned to explore the countryside until he gets here. But what if these small towns were just other versions of Brno? Will I have to spend yet another few weeks not speaking to anyone?

I flipped through my Hungary book and some of these little places sounded really cool. When will I have the chance to explore Hungary again? Plus, I already purchased a Hungary-Austria-Germany train pass, and I don't have all kinds of money floating around.

Ah, the life of a Libra.

I went to my hostel in Bratislava and met my roommate, Rose, from Australia. I swear, just talking to someone for ten minutes in English felt remarkable. She told me that she traveled the some of the small cities in Hungary herself, but she didn't recommend it because even though the places were nice, you basically saw everything in one day and you had no one to talk to because no one spoke English. I knew exactly what she meant.

A small, mischievous smile swept across my face. I was going to screw the itinerary.

I will spend a few days in Bratislava, maybe hit up a small town in Hungary and then I am heading to Croatia. I have no guide book, no maps, no background knowledge. I heard it is warm there, and I have to be back in Budapest by November 3. That is all I know. I will have to figure it all out tomorrow.