Right in the heart of Europe, Slovakia is a land of castles and mountains, occasionally punctuated by industrial sprawl. More than a quarter-century after Czechoslovakia’s break-up, Slovakia has emerged as a self-assured, independent nation. Capital city Bratislava draws visitors to its resplendent old town and tankard-clanking drinking culture. But Slovakia shines brightest for lovers of the outdoors. Walking trails in the High Tatras wend through landscapes of unearthly beauty, with mirror-still glacier lakes backed by 2000m peaks.
After taking diesel at Slovnaft (1,09 EUR), we drove to a dam and lake in eastern Slovakia – Zemplínska šírava (sometimes called the “Slovak sea”). The dam was built in 1961–1965, it covers an area of 33 km2 and has an average depth of 9,5 meters, with a maximum depth of...
Curvy badly maintained roads brought us to Tokaj Region. Historically Tokaji was a white wine from the region of Tokaj in the Kingdom of Hungary. Tokaji wine was mentioned as early as 1635 with reference to the sweet dessert aszú (botrytized) wine. Currently, The Tokaj Wine Route with the...
We spent two days in Košice – the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. Košice originated in the 9th century and was chartered in 1241. In the late Middle Ages, it was one of...
The Greek Catholic Wooden Church of St. Nicolas the Bishop (UNESCO) was built at the beginning of the 18th century, in the years 1720 to 1730. The log building consists of three parts and two towers. It is covered by a shingle roof with almost perfect geometric shapes resembles...
The Greek Catholic church of St. Nicholas is part of a unique urban unit on an elevated position in the center of the village Bodružal. The church is surrounded by the cemetery, wall, and belfry from the 19th century. It was built in 1658 and consists of three interconnected square-shaped...
We have stopped for a lunch in the historical gem of eastern Slovakia (parking 4 EUR). The town of Bardejov in the Eastern part of Slovakia (UNESCO) is enhanced by the pleasant landscape with numerous landmarks. The city lies in the calm valley of the Bardejovský brook on the south...
We made it to north-east Slovakia to Hervartov village. In historical records, the village was first mentioned in 1406. Here we found one of the most valuable sacral buildings in Slovakia – the Roman Catholic Church of St. Francis of Assisi. It was built in the late 15th century made of...
Our last today’s stop was UNESCO listed castle (entrance 8 EUR) located in the lands of Spis, the north-western region of Eastern Slovakia. The magnificent large castle is standing proudly on the hill above the plebs. It was built some 900 years ago, in the 12th century, on the site of an...
Today’s other shortstop was a formerly independent municipality in Eastern Slovakia listed in UNESCO. It was one of the centers of the ecclesiastic education in Slovakia. It consists of the Cathedral of St. Martin with two towers built between the years 1245-1275. In 1382 a Corpus Christi...
Today we visited the small historical town of Levoča listed in UNESCO. In medieval times, the town belonged to the prominent European towns. It is still almost completely surrounded by medieval walls. Levoča was not only amongst the first three royal towns in the former Hungarian Kingdom...