Bratislava - a city of architectural juxtaposition.

First of all, my apologies for a big delay between posts. I've been ensconced in the three summer camp trips for the language school and neither boredom nor free time are to be found in any measure ;-)

In the time I've spent in Bratislava as a newcomer though, I have noticed a real divergence in architecture that is fascinating. Essentially I've seen three broad styles of buildings and that they occur in such close proximity and are frequently intermixed is fascinating.

The first style is the old-European architecture that I've seen before in cities like Paris, Salzburg and Barcelona. It's very elegant, beautiful and really makes you recognise the history that has happened in each place. The old town in Bratislava has a lot of this architecture and it makes a day in the city really enjoyable.

Some of the Old Town buildings

One of the oldest streets in the city near Katedrála svätého Martina (St. Martin's Cathedral)


Another major style of the city is what I would consider stylistic remnants of the communist era of the former Czechoslovakia. The style is quite imposing, heavy on the concrete and very powerfully built. A good amount of the apartment blocks here are of the Panelák style, derived from the Slovak panelový dom (panel house) and consist of large units of pre-fabricated and pre-stressed concrete panels. While they can look quite forbidding from outside, the apartments inside are (to my limited experience) nice places and according to Wikipedia are predominantly inhabited by the middle classes.

One of the theatres in the city.

Petržalka apartments and shops. An example of panelák building

Two apartment blocks of divergent styles right next to one another in the Old Town.


The final style that I've noted is one that I've been told is growing in Bratislava and shows the modernisation and development that is ongoing. There is a real growth in the more modern styles of architecture with bright colours, renovation of the panelák facades to match the interiors and the typical glass and steel construction that you find in many financial and shopping districts in the world.

The view from the language school where I am working.

Colourful panelák buildings on display in Petržalka.


So there end my brief observations on the buildings in this new city that I'm experiencing. Quite frankly I find the mix of styles exhilarating to walk through as I'm always looking twice and seeing new things as I go places. That freshness of perspective is something I've been missing for a while and I'm glad to be in a new place to get it back again.

Thankyou for reading and for anyone who knows the city more than I do, please get in touch as I'd love to hear other perspectives on this fascinating city.

Pete :-)

So why Slovakia?

So I'm asked this question a lot and it's a reasonable one.

Many people aren't entirely sure where Slovakia is, so perhaps a bit of geography is in order. The Slovak republic is one half of the former Czechoslovakia and has been an independent nation since 1993. It borders five countries: Austria to the west, the Czech Republic to the north-west, Poland to the North, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south. From the capital city of Bratislava, where I'll be working, you can get to each of four the countries within a couple of hours and it takes about eight or nine hours to make it to Ukraine in the east. Having spent the last couple of years living in America, having this kind of international freedom and variety of cultures so close to one another is really exciting to me.




I decided to make the move to a teaching career in EFL because I needed to find work that interested me, see more of the world and experience new cultures and people. I have to thank several friends in America for starting this desire in me. Courtney sparked the idea of rekindling my travelling side, Tim got me hooked up with the job in Bratislava, my best friend Emily has always been behind me and was even more so on this change in my life, Megan was really helpful with giving me ideas and everyone else I know has been nothing but supportive of me. My family were also so great to me while I was in England taking my CELTA training course for teaching.

I got the idea of Slovakia from a good friend of mine, Tim, who I met in Washington DC through a mutual hobby. His wife is Slovak and he taught at the language school in Bratislava where I'm now working. It was thanks to his contacts and recommendation that I got the position where I am now.

I've long been interested in the different cultures in Europe as it has so many countries packed in next to one another. A huge amount of world history has happened here and it's fascinating to be able to visit places where momentous events occurred and get a feel for them in person.

Already I've come to love the sound of the (very difficult to learn) language, the people here, the fascinating blend of medieval and communist-esque architecture in Bratislava, the challenge of learning a language while teaching one, and the sheer excitement and novelty of experiencing a new culture.

So that's the short story of why I am in Slovakia for at least one year :-)

More thoughts and experiences still to come.

Pete

Another reason for Slovakia is the beer and the Bryndzové Halušky