Bratislava

Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, turned out to be an easy one day cycle from Vienna. We love the way cities in Europe don't tend to sprawl - in Melbourne we would probably still be dragging our wheels through the outer suburbs after a day's ride.

View of Bratislava from somewhere near the border of Austria, Hungary and Slovakia (yes I was tempted to find the tripoint and leap between countries).

On arriving in Bratislava, we had an interesting and adventurous time trying to get to our campsite. We hit a motorway junction where we wanted to go north but were more or less bounded in by motorways and highways. While considering turning back and trying a different tack, we saw a local elderly man carry his bicycle across the highway then across some train tracks and proceeded to push his bike along the grass verge next to the motorway. We quickly followed suit, figuring this must just be how they get from A to B by bicycle in this car-friendly city. Filled with trust-the-local and be-a-sheep mentality, soon we are following him along the hard shoulder on the side of the motorway. The shoulder is wide so we are not close to the traffic but I have a strong sense of being somewhere I am not allowed, wheeling a bike along a motorway. The man looks so casual about it and I try to imitate his slow steady calmness while the traffic hurtles by. No one beeps - I'm sure back home an incredulous police officer would not take long to inquire what you think you are doing. Next thing, another elderly man on a bicycle rides slowly past us along the shoulder. Things feel casual here and certainly the cars don't seem to give a hoot (ha...).

Local pushing his bike on the grass next to the motorway

We both loved being in Bratislava. It feels like a place which is going through a really positive period of independence and growth, keen to put the difficult times behind it. We found the people modern and busy yet relaxed and always friendly when they realised we were foreign. There is lots of construction, repair work and general improvements going on everywhere. We also liked the bohemian feel of certain alleys and squares where we found hole-in-the-wall cafes, shops and art exhibitions.

View looking back at Bratislava as we pedal off