Monday, March 27, 2006

Bratislava

(To the tune of the California Drinking Song)

"So we had a little party down in Blava
There was Michael, there was Srdjan, there was Charles
Well, we had a little party down in Blava
And we had to..."

What the heck is witty and rhymes with Charles??!! This song is not working. I could rhyme with "Chuck," but I don't like to use that language in public (very often) and I don't think Charles likes being called "Chuck." Ok. Gutter mind showing; there are other words that rhyme with "Chuck," like luck and puck, duck... Hmmm... anyway, how about Charlie? Rhyme: gnarly, farly (is that a word?), barley? We had a lot of drinks that come from barley????

"Well we had a little party down in Blava
And imbibed a lot of drinks that come from barley!"

Hey!

Oh, nevermind! You get the idea. You will remember these guys from The Fulbright conference in Velke Bilovice. We talked about a visit while we were still there, and I really wanted to go and see them again ( I liked them so much), so I went down to Bratislava for St. Patrick's Day weekend. FANTASTIC time.

First Joke: "We can show you around Bratislava. It'll take about 10 minutes." Hehehehe. And it was nothing but fun form first moment to last. Laughs, laughs, laughs. It was casual, comfortable, mellow, pleasant, yet interesting and full at the same time.

I have to admit that I went there to see the people, not the place (well, I like seeing new places, but...in this case it was 90% people, 10% place. Hmmmm...) yet it was nice to see some of Bratislava in the process. Between the three guys, I felt really taken care of. This is a relatively new thing for me. I quite liked it.

So, heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere's Blava:

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Presidential Palace. The president doesn't live there, but oh well. It's a lovely building.

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Hangin'
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First dinner--a yummy Indian meal. I love Indian food! FLAVOR!! Yeah! Michael from Presov came through town with his girlfriend. We got a nice group together. Michael, btw, is funny as hell! The whole gang is funny, in that way that clever, sharp people are. Niiiiice.

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UFO--the actual name of this structure built above a bridge in the middle of town. Very cool, architecturally, but alas! When we tried to go there, we found that it was closed (perhaps permanently??) due to technical problems. =(

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Bratislava Castle. So many of the towns I have seen here are built around and/or below some kind of huge castle structure. A visual reminder of the social and political hierarchy, I guess. I have been to a few since I've been living here, but I don't do VERY MUCH interior exploration. It's fine with me. I can't say I am intensely interested. I like the buildings, and I can see them very well from the outside. After the places I saw (and loved) in England (as well as what I have seen in CZ), I can say I don't need to go inside any more castles. I could see some more exteriors though.

I think I am attaching my feelings about museums to castles now. Hmmm. Maybe I need to explore these feelings a bit more later. LATER. =)

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Me and Michael at castle

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National theater. I saw this building quite a few times. =) It's on the main square-- a lovely, open, pleasant square.

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Also on the main square is this--US Embassy!! The first time it was pointed out to me, I looked at a different building--completely missing the big US flag hanging out in front of this one! I am sooooo intelligent. Hahahaha.

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Van Gogh--creative approach to dilapidation. The problem with old buildings and old cities, is that...well...they're old. And everything old is NOT charming. Sometimes, it is just...old. And old things tend to get run down if they are not well-maintained. I take pictures of the things I find beautiful or interesting, so I leave many other things out. But this building, although it is old and run down, has been made interesting because in all of the (missing) windows along a SIZEABLE wall, there are paintings (perhaps all by Van Gogh). So despite, its crumbling nature, this is a very cool building. Good idea too!

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Passageways--part of the charm of Europe, a sense of mystery, adventure, secrets...
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Me and Charles between dances. Went out dancing on our first night. Quite fun! "Looking for some Hot Stuff baby this evening...I need some Hot Stuff baby tonight..."

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A very cool cafe. Decorated in a Devil motif. OK. I saw a few places decorated in this style around Blava. Is there a fixation?
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Best thing, besides the creative decor, was the NACHOS we had--with Salsa!!! We were sooo pleased.
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Hi Michael! I'll be right there!

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Bye, boys. Thanks for a groovy time, and...uh...I'll see you next weekend!! =)

KM

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Kylowna! The Bratislava boys also had a great time showing you around, at least to all the cafes, bars, clubs, etc. And if you happen to need a rhyming name for me in the future, try "Chaz": you've got jazz, pizazz, razmatazz, snazz(y)... much better than anything rhyming with Chuck!

4:10 AM  
Blogger KAM said...

Hi Charles!

So happy to see your comment! Thanks for the helpful suggestions! Will start to work on my poetic skills...soon. =)

Hope your year is winding down well. Just got back from LA. Nice visit. Always interesting to be a tourist in one's own home town. Hope to see you in May.

Ky

7:06 PM  

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