DANUBE RIVER CRUISE: BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA

After leaving Vienna, we made a brief stop in Bratislava, Slovakia. Formerly communist and now a city where they produce more than a million cars a year for many of the big auto companies, has low unemployment and a solid economy. My takeaway from our brief visit to Bratislava is that it reminded me a bit of Prague, which is not that surprising, given that they were once one country. While it is a charming small city that may aspire to be like Prague, it doesn't quite measure up. For anyone needing a geography reminder, Slovakia is a landlocked nation bordered by Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Austria, and Czechia.

Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, features an 18th-century old town that has a pedestrian-only zone. We did another castle hike, this one up a hill to the Bratislava Castle, a clever name (wink!), situated on a hill, and offers a view of the old town and the Danube.