Bratislava

What a start it was in our tiny little propeller-driven plane. You felt as if you could reach out and touch the snowy peaks below. 

Thankfully the weather was fantastic. If it is stormy when I go home, I might take the train! Not sure about that wee plane in turbulence!

Anyway, arrived safely after fantastic flight and after a couple of bus rides hoping to arrive at the right spot, I was helped by a wonderful young Slovak student, firstly to find my flat, then to find the Gathering. He, Patrick, accompanied me to both. Marvelous, especially considering he was in the middle of his final exams.

The university of Bratislava, its newest building. It is in the heart of an incredibly dense housing area , much dating back to Communist times. Apparently it is the largest housing zone outside Russia.

At the Polyglot gathering in Bratislava 500 fanatical language learners have come together to speak different languages and attend what I hope will be fascinating talks and workshops.

We all wear badges showing the languages we apeak, so I have already tried out all but Portuguese! 

Look at the choice of common languages spoken by the Polyglots here! Some of the participants speak more than 25 languages, actually I would say that at least a third speak more than a dozen. It is absolutely inspirational and also daunting when you arrive and start sticking on your badges, surrounded by people taking dozens of stickers!I realise that I have a lot more learning to do.

I met a very nice American, Matt, with whom I chatted for ages in Spanish. I was thrilled at how well it came back to me, and then with a Dutch girl I could speak Japanese. It is great we try to avoid our own languages

But, it is exhausting, noisy and the weather very muggy. The sweat is pouring off me as I write. 

I have a very nice appartment very close to the old historical town and the bus stop for the university. Perfect. All very clean. The lift to the fourth floor is a bit scary with no light, but the lift seems to function okay! I hope.

Thursday, day two,  was even hotter, about 30 degrees. The university building was okay, but dining room was so hot and so loud. Wow, what a day I had. I do not think my brain has ever worked so hard as it did this morning. First a talk about accelerated learning by a woman with literally dozens of languages. I thought I was pretty addicted to language learning, but this woman is totally and utterly infatuated by them. Her daily routine to fit in language learning around work left me feeling exhausted just at the thought. I wonder if her brain will wear out!

Then an unforgettable two hours of basic multi language learning - 6 languages can you believe - Italian, Spanish, French, Esperanto, Russian and German. Thankfully I have knowledge of four of them, but my partner only knew two. We did about ten minutes per language, constantly darting back to review the other languages. My head felt as if someone had beaten it with a sledgehammer and yet it was all really exciting. I can't say the method of learning suited me, but it was food for thought.

Then I went to a talk in Spanish about Veganism - not well organised or presented, but good for language learning, and then I had lunch with a Japanese guy and two very fluent Japanese speakers. It was fantastic. Imagine, 8 languages in 4 hours. My brain was completely addled and yet I felt so energised and motivated to learn more! 

The thought of a 2.5 hour walking tour seemed like torture in the midday sun and oppressive heat, but it was fabulous. I am so pleased I pushed myself to go. Our guide from the Green Hat Guiding agency, Michael, was great, very knowledgeable but also very amusing. I rarely even thought about the heat except on the stairs up to the castle.

We stopped at the bottom of them to look at this sign and although Michael thought the beer option on such a day sounded more attractive, we opted for the steps to the castle

With this fantastic view of the Danube and into Hungary from the top! Actually you could also see Austria to the north too, but not in this shot. The UFO bridge , as it commonly known, is really special.

The castle is a rebuild, many decades after a fire destroyed it. Rebuilt in 1950 , it certainly was a worthwhile investment , judging by the dozens of tours visiting.

There was a welcome breeze up at the castle, so we could happily stand and listen to the lengthy, but interesting, history of Bratislava and Slovakia. 

We descended and found a haven from the sun behind these walls. It was fabulous to sit in the shade for a while and enjoy a delicious, home- made local lemonade.

Where once ' the killing zone ' was, is now the main road to Austria and Hungary, which are entered just outside the city walls. 

Of course, sadly the Jewish sector of the city's population was deported in the Second World War and most never returned. The plaques were interesting to read. This one caught my eye because of the name. I could not imagine being called Barbara Weinwurm, although it could be appropriate perhaps!

Just near the cathedral was this rather derelict building with unbelievably beautiful window paintings,

Bratislava is a perfect venue for the Polyglot conference. This old building already had the chemist sign in three languages.

And here our cheery guide telling us another of his funny stories. He has a very dry sense of humour and certainly kept us entertained.

What a pretty little town Bratislava is! I am definitely taking Saturday morning off talks, etc, to go back to the old town on my own.

There are so many quirky things to enjoy, but on a tour it is tricky to stop too much.

This man coming out of the manhole in the street is, according to Michael, the most photographed thing in Bratislava, especially for selfies, despite being of no significance. We luckily arrived at a quiet moment between groups! 

Throughout the city there are these cute little vending machines with a difference! You can get dairy products - vheese, milk, yoghourt, etc, from them!

After a hectic, but lovely day, I found the noise of the uni too much and so Christine, a very pleasant German girl, and I headed into the centre. She only drinks water but luckily was happy to sit and chat while I thoroughly enjoyed some delicious white wine. Almost as good as NZ wine, I must admit. It was wonderful to sit and enjoy the balmy evening temperatures of 25 degrees, whilst chatting and watching the world go by.

I only have to walk 5 minutes to get to my flat, the last part being through this subway. I do not usually enjoy subways, which tend to be rather seedy, smelly, dirty areas. This one is a delight!