Bratislava Series - Dovidenia Bratislava

There are so many happy memories from this small country with a big heart. The people that I have met have made this country so very special. They do not moan about lack of resources or lack of facilities, they get on with what they have, and they make a jolly good job too. To the Slovaks, the family is the center of their social structure, and this, together with close friends, form the basis of financial and emotional support. It is not uncommon for married sons and daughters to track hundred of kilometers to be home with their parents for the weekend. Once accepted by them, you are assured of  the warmth and care of these big-hearted people.

These are images captured during the last week I was at Bratislava.

Brass band playing at Eurovea Square August 2012

View from the balcony of Room 702, Sheraton Hotel
An oasis of calm and hospitality

View of Roznavska, from the entrance to the office building
To the left of the building is the smoker's hideout.
A lot of people smoke in Bratislava.

From home

The birds are getting to know their source of food, be it fat ball, peanuts, or (no mess) seeds. Every morning, they gather for food. Here they are, at a feeding frenzy. There had also been a grey squirrel, trying to get to the peanuts, without any success. These days, the birds are joined by pigeons, pecking at the seeds that are being dropped by the birds.

Birds feeding in the garden.
Source: MLP.

Düsseldorf series - city centre

We have not had much time to explore Düsseldorf, since I had work to clear the first weekend we stayed there. It is quite easy to get to Alstadt from Am Seestern, and once there, the Rhine promenade is within walking distance. Even on a dull, grey day, the area along the Rhine is pleasant and promising.

The promenade along the Rhine, lined with restaurants and bars

Everywhere there was a heavy police presence

We stood before this building, listening to a bell chime recording

An attractive balcony in the Alstadt

A levitation trick along Königsallee.

See how the levitation is done on You Tube: Secret of levitation in India

Düsseldorf series - everyday scenes

The office is in Willstätterstrasse, a commercial district in Düsseldorf. In the area, Vodafone the mobile operator is in the process of building its own campus. The construction noise is there, every day. The area has a good supply of business hotels that cater for the passing trade, and I stay in one of them, for the moment anyway. Every morning, I wake up to office blocks opposite, and a huge chimney stack in the distance. The view is quite depressing. 

There are a number of restaurants in the area. So far I have eaten at the local Chinese restaurant called China Town, the hotel restaurant called trevor's, and a German pub that my colleague took me to. My recent find is this tiny Japanese restaurant with 8 covers. In the evening, it is packed with Japanese and a handful of Chinese. The menu is a one page laminated card, supplemented by a handwritten note. Having eaten in Japan, the food here cannot be described as authentic Japanese, but it does help with my diet because the portions are tiny: the chicken noodle in soup comes with two tiny slices of chicken. And it is cash only. 

Düsseldorf series - Düsseldorf Airport

Düsseldorf airport on a wet day

This is my second visit to Düsseldorf, and I will be here a little while. The airport is compact, the security efficient, so it is pretty quick to get from check in to the departure gate. There is usually one passport controller checking passport at the entry to the A gates that depart to countries outside the European Union, and often he/she looks exceedingly bored with the low traffic. The price for a bottle of water pass security is astronomical: 3,50€ for natural, 2,90€ for sparkling. It isn't just demand and supply. It is rampant capitalism. It is rip off, in the full knowledge that travelers cannot bring their own water pass security. 




Inside the terminal, the marketing of the car rental firm Sixt is overwhelming. The luggage reclaim area is nearly covered in the corporate colour of this car rental company. When I first landed, I almost thought I had entered the wrong terminal. And here, this giraffe stands astride the area as travelers exit the terminal, reminding all and sundry that this firm has favorable rates. Like it or not, this is extremely clever advertising. Who would have thought that giraffes make good advertising, in an airport terminal?








I spotted this display at the departure level of the airport, with a female model sporting a big red nose. I tried to understand what the display was all about, but unfortunately I cannot read German. An opportunity lost for the firm that had taken up the space, made an impact, and failed to deliver the message.