There are a couple of things that we almost always order at restaurants when we’re traveling if we happen to find them on the menu. One of them is escargot, which not everyone enjoys, but it is certainly a favorite of ours. Occasionally they are served in their shells, but often they are served on a special baking dish specifically designed to nestle the escargot in their own little cavity. We have had them in many different locations throughout Europe where they are more popular than they are here in the United States.
Escargot at a French BistroCheese Covered Escargot
The most traditional way to have them is baked in butter with lots of garlic and herbs. As good as the actual snail is to eat, the real treat is dunking bread into each of the little holes to soak up the garlic butter. It is a little decadent, but well worth the calories. On a couple of occasions we had them where they were covered in cheese as well, which we found to be an interesting take on them.
Snails and Potato CakesGruyere Covered Snails for an Extra Cheesy Treat
Since we don’t always find them on menus, when we do it is almost a guarantee that we will order them. It isn’t something that we’ve ever cooked for ourselves, but that doesn’t mean that we wouldn’t try it in the future. For those that have never tried escargot, we would highly recommend that you don’t let the thought of eating a snail deter you from trying this delicacy.
The historic old town district in Bratislava, Slovakia is a fascinating area with wonderful medieval architecture. It is a very popular area for tourists as well as different artists selling their crafts or playing music. Like many other medieval cities where the city center was originally surrounded by walls, most of the walls have been removed to allow the city to grow, but some of the original walls remain as well as one of the original gates. St Martin’s Cathedral is also a dominant feature of the old town with its bell tower making it the tallest building.
St. Martin’s CathedralWalking the Cobblestone StreetsMichael’s GateBuilding with Part of the Original WallColorful Architecture
The wealthy citizens of the area all built their homes within the walls of Bratislava, each trying to show their prestige, which makes walking the streets of old town architecturally interesting. Michael’s Gate, or St. Michael’s Tower, is the only remaining entrance to the fortified city of the four original gates that previously existed. It is certainly one of the most recognizable features of Bratislava with its clock tower and it was the gate that future Hungarian kings would enter through while on their way to be coronated in St. Martin’s Cathedral.
Looking Up at St. Michael’s TowerWalking the Path of KingsSchone Naci StatueInside of St. Martin’s CathedralOrnate Artwork Inside of the Cathedral
Like all cities in the region, the history of Bratislava is one of occupation from a variety of different conquering armies. Much of its history was under the rule of Hungary and for several centuries it served as the location where the kings of Hungary were crowned. There are crown emblems in the cobblestone streets that denote the path that the king would follow from his coronation to the celebration of the citizens. During this period, from 1563 to 1830, the kings were coronated in St. Martin’s Cathedral making this church an important location for both Slovak citizens as well as Hungarian.
Historical Piece in St. Martin’s CathedralFigurines on the PewsInteresting Features Inside of the CathedralWalking Towards Michael’s GateCity Wall
In addition to the different buildings in Bratislava’s old town, there are also several statues and monuments that are worth seeing as well. Some of the most well known are the Watcher, which is a worker coming out of a sewer to look up women’s skirts, and the Schone Naci Statue, which is a statue of a former citizen who was extremely friendly and had a childlike demeanor. Crowds gather around these statues to take photos of themselves with them, which isn’t particularly our style.
The WatcherFamily Pews with FigurinesMore Artwork in the CathedralAnother Church in BratislavaOld Building in Old Town
We spent about three hours wandering around the streets of Bratislava’s old town and thoroughly enjoyed our time there. The buildings are quite colorful and architecturally interesting making every street unique. Although there were quite a lot of people on the streets, we found our time in Bratislava to be quite relaxing and even bought a piece of art from an artist near the main square.
Bell Tower of a Church Above the StreetsClock Tower in the Town SquarePeople Walking in One of the SquaresMonument in BratislavaRoof Inside of St. Martin’s Cathedral
One of the things that we enjoy about living in Colorado are the amazing sunsets that we get to see almost all of the time. We enjoy seeing sunsets throughout out travels as well, but the ones that we see at home are equally impressive. Just like watching the sun set over water can be a mesmerizing experience, seeing the sun as it disappears behind the mountains is a very calming experience. We also get interesting clouds during the winter months and because they are often so low in the sky, it makes for an interesting contrast. Here are just a few of our favorite sunset photographs from here in Colorado.
Birds on the Treetops Watching the Sunset Colorado SunsetSunset in AspenSunset Over Pikes PeakThe Final Glow of Dusk
