Saturday 2 July 2016
We drove from Hungary to Slovakia and the little town of Kosice. We crossed the border with no problem and immediately noticed the road was more pot hole patching than original road but that's all part of the experience I guess. We drove alongside a range of wheat, corn and sunflower farms which was lovely.
On the way we decided to explore a town for lunch, bad idea, we felt like were transported back in time to an old industrial era and after a quick look turned back to the highway and found a hotel that did food. It is interesting to see the differences, some subtle and some not so subtle, between Hungary and Slovakia and after a quick read of Slovakia's history it explained a lot. Further down the road we found a little hotel that served food and was trying so hard to make a grand dining room, the staff were just lovely and we had the best chicken broth, old fashioned but delicious!
We drove from Hungary to Slovakia and the little town of Kosice. We crossed the border with no problem and immediately noticed the road was more pot hole patching than original road but that's all part of the experience I guess. We drove alongside a range of wheat, corn and sunflower farms which was lovely.
We made Kosice in time for a relaxing walk around the old town, fascinating place with gorgeous old buildings and a really relaxed feel in the air, all locals just enjoying Saturday afternoon sunshine.
In the past 100 years, Kosice has been part of the Austria-Hungary empire, then part of Czechoslovakia after WW1, then part of Hungary from 1938-1945, then part of Czechoslovakia unti the Czech Republic and Slovakia peacefully split in 1993.
The Immaculata stature in the square above dates from 1709.
The Cathedral, Saint Elizabeth, is the largest in Slovakia and served as a German and Hungarian church.
Right next door is Saint Michael's Chapel which served as a Slovak church.
There were lots of fantastic cafes in front of gorgeous old buildings but very few people wandering about which was a shame for the staff all ready and waiting.
Most of the buildiings are from the 1700's, sorry folks I couldn't understand the Slovakian descriptions on the little info sheet I had and I haven't had a chance to look them up but they were great to just look at and wonder what they were all originally built for. The Austrian influence on the architecture is really strong in Kosice and lovley to see after the industrial town we passed through earlier on the day, think billowing smoke silos, concrete slab buildings blackened over time, grim looking streets....
Scuplture of the day comes from Kosice and is dated 1369, the first Coat of Arms granted to Europe.
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