Prague

It was a long spring without travelling, and finally some borders opened again! My first destination was Prague, at midsummer for 4 days. The train from Bratislava took 4 hours and return ticket cost about 35 euros.

I was so happy in the train, finally had the feeling of going somewhere again! I even took a video from the train window weehee I am on a train :D. I was also nervous in a way, like this was my first trip anywhere, ever. Weird how this spring has changed our lives in so many ways.

I rented a one bedroom apartment from AirBnB, excellent location with walking distance to everywhere. The weather was not the best, I knew it wouldn't be, but luckily I got some sunshine too. I was just walking around, mostly in the old town, saw the Charles Bridge and The Prague Astronomical Clock. This is exactly the best time to visit the major destinations, since it is so peaceful and not crowded at all. That is why I am going to Athens now, since I hate crowds.

First some random pics around the city

Charles Bridge, going across the river Vltava. I was told that no matter when you go there, it is always full of people. But that was before the pandemic... Now it was very nice! The construction started already 1357 and it was finished about 50 years later. It has dozens of statues, that are not original, but replicas.

Charles IV next to the bridge, King of Bohemia, and Holy Roman Emperor

Didn't go in, but just had to take a pic, I saw several absinth shops around the city actually.

The square and the astronomical clock. The clock was first installed in 1410, making it the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the oldest clock still operating. Yep, that's Wikipedia again.

Had to take some pics from a train on my way back

Prague is absolutely a place to visit, if you haven't done that yet. There were no tourist busses operating yet, so I was walking on my own the whole time, which is also nice. I really want to visit Prague again, to get more out of it. I have been there before, but very shortly (one night only on my roadtrip). It did feel a lot like Slovakia, and the languages are close, but still I could hear it is not the same language. I didn't visit Prague Castle, so that is for my next visit :).

On Saturday I will fly to Athens! That will be the topic of my next post of course :). Then I will just explore areas nearby, maybe some weekend trips, and then in September hopefully visit Finland for my dad's 90th birthday. Right now the numbers in many countries have gone up again, same in Slovakia, but still the situation here is good. I hope we won't go back to more strict restrictions but it is what it is... I wish I could travel far far away in the winter but right now it is impossible to make any exact plans. 

Spring 2020 in Bratislava

Couldn't think any better title for this post, but this will be a post about everything possible I can think of happening this spring and early summer. Everyone in the world knows what spring 2020 means, so this is not a travel post, neither is it advice how to handle pandemic situation since I clearly am not qualified for that. Slovakia has handled the situation remarkably well, only 28 so far have died of corona (the last one was weeks ago), 13 of them in the same group home, and 3 in another group home. That is the lowest death rate in Europe, except for Vatican.

When there were about 10 confirmed cases in March, basically everything got shut down; schools, malls, cinema, all the shops except grocery stores, pharmacies, banks and post offices, and taxis were not running, nor international trains and busses and borders were closed. Masks became mandatory first in public transportation and stores, then also outside. Masks were mandatory everywhere about 2 months, so I got used to wearing one, but first it was totally uncomfortable since I have a mild claustrofobia. I still get heavy nose bleed when I wear it for several hours. Mask is still mandatory in stores and other public indoor places, but many people can't be bothered any more, not even staff, or they just cover their mouth but not nose (= no mask). The numbers did go up for a few days last week, but we even had several days for 0 new cases.

When everything got closed with just a few cases, I thought they were totally nuts to do that. Now that I see the numbers in other countries, they really knew what they were doing. Or just a lucky guess, who knows, but it worked! The government and president are also showing a good example, they are never in public, in any interview, without a mask. The president is usually having a mask that matches her dress (corona chic). It is really crazy, now things are quote normal here, but the numbers in may countries, USA and Brazil especially, are still growing like mad! Why didn't they do anything? This has been know for months, about half a year, and still it just gets worse? Are they dumb? Well, yes, but still? And people are having temper tantrums and attack staff and destroy property when they are asked to wear a mask in a store? WTF?? No wonder they have tens of thousands of new cases daily.

And this is my corona chic

Borders are now open again, first they opened to Austria, Czechia and Hungary, and international busses and trains are operating again. I already spent some days in Prague in midsummer, will try to post about that trip this week also. On Saturday I am going to Greece for a holiday, 5 nights in Athens, then ferry to Santorini, and 5 nights there. I am really looking forward to that, just relaxing by the sea... sigh.

Anyway, back to the actual topic. When the first cases were confirmed, my employer told us that we can work from home. Then in couple of weeks we were told that it is recommended that people work from home (basically everybody was at home then already), and since that you can go to office if you let your manager know and you have a reason to go there. I have visited office once, when I picked up my office chair. I was using kitchen chair for 4 weeks and my lower back was just killing me, so my manager agreed that I can pick up my chair. I have been working from home for over 4 months now, and surprisingly I am enjoying it. I don't even want to go back to the office! We got a survey how we want to work in the future, since we are not going back to the same way of working, and I replied that I would like to work remotely permanently.

When things started to open up, first the terraces opened, and I went out to eat right away. And OMG that was the best meal I've had in my life! Damn it tasted good... I had sweet pea risotto, just in case you are interested in knowing that :). And the first time I was out without a mask! I felt like I'm doing something naughty... Very funny feeling. The city was still quite empty, it was weekend and beautiful weather and there was hardly anyone around.

One Saturday a colleague took me to Koliba (thank you Katka) which is in Nové Mesto and part of the Bratislava forest park. It is a lovely place to enjoy nature and do a bit of hiking. You can also take a bus there, there's nice walking paths and restaurants, and also a hotel.

Had gorgeous beet root and sheep cheese salad there, washed down with some chardonnay. What else can you ask for?

And some pics from Ruzinov too, I have nice parks nearby, some fountains and little lake also, this is where I usually go for my walk.

I also celebrated my birthday 2 weeks ago, woohoo! The Saturday before my birthday I went out with a colleague, it was very hot day, so we parked ourselves to some nice terraces to have lunch and then a couple of drinks... :)

I have noticed nice sunsets from my window, so of course had to take some pics too

Had to order some Finnish stuff, I had serious need for salmiakki! First bag was gone in 15 mins, then felt sick for a couple of hours, and then I ate some more.

Well, that's it for now, will do the post about Prague before travelling to Greece. 

Living in Bratislava

I have been in Bratislava 6 months now, so here is something about settling in here, and living here.

I am now living in my 6th country if you count Finland too. All countries are in the EU so it is easy for me to move, just register at the immigration office. It has been quite simple to find a new home; Finnish white middle aged woman, non smoker and no pets, holding a permanent job. Well, also in Finland it was quite easy for me to get an apartment for the same reasons. Settling in to a new country always takes a bit of time, because there's so many official things to do, and every country is different.

Finding a place to live

Bratislava rents are getting expensive. Lots of students here, and also lots of big international companies that hire people from other countries. Most of the people are looking for affordable small apartments. Especially when looking for a place in August and September, because that's when students are looking too. Several real estate agencies offer their services in English for expats, but those apartments are usually more expensive, and you have to pay commission too (normally one month rent). Facebook groups seem to be the best way to find a place. I contacted MANY people, most never replied, but finally I found one. Found 2 actually, and my friend went to see them for me, so that helped a lot. It is not easy trying to find something when still living in another country. Some companies offer accommodation first (1-2 weeks) and/or assistance otherwise, this company offers none. Except a little money I got in mid November. Big help when you are moving. 

Health insurance

In Slovakia you must have a health insurance, I got mine from Union (3 insurance companies you can choose from). It is not cheap actually! But it is a must, also locals must have it. Getting it was easy, and I got my health insurance card in 2 weeks. It is also European health care card, so it is really good to have when travelling in EU. 

Bank account

Opening a bank account was not so simple. I was recommended to UniCredit Bank, but they refused to open the account for me. The reason was that my ID doesn't have my address on it. No ID or passport in North or West Europe have address on them, so they demand something that doesn't exist. I had my ID and my passport, work contract and rental contract, but still no. Then I went to Tatra Banka, and they understood that I can't provide what they demand, so my papers were enough for them. But since I have Finnish ID, I had to give an address in Finland as my permanent address, so I gave them my last address there. Didn't even remember it correctly, but it doesn't matter since they will never mail anything there. No idea why it is necessary, I moved out almost 4 years ago and have zero contact to that rental studio… 

Registration to foreign police

This you have to do within 3 months of arrival, and as EU citizen I chose just the registration without the residency card. This is the only help the company offers in moving to a new country, they make the appointment, fill the papers and come to the appointment with you. You need rental and work contract, passport, health insurance card and 2 photos, and show them you have 210 euros cash. It doesn't cost anything, you just have to show the cash. Foreigners here are really not fans of foreign police… But my experience was very good. It took just maybe 15 mins and the officer was nice and friendly. Didn't speak English though, as hardly any officer in foreign police does {!!!). So you should always have a Slovak speaking person with you there. 

The best info I have received is from Facebook group Foreigners in Bratislava. I have also met a few people from there. I am trying to learn Slovak but it is slow... at work I don't really need the language since everybody speaks English, and in Bratislava so many people speak English. But hopefully I could learn the very basics you need in everyday life.

I have also moved, from city centre to Ruzinov. I found a very nice room and I have one flat mate (who by the way has studied in Finland, small world!). I moved just 2 weeks ago and I feel very comfortable here. Since last week I have been working from home, as pretty much everyone at the moment who has a chance to it. It is very quiet in the city now... like a ghost town! Slovakia, as many other countries, has closed its borders, no flights, busses or trains coming in, no tourists, only food stores, pharmacies, banks and post offices are open, taxis don't take people at all and you have to wear a mask in public transport. Very peaceful and quiet life at the moment, but for an introvert like myself this really is a dream come true! :D

So far I am staying here, but I know that at some point I will get restless again. Now I can't even travel anywhere, just waiting for this to pass so I could plan some travelling again. Nobody knows how long it will take, all we can do is wait to see what happens.