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.

Malta

Well, it's been 5 weeks since my holiday so I have been lazy again in posting... But anyway, at Christmas I had a week off, got pretty cheap Ryanair flights to Malta so I spent a lovely week there! I wanted to stay in a central location, so I chose a hotel in Sliema, right in the middle of everything. Luckily my room was in 7th floor, and I didn't pay for the sea view so the traffic didn't bother me. That area is really busy and I think I would hate it there in high season. Usually I rent an apartment to have my own kitchen, but now I had a "traditional" hotel with breakfast.

I arrived late Wednesday evening so I just went to sleep right away... Thursday after breakfast, because the weather was so nice, I chose to take a day trip to the island of Gozo. Gozo is part of Malta and it is the second largest island in Maltese archipelago, with about 30 000 inhabitants if I remember it correctly (unlikely). Malta has about 500 000 inhabitants totally. Between Malta and Gozo is the island of Comino where only a few people live.

Bus from Sliema to the harbor takes about 1 h 15 mins and costs 1,50 €. The return ticket to Gozo costs 4,65 € and it takes about 25 mins. First some pics from the ferry and from the harbor.

I wanted to see as much of the island as possible, so I took a hop on hop off bus tour. It cost 18 € and was really worth it! I really liked Gozo, I should've stayed a couple of nights there instead of all week in Malta. Gorgeous day, about 20 degrees and pure sunshine...

My first stop was Victoria Citadel, Cittadella, inhabited since the bronze age, or even stone age, and even today a few families live there! It has a very long history with lots of attacks and reconstructions and it plays a big role in the history of Gozo.

Next Dwejra, or the Azure Window, was a 28-metre-tall natural arch, that collapsed in stormy on 8 March 2017, but the area is still gorgeous. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to explore it more, but maybe on my next visit... The road there was quite "interesting", I know a few people who would've jumped off the bus :D.

Ta' Pinu, what an amazing church! The full name is mighty; The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Blessed Virgin of Ta' Pinu (!!!). The origin is unknown.

The bus drove to a very idyllic small village of Xlendi but I didn't have time to stop there (really, stay a few days in Gozo if you go to Malta!!). Lots of small villages in Gozo (also Malta) and I so enjoyed my day there. I really could live there, honestly.

Random pics from Gozo

Ok, the next days were for exploring Malta! They have 2 different hop on hop off routes (north and south) and I did them both :D. One car rental place near my hotel had discount tickets to bus so I bought the tickets there, I think it was just 16 € and one route took about 3 hours even if you don't hop off! This holiday was all about being as basic tourist as possible, back packing was as far as possible on this trip. One day was cloudy but otherwise the weather was perfect, in some evenings it rained a bit, but then it was dark already and I was back in Sliema.

First I did the south route, and that day was a bit cloudy as you can see.

I just love these traditional small Maltese fishing boats! You can see them a lot all over the island and they are so cute :)



And then the north route, didn't do them on the same day

Since the first 3 days of my holiday I was just going around the island, left the hotel right after breakfast and it was always dark when I got back, the rest of my holiday I just stayed around Sliema and St. Julians, relaxing and enjoying. One day was really windy and the sea was a bit rough. I know I have said this many times before, but I just love the Mediterranean, especially the islands. I have been in Malta, Mallorca, Cyprus and Crete, and loved everything, and also have lived in Malaga. For me some Mediterranean Island is my happy place and can see myself living there. I hope one day I can arrange that... They do have jobs, but it's difficult to find a job outside customer support and I don't want to do that.

Here's more pics of the coast!

Last but not least... In the beginning I wrote that I didn't pay for the sea view. I just didn't see the point of it because I was not going to spend time in a hotel. And I didn't, every day I was back at the hotel when it was dark, and I left in the morning after breakfast. I didn't even notice this until the second evening. What can I say, when you don't pay for the sea view, you really do not get a sea view :D. Usually single rooms are the lousiest rooms anyway but the room itself was very nice!

Well, that was my two cents about Malta. Absolutely great holiday, exactly what I needed in the end of December, a bit of sun and sea. The temp was not super warm but around 20 degrees and some days in the sun you didn't need a jacket. Great food, lots of sea food and Italian food. Now I have a weird feeling because I have nothing booked! Some people are coming for a visit to Bratislava so I am waiting for their schedules first before I plan anything else. I definetely want to get my country 48 (47 now) while I am still 48! I have been thinking about spending July somewhere else, I could work remotely for a couple of weeks and then have a couple of weeks holiday. Mediterranean would be great but in high season prices go up, so we'll see... Otherwise nothing new, just normal every day life as usual. Maybe my next post would finally be the settling in to Bratislava, been here 4,5 months now and have started to study Slovak language (only 2 lessons so far, don't expect fluent conversation any time soon).