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02.09.2019 Ahoj Slovakia. Leaving Vienna in the southeast and following the Danube downriver, it took us only a couple of hours to reach Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Once again, we were happy to not physically see or feel an Austro-Slovakian border, but to just be able to freely cycle from one country into the next. We did not even have to worry about a different currency, as Slovakia is part of the Euro zone. Of course the language changed, but we have been discovering many parallels to the Czech language, which is not surprising at all, given that these countries only split up into two separate states in 1992. Yesterday we set out to explore the city and enjoyed its relaxed atmosphere, which owes to the fact that it is much smaller and less touristy than Prague and Vienna. However, more and more foreigners seem to discover this hidden gem, be it for its historical city centre, numerous traces of communist architecture or modern and innovative vibes. It was interesting to learn about both the bright and the dark sides of communism (e.g. equality, free education and healthcare, little unemployment and homelessness vs. limited personal freedoms, manipulation, confiscation of private property) and about the clever (and semi-successful) ways of some Czechoslovaks who tried to imitate Western products like Nutella and Coca-Cola and make them also accessible to people in their country.  This morning we have left Bratislava and are now cycling on to Komarno, a little town in southern Slovakia which has a Hungarian twin, Komarom, just across the Danube. #scoutbound #vienna #slovakia #bratislava #communism #donau #danube #czechrepublic #czech #austria #bohemia #warmshowers #europe #tour #balkan #scouts #dpsg #cycling #bike #velo #camping #biketouring #cyclinglife #cyclinglover #touringlife #adventure #lessborderslessvisa

A post shared by scoutbound (@scoutbound.de) on Sep 6, 2019 at 12:55am PDT