{"id":460,"date":"2026-08-05T10:03:37","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T10:03:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=460"},"modified":"2026-08-04T08:00:29","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T08:00:29","slug":"i-imagine-the-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=460","title":{"rendered":"I Imagine the Country"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The song has its origins in the summer of 1989 just prior to the collapse of communism. At a local festival De\u017eo Ursiny sang John Lennon\u2019s Imagine.&nbsp; This was followed by a Slovak version written by Ivan \u0160trpka. The Slovak version became \u201cPredstavujem Si Krajinu\u201d (I imagine the country).&nbsp; At the time it symbolised living in a country free of Soviet influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"PREDSTAVUJEM SI KRAJINU\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lR3qcLSlRyE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"> Predstavujem Si Krajinu &#8211; I Imagine the Country<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Slovakia is sometimes forgotten as a tourist\ndestination.&nbsp; For nearly 1000 years it\ndid not have much control over its own destiny.&nbsp;\nEven during the period of the First Slovak Republic 1939 \u2013 1945 it was a\nclient state of Nazi Germany.&nbsp; Around the\nyear 1000 it became part of the Kingdom of Hungary and today over 9% of the\npopulation state their mother tongue is Hungarian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bratislava, the capital city of Slovakia, stands on the banks of the Danube and as such borders both Hungary and Vienna.&nbsp; Bratislava markets itself as a 72 hour city as that\u2019s the average length of time tourists spend in the city.&nbsp; In those 72 hours there are plenty to keep you occupied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"Bratislava Castle, Slovakia - Peter T\u00f3th \" class=\"wp-image-461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920-1568x1045.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/bratislava-3641286_1920.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Bratislava Castle, Slovakia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Due to its geographical position and history a good starting\npoint is Bratislava castle. Not only does it house the Museum of History but\naffords tremendous views across the city.&nbsp;\nDown in the town, the Michael\u2019s Gate which is the only preserved gate of\nthe city fortification system dates back to the 14<sup>th<\/sup> century gives\nyou a great view back across the Old Town and the castle.&nbsp; The tower at the gate houses the Museum of\nArms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bratislava houses the largest war memorial in Central\nEurope. It rises over 50 metres and dominates the city skyline.&nbsp; It is the burial ground of 6845 soldiers of\nthe Soviet army who died during the liberation of Bratislava in World War II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\" St Elizabeth\u2019s Church  (The Blue Church) - Hans Hansen\" class=\"wp-image-462\" srcset=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920-1568x1045.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/hungary-2793078_1920.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"> St Elizabeth\u2019s Church  (The Blue Church)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On a religious note, don\u2019t miss out on a visit the 15<sup>th<\/sup> Century St Marin\u2019s Cathedral, the Art Nouveau style St Elizabeth\u2019s Church, also known as the blue church and cubist style synagogue built between 1923 and 1926.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You will be spoilt for choice with a wide range of restaurants, cafes and bars and for those of you with a sweet tooth, patisseries something they do so well in Central Europe.  Whilst in the city look out for the amazing sculptures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"684\" src=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"Sculpture, Bratislava - Sebastian Mies\" class=\"wp-image-463\" srcset=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920-1568x1047.jpg 1568w, https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/sculpture-1007990_1920.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u010cumil Statue, Bratislava<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The \u010cumil Statue can be found in the old town area, \u010cumil means watcher and was created the the sculptor Victor Hulik. Many tourists rub his head in the hope of gaining good luck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bratislava can easily be reached from Vienna by train, the journey time as little as 46 minutes.  Making a Vienna \/ Bratislava a very doable combined visit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The song has its origins in the summer of 1989 just prior to the collapse of communism. At a local festival De\u017eo Ursiny sang John Lennon\u2019s Imagine.&nbsp; This was followed by a Slovak version written by Ivan \u0160trpka. The Slovak version became \u201cPredstavujem Si Krajinu\u201d (I imagine the country).&nbsp; At the time it symbolised living &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=460\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;I Imagine the Country&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[344,91,343],"tags":[346,324,94,136,345],"class_list":["post-460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bratislava","category-city","category-slovakia","tag-bratislava","tag-cathedral","tag-city","tag-europe","tag-slovakia","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=460"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1544,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460\/revisions\/1544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellogs.co.uk\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}