I'm the only one from my family who lives abroad. Most members of my family are in my hometown and some of them are scattered across the country. One of my aunts recently lost her husband and now she lives alone in Bardejov. It's located close to the Polish borders, about two hours drive away from the rest of the family, and as it's difficult for her to travel we decided to pay her a visit.
She was so happy that we were coming and called me a few times before our visit to check what she should make for lunch, and if we're sure that traditional meals would be enough for us 🙂
We left home very early as my mom and her dog joined us, and he can get sick in the car, so we had to have enough time for breaks if needed. However, he was brave and we didn't have to stop at all.
When we arrived, my aunt was ready with breakfast. We finished our croissants and coffee, and went for a walk in the old town. It's one of the most charming towns in Slovakia and I enjoy coming back.
She lives only a few minutes walk from the city gate. Bardejov used to have town defensive walls around its old town, and today these walls are being reconstructed.
We were welcomed by a wooden sculpture called Hands of Bardejov. This sculpture symbolizes our need for protection of historic sites. Bardejov was included in the list of World Cultural Heritage sites in 2000.
From here we will enter the old town...
There is a lot of work already done on the town defensive walls.
I used to come here with my grandparents for the annual fair each year when I was a child, and these walls were only a few stones here and there at that time. I remember the entire street full of stalls with local products and food, and many many carrousels that I couldn't use because I'm getting sick when they go so fast.
It's good to see that the renovation work is being done. It was like a completely different place to what I was used to.
It was still early in the morning and there were not so many people, but it can get crowded especially in summer. There is a popular spa area nearby and one of the most important Basilicas in the country.
Bardejov dates back to the 13th century, and the defensive walls were built only less than 100 years later.
The walls formed a circle, but part of it is still missing. Even though the fortification is not complete yet it still represents one of the best examples of medieval fortifications in Slovakia.
There are twelve towers that survived until today. We passed by a few of them during our walk.
There are high fences on the right side as we were in the middle of the residential area. I wouldn't mind to have a town house next to the walls that are more than 600 years old.
We approached The Thick Bastion that is located right behind the tower. It's part of the fortification and it is called 'thick' due to its walls that are more than 3 meters thick.
It's one of the meetings points in the city as everyone knows where to find it.
From here we walked left to approach the old town square. It was only a few meters walk up a hill.
And here we are!
The old town square also known as Radničné námestie consists of authentic houses with colourful facades.
It's a large open space and you can walk around to admire the houses standing in rows like colourful soldiers. You can find various shops, restaurants or bars on the ground floors.
There is a museum in the middle of the square, but the most important construction is The Basilica of St Giles. I will take you on a tour there next time.
We couldn't resist to put our heads on the trunk, but the dog would not have it and tried to save us every time!
It was a quiet morning with only few people around us...
My grandma would love to see how the old town changed. There was so much work done here! It's clean and organized, and colours of the houses are refreshed too.
We didn't have time to visit the museum this time, but we have visited it before. If you happen to be in Bardejov, spend some time in this museum to learn about the city and its history. It was the centre of trade and various crafts. The museum building that dates back to the 16th century was originally used as a Town Hall.
Even today, there is a fair each year with traditional crafts which is visited by thousands and thousands of people. This year, the fair will celebrate its 50th anniversary and we will come to enjoy the celebrations as well.
In summer, there will be plenty of terraces boosting with life.
One of the crafts popular in Bardejov is woodwork. This wooden sculpture is a symbol of wood crafting.
Some of the houses are richly decorated with paintings, such as the yellow one here.
Here we can see the former entrance to the town hall.
We bought some books about gardening in this bookstore 🙂
And then we took some more impressions of the old town...
We walked towards another tower called The Monastery Bastion which is now used as a storage space for a bistro which is attached to it.
It originally served as protection and as an entrance to the town walls gallery. It was reconstructed about 50 years ago.
View from the tower towards The Lutheran church of St. Peter and Paul. There are several churches in Bardejov.
The last glimpse of the tower...
We spent a couple of hours walking in the old town and it was time to go back as my aunt and my mom were ready with lunch. Such delicacies cannot be left cold!
See you next time...