Slovakia - the country of our dear friend Slavo Mulik

We left Budapest on Tuesday (17th) and drove through Hungary and most of Slovakia to the campsite we'd found in the High Tantra mountains. The drive was all back roads so we saw a lot of the small towns in both countries which was very interesting.

The entire time we were in Slovakia we couldn't help but think about our time with Slavo and his sweet wife Jane and their son Steven. Unfortunately, Slavo passed away a couple of years ago but we remember all our skydiving adventures we shared. He operated a drop zone in Ennis, TX and had a number of events in honor of Stefan Banic who was an early parachute designer from Slovakia. After posting some Facebook pictures Jane told us we were just 20 minutes from Slavo's home town Nalepkova where he had recently been honored by his hometown and former paratroopers. One of the disadvantages of only planning your next location a few days ahead of time is you sometimes miss something!

We spent an enjoyable evening and a cold windy night in the area. It was so windy in the morning we had trouble heating water for breakfast!  After packing up the tent for the last time we started the drive north to Krakow, Poland.  We had some amazing views in the mountains, which made up for hitting Krakow right at rush hour! After a few tense moments dodging trams, pedestrians, one way systems and narrow roads we found our way to the parking and then our apartment. John handles most of the accommodation booking on our trips, and is fabulous at finding a great place in the perfect location. We had a great apartment right in the center of Old Town. Such a treat after camping and a long drive. 

Krakow is a beautiful city, and we spent Thursday(19th) walking around and enjoying the sights as well as some great meals.  We mainly visited the Wawel castle and the Jewish Kazimierz quarter; it was heartbreaking to read the memorials to family members who were murdered during the Holocaust. 

We left Krakow on Friday 20th, and drove 465km to Bratislava, Slovakia. This time we were mostly on motorways, which is faster but does have some challenges. We missed a turn somewhere in Poland and had to go through a toll booth and take a quick U turn, which had us stuck in a traffic jam for 30 mins!  We also had to stop at a gas station in both Czech Republic (just driving through) and Slovakia to buy a vignette, which lets you drive the toll roads in those countries. Probably wouldn't have been caught for the short time we were there, but not worth the rather pricey fine!

By the time we got to Bratislava we were both worn out and running on fumes. We still managed to explore a little that evening and enjoyed the capital of Slovakia.  Saturday we drove just an hour to the Vienna airport and flew to London. We had an early morning flight Sunday so we had a hotel at Heathrow airport. In celebration of our last night we went to a local English pub and ate a massive meal washed down by a pint of local Camden Town beer!

We've been home almost a week now, it was a fabulous trip and we are left with many excellent memories and of course photos!

Click here to see the photos!