Day 15 - Museums & Gardens
Today will be a bit more cerebral, but still fairly relaxed. The museums on our itinerary are small and will not take a lot of time to visit. The Botanical Garden could take more of a time commitment, but is lovely and calming.
Holy Trinity Church This is another church with a rather plain façade that has behind it an extravagantly painted interior. Attendants can provide a short description of the building, and then you may admire at your leisure.
We'll take a detour to walk down Mlynská, just for the scenery, then turn back up Hrnčiarska.
Mikluš Prison & Rodošto House. The two adjoining houses at the corner of Hrnčiarska and Pri Miklušovej väznici were originally built as residences in the 14th century, then rebuilt to be the prison in the early 17th century. The house across the street from it is a memorial to a Hungarian anti-Hapsburg leader who was exiled to Turkey. A $12 ticket gives you entry to both.
Crafts Alley, Hrnčiarska street. There aren’t many left, but this used to be the place for local artisans to set up their shops. The street is still very pretty, and we should definitely take a walk down the short length of it to see what’s still there. I remember a pottery shop, a metalwork shop, and a leather shop, in particular. There are several cafés that have taken some of the places of the shops that have closed.
East Slovak Museum. Entry fee of $12 includes a visit to the wooden church nearby. In the past, only Catholic churches were allowed to be built out of stone. You can find many old wooden Lutheran or Orthodox churches like this one around the country.
After lunch, we’ll take the bus to the north end of the city to visit the Botanical Garden. Depending on the time (or the weather), we could walk; it’s 1.7 km from the museum to the garden, so 20-30 minutes. The garden includes outdoor and indoor spaces, plants from a number of different biomes, and a butterfly habitat. Entry is included in your trip.
