Austrian small towns: Hainburg and Bruck an der Leitha





This is an article about the small austrian village around the border with Slovakia: Hainburg, Bruck an der Leitha, Parndorf, Kitsee or Prelen Kirchen. Since I live in the capital city of Slovakia, and since Bratislava is bordered with two countries: Austria and Hungary, it is very easy to visit the cities around and close to the border in both of them. In this article we will speak about my favorite Austrian citie and villages.
The first city and one of the most visited by the people living in Bratislava is Hainburg. There is even a direct bus which goes every hour from Bratislava to Hinburg and back but the town can be accessed also via boat on the Danube fom the Devin vilage. Most of the people going there are going for shopping. However we learned also how beautiful the little town is and we enjoy walking through it or sipping quietly and peacefully a coffee in the maany and beautiful coffee places, sweets shops and ice-cream parlors.
Haiburg an der Donau or Hainburg over the Danube is a small village a few kilometers from Bratislava on the banks of the Danube river. The village is also famous for the castle build on the top of one of the many hill by the dynasty Babenbergov and the Braunsberg hill, where the vestigis of a roman-celtic settlement are still in view.

Hainburg Castle

Braunsberg hill

Every hour a bus leaves from under the Most SNP in Bratislava and leaves the tourits in Hainburg. There are two stations, the first leaves you in the center of the city and the second in the shopping center. We usually start witth the shopping center. It is not a very big one but people come there for products that are not found in Slovakia like austrian chocolates and cakes, austrian beauty products, milk and yogurts. Sometimes some of the clothing and baby products in the Kik shop are cheaper then in Bratislava .

The shopping center in Hainburg

After we finish visiting the shops we start on foot to the Hainburg city. We walk a long road full of cars and along the road we watch the beautiful rusti houses, the gardens full of flowers and the beautiful green hills along the way. From time to time we can see through the houses.

Beautiful houses along the way

Green hills

Danube

As we approach the city we can see everywhere the remains of the old city's fortification and on top of one of the hills the wonderful old castle. When we enter the city we pass through the very old and beautiful Viena gate, part of the fortication.

Old fortification

Viena gate

Old ruins

The city is old and the atmosphere is peacefull and quiet. The streets are narrow and cobblestoned. Along the long narrow streets you can see buiding no bigger then two or three floors. The housses are old fashioned and beautifully colored and decoratedd. Flowers hang from balconies and the windows.
In the center of the city there is a small square, surrounded by old buildings.

 Chapel along the way

 Cobblestoned streets

In the center of the aquare there is an impressive Catholic church, the Church of St. Filip and Jacob. It is a veryy old cream colored church with a red roof and a long beautiful bell tower. In front of the church there is a pillar dedicated to the Virgin Mary. As far as i know most of the churches in the small austrian villages has a pillar in front f the churrch and it was build in the old times in order to protect the village rom the plague.


Holly Trinitry Church and the Virgin Mary statue

Bell tower

Shops and restaurants around the Church

Around the church, in the old troubled anf fortified city there is now peace. Seniors are walking and enjoying a drink or icecream in many restaurants, bars and coffe places. There is also a famous icecream plce and some shops around. Young couples walk, women are rushing and shopping, there are mothers pushing strollers or walking with small children. We stop and enjoy a caffee and cake in the pub exactly near the church and we stay there for alnost one hour and jusst look around. If there is ia saturday sometimes we catch a wedding. The couple kiss in front of the church and the relatives make pictures. The church bells rings. The sound is sweet and flies away in the weekend calm atmosphere.

The city of Bruck an der Leitha is much bigger then Hainburg and a little far from Bratislava. The name of the city means Bridge over Leitha, the river that pases through the town. 0You need to get there via the train.  What is intereting about this city iss that it is at the border of the Lower district (bundesland) Lower Austria and Burgenland and in some of the parts the river Leitha is the border. there absolutely no ditance between Bruck an der Leitha and the next city Bruckneudorf. While walking on the street the city of Bruck an der Leitha end and Bruckneudorf begins. In some pamflets i read that Bruckneudorf is part of the main city Bruck an der Leitha however it already belongs to the other district Burgenland.

 End of Bruck an der Leitha

Beginning of Bruckneudorf

The Leitha river

From the railway station we go as fast as we can to the od city center, the most beautiful part. The streets in the city center are like in many od towns cobblestoned and the houses are old and some of them in baroque style. There no bigger building but only houses and two floor houses.

Main street in the old city center


Cobble stoned streets

Streets in the city center

Nice building in the center

For the firt time I have seen paitings on some of the wallss of the houses, some religious ones and some of other natures and some mozaics aand even basereliefs. Along the long narrow and cobble stoned streets there are shops, cafes and many candy stores. Here and there there are monuments and statues.

 Religious paintings on the buildings

Statues around the city

Drawings on the houses

What i liked very much about Bruck aan der Leitha is that there are very many flower, in small gardens, hanging from balconies and windows and from pillars in the town, in nice arrangements around the city.

 Flower arrangements

Flower arrangements

The city center leads as ussualy in many small towns to the main square where the church is. in the history of Bruck an der Leitha i read there was another chuch outside the city walls, called St. Martin, however the many attacks, wars and natural fenomenons have distroyed it and another chuch was then build in the middle of the town nd the construction was finished in 1740. The church in the main square is dedicated to the Holy Trinitry. On the wonderfull facade of the church are more statues of saints including St. Sebastian and the Holy Archangel Michael. The bell tower on the other side off the church is very tall and imposing and has a beautiful watch on it. Around the church there are coffe shop and we stopped one the famous austrian Kafee Konditorei (coffee candy shop).

Church square

Holy Trinitry Church

Church facade with the beautiful statues


Cofee shop near the Church

View of the Church with the tower bell

From there we waked and come in another beautiful large square where more official looking building wwere. this square was full of trees, flowers and beautiful gardens.

Nice city square

Near the town there is also a very beautiful park, full of green grass, flowers, wonderful old trees and small lakes. Some of the trees are so old that their trunks are huge. There narrow earthen patways along the park, between the trees and benches all over the place where you can sit and enjoy the silence. In that park you forget that you are in the city and feel as if you are in the middle of nature and somewhere far away from the civilized world, somewhere in a forest or on the top of a mounting on a shinny summer day.

Trees in the park

Narrow pathways around the park 

Green pastures

 Bench near a beautiful tree

 
Weird tree trunks


The only thing reminding you of civillization is the Castle Prugg visible sometimes between the trees, with its beautiful red wall, great towers and large windows. The castle unfortunatelly looks in ruin and in so bad condition as my beloved Rusovce castle in the Bratislava suburbian area.

Prugg Castle

Prugg Castle

The park is extremly large for such a small town. it is also full of small animals like squarells, ships and little goats. there are duck floating the small ponds and colored fish. There are large and green pastures with beautiful long sof grass and many colored wild flowers. Small bridges goes here and there over the ponds and springs. 

Nice tree in the pasture

Mamma duck with baby duckss

Beautifull wild flowers

Bridge over the water

The Kitsee village iss just ourside Bratislava on the border. The village is famous for it's great and many apricopts. If you go there in summer there is the kingdom of apricots. There is also a small shopping center there with small shops filled with clothes, shoes andd products for children.

The village of PrellenKirchen is special for uss because there is there a nice and cozy swimming pool where we like to go everytime there is very warm in Bratislava.

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