Golden Town of Kremnica, Slovakia

I’ve often experienced changeable weather, but in this part of Slovakia, I’ve experienced changeable terrain. One minute we are following a narrow, windy road through the hills, then suddenly we find ourselves on a brand new multi-lane road which narrows down again equally suddenly.  Soon after, we’re driving through a forest, the next we’re on a flat plain with high mountains in the distance. Boring it most definitely is not. Beautiful it most definitely is.

And all this was just on the one stretch from our base in Bojnice to Kremnica. Before exploring Kremnica though, the Oldies didn’t want to pass up on the chance to stand in the geographical centre of Europe, just 3 km outside the town in Kremnicke Bane. To be honest, I hadn’t expected much. Sure, what more can it be than a sign to mark the spot? But what a spot! I was glad to see that, after they had taken the obligatory photos, the Dynamic Duo felt the urge to climb the nearest hill. We were rewarded by a stunning panorama, yet again reminding us how beautiful and unspoilt the Slovakian countryside is. Ironic as it may sound, if you want to get away from it all, you can do worse than to come to the centre of Europe.

From this vantage point, the Oldies figured out that we were down the road from a skiing resort, Skalka. Literally. It is at an altitude of 1,250 m. His Lordship had to check that out too, of course. Once we got there, he predictably declared that it would be ‘fun’ to walk to the top of one of the skiing slopes. It soon became apparent that climbing skiing slopes on a hot summer’s day is most definitely not Her Ladyship’s idea of fun.

I’ll spare you the details of the whinging and moaning, but when we reached the top and surveyed the land, the breath-taking views finally shut her up. The amazing thing was that we were looking down on Banska Bystrica, one of the largest cities in Slovakia. It is only a few kilometres from Skalka as the seagull flies, yet you couldn’t imagine being in a more remote place.

We finally made it to Kremnica, an ancient mining town and home to a world rarity – a mint that has been in continuous operation since its establishment in 1328. From ducats to euros, money has been flowing out of Kremnica since medieval times! No wonder the town’s nickname is ‘golden’. From across the valley we had a great view of the old town walls, and I must say they are seriously impressive. And impervious. Apparently, Kremnica was never conquered thanks to this unique  double fortification. That has to be some kind of record especially considering that it must have been a particularly tempting target, having the largest gold production in Hungary (as it was then) in the 14^th century.

We had a pleasant stroll around the centre, enjoying its  historical features alongside the modern buzz of buskers, bars and funky eateries. Himself was very taken with the St Trinity plague column in the main square, apparently the largest in Slovakia. I gave it a very wide berth. Well, you wouldn’t want to catch anything from it, would you?

Her Ladyship fancied visiting the Museum of Kitsch, supposedly the only one of its kind in Europe. His Lordship, however, dissuaded her from that idea, arguing that Yours Truly might end up being added to the exhibits there. How dare he! This bird is pure elegance, not kitsch! I know he had an ulterior motive, though. He just wanted to visit the Coin and Medal Museum instead and, once again, he got his way.

Having visited the wonderful Money Museum in Lisbon, I don’t think even His Lordship had any great expectations of the Kremnica Coin and Medal Museum. It was soon apparent, however, that he was in numismatic heaven. Even I found it an extremely interesting collection, covering not only the history of currency from prehistoric times up to the present day, but also the fascinating history of the town itself. The museum’s cellar is hard hat territory, with a display of mining methods, tools and equipment through the ages. What a tough life those miners had! I shudder at the thought of working in those dark, dingy mine shafts, day in, day out. I can’t tell you how happy I was to come up for air afterwards!

I was even happier when we climbed to top of the tower of St. Catherine’s Church in Kremnica town castle. That was more like it! Plenty of fresh air and fantastic views of the surrounding mountains. The medieval castle itself is protected by yet another double fortification. They really weren’t taking any chances with would-be attackers here. But whatever about the defences, I’d defy anyone to try to prise me away from this wonderful vantage point.

A fascinating town with a fascinating history. It appears that in golden Kremnica all that glitters is gold.