The cornerstone of the church (the Pilgrimage Church of the Virgin Mary Birth) was laid by Louis I. the Great in 1377, in response to spreading word about rumoured miracles; the church was finished in 1380, and sections of the original church are still visible today; the church is now a minor basilica. As well as being a pilgrimage site, the hills around the church host a trail of the Stations of the Cross, and there is a grotto Shrine to the Virgin Mary (resembling the cave in Lourdes, France) surrounded by thank stones, where those who have their prayer wishes granted leave an engraved stone (see photo). A local spring supplies a year-round supply of fresh water, which never freezes over, and is said to have healing powers.
This tripoint has a white marker, with the countries indicated by a letter on the relevant side: S for Slovakia, O for Austria (Osterich) and M for Hungary (Magyar). There is also a picnic table in a triangular shape with the crest of each country in the relevant position. Fortunately, as it is legal to pass the border between two Schengen countries (to which all 3 of these countries are party) at any place, we could roam around freely.
Naturally we took a range of photos as a memory.
After lunch we headed to Devin Castle, which sits high above the Danube at its confluence with the Morava, overlooking Austria, which explains why this was the site of many attempted border crossings (many unsuccessful) during the communist regime.
The castle as a fort has a history dating back to Stone Age times, and has incarnations in the Roman period, as well as the 13th century, with a palace added in the 15th century. The retreating forces of Napoleon destroyed the castle in 1809.
Unfortunately, the gates were closed when we arrived, but as it was cold and the rain was getting stronger, we decided to cut our losses and leave.
Instead, we headed to the TV Tower (which actually is a TV broadcasting tower) where there is a revolving restaurant; however, as we settled in, so did the fog, which engulfed the view when we were about 1/3 of the way around - just as we were getting to the view of the old city. However, apparently on a fine day there are views to Austria, Hungary, and even the Czech Republic.
Last stop on today's tour was the Slavin War Memorial, which is a memorial monument and military cemetery, commemorating the liberation of the city by the Russians in April 1945 from the occupying German Wehrmacht units and the remaining Slovak troops who supported the clero-fascist Tiso government. It was constructed between 1957 and 1960 in the communist realism style on the site of a field cemetery, and opened on April 3, 1960 on the 15th anniversary of the city's liberation. On top of the 39.1 metre high pylon stands an 11 metre high sculpture of a soldier with a flag. The military cemetery consists of 6 mass graves and 278 individual graves of 6,845 Soviet soldiers who fell while liberating Bratislava.
There are good views over the city and of the UFO Tower bridge and the castle.