That's hello in Hungarian! I had a whirlwind trip last weekend to Budapest, between waking up on Losfahrt day, getting badly, badly sunburnt, mysteriously getting over 30 mosquito bites on pretty much only the left side of my body, and having my sim card lock me out of access to EVERYTHING on my phone, including my train ticket home.
That said, it was an amazing trip! I looooove Budapest. It reminded me of Barcelona and of Italy. A little bit chaotic, too hot, stinking of cigarettes and sounding like great music. The type of city I will always think fondly of, but could absolutely never live in. It probably helped that the temperature was around 34 degrees Celsius, but there was this great humid, summer vacation feel to the whole weekend.
The one thing that so impressed me was how Buda and Pest both have amazing park and civic space. Despite the heat, we rarely had to go more than 10 minutes without walking across a splash pad, water fountain, or shallow pond. There are green spaces ALL over the city, even in some of the most inconspicuous spots, like beside abandoned apartment buildings. Buda is the ancient town, built into a few big hills with a castle and a fortress, and Pest is the new(er) part, built with intentional planning and looking more modern. Both are amazing and have such interesting history!
I normally would take the train to and from the city, but Eliz and I have a Hungarian friend who was visiting home, and offered us a ride in her car. With the train, you normally skip the suburb and outer-city parts, and arrive directly in the city center. So this was really the first time I'd travelled in Europe and paid attention to the surrounding (non-touristic) city. And it turns out - outer Budapest looks exactly like driving into Toronto from the QEW. Sans CN Tower. It actually made me nostalgic - what for I have no idea!
Right after checking into our hostel in Pest and meeting our cool roomies (Two Malaysians on a school break from studying medicine in Alexandria, Egypt - this came in so handy as I was really sick), we walked to the Great Synagogue at the end of our street. Its the second biggest in the world (the biggest is in New York, of course). We walked to the Danube and checked out some touristy streets in a really cool area. Hungary's first McDonalds' is there, and it's actually got a cool history. They say that the golden arches/captalism) went up before communism fell down, because the restaurant opened at the very end of soviet rule. Apparently a typical wait time was a few hours, and for months people would actually wait - just to get a taste of America. It was still so hot at 7 pm so we went to stick our feet in the Danube and found a river cruise boat with a commentary in English and German! (This is a tricky thing when Eliz and I travel, as most places offer free English tours/events/etc... and she doesn' speak English fluently, so I then need to translate abstract concepts or complex history into German, and we both end up only half understanding). It was gorgeous and weird to notice Germans while travelling, instead of Americans or Canadians as I normally do.
The next day we cheated and got on one of those hop-on/hop-off tourist buses. I hate that they are so touristy, and all the photos have the railings in them, but I was really sick and it was so hot and I just did not want to climb all of Buda's hills! Plus, the commentary was also in French, which is great for Eliz. Plus, those buses are often really good value, considering its also transportation, and great to get to know a city, especially if you aren't familiar with the culture, language, or history.
Also, we sat next to a man I swear was Gary Marshall, except he was from Flahridah, not LA, and spoke really good German when he heard us talking! (maybe Gary Marshall can do that too, I don't know).
We saw Gellert Hill and the CItadel. The citadel was thee old city fortress, then abandoned, and then used by Hitler, and then by the Soviets as a good angle to shoot at all the revolutions in Pest below, and now it's a cafe and great lookout point with a view of the city. Gellert Hill is named after Bishop and King Gellert, who tried to convert all of Hungary to Christianity, and so annoyed them, that they threw him over a waterfall in a barrel. There's a very beautiful waterfall built into the rock face of the hill to commemorate him. Gellert Hotel and Spa is probably more famous, and we stopped in there to see the gorgeous, ancient, Art Deco thermal baths.
Right across the Danube was the Central Market, it's a famous market in a gorgeous covered...ampitheatre, really. It's massive. The first floor is all food and spices and wares and the second floor is cafes and tourist-y souvenir stalls. Not saying there aren't some good finds though!
We then got on the bus and headed north to Margaret Bridge. There are 5 bridges connecting Buda and Pest and Margaret is the most northern. Before the bridges, they used to have to travel between Buda and Pest by pontoon in summer and on foot in Winter. In Fall and Spring, when the ice started to melt, people were often stranded for hours because of ice floes. Apparently, someone important at one point missed his own father's funeral in Pest, because his pontoon was stuck in ice in Buda, and so he ordered that they had bridges made by the architect who designed some of the original bridges over the Thames!
About halfway across Margaret Bridge is bisected by a smaller bridge, leading to Margaret Island, where all the locals head on a hot day. We went and found and water fountain built with a big rut around it, specifically for people to put their feet in! So cleverly designed. Every hour there is a water/music show and we heard Vivaldi, Debussey, and The Rolling Stones in time to a cool water show!
We left in time to catch our tour bus to the Opera House, Heroes Square, and Vajdahunyad Castle. The Castle is very Disney-esque, hidden away from the main city. It is so surrounded by trees and small ponds, you would have no idea you were even in a city. There was a great fair going on and so we walked through and tried some local food! There were weird open strudel type things, and everyone was walking around with these hollow cylinders of dark, sweet-looking bread wrapped in Cellophane. We asked a family what it was they were eating, and when they didn't speak English, the street performer beside us got out of character and told us in broken English where to find them, which we already knew. Seeking thanks for his sub-par help, he kissed my hand. And covered it in cool silver body paint. Which was no biggie, cause we were then on our way to a thermal bath! With weird cylindrical, sweet bread in hand!
Right across the street is the famous Szechenyi Baths, the building is all in yellow stone and you feel like a king lounging in the three outdoor thermal pools. There's a chess table built into one of the pools, so you don't have to get out of the water. And you can drink or bring pretty much anything into the pool with you. Apparently, people often read the morning paper in the baths. I swear I saw Vegard Ylvisaker swimming there too. There were a loooot of awful American (I hope) tourists having chicken fights there too, the staff had to keep telling them to shut up. I found it hard to just sit there though. After 20 minutes I just wanted to stop my fingers from disintegrating. I don't know how anyone could play a whole chess game!
The next day we got up early and managed to visit Castle Hill, the Shoes on the Danube, and parliament before I had to leave. Castle hill is home to the Castle, which is cool, and also the Fisherman's Bastion, which is cooler. Fisherman's Bastion is a very cool massive set of stairs built into the side of the hill with 12 elaborate turrets, each representing a tribe of Hungary. There's a cafe in one corner now too, and it ends at the top of the hill with the gorgeous orange, white and gold-roofed Mattyas Church. The walk down the hill towards the river is gorgeous because unlike Pest, it's all of cobblestone and winding ancient streets.
Shoes on the Danube is a permanent art installation to commemorate all those that were shot into the Danube between 1944 and 1945. It stands right in front of parliament, that was modelled after London's parliament buildings. There are actually three parliament buildings. They had a contest to design it, and decided they liked the top three winners all too much to decide, so all three were built facing each other, and each houses different ministries.
We grabbed a goulash soup lunch in the Jewish District near our hostel - lots of really cool restaurants and cafes that look from outside like they might be abandoned buildings, and inside look like hipster heaven. We had Goulash! And then my phone locked me out, so there was chaos trying to get to the train station and figure out my ticket sitch before it was too late (I was leaving by train earlier than Eliz). I had a great seat neighbor on the train though, and we chatted in German for a few hours and I learned a few new colloquialisms (Klugsheissen, zum Beispiel). Because I couldn't contact my hostparents and I was arriving after they go to bed, I wasn't sure how I was going to get from the Bahnhof to my house (it's a tall hill). Fortunately, they'd parked my car at the Bahnhof for me! Whatever I might say about the kids (and I won't say it here!), I got really lucky with my hostparents!
That said, it was an amazing trip! I looooove Budapest. It reminded me of Barcelona and of Italy. A little bit chaotic, too hot, stinking of cigarettes and sounding like great music. The type of city I will always think fondly of, but could absolutely never live in. It probably helped that the temperature was around 34 degrees Celsius, but there was this great humid, summer vacation feel to the whole weekend.
The one thing that so impressed me was how Buda and Pest both have amazing park and civic space. Despite the heat, we rarely had to go more than 10 minutes without walking across a splash pad, water fountain, or shallow pond. There are green spaces ALL over the city, even in some of the most inconspicuous spots, like beside abandoned apartment buildings. Buda is the ancient town, built into a few big hills with a castle and a fortress, and Pest is the new(er) part, built with intentional planning and looking more modern. Both are amazing and have such interesting history!
I normally would take the train to and from the city, but Eliz and I have a Hungarian friend who was visiting home, and offered us a ride in her car. With the train, you normally skip the suburb and outer-city parts, and arrive directly in the city center. So this was really the first time I'd travelled in Europe and paid attention to the surrounding (non-touristic) city. And it turns out - outer Budapest looks exactly like driving into Toronto from the QEW. Sans CN Tower. It actually made me nostalgic - what for I have no idea!
Right after checking into our hostel in Pest and meeting our cool roomies (Two Malaysians on a school break from studying medicine in Alexandria, Egypt - this came in so handy as I was really sick), we walked to the Great Synagogue at the end of our street. Its the second biggest in the world (the biggest is in New York, of course). We walked to the Danube and checked out some touristy streets in a really cool area. Hungary's first McDonalds' is there, and it's actually got a cool history. They say that the golden arches/captalism) went up before communism fell down, because the restaurant opened at the very end of soviet rule. Apparently a typical wait time was a few hours, and for months people would actually wait - just to get a taste of America. It was still so hot at 7 pm so we went to stick our feet in the Danube and found a river cruise boat with a commentary in English and German! (This is a tricky thing when Eliz and I travel, as most places offer free English tours/events/etc... and she doesn' speak English fluently, so I then need to translate abstract concepts or complex history into German, and we both end up only half understanding). It was gorgeous and weird to notice Germans while travelling, instead of Americans or Canadians as I normally do.
The next day we cheated and got on one of those hop-on/hop-off tourist buses. I hate that they are so touristy, and all the photos have the railings in them, but I was really sick and it was so hot and I just did not want to climb all of Buda's hills! Plus, the commentary was also in French, which is great for Eliz. Plus, those buses are often really good value, considering its also transportation, and great to get to know a city, especially if you aren't familiar with the culture, language, or history.
Also, we sat next to a man I swear was Gary Marshall, except he was from Flahridah, not LA, and spoke really good German when he heard us talking! (maybe Gary Marshall can do that too, I don't know).
We saw Gellert Hill and the CItadel. The citadel was thee old city fortress, then abandoned, and then used by Hitler, and then by the Soviets as a good angle to shoot at all the revolutions in Pest below, and now it's a cafe and great lookout point with a view of the city. Gellert Hill is named after Bishop and King Gellert, who tried to convert all of Hungary to Christianity, and so annoyed them, that they threw him over a waterfall in a barrel. There's a very beautiful waterfall built into the rock face of the hill to commemorate him. Gellert Hotel and Spa is probably more famous, and we stopped in there to see the gorgeous, ancient, Art Deco thermal baths.
Right across the Danube was the Central Market, it's a famous market in a gorgeous covered...ampitheatre, really. It's massive. The first floor is all food and spices and wares and the second floor is cafes and tourist-y souvenir stalls. Not saying there aren't some good finds though!
We then got on the bus and headed north to Margaret Bridge. There are 5 bridges connecting Buda and Pest and Margaret is the most northern. Before the bridges, they used to have to travel between Buda and Pest by pontoon in summer and on foot in Winter. In Fall and Spring, when the ice started to melt, people were often stranded for hours because of ice floes. Apparently, someone important at one point missed his own father's funeral in Pest, because his pontoon was stuck in ice in Buda, and so he ordered that they had bridges made by the architect who designed some of the original bridges over the Thames!
About halfway across Margaret Bridge is bisected by a smaller bridge, leading to Margaret Island, where all the locals head on a hot day. We went and found and water fountain built with a big rut around it, specifically for people to put their feet in! So cleverly designed. Every hour there is a water/music show and we heard Vivaldi, Debussey, and The Rolling Stones in time to a cool water show!
We left in time to catch our tour bus to the Opera House, Heroes Square, and Vajdahunyad Castle. The Castle is very Disney-esque, hidden away from the main city. It is so surrounded by trees and small ponds, you would have no idea you were even in a city. There was a great fair going on and so we walked through and tried some local food! There were weird open strudel type things, and everyone was walking around with these hollow cylinders of dark, sweet-looking bread wrapped in Cellophane. We asked a family what it was they were eating, and when they didn't speak English, the street performer beside us got out of character and told us in broken English where to find them, which we already knew. Seeking thanks for his sub-par help, he kissed my hand. And covered it in cool silver body paint. Which was no biggie, cause we were then on our way to a thermal bath! With weird cylindrical, sweet bread in hand!
Right across the street is the famous Szechenyi Baths, the building is all in yellow stone and you feel like a king lounging in the three outdoor thermal pools. There's a chess table built into one of the pools, so you don't have to get out of the water. And you can drink or bring pretty much anything into the pool with you. Apparently, people often read the morning paper in the baths. I swear I saw Vegard Ylvisaker swimming there too. There were a loooot of awful American (I hope) tourists having chicken fights there too, the staff had to keep telling them to shut up. I found it hard to just sit there though. After 20 minutes I just wanted to stop my fingers from disintegrating. I don't know how anyone could play a whole chess game!
The next day we got up early and managed to visit Castle Hill, the Shoes on the Danube, and parliament before I had to leave. Castle hill is home to the Castle, which is cool, and also the Fisherman's Bastion, which is cooler. Fisherman's Bastion is a very cool massive set of stairs built into the side of the hill with 12 elaborate turrets, each representing a tribe of Hungary. There's a cafe in one corner now too, and it ends at the top of the hill with the gorgeous orange, white and gold-roofed Mattyas Church. The walk down the hill towards the river is gorgeous because unlike Pest, it's all of cobblestone and winding ancient streets.
Shoes on the Danube is a permanent art installation to commemorate all those that were shot into the Danube between 1944 and 1945. It stands right in front of parliament, that was modelled after London's parliament buildings. There are actually three parliament buildings. They had a contest to design it, and decided they liked the top three winners all too much to decide, so all three were built facing each other, and each houses different ministries.
We grabbed a goulash soup lunch in the Jewish District near our hostel - lots of really cool restaurants and cafes that look from outside like they might be abandoned buildings, and inside look like hipster heaven. We had Goulash! And then my phone locked me out, so there was chaos trying to get to the train station and figure out my ticket sitch before it was too late (I was leaving by train earlier than Eliz). I had a great seat neighbor on the train though, and we chatted in German for a few hours and I learned a few new colloquialisms (Klugsheissen, zum Beispiel). Because I couldn't contact my hostparents and I was arriving after they go to bed, I wasn't sure how I was going to get from the Bahnhof to my house (it's a tall hill). Fortunately, they'd parked my car at the Bahnhof for me! Whatever I might say about the kids (and I won't say it here!), I got really lucky with my hostparents!