Budapest - Hungary
Prague Hlavni Nadrizi to Budapest Nyugati on EC275 7hrs direct.
Less than 24 hours before we arrive in Budapest we had a message from the owner of the apartment we had booked. She was sorry but there was an issue with the drainage and we were no longer able to stay there. But not to worry as apparently we had been upgraded. What a load of BS that turned out to be!! But lets leave it at that as that is my battle to deal with.
So with annoyed bees buzzing around in our heads Simon declares ‘I need a beer after all that!” Getting into the apartment was tricky as the door lock thingy was a bit of drama. Eventually after standing on one leg and praying to the gods of open doors we finally got in. Anyway back to the beer mission. We eventually find a place and sit down. Simon is not impressed and my wine tastes like the glass had not been washed out properly and tasted like fairy washing up liquid. I was half expecting to start blowing bubbles!!! I reached for my phone and realise I did not have it with me. SHIT!!! the passcode to get into our apartment building (main door) was on that. All we had was a key to the actual apartment itself. By this time I am close to tears. So far Budapest seems to have been fighting against us as even our train here was half an hour late.
So we toddle back to the apartment building and Simon keeps telling me that it will be OK and that someone will eventually come out of the building. I have kicked myself so much by now that my shins are bruised, but this seems to have sent a signal to my brain. I peer through the small glass window and notice a young lady sitting on the step inside. I knock and wave and smile, hoping its not a scary smile like the ones you see in the psycho movies!! Either way it worked and she let us in, out of fear or compassion I do not know. So with phone safely retrieved we set off on another pub hunt which was a little more succesful.
Ever hopeful that things will always seem better after a decent night sleep we awoke to a beautful sunny morning. Both of us had stopped sulking and decided to just get on with it. It is what it is and our attitude towards it will make a difference to the next few days. That is something we can control!!!
Again we bought travel cards for the public transport system. We visited many iconic places including Buda castle, Parliament house, both buildings as simply breathtaking in size and architecture.
Shoes on the Danube Bank
We paused at Shoes by the Danube which are bronze shoes, mostly mens but several ladies and childrens too, which are in memory of the Jews that we shot into the Danube.
From Wiki: The composition titled 'Shoes on the Danube Bank' gives remembrance to the 3,500 people, 800 of them Jews, who were shot into the Danube during the time of the Arrow Cross terror. The sculptor created sixty pairs of period-appropriate shoes out of iron. The shoes are attached to the stone embankment, and behind them lies a 40-meter-long, 70 cm high stone bench. At three points are cast iron signs, with the following text in Hungarian, English, and Hebrew: "To the memory of the victims shot into the Danube by Arrow Cross militiamen in 1944–1945. Erected 16 April 2005. Follow here for more.
From here we headed to the Central Market Hall where downstairs there are many many vendors selling traditional Hungarian fare and upstairs many options to try out typical Hungarian food. Both of us tried different dishes. It was not as cheap as we expected (expectations learned from websites) but very enjoyable all the same.
The following morning I convinced Simon that we needed to get up early to visit the Fishermans Bastion. Simon admittedly said he didn’t know why I insisted on getting out so early to go to this place. I said that the info on it suggests that we should …end of conversation then!
WOW, WOW, WOW! what a beautiful picturesque place it turned out to be. We spent quite sometime here soaking up the stunning views and enjoying the stillness of the area.
Budapest University of Technology
We finished our day with an evening cruise along the Danube to see Budapest lit up. Some photographs were taken but it is hard to give the sights any justice.
On our final day we headed off early (no surprise there!) to City Park which claims to be one of the oldest public parks in the world with origins as a royal hunting ground. Again, peace and tranquility reigned and we very much enjoyed the coolness of the morning too.
We can laugh now, but another thing we felt as if this beautiful city was fighting us on, was the laundrette. Having paid our money and choosing lucky number 2 washing machine our clothes were washed in 30 minutes. A far cry from the 3 hours when we were in Weymouth!!!. BUT, as soon as I opened the door, cold water started to spew out over our, just spun, clothes. It was a made dash to get them out and into a dryer.
Later this evening we take a night train to Ljubljana. We have booked a hotel at this stop off as its only for two nights.
The lakeside view of Vajdahunad Castle in City Park, not quite early enough as the sun is almost over the roof.
Great Market Hall