It’s a well worn cliché that travel broadens the mind and parents who take their children to far flung places will often labour the point that it’s not so much a holiday, as "a real education". The kids, they claim, will "get so much…Read More

It’s a well worn cliché that travel broadens the mind and parents who take their children to far flung places will often labour the point that it’s not so much a holiday, as "a real education". The kids, they claim, will "get so much out of the experience".


I pondered the educational value of travel when we found ourselves in the Metro station closest to the Hungarian parliament building, standing in line behind an American family with two children who were probably around the ages of ten to twelve years. We were waiting to buy a book of 10 Metro tickets, having learned that it wasn’t always easy to find somewhere to buy individual ones when you need them.


Mother was trying to buy tickets and father was having an apocalyptic sarcasm melt-down. We guessed mum was trying to buy the tourist travel cards which offer transport throughout the city and discounts on entrance to many of the attractions, but precisely what she was buying wasn’t particularly pertinent to the story.


Dad started out muttering under his breath. "Why does nobody speak English in this bloody country?" he mumbled. The kids rolled their eyes; mum looked worn out by dealing with him. She asked him a question and his volume stepped up a few notches. "I don’t know why you’re asking me" he hollered. "I don’t live here, I don’t work for the Metro". Mum looked shaken.


Glancing at the assistant in the booth, it was clear that whilst she might not speak English, she spoke ‘body language and tone of voice’. She knew he was being rude, she knew he was being aggressive, but ultimately she had what he wanted and was literally holding all the (travel) cards. She took the payment, handed over the cards and looked thoroughly fed up.


The family started to walk away and Perfect Pa turned back to her shouting "I want a map of the Metro". She slowly shook her head. "No map, sir" (though I thought the sir was perhaps more than he deserved". I turned to him and said that they only have maps on the walls. We’d not been offered one either. He exploded, his wife looked nervous "Bloody Wikipedia has a map" he said angrily. "What the hell is wrong with these people, this bloody country?" and off they stomped.


My husband stepped up to the counter, gave the assistant his biggest smile and showed her the empty ticket book so she’d know exactly what we wanted. She returned a superb smile saying "Thank you, thank you" and sold us the tickets, relieved to not have another foreign tourist make her feel stupid for not understanding what they wanted.


We went for coffee and talked about Perfect Pa, wondering if this was what he’d had in mind when he and his wife had planned to bring their children to Budapest. What would they remember when they looked back on their trip years later? Would it be the far from blue Danube, the fabulous zoo, the gorgeous old buildings, the cherry struedel and cheesecake? Or might their memory be that Budapest was the city where dad went into meltdown and shouted at the ticket seller? Would they grow up to shout at such people themselves, or might they learn that it’s really not so unreasonable for a fifty-something ticket seller who grew up under communism, probably was taught Russian as her second language, and now works a soulless job for minimum wage to not speak fluent American English?


Travel is indeed an education. Maybe parents need to think very careful about what their behaviour is teaching their kids.
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In Hungary, the word ‘Millennium’ has different associations than in most of the world. Instead of referring to the year 2000, when you hear it in Hungary it usually refers to 1896, the thousand year anniversary of the founding of the country. Hence rather than…Read More

In Hungary, the word ‘Millennium’ has different associations than in most of the world. Instead of referring to the year 2000, when you hear it in Hungary it usually refers to 1896, the thousand year anniversary of the founding of the country. Hence rather than something being brand new (or 13 years old), in Budapest the Millennium Underground Railway is 117 years old.


Through the country’s history the borders have been changeable. The country has been much bigger but thanks to backing the losing side in two World Wars, it’s today a tiny part of its once great size. Back in 1896, the capital city Budapest was a place of great stylish architecture and considerable wealth so the country’s millennium was a fine excuse for a massive celebration and the creation of a significant civil engineering project – The Millennium Underground Railway. More than a century later, having survived wars and Russian rule, the Millennium Underground Railway was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. From the day it opened, this indomitable little underground had kept moving with no significant periods of shut down through its long history


Today it seems like underground railways are ten a penny. Most capital cities have them, many non-capitals too. It’s hard to imagine from a distance of 117 years, quite how innovative the building of this railway was. Only only one such underground railway existed and that was in London. No continental city had such a railway so Budapest really was breaking the mould.


It took 2000 men two years – 1894 to 1896 – to build. These days we’d spend 20 years just talking about such a project, but Budapest just got on with it. To add to the challenge, they didn’t start with a green field site – instead they built it directly under the city’s most beautiful street, Andrassy Utca, Budapest’s equivalent of the Champs Elysee or the Diagonal. In one guidebook I read that the railway was built to keep the street above free from so much traffic and to help it stay beautiful.


I’m not exaggerating when I say that it runs directly under Andrassy Utca as the line is literally about 12 feet directly below the street, following the same path. They didn’t make a tunnel – instead they dug up the road, made a long straight trench, laid the tracks and then put the road back on top like the ‘roof’ of the railway. This is the Metro for people the claustrophobia sufferers who hate deep lines and need to know that in an emergency they wouldn’t be far from rescue.


When it first opened, the line was 3.7 km long and ran from Vörösmarty Square, a short stroll from the Danube river bank and ended at the Zoo. Over the years it has been extended and now measures 4.4 km, a rather walkable distance but why would you walk when there’s such a cute and cost effective alternative? Whilst most of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites are an invitation for the attraction to cash in and make lots of extra money, the Millennium Underground Railway is just part of the cheap public transport system and you can travel on it with the same tickets that work on the buses, trams and other Metro lines.


Our local stop was ‘Opera’ and we used it every day. Luckily I had been reading about the line in my guidebook so I knew to look out for the small yellow sign above the station marked with the word Foldalatti (I think there’s an umlaut on the o) and the name of the end station which identified which way the train line is running. In case you get confused, the trains go in the same direction as the cars.


We arrived at Opera station on a quiet Sunday morning and found nobody selling tickets. With a fine of 16000 HUF if you get caught travelling without a ticket, we weren’t ready to take the risk but we could see through the station to the opposite platform where there was a man in the ticket booth. We headed back up, crossed the road and passed back down into the station and bought a book of ten tickets. The book of 10 tickets costs 3000 HUF (about £8) which is a significant saving against 450 HUF per journey. We often found when we went to the stations that there were men in jackets loitering by the ticket stamping machines. Eventually we realised that if you didn’t have a ticket, they would reach into their slightly battered leather jackets and sell you a ticket.


The stations are beautiful and maintained in pristine condition. The walls are tiled with white and brown tiles and each has a panel with the name of the station on the wall. The ticket booths and parts of the walls are wood-panelled and even the metal pillars are painted and cast with decorative designs.


The trains are short which is not surprising because the stations are small. I was reminded of an over-grown model railway. Each carriage has 14 seats and strap hanging for twice that number. Stops are close together and when the train stops, recorded music plays as the doors open and then a raspberry-like horn noise blares out to tell you the doors are closing. The doors are open for only a short time so don’t hang about. The frequency of the trains is high so if you miss one, the next will arrive in about 2 minutes.


If you love vintage transport, then the Millennium Underground is almost worth a visit to Budapest in its own right. For less obsessed people who enjoy using beautiful things, it’s also a big attraction. It's cheap, frequent, safe and great fun.
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The first time I went to Budapest it was the summer of 1989, the final summer of Eastern European communism. It was a time when change was in the air, when the lines outside the only McDonalds in Hungary and the only Adidas shop went…Read More

The first time I went to Budapest it was the summer of 1989, the final summer of Eastern European communism. It was a time when change was in the air, when the lines outside the only McDonalds in Hungary and the only Adidas shop went round the block. I was Inter-Railing, arrived alone at the station and found a room in a private house in Buda, sharing that room with five Australians I’d never met before. Entrepreneurship was everywhere with people standing on every street corner selling the strangest things – cheap Baltic amber necklaces, odd embroidered table-cloths, most of them offered by dumpy middle aged women whose faces told of lives of disappointment and state control, and a glimmering hope for a brighter future.


My over-riding memory was the dreadful smell of the place. It stank so badly of cheap diesel fumes that it was painful to walk down the main streets. Beautiful buildings were caked in the black stains of pollution, once great buildings decaying under the indifference of a regime that was nearing its natural life cycle.


I had a great time. I went to the baths at the Gellert Hotel, one of the most bizarre and confusing experiences of my life. I ate coffee and giant slabs of cake in Café Hungaria, piled my plate with goulash and my wine glass with feisty ‘Bulls Blood’ red wine and jumped on and off of trams without tickets because I didn’t have the slightest idea how to buy them and the fines were so tiny that it seemed worth the risk. Perhaps I should have been more nervous but I was so baffled by trying to figure out how things were supposed to work. The language was indecipherable, the words so alien that my brain couldn’t wrap itself round them or recognise them five seconds after I’d read them.


At that time it wasn’t easy to find people who spoke English. I recall buying a meal in a fast food joint for no better reason than they had pictures on the walls and I could guess what the food was by looking at the names which were offered in German and then pointing. Despite being baffled and bemused, I really enjoyed it. I left by train and headed for Austria where little old cars from the most westerly parts of Eastern Europe were dragging themselves, heavily laden up and down the mountains as people pretended they were going on holiday then hid out and waited for change to follow.


Why did so many tourists drag themselves half way across Europe in the opposite direction when the easterners would eat their own livers to head west? There were two key reasons. It was at that point the only accessible bit of Eastern Europe, the only part on the Inter Rail scheme and the one that didn’t want visas. To those of us who’d no experience of the bleak east, it was exotic, in a grey, smelly, state controlled way. The second factor – and undeniably we didn’t only go for culture – was that it was ludicrously cheap. I’d started my Inter Rail experience in Helsinki, one of the most expensive cities in Europe and when I finally arrived in Budapest, it was the only place where I could walk into the poshest café in town, order coffee and cake and know I could not just afford it, but I could probably afford to ask for seconds.


Our visit this year was not something we planned in great detail. I had checked destinations for EasyJet from our nearest airport and Budapest had a good price and flight times. Did I think deeply about whether I really wanted to go back to Budapest? No, not really. I just booked the seats and decided to figure out what to do nearer the time. I ordered a guidebook (Dorling Kindersley, of course) and didn’t give it too much thought. A couple of days before we were due to go, I was getting cold feet. I was so tired from travelling for work, that I started to wonder if we should have just stayed in England and gone to the seaside. My only non-standard preparation was to pick up a bottle of eye-drops to prepare myself in case the pollution was still horrible.


Once we arrived, it was a couple of days before I spotted the eye drops and realised just how much cleaner the place was 24 years after my first visit. The air was clean, the cars were ‘normal’ and the traffic was far from dreadful. The city had an air of pride in its architecture. Beautiful old buildings had been renovated, gussied up, treated with a love. Admittedly once you got off the main streets and into some of the back streets, there was still plenty of evidence of the old, grey, stained buildings, of chipped and damaged facades and buildings in need of a lot of TLC, but the centre of the city was looking gorgeous.


I considered a return to the Gellert Baths, read lots of reviews and concluded that it was no clearer what to do and how to do it a quarter of a century later but it also no longer cost a few pennies to go. Since there were just the two of us, I feared I’d be bumbling around in total confusion, wear clothes where I shouldn’t or not where I should, and generally make a total twit of myself. I also have skin that’s not suited to the whole ‘sauna - plunge pool – lots of sweat’ regime and I’d rather eat my own eyeballs than get a massage. To all who told me I MUST go to the baths, I can only say it was my holiday and I don’t do anyone else’s ‘must’ unless I want to.


Memories of food and drink had lingered a long time. I didn’t hit the coffee and cake places but not because I couldn’t afford them. Six months of WeightWatchers and I wasn’t about to throw it all down the drain. Beer was fabulously cheap – two large beers costing less than £3 in many of the bars and pavement cafes. Food was significantly cheaper than in most places and certainly cheaper than any European capital city that springs to mind. We found extraordinary bargains and ate really well.


There was no need to share with five Australians in a local woman’s spare room. Instead we stayed in a beautiful small hotel close to the Opera on a street that runs parallel to Andrassy, Budapest’s Champs Elysee. At around £80 per night including breakfast, it was a fantastic bargain.


Did I try to avoid paying for trams? No, this time I was a good girl. I’d have been good last time too if I’d had a clue how to buy the tickets. This time we picked up packs of 10 transport tickets, clicking one for each of us each time we hopped on the Metro or the tram. At 300 HUF a go (about 80 pence) we were happy to pay.


Today there are many more McDonalds than in 1989 and Adidas is no longer the trendiest brand in town. The shops nearest to our hotel were Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Dolce and Gabbana. Times really had changed.


Of course it’s not all perfection. Things are still great value but much more expensive than before but that’s entirely to be expected. Homelessness was not something I saw back in 1989 but its evidence was everywhere this year. Homeless people were setting up their sleeping bags in doorways early in the evening and there were clearly many with drink and drugs problems. I’m not saying that nobody drank or took drugs in the old days – just that you didn’t see the evidence on the streets.


The language remains as baffling as ever although there are more people around who can speak English these days and with so many tourists around, they won’t be surprised to be approached by baffled looking foreigners. Don’t assume that you will always find English speakers though. We watched the father of an American family make a right fool of himself by getting angry at a Metro ticket seller because she couldn’t speak English. I would advise anyone who is buying a guide book to look for one that has the names of attractions in both English and Hungarian. There’s not much point knowing you want to see the Museum of Applied Arts if you’ve got no idea what it’s called in Hungarian.


Despite my reservations about returning, we had a fabulous holiday, found plenty to do with everything in a relatively small area which makes walking a viable option and public transport a cheap alternative. Locals were friendly and helpful and aside from the odd moments of confusion, everything went really smoothly.
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We didn't plan to do too much on our first day in Budapest. I had in mind to take things slowly, settle in at the hotel, maybe stroll out for beer and some dinner, read the guidebook and half-heartedly think about what to do the…Read More

We didn't plan to do too much on our first day in Budapest. I had in mind to take things slowly, settle in at the hotel, maybe stroll out for beer and some dinner, read the guidebook and half-heartedly think about what to do the next few days. I'd been really lazy about planning our trip but on the way to the hotel we'd passed a fabulous looking building which prompted me to try to find out what it was. I found it in the guidebook – it was the Museum of Applied Arts – and I went to check out the details online. That's when I realised that we had turned up on a very special day, or rather a very special night.


June 22nd 2013 was the 'Night of Museums', an annual event when hundreds of museums in Budapest and all across Hungary keep their doors open until 2.30 in the morning to mark mid-summer and the longest day. Museum goers can go to as many museums as their feet and energy can cope with, all for a single fixed price. This was one of those times when you just know that no matter how much you'd rather have a beer and a nap, if fate has put you in Budapest on the 'Night of Museums', you'd better get your sorry butt in gear and go see some museums. Despite having got up early for our flight, and more importantly despite the temperature in the high 30s, I was determined to take the 'Night of Museums' and shake it by the jugular.


This year was the 11th time that Night of Museums has run in Budapest and the 9th time it's been done throughout Hungary. Over 300 museums take part nationwide with the largest representation in Budapest where more than a hundred museums are in the scheme.


I sent my husband to reception to quiz the receptionist on where we could buy the armbands that are needed to access the museums. He came back with a rough indication of where to go and the name of the Metro stop for the first of our chosen museums. At around five o'clock we set off, walking to Deak Ter, the nearest Metro station on the line to the Museum of Applied Art. Hubby wasn't too clear about precisely where he was going to find the tickets so we bumbled around for absolutely ages until some guys who were trying to sell Hop On Hop Off bus tickets confirmed that we ought to be able to get the tickets inside the Metro station. We headed down, spotted the logo of the Night of Museums at the ticket desk and lined up to get our armbands. This was our first introduction to the confusion of trying to work out how things work in Budapest.


The armbands cost 1500 HUF (around £4.50) per person. For children it's a mere 600 HUF but I wonder how many youngsters will really want to get dragged around a load of museums late at night. The same ticket seller sold us two Metro tickets, telling us that we needed only the short 3-stop tickets which cost just 300 HUF. He also gave us a pamphlet about the museum bus services which was entirely in Hungarian. I tried really hard but I could make absolutely no sense of it. After we got back to the UK and I read the website details again, I realised that the 'museum bus service' which was included in the armband price seemed to actually mean that we could use the regular buses. What we couldn't figure out was how to find them so in the end we walked everywhere.


The night kicks off at 6 pm but we rolled up to the Museum of Applied Arts about half an hour earlier and were allowed in. To celebrate the special night there were food and drink stalls in the lobby and a stage had been set up in the atrium where a group of very serious skinny women did a rather odd little fashion show with what looked like plastic bags. I'm not sure if all of the museum was on show or just a part of it but we spent about an hour there before buying some delicious food from one of the stalls for our dinner. We then hit the road, maps in hand, and headed to our next museum, the Hungarian National Museum, about 10 minutes walk away. We stopped for a beer in a pavement cafe along the way to rest our feet and build our strength for the challenges to come.


At this second museum a programme of special events had been laid on in the open-air courtyard inside the building. There were various talks – in Hungarian of course – and we briefly stopped to watch a troupe of rather strange belly dancers. Our third museum choice was the so-called 'House of Terror' which was not far from our hotel but a very long walk from the second museum. Maps in hands we wove our way through the back streets of the city, sweltering in the shocking summer heat.


By the time we'd reached the House of Terror it was heaving with visitors. I guess that being on Andrassy Street, the 'Champs Elysee of Budapest' it was more attractive to those who didn't want to go too far for their museum entertainment. It was quite an ordeal to get round with so many people and such hot and humid conditions.


We were exhausted after the three museums and the long walk so we called it a night at around 10.30 pm and headed home to the hotel. If the weather had been cooler and if we'd had a clue how to use the bus service, I think we might well have managed a couple more museums before we threw in the towel but the heat was exhausting and there's no point burning out on day one and being too tired to enjoy the rest of your holiday.


The museums we'd visited would have cost us around 5000 HUF if visited individually so our 1500 HUF armbands were a bit of a bargain although perhaps it would have been more pleasant to visit under quieter conditions. If you are thinking about visiting Budapest in June, it would be well worth checking ahead to see if you can take advantage of the Night of Museums.   Close

For many years the airports of Eastern Europe had a really bad reputation for taxi crime. I'm not suggesting that every furtive bloke with a moustache and a leather jacket who sidled up to new arrivals, whispering "You need taxi?" between clenched teeth was going…Read More

For many years the airports of Eastern Europe had a really bad reputation for taxi crime. I'm not suggesting that every furtive bloke with a moustache and a leather jacket who sidled up to new arrivals, whispering "You need taxi?" between clenched teeth was going to drive you down a dark alley, bang you over the head and steel your luggage, but it's very likely that some 'creative' routing would have been the order of the day. Even now, when you arrive at Budapest's airport, there are large posters telling you not to do business with the 'tash and jacket' brigade, to use only the authorised taxi rank outside the building or the airport minibus shuttle.


The average first timer in any new city is at their most vulnerable as they step through the arrivals door and into the terminal. Thanks to Hungary not being in the Euro, our first task was to find money and our second to find transport, and whilst I stood in the line for the ATM, I spotted the airport shuttle counter and sent my husband to find out how it worked. He returned to tell me it would cost 4900 HUF (about £14) and take 30-40 minutes. I wasn't sure if this reflected a really long distance or a very slow vehicle but when I returned with him to the counter, the assistant said that a taxi would be around 7000 HUF and the minibus would leave in about 15 minutes. We booked two places, paid in our newly changed cash and took seats nearby to wait for the driver.


When the driver arrived, he collected our paperwork, loaded our bags and set off for the city. We passed a railway station a few minutes from the terminal and I'd read previously that this was where you could get a cheap train ticket into the city. If I'd been really intent on saving money, I guess I'd have figured it out, but I'd not done my homework on where the train station was in relation to our hotel.


We took a large minibus with a total capacity of about 16 people. The vehicle was in good condition and was comfortable. A group of people we'd seen on our flight – including one really gobby woman who my husband said "Must be a teacher, just listen to how she's ordering everyone around" were on the same bus with us and were loud and deeply annoying. If you step off an EasyJet flight ready to commit violent acts against annoying people, I recommend to work out how to get the train or to pay for a taxi.


The journey was smooth and gave us a good first glimpse of the city as well as helping us to spot a few places we wanted to visit as we passed them in the minibus. Fortunately we were the first drop-off from the minibus and our total transfer time, door to door, was only a little over half an hour. Obviously individual transfer times will differ depending on the destination, the traffic and whether you are the first or last to be dropped.


If you want to pre-book your transfer, you can do so on at www.airportshuttle.hu Checking the price online for our transfer, this should have cost 4311 HUF, a couple of pounds less than we paid when booking at the airport. Had we realised how good the service would be, we really should have ordered return journeys as there are substantial savings available if you pay for both journeys at the same time. For example the online price for our return would have been 7911 HUF.


For our return to the airport I booked online, receiving email confirmation within a few seconds of completing the booking. Since I had no access to a printer, I emailed back to ask if I needed to have paperwork for the driver. I was politely informed that it wouldn't be necessary, but I should make a note of the reservation code to show. Our confirmation gave us a pick up time of 18.25.

Our driver turned up on the dot of 18.25, loaded our bags, then drove us to another hotel to pick up another couple and then took us to the airport. It took about 35 minutes in total, including the pick up of the other passengers. Once we got to the airport the driver took us inside so he could confirm with the desk that we'd prepaid since we didn't have a voucher. For those who don't like to pay online, I strongly suspect that most hotel reception desks can pre-book a pick up for you but you'll then have to pay your hotel up-front in cash (and I would expect it to cost a little more as there's probably some commission to be paid).


The minibus shuttle offers a cheaper alternative to taking a taxi and a more convenient door to door service for those who can't face trying to figure out Budapest's public train system. At the time of our visit, the exchange rate was approximately 350 HUF to the Pound.   Close

We took the bus again over to Castle District located in the Buda side of the city. This time we explored the other half of the hill that we didn’t get to see the day before. At this point I was definitely certain…Read More

We took the bus again over to Castle District located in the Buda side of the city. This time we explored the other half of the hill that we didn’t get to see the day before. At this point I was definitely certain this was my absolute favorite section of Budapest. We enjoyed strolling through cobble stone streets and popping into cafes to escape the heat but mostly to eat gelato… :)

It’s also very hard to miss seeing the gorgeous Buda Castle. It’s gigantic and beautiful with open courtyards, beautiful flowers, and stunning views of the city down below. These days the castle is known as the Hungarian National Gallery. The gallery isn’t extremely interesting but it’s worth paying to go inside just so you can climb to the top and see the views of the city that I mentioned before. Walking around the outside of the castle/gallery is exciting enough and you still see some beautiful views, you’re just higher up if you go inside to the top… so if you want to save money, I’d skip going inside.

After seeing as much of the Castle District as we possibly could, we hopped back on the bus back to Pest. We arrived at the Hungarian State Opera house at around 3:15 which was perfect because the last English tour of the day was at 4 so we decided to buy tickets and wait for that. It was around $15 for the 1 hour tour and it was completely worth it! We paid a little extra to see a short performance at the end of the tour which was great as well. I’m such a Phantom of the Opera nerd so being in any kind of opera house was exciting for me. Every room was so incredibly lavish and beautiful. We even got to go into one of the royal boxes which was fun. The English guides were great and they keep the groups small which is nice. I’d definitely recommend going to the Opera House if you go to Budapest! English tours are at 3 and 4 pm every day.

I honestly can’t remember how we spent the rest of our evening… the days are starting to blur together! It probably involved eating at another adorable cafe… I was blown away with how many great cafes and restaurants there are in this city. Watch out Paris, you’ve got competition.    Close

Day three in Budapest was HOT. We used the bus tour this time to take us over to the Castle District over on the Buda side of the city. While crossing over the Chain Bridge, I realized it’s absolutely impossible to take a…Read More

Day three in Budapest was HOT.

We used the bus tour this time to take us over to the Castle District over on the Buda side of the city. While crossing over the Chain Bridge, I realized it’s absolutely impossible to take a bad picture in Budapest on such a gorgeous summer day. The clouds didn’t even look real.

Once we were at the top of the hill, we got off the bus and explored the quaint little streets of Buda, near Matthias Church and Fisherman’s Bastion.

Fisherman’s Bastion consists of beautiful towers and viewing terraces along the hills which overlook the Danube River and Pest. This is where you’ll find the most beautiful views of the city so I’d definitely recommend it to travelers! Also, right next to it is Matthias Church which was built in the 14th century! The exterior of the church is my absolute favorite. It’s worth going inside if you have extra time but the exterior is what makes this church beautiful in my opinion.

After those two stops we continued to explore several of the shops nearby. There was a great mixture of touristy shops and open market places selling beautiful Hungarian fabrics, hand-carved wooden boxes, and a great selection of spices including paprika (my favorite!).

We couldn’t stand the heat any longer so we headed over to the famous Gellert Baths. It was pricey but well worth it. We spent most of our time in one of their outdoor pools which also turns into a wave pool every hour for about 10 minutes. So much fun! The most beautiful pools are indoors though, some are cool and others heated. It was so incredibly relaxing. We didn’t realize how long we had stayed there until we went back outside and the sun was setting!   Close

Day 2 was extremely touristy and I loved every minute of it. We were finally over our jet lag and ready to see what Budapest had to offer.This day consisted of 3 tours: a guided tour of Parliament, a bus tour of Castle District,…Read More

Day 2 was extremely touristy and I loved every minute of it. We were finally over our jet lag and ready to see what Budapest had to offer.

This day consisted of 3 tours: a guided tour of Parliament, a bus tour of Castle District, and a self-guided tour of St. Stephen’s Basilica.

The Hungary Parliament Building - From what we gathered, Parliament offers 3 guided tours every day during the summer (excluding Monday’s). The English tours are at 10, 12, & 2. I would definitely get there around 8 or 9 to buy tickets so you can avoid the crowds and the heat during the summer. The lines after 10 can last up to 2 hours. I’m a sucker for pretty buildings so I loved touring Parliament. It took about 45 minutes and you got to see about 10 rooms. Every room was lavishly decorated as you can see in the pictures I posted earlier. I loved this Parliament building almost as much as England’s Parliament… and that’s saying something!

Castle District - We got on one of those super touristy (but useful) hop on/off tour buses and took it over the Danube River across to the Buda side of the city. I always like taking a bus tour the first couple days of a trip so I get a feel of where everything is in the city. We went back to the Castle District a few times during our stay but on this day we just walked around and went to a few look out spots to see some beautiful panoramic views of Budapest. I love this side of Budapest because it’s a nice escape from the busy city just on the other side of the river. It’s hillier, greener, and more picturesque in my opinion. It felt like we were in an old village.

St. Stephen’s Basilica - After taking about a million pictures over in Castle district, we hopped on the bus again and went back across the river to visit St. Stephen’s Basilica. This church reminded me SO MUCH of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. I think it looks really similar from the outside, and on the inside it was a lot brighter than I expected with beautiful chandeliers, high ceilings, gold everything, and natural light pouring in through the windows. If touring churches isn’t your thing, than I would just recommend going here for the beautiful views from the top of the Basilica. You pay just a few dollars and get to ride the lift all the way to the top (the stairs won’t take you all the way).    Close

Overview of Hungarian FoodVegetables are interesting but lack a sense of purpose when unaccompanied by a good cut of meat. ~Fran LebowitzYou’ll never go hungry in Hungary, unless you’re a vegetarian. Think hearty. Think thick. Think filled to the brim.…Read More

Overview of Hungarian Food

Vegetables are interesting but lack a sense of purpose when unaccompanied by a good cut of meat. ~Fran Lebowitz

You’ll never go hungry in Hungary, unless you’re a vegetarian. Think hearty. Think thick. Think filled to the brim. Hungarians enjoy strudel, pancakes, stuffed peppers, goulash and kohlrabi soup. Goose liver appears often on the menu, and staples include potatoes and paprika.

Hungarian food, just as Hungary itself, has been invaded. The Magyars (what Hungarians call themselves) were introduced to tarhonya (dry pasta) from the east and the wife of King Matthias brought garlic with her from Italy in the 15th century. When Hungary fell under Turkish rule both paprika and strudel pastries entered their diet.

Our first meal in Budapest was dinner. I ordered pork. I received triple (yes, triple) fried pork with a side of fried potatoes. That was the entire dish. Not that it was bad, just a bit bland -- and dry from all of the frying. Julianna had opted for a "salad". To Hungarians this meant bits of lettuce coated entirely in mayonnaise, with a few slices of carrot, and dressing on the side. The dressing was cream based and orange, but not 1,000 Island as we had thought.

For our second meal we tried to create a picnic. This seemed easy enough.
In summary:

* Mars chocolate milk. Imported from the U.K. Nice.
* Sio grape juice. Local. Disturbing and not like any grapes that I had ever tasted.
* Tihany Camembert cheese. Local. OK. Thick. Not like French Camembert.
* Gala apples. Local. Mild and sweet.
* White (?) bread topped with sesame (?) seeds. Average.
* Pastry. Peanut butter and grape (?) jelly on crackers and coated with chocolate. Again, the grape was a very unusual flavor.

Maybe you’re sensing the same trend as myself. Their grapes are not grape in flavor. They are odd. Mild but tart too. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what was wrong with them. Their juice and jelly are off. This doesn’t bode well for wine, does it?


Hungarian Wine

The history of Hungarian wine is a roller-coaster, but begins when Romans bring vines to the Pannonia region in the 5th century. Extensive vineyards were planted, new grape varieties were introduced, and wine-making was in the western European style.

By the early 16th century Serbs introduced the Kadarka grape into the Eger region, creating "Bull’s Blood" (Egri Bikavér), a popular robust red wine. Soon after, the second most famous Hungarian wine, Tokaj (a dessert wine), found its place on the shelf, aided in part by Turkish occupation. The Germans also influenced Hungarian wine-making and introduced classification during a skirmish over Austria.

Things were moving along smoothly, and Hungary was developing a wine culture on the same level as western Europe. And, like much of western Europe it was hit hard by the phylloxera epidemic of 1882. Just as recovery from the rot was in full swing, the Soviets took control of Hungary. Quality went out the window, and quantity was en vogue (think boxed wine, folks). In 1989 Communism lost control of eastern Europe and Hungary was once again in charge of its own wine production.

Today, Hungary has 22 wine regions and 93 varieties of grapes, including the country’s regional wine grapes (Budai Zold, Furmint, Juhfark and Kadarka to name a few), with a full spectrum of wines. Hungary produces more whites than reds (though this is slowly changing) and are usually acidic. The Villany region of Hungary has become its Bordeaux.

We decided to purchase a bottle of Hungarian wine prior to our trip to introduce our palettes. It was a red, it was bold and it was far too over-powering for us. Perhaps, like the French, the Hungarians keep their best wines for themselves? For our first meal in Hungary we ordered another red. It was robust, and overwhelming. Maybe whites were more our thing? Acidic and burnt so bad that I got tears in my eyes. Certainly a restaurant would be the place to find a decent bottle? Not really. It was... rotten?.... flavored.

Call me a wine snob, I suppose. Or maybe spoiled? Having lived in California for several years I was able to get my lips around glasses of those elusive Screaming Eagles and Cakebreads. Keeping that in mind, I *should* try Hungarian wines again... but I’m not going to.


Hungarian Lager

Reportedly, Hungarians prefer wine over beer (however, it wasn’t reported if they preferred their home wine over their home beer). In any case, beer-making came late to Hungary. The first brewery wasn’t established until 1845 in Buda.

With that in mind I cracked up my first Hungarian ale. It was a Dreher. Wonderful. It was very light, without a bite or after-taste. Even Julianna (a non-beer drinker) stated that it was pleasant.

It was named after its creator, Anton Dreher, who developed this "Viennese" lager while still living in Austria. Dreher was born a family of beer-makers in 1810. He begin toying with bottom-fermented beer and presented his ale in 1840. His main competitor at that time was Peter Schmidt, who was already brewing in Budapest for a brewery named Kobanya. In 1862 Dreher was finally able to purchase Kobanya, but he died immediately after, leaving his empire to his son, Anton.

Within a decade awards began pouring in from Vienna, Paris, Sydney and further abroad. Emperor Franz Joseph bestowed a knighthood on Dreher. However, the last of the Drehers would perish in 1926. The company was then run by a consortium until the main brewery was destroyed in World War II. It would take eight months for the company to reopen. When the Communists took over after the war, the company was nationalized and it wouldn’t be until 1993 that the Dreher company would be under its own control.

A note about Viennese lager: Schwechater Lagerbier is much better known as "Marzen".

What Dreher achieved by the end of the 1830s was a beer that combined the clean palate and crispness of a lager with the paler hues he had admired in English ales. His marriage and adaptation of techniques produced a new style of beer-methodically bottom fermented and a copper-reddish-brown color. The precise recipe and flavor is not recorded and, in any case, he may have refined his new beer over several years. For instance, it is unclear whether he isolated a particular yeast at the beginning. Dreher called his new beer Schwechater Lagerbier, after the Vienna suburb home of his brewery, and its popularity grew rapidly-giving him the last laugh over those ridiculing rivals. Generically, Dreher's beer may for a time have been dubbed Wiener Typ (Vienna style) after his malting process, which produced a reddish caramelized crystal malt, but the enduring name for his style is Märzen.

—Graham Lees, All About Beer


Hungarian Coffee

Turkish is the strongest coffee we've found, and British is down-right watery, with France falling in the middle with good coffee. So, apparently, the Eastern European countries have the strongest coffee and it weakens as you go West. Infants could drink British coffee while Hungarian coffee will make your eyeballs explode.

Central Kavehaz

Built in 1887, this large coffeehouse on a busy corner has seen a lot of change. Rebels, artists and writers would gather here discussing the upcoming Revolution under brilliant chandeliers, surrounded by warm earth tones and over marble-topped tables. The staff was very busy (read that as crowded) but pleasant.

I had one of the best duck dishes that I’ve ever tasted. Crispy but tangy, and lacked the usual "game" flavor. Don’t skip dessert as they also have good chocolate (European style) mousse. And, their coffee was not over-powering. Very nice end to a day.

Address: Károlyi Mihály Street 9


The National Dish of Hungary

Gulyás is the Hungarian word for both "goulash" and "herdsmen", and is originally from the country. Cattle stockmen developed the thick stew/soup. Authentic gulyás consists only of beef, onions, paprika, tomatoes and green pepper. Potatoes and noodles would enter the dish later. Though the dish appeared on peasant’s tables it didn’t enter the nobleman’s diet until the 19th century and on restaurant menus until the late 1900s.

Though goulash appears on every Budapest menu, we tried a bowl at Pesti Vendeglo (Paulay Ede utca 5) near the entry point for the "Hop On, Hop Off" bus. The place was simply charming with deep colors and stone walls. And, as with most places in Budapest, at least one of the staff members spoke English.

The broth was bright burnt orange with a tinge of oil. It was lightly spiced, except for the generous dose of paprika. I could taste the small, but tender bits of beef. Included were potatoes (which absorbed the broth nicely), carrots, onions and tiny chunks of dumpling. It was much better than I had ever anticipated. And, with it being the cheapest thing on any Budapest menu (roughly $3), its a great choice for lunch.   Close

"If you come from Paris to Budapest you think you are in Moscow. But if you go from Moscow to Budapest you think you are in Paris." ~ Gyorgy Ligeti We started out early one morning only to discover that Budapest sleeps in. This…Read More

"If you come from Paris to Budapest you think you are in Moscow. But if you go from Moscow to Budapest you think you are in Paris." ~ Gyorgy Ligeti

We started out early one morning only to discover that Budapest sleeps in. This wasn’t apparent in our guidebook. Supposedly the baths were open early, and they had a "womens day". Not true. A cafe was marked on their map. It was gone. In fact, as we learned over the next few days, our guidebook was wrong - a lot. (And, we did check that we had the latest edition.)

Over the worst coffee of my lifetime, we discussed the city. We deemed Paris a twenty-five year-old, sophisticated, glamorous and knows how to make the boys drool. Prague is seventeen, wanting to be so like her older sister, and seeking to find the right direction towards maturity. She’s getting close. But Budapest, the youngest sister is still developing, unaware of where she’s going, but in a rush to get there. She’s eleven but wants to be nineteen as she stomps her foot.

Two hours later we made our way towards the "Hop On, Hop Off" bus for Budapest. www.citytour.hu. For roughly $22 per person you can see 15 sights. An audio guide comes with your ticket, and if you just ride the bus without stopping at any sights it will take about two hours.

First, we would have to cross the:

Széchenyi Chain Bridge

Built in 1849 this suspension bridge was the first permanent bridge to span the Danube river. It is named after a politician, and its supporter, István Széchenyi. The pair of lions on each of the bridge’s entrances are smaller replicas of the Trafalgar Square lions in London. These were added in 1852.

During World War II the bridge was severely damaged and was rebuilt in 1949. In fact every bridge over the Danube in Budapest was destroyed during the war and all but one were rebuilt as exact replicas of the former bridges. Elisabeth Bridge was built in 1964 and is a white cable bridge holding six lanes of traffic.

The stops along the route:

Gellert Hill

The hill is named for St. Gerard (the French version of Gellert), who tried to convert pagan Hungarians to Christianity. The pagans locked him in a barrel filled with nails and threw it down the hill in 1046.

The best views are from Citadella sétány.

The Synagogue

This Byzantine-Moorish style synagogue is the second largest in the world, and was constructed between 1844 and 1859. At that time Jews were banned from living within the old city limits so they created a Jewish Quarter just outside. Remnants of the old city walls of Pest can be seen across the street.

Address: Dohány utca 2-8. in VII. district, at an angle to Károly körút, between Deák tér and Astoria

Heroes Square

The figures within the memorial contain the leaders of the seven tribes which became Hungary in the 9th century, and important persons throughout the country’s history. The square and monument were completed in 1900.

Metro: Hosok tere M.

Fisherman’s Bastion

Boasting one of the best views of the city, this neo-Gothic and neo-Romanesque terrace was completed in 1902, which includes seven towers. The towers represent the seven Magyar tribes which settled in the area in 896 ACE. The name of the monument comes from the guild responsible for defending the hill it rests on.

Address: Szentháromság tér, 1014.

Matthias Church

Though a church has been on the site since 1015, the current structure dates from the mid-1300s and is in the Gothic style. The church is officially titled Church of Our Lady but has been nicknamed for the popular King Matthias (of Bohemia and Austria).

During Turkish occupation the church was stripped of its Christian symbols and furnishings when it became the city’s main mosque. Architect Frigyes Schulek restored the church to its original condition in the 19th century.

Immediately in front of Fisherman’s Bastion.

Buda Castle

Located in the Castle Hill complex, a palace has been at this location since 1247 though the current structure’s oldest section dates to the 14th century. The complex hosts Baroque, Medieval and 19th century style architecture.

Much of the complex was destroyed the siege of Budapest during World War II. What was left was gutted by the Communist government because it was viewed as a symbol of the former regime. The long process of rebuilding wasn’t completed until the 1980s.

DAY TWO

Gellert Spa and Bath

Every day 70 million liters of warm thermal water bubble up through the 118 natural springs in Budapest. The city’s dozen bath houses have been funneling the waters into varying temperature pools and spas since Turkish occupation (1500s).

We spent the morning lounging in a bath. The different temperature pools were encased in white and gray marbles. Above were white and green mosaics and skylights. It was quite stunning. And, very relaxing.

Note: Most spas now require visitors to bring a bathing suit. Gellert doesn’t enforce this rule. You can reserve a private changing booth. They also provide saunas, cooling pools, foot soaks and showers.

Memento Park

With the fall of Communism throughout Europe in 1989, most former Soviet-controlled nations destroyed images, sculptures and statues. Hungary decided to gather these images in one place, Memento Park, near Budapest, as a reminder of this dark period.

Address: 22nd district (Southern Buda), corner of Balatoni út and Szabadkai utca., Szoborpark. How to get there: Bus 150 runs from Allee Shopping Center. The ride is roughly 25 minutes from there.









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