Day 39: Sightseeing in Budapest

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I slept very late this morning, almost 9:30. We had a ticket on the Hop On Hop Off tour bus today. We walked around for an hour to find the starting point. Then we rode around Pest for 90 minutes, listening to recording about the sights, perspiring in the heat. The recording was easy to understand and we learned a lot about the buildings on the route. We ate our sandwiches on top of Gellert Hill during a 20-minute stopover.



We had an appointment with Beata Szechy who is director of an artist residency here in Hungary (http://www.hungarian-multicultural-center.com). She had given us specific directions to her house: take the #18 tram to the Deli Train Station, catch bus #51, get off at the intersection of Tamasi Aron and Fodor u.… and 3^rd house #34 down the hill. It went like clockwork, and at 2:45, we were ringing her doorbell. Beata spends 6 months in Budapest and 6 months in Dallas. She told us that this is the hottest summer in Budapest since 1988, and she was miserable. We thought her house was relatively cool! We learned about the Budapest Artist Residency, and the four Exhibitions she will curate here in August. She talked about the art scene here in Budapest, and suggested some galleries and museums that would be of interest. It was a delightful afternoon!



We got back to the hotel around 5:00. We walked up the street several blocks and found a lovely bar with air conditioning. A couple of cold drafts and AC can work miracles. We went back to the hotel, checked internet and skyped with Betsy to learn the latest on the baby scene (no news).



Across the street from our room is located a church that is carved out of the stone of Gellert Hill. We could see that the entrance was open (strange hours), so we walked across the street and up the hill to the gate. We paid a small fee and had an excellent taped tour and description of the artifacts and sculptures. The Cave Church is a unique grotto chapel cared for by the Hungarian Paulite order of monks. Closed for 40 years during the Communist era, it has since been reopened in 1989.



We went to dinner at a recommended place (suggested by the barmaid) a few blocks from the bar. It was very good, reasonable, and no cons. We had the cold peach soup (yum!), cucumber salad, and grilled chicken.



We opened up the room and sat on the mini balcony and watch the street scene. It was still very warm but cooling off to the low 80s at least. I am beginning to like Budapest better than yesterday.

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Comments

[Ann]

wonderful
What a great trip you are having.I am enjoying your blog. Happy 4th of July!