Blogs from Pest, Budapest, Central Hungary, Hungary, Europe

Two cities, Buda and Pest, have the Danube river flowing between them. Today we walked 15 kilometres from Pest to Buda and back again. My legs are killing me now. We visited the city market, then the cave church, slowly hiked up to the fortress, visited the palace museum, road a bike on Margaret island, and more. I carried both my camera and iPad, but I didn’t bring the attachment to upload photos from the camera. So here are a few pics from the iPad until I return to Vienna. Then I will create a “best of Budapest” blog. This city has good bones. Buildings are as large and beautiful as Vienna, but several need some polishing to bring them to their former glory. Historic buildings are noble with grand statues and fountains. Streets range from ... read more

Today we revisit the Central Market when the doors are open. We have been there before but it’s worth a return visit and is the cheapest place, with the greatest range, to buy traditional linen and crocheted articles in Budapest. Taking the escalator to the first floor, you realise how large the market is. In 1896, 5 markets were opened simultaneously in Budapest. Four of these markets supplied their local area, whereas the Central Market No1 was designed to supply a greater range of goods for the Budapest region. It covers 10,400 square metres indoors and its location was chosen due to its proximity to road, rail and river transport. There was a 120 meter tunnel joining the Market to the Danube to facilitate the easy movement of goods from boats. The ground floor is dedicated ... read more

Breakfast was on the house today and it was the full blown sausages, bacon, eggs, various cheeses, cereals, 3 types of bread, salads etc. etc, and juice, tea and coffee; just as they like it in Europe. After eating Chimney Cake late last night I was still coming down from a sugar overdose, so breakfast wasn’t high on my priorities . It’s a Hungarian specialty consisting of sweet dough, rolled into a coil, wrapped around a wooden spindle and rotisseried until golden brown. It’s then coated in butter and sugary flavours and served hot. My favourite is cinnamon sugar but it’s a treat to eat sparingly. It’s basically sugar. Stepping from the sanctuary of our appartment into the slowly waking lane dividing Gozsdu Court, I am suddenly in the world of early morning market stalls setting ... read more

We had a later start this morning, which was much appreciated. After a leisurely breakfast we met a small group of fellow travelers for the 1/2-hour drive to Szentendre, a colorful artist's colony in the scenic Danube Bend. This settlement became a creative center for artists to gather in the 1920s. Today, this quaint village has many craft shops, galleries, and charming boutiques. We had an informational tour and entered many shops where Peter, our tour guide, explained the different techniques of some of the artisan's. One man demonstrated his woodworking and carving skills on a music box, but it was more than a music box. In order to open it one had to go through several intricate maneuvers to find the key to unlock it. If you bought one, it came with instructions. Very interesting. ... read more

We took a morning train and after a very uneventful journey got to Budapest shortly after noon. Then a few metro stops and soon after we were walking along the Danube towards our apartment. No rain here for days it seemed... and no rain and clouds for the next few days either... Temperature in the high 20sC... I liked it here already. The girl from the apartment was already waiting for us in front of the building and a few seconds later we jumped on a dodgy elevator and got off at the 4thfloor... It was definitely a one of a kind elevator - it was surrounded by the staircase and when you stepped inside, it felt as if the bottom of it dropped down a good few centimetres... On top of that you were not ... read more