Budapest

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Our bus ride from Vienna lasted only 3 hours before arriving in Budapest. We walked toward the center of the city toward our hostel from the bus station. After about an hour walk we arrived at an old building bearing our hostel’s name. The hostel was not the entire building however, as we noticed the hostel name was next to one of the numbers on the call box. It was getting dark, and when we first walked in a slight bit of nervousness overtook us. A large empty hallway opened before us and we could see a small courtyard straight ahead. The courtyard was clearly outside, but there was no door leading to it. The hallway just lost its roof after so far. A concrete staircase wrapped around a glass elevator. After deciding the courtyard led to nowhere, we took the concrete staircase up one level. There we finally saw another sign for our hostel, and the door not too far ahead. We were greeted by Chubba, the owner, who showed us around and gave us some tips about Budapest. There were only 3 dorm rooms, each with 6 bunks, 2 bathrooms, and 2 showers. The ceilings were very high, maybe about 20 feet. Bright paint colored the walls studded with patterns of sequin. Despite the warm greeting of Chubba, we had a sketchy feeling about the place, and were almost sure we’d want to find another hostel soon. Chubba recommended we try langos, a Hungarian dish sold cheap right around the corner. Langos turned out to be a big piece of dough deep-fried and covered in cheese and mayonnaise. It was tasty, but too filling. We stopped at a random pub on our way home and sampled some of the local beer, Dreher.

When we walked back into the hostel we found a completely different atmosphere than what we first encountered. A whole crew of mostly backpackers had gathered for some pregaming before hitting the town. We were introduced to Aussies, Brits, and Guatemalans in addition to some more Americans. After talking and sharing beers with them we had to join them out that night. We went to a bar/club called Morrisons. This place was small, but very dynamic. A bar stretched from the entrance down to the karaoke area. The room beside the karaoke area had tables, and a large dance floor was behind both. A sign that said “Game Room” was next to a door in the table room. I went through thinking I’d either find beer pong or gambling, but instead I found two Xbox controllers and a big screen. The karaoke book was small, but I managed to find a couple songs to sing, “Basket Case” and “Rock You Like a Hurricane”. Oh yeah, I went there. After watching a couple groups of guys trying to sing NSync and Backstreet Boys, another guy singing Mariah Carey, and another guy singing Lady Gaga, I decided I clearly wasn’t going to suffer any embarrassment no matter what happened. When we left the whole group walked around the city to find some late night kebab. Upon leaving the bouncers told us to be quiet. Apparently they have quiet hours in Budapest. Needless to say we were quiet just long enough to get out of sight. As we made the final stretch back to the hostel I looked at the horizon to see just a hint of sunlight leaking out. The next day we decided to book a longer stay at the hostel.

For our second day we made our own walking tour through the heights of Buda. Up until then, we had been in Pest the whole time. Most of the hostels and bars and clubs are in Pest, while Buda is more residential with upscale hotels. The Danube river separates the two cities, and while Pest is mostly flatland, Buda is mostly hills with the largest starting right on the other side of the Danube. We could see a state overlooking us on our walk across the bridge to Buda. Another statue sat way up on top of the hill. The path couldn’t be seen from where we crossed, but we soon discovered it. As I arrived at the top of the hill I was amazed by the view of the city of Pest. It made me realize that I may have been exaggerating about the views from Sacre Couer and the Atomium. Let me assure you now though, you could see the WHOLE city from this point. The statue at the top sat at a turn in the Danube, and you could see probably 5 miles of the coast of the Danube looking all around. The city was a mix of old architecture and new architecture. However, 2 buildings stood out above the rest. The Castle was a tan building with green copper domes that sat in Buda. The Parliament building, which sat right along the river in Pest, was an very detailed white building with dark purple domes and spires. After walking down the hill and along the coast of the Danube, I got a closer look at the Parliament building. I think it has got to be my favorite of all the buildings I’ve seen in Europe so far. The sight of it from right across the river is truly inspiring. As we kept walking north we came to a bridge that led to a small island in the middle of the Danube. The island was all park. A wide trail led around the entirety including a narrow, cushiony path for runners. Many gathered here for exercise whether in the form of running, walking, or even biking. Some sat in the benches along the path, and others sat right on the river wall. We also noticed many engaged in very public displays of much affection. If you want to show off how comfortable you and your lover are in public, then Budapest is the place for you. In fact, it wasn’t just in this park, but all over the area.

We crossed back over into Pest when it started raining. We decided that was a good time to stop for dinner, and found a restaurant with pretty reasonable prices, like only 2,000 HUF per person. That seems like a lot, but Hungarian Forints are like monopoly money. We ordered the grill platter for two, which came with steak, chicken, Hawaiian skewers, a fried egg, rice, and vegetables. Oh, and the best of all, a “comb” of pure fried bacon fat, mmmmmm. The Hawaiian skewers featured pork and pineapple chunks wrapped in bacon. It was served with a mushroom gravy as well. We stuffed ourselves on this feast, and spent about $10 each total. I guess Hungary is a good place to hungry. We ended up going back there before we left.

The next day we decided to check out the thermal baths with a couple girls from the hostel. There were a few of these places around, and we went to one that came recommended. After entering, we found several rooms of indoor pools and hot tubs, each having its temperature posted… in Celcius. Not that it mattered, a short foot test told you all you needed to know. Three larger pools were outside. After soaking in them for a while we tried out the saunas. The first sauna we went into must have been the hottest I’ve ever been in. It was so hot and humid that if you inhaled too quickly your nostrils would burn. I sat in there for about 15 minutes and then went into the plunge pool. The sauna is normally followed by the plunge pool, which has water at a chilling 60 degrees F. Needless to say, that experience left me with a small endorphin rush. As we ventured through the rest of the place, we found the other saunas weren’t nearly as hot. Some had dim lights that changed colors, while others had aroma therapy scents in the air. As we left I noticed the building that housed these thermal baths was another one of these 2-300-year-old buildings. I don’t know whether it was always some sort of public bath or whether someone renovated it, but it was nothing like you’d expect to see containing a spa.

That night we stayed in the hostel and enjoyed some Hungarian sweet wine, courtesy of Chubba. Having a sweet tooth, I was a big fan of this stuff. We stayed up pretty late talking with the others about cultural and language differences among the UK, Australia, and America. Even though we all speak English, we speak completely different languages sometimes. The rain kept me in the next day. It worked out well though because I had a bit of work to take care of anyway. Plus that night was another big one. We started out at this bar that was built quite literally in an alley. Like someone decided that to buy an alley in between buildings and throw a plexi-glass roof over it. You could still see the curb and sidewalk in the paved floor as you walked through the bar. It spanned several rooms, about 5 bars, an open air courtyard area, and 2 floors. The seats ranged from normal barstools to small cars to bathtubs cut in half. No two lamps were the same. A computer monitor with the tube removed held an aquarium. An aquarium tank held sand and random car parts. It was as if the decorator went to a junkyard and picked out everything needed. With all this stuff randomly thrown together, I really liked the unique result. We spent a while there before leaving for a roof-top club. This club wasn’t actually on a rooftop, but after entering what looked like a condemned building we did have to walk up about 5 stories to get to it. I was feeling pretty good at this point, but I remember it having a large dance floor, and yes, I was feeling good enough to actually use it. As we left the bouncers asked us once again to be quiet, and once again I could see the sun peeking over the horizon.

I went caving on the last day in Budapest. I was expecting a tour of some stalagmites and stalactites with some minimal crawling and climbing, but this was much more intense and challenging. I was put in a group of about 11, and we had one guide. We were given full jumpsuits and hardhats with headlamps before going into the cave. We entered a metal door that led into the cave and went down a ladder into the main trail of the cave. I noticed that the only light provided was from our headlamps. This was confirmed as we entered a room and the guide asked us to turn all of our headlamps off. We sat in total darkness for a couple minutes to soak in the complete lack of light. I noticed after a while, I could swear I could see faint outlines of people and rocks, but it was just my imagination. The tour through the cave was filled with crawling and climbing through narrow and winding passages. In fact, the one area of the path that we walked upright through was called “Giant’s Way”. Some of the other sections were named the “Birth Canal” and the “Sandwich”. The Sandwich was the most intense portion. A 30 ft. section where the rock walls are the bread, and you are the meat. The area is wide enough to go through sideways, but it is so thin that in some sections you can’t even turn your head around. Once through you drop about 10 feet down, your feet trying to find the sturdy points of the uneven floor, and trying not to slip at the same time. After about 2.5 hours of this, I was exhausted. We stayed in the last night, neither one of us having enough energy to do much except pack for the next day.

The views in Buda were surprisingly beautiful. The hike up to the top of the hill and around the Danube was well worth it. Pest is full of entertainment, and the food is great. After this, I think I have to rank Budapest above Berlin, as my second favorite city so far. Part of the fun was definitely the people we met here. I hope to find more hostels along our journey where the patrons really come together. I heard stories about it, and a lot of hostels we’ve been to had potential, but this was the first place that we actually felt like one big family during our stay. And to think upon first entering, we almost turned around and left. I guess you never know what you’re going to find until you look and see for yourself.

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Photos

Statue
View from the bridge across the Danube

Pest
Its raining!

Statue of Liberty
or Liberation or something like that

Parliament
Is this not the coolest building?

Thermal Baths
You wouldn't know it by looking at it.

Caving
Can you see the face in the rock next to me?

Comments

[zsobig]

Budapest
Hello, I hope you really had a greta time in Budapest, and you will come back to this beautiful city soon (summer is the best time for a vacation ;)). Best wishes, zsobig