Great Market Hall, Cool Coffee, Cruising The Danube, And The Cog Railway.

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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 to mainly food stalls, and meat, fish, vegetables and fruit are all separated by kind, and a couple of artisan bakeries selling, pastries, cakes and various breads are located each end to cater for your gluten requirements.

Sue was interested in buying some linen as a momento that would be of use at home. Buying anything requires choice, followed by a currency conversion from florints to Euros to dollars, just so we know what we are spending. It’s about 300 florints to the Euro so I took out 60,000 initially and thought I was quite rich; it’s really only 300 dollars.

There’s a buzz around the market with stall holders spruiking prices and chatting between themselves but I find many vendors quite emotionless to deal with. You can buy goods with a Hi, pay the bill and nothing, you get nothing, except the change of course. Tim bought some strawberries from a guy who had a smoke hanging out of his mouth but I think it’s the norm in Budapest. Police smoke on duty, you can smoke in outdoor food outlets, in fact the dominant smell in the street is cigarette smoke. France is the same, but it’s their country, their rules. The Market has a warm feel about it , with bright red pepper stalls, fruit stalls in all the colours of the rainbow scenting the air with strawberries, oranges and stone fruits. The cheese stalls range from orange to bright yellow and smell of deep fermented blue veins to the more gentle Camembert cheeses. You can taste test or just have a slab cut from one of the many sized wheels on display.

We bought some crunchy sliced rye bread, paprika salami, and tomatoes to turn into a picnic lunch later in the day. Sue managed to find the perfect piece of ‘genuine ‘ Hungarian linen for her purposes so we left this decorative piece of European history in search of coffee and a nice spot to rest. We had already picked out a peaceful, quiet cafe at the side of the Market on the waters edge. I can now understand why people in Europe and England ( notice, I’ve already anticipated Brexit )call any temperature around 30°c a heatwave, and start dying off in droves. It is a pleasant 27°c today and it is noticeably hotter than we have experienced, and we’ve only lived in really cold weather for 3 weeks.

Sitting on soft padded benches up against the cafe wall was something I could learn to like. Between us and the river was a walking track, and the sight of tourists staring at maps, yes, paper maps of the free type, obviously confused or discussing what the next stop off point for them is, mothers and grandparents herding children into manageable groups and keeping them from the river’s edge, or smartphone intent walkers, missing out on the old sandstone coloured buildings on the opposite bank from us and the fast moving haze as the sun reflects off the water. Coffee was great, no cakes this stop, moderation has kicked in.....a bit.

Tim’s strawberries didn’t make it to the ferry we were catching, and as a small, red, sweet smelling mush of strawberry stalks grew in my hand, I killed time watching young students working on computers, enjoying the sun In a small park by the water. It must have been a free Wifi area; there seems to be plenty if those in Europe. Train stations, public transport, and some pub places all seem to offer high speed wifi.

Our version of cruising the Danube may not be everyone’s ideal river experience but it is included on our public transport pass, is a lovely way to see another aspect of the city, and is just long enough on the water for me. We boarded at the Elizabeth Bridge and slowly motored towards Margaret Island.

We left the ferry in Buda, opposite Parliament House and needed to catch a train connection to link up with the Cog Train. This area of Buda is a little off the tourist track but it is a little more residential and the small square next to the river hosets one of the other markets that is now basically a supermarket and St Anne’s Church. Now for Christ’s grandmother to have a church in Budapest came as a surprise to me , but many things do. It was unfortunately closed but looking through the glass doors it is characteristic of churches in Europe and the art alone is usually worth dropping in.

The trains run frequently in Budapest and before long we were walking through a small park to the Cog Train. Officially Trame Line 60, this quaint train looks a little like the Hungarian cousin of Thomas The Tank Engine. It was built in 1874 and runs very slowly on a track that has a cog rail running between 2 normal tacks. These trains were designed to climb inclines that normal trains would slip on. I think these days it would be mainly used by tourists and cyclists. One carriage has bike racks, and I imagine the descent would be scenic and exhilarating.

The train ride itself is a slow bone rattling experience accompanied by creaks and groans and the constant crunch as the cogs drive us forwards. At the last stop, on the peak of Széchenyi Hill, we left the train in search of the lookout but gave up and rode the returning train 2 stops and went to an historic cafe we saw earlier as we passed, Cafe Szamos. This 4th generation cafe was ruled over by the sternest , most direct woman to ever serve a cake. The cafe ambience was inviting and it was obviously the choice of the locals and tourists alike. She had a monopoly. I was just looking in the cake display when she approached and asked if we were take away or sitting in. At my reply she coldly snapped, “ Outside, you will be served!”. And we were, by staff far more pleasant than her.

It was getting late so we trained, bussed and walked our was home . The day was done. It’s our last day tomorrow and Sue and I are walking the Jewish Quarter, visiting the Main Synagogue, and going to the National Hungarian Museum.

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Photos

Peppers And Paprika
Red features heavily in Budapest cuisine and the markets have stalls solely devoted to these foods.

Coffee By The Danube
Sitting in the shade overlooking the Danube was an ideal way to rest, enjoy a drink, and watch the world go by.

St Anne’s Church
Had to sneak a picture through the window.

Underground Escalator
This was very fast and steep. We had already descended about 30 meters.

Cog Train
Like a small tram with only 2 carriages