Advertisement
Published: June 10th 2018
Edit Blog Post
Szechenyi Baths
Budapest, Hungary Very nice buffet breakfast. We're starting to meet other passengers. About 1/3 are Aussies, Scenic being an Australian company. Next largest contingent is Canadians at about 20. Besides our friends, there are at least two other couples from Ottawa, and a few more from GTO. The next largest group comprises Americans, followed by Brits. So the languge of the cruise is English only. The crew is mostly central/eastern Europeans plus some southeast Asians and Indians.
The ship will depart tonight, but we have one more tour arranged in Budapest: a visit to the Szechenyi Baths. Budapest has a lot of hot springs, and the period when it was under the control of the Turks has left a legacy of spas. Szechenyi is one of the largest such facilities in the city.
We board our bus, which first ascends Gellert Hill to drop off a group who are exploring the Citadel. We have a short photo stop, but we've already got that t-shirt.
The bus now takes us across the river to the Pest side and heads east down beautiful Andrassy St. Our guide points out the former KGB headquarters, which we have seen from the bus before, but
Heroes' Square
Budapest, Hungary mentions that it is known as the House of Terror. I had seen tours advertised for the "House of Terror" but had assumed they were talking about a horror museum with wax figures. Or maybe they were.
We circle around Heroes' Square at the end of Andrassy Street, then proceed further east to the spa. The building is beautiful from the outside, a yellow renaissance-style palace with columns and statuary, built between 1909 and 1913. We are issued a pass that is worn on the wrist like a Fitbit. Waterproof, it is keyed automatically to a particular change room, about a metre square, where we change into our swim gear. We then enter the inner courtyard, where there are three large pools, the middle one reserved for those swimming laps. We try the left one, which is pleasantly warm. The middle has an area where the water spins in a large circle, carrying swimmers around quickly. Fun, and I can imagine our grandkids loving it. We then enter the back part of the immense building on the far side. Here there is a series of smaller pools, each at a set temperature ranging from 20 to 40º. (I read later that the water initially emerges form the spring at 76º!) I find the 20º pools quite refreshing and the hotter ones relaxing once your body acclimatizes, although 40º is a bit too hot. There are signs on the wall that I presume describe the mineral content of each pool, but everything is in Hungarian only.
At the far end of the building is a sauna, advertised as 50º. I give it a try, but that temperature really is not for me. I find it hard to breathe. Violet lasts longer. We cool off in one of the more reasonable pools, then spend the rest of the time relaxing in the main courtyard with an occasional dip to cool off. When we are thoroughly cooked and boiled, we change back to our civies and wait outside for the bus.
Since we have about 45 minutes to kill, I decide to walk back to Heroes' Square, which so far we have only seen from the bus. The centrepiece of this large square is the Millennium Memorial. Construction began in 1896 (completed in 1909) to mark the 1000-year anniversary of the founding of the Hungarian state. The central statue features the angel Gabriel at the top, with seven chieftains representing the seven founding Hungarian tribes at the base. Behind stretches the semi-circular colonnade, with many statues invoking the history of the nation. There are beautiful buildings to either side of the square, both museums.
Back to the ship in time for a late lunch, after which we have an introductory talk and a safety drill. We set sail and bid goodbye to Budapest just after 4 pm. Before dinner, we have a cocktail reception with the captain. After dinner, we are treated to a Hungarian folk show. The music is provided by an accordion, double bass and cymbalum, a string instrument that is struck with mallets. Two couples provide an exceedingly energetic dance performances. Thoroughly enjoyable.
We are lulled to sleep by the rocking of the boat as it pushes north up the Danube.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.138s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 10; qc: 53; dbt: 0.1003s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb