First Impressions

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I arrived in Budapest yesterday, extremely tired and disoriented. I was dropped off in what seemed to be a dark alley, and told that I was at my hostel. After eventually finding the buzzer for the hostel (the only identifying feature), I hauled my stuff up the steps and was taken to an upstairs apartment in the building. All I was interested in was sleep, but alas I could not, as the room was bustling with activity and people (such is hostel life). I layed on my little bed all evening until I was able to fall asleep (1am, due to loud, giggling American students in the next room).

Today I awoke at 1:30pm, and was still heavily jet-lagged. However, I was determined to go sightseeing, and enjoy myself, as it is also my 29th birthday (sigh). So I walked along the street that I was told not to walk along because it is "for tourists, and very expensive and crouded". Well, since I was a tourist, that is what I did. Vaci Utca is fine, it is nice in that it is paved over and has lots of restaurants and shops along it. It is true that it is expensive, but it's still nice for a stroll. I got some Hungarian food at Fatal, a restaurant near the hostel that specializes in hunge portions. Since I am a vegetarian, my options were rather limited, and I ended up having a strange meal of deep fried mushrooms encircling a mound if white rice, which itself was encircling a dish of mayonaisse. I later learned that the best bet for a veggie in Budapest is a falafal, which is a quarter of the price of the strange mushroom concoction. At 5pm I happened upon a lovely church that was about to start a free concert of choirs from Poland, Finland, and Taiwan. Although I was feeling very tired and sick, I watched the concert and it was lovely. After that I went home to the hostel and that is about it.

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