Budapest

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I arrived in Budapest in the morning and headed straight to the hostel to meet up with my friends. We decided to start the day off by hiking up to Gellert Hill. After the coronation of King Stephen, the first Christian Hungarian monarch, the Pope sent Bishop Gellert to convert the Magyars. Budapest’s principal hill was named Gellerthegy after those unconvinced by the bishop’s message hurled him to his death from the summit. The Liberation Monument, which honours Soviet soldiers who died ridding Hungary of Nazis, overlooks the Budapest from the hilltop. It was raining the whole time we hiked up, but it was still a good time and I am glad we did it. We then decided that since it wasn’t such a nice day out that we should do something inside and do out walk around Budapest the next day. So we took of to Szentendre which is just 30 minutes outside Budapest. Here we saw the Szabo Marzipan Museum which is home to the 80 kg white chocolate statue of Michael Jackson. I was hilarious. There were also tons of other things in this museum made out of marzipan. It was really quite neat. There was a portrait of Queen Elizabeth, scenes from Disney Movies, cakes, flowers, and even Ninja Turtles!!!

Then we carried on to just roam the streets of the cute little town. The people of Szentendre were so nice and helpful, we would ask them where something was and they would go out of their way to show us or make sure we know how to get there (even if there was a language barrier). We ran into a few souvenir shops and did a little shopping- I am quite sure we got ripped off on the prices but the exchange was so good for us that we really didn’t care. After roaming for awhile we headed to the National Wine Museum, where we tasted wines from across Hungary. The guide was great. He kept making all these hilarious comparisons during the tasting like when I didn’t like one of the wines he said “why? Tasting wine is like dating a guy, if you don’t like him the first time you have to give him another chance.” It was great times! After tasting some wine we were pretty hungry so we headed to a nice little Chinese place and had great and super cheap food and drinks and then caught the train back to Budapest and got ready to go out to a bar close to our hostel because we were meeting a friend of one of the girls I was with. They place some hilarious “euro music” at these bars so it was fun, but we didn’t stay out to late because we had to be up and ready for our 4.5 hour walking tour the next day.

So up and at ‘em we were the next morning and got ready to head to the walking tour. Our guide was from Transylvania and she was so informative, she knew everything about the history of Hungary so it was a very good tour. First we went and saw Heroe’s Square which is Hungary’s grandest boulevard. Here our guide gave us a quick history lesson on past famous Hungarian Kings and Leaders as there is statue’s of them in this square. It is also in this square that many protests are held. In most cases it is the young students of Budapest protesting against the current socialist government. Our guide told us that the protests can get very dangerous and at the last one, many people lost their eyesight as a result of the tear gas that was set off. She even advised us not to be in Budapest on March 15, and to tell our friends not to come then because there was going to be another protest. It was such a shock to hear that these kind of dangerous protests still occur there. We then walked on to see City Park. This park is home to a zoo, a circus, an amusement park, and the lakeside Vajdahunyad Castle. The castle’s collage of

Baroque, Gothic, and Romanesque styles chronicles the history of Hungarian design. Across from the castle is a beautiful church, and our guide told us that in the summer their can be 12-14 brides waiting outside the church to be married because it is such a popular place to get married because the gardens around the church and castle area are so beautiful. Can you imagine- all those other brides waiting in line to be married on your day- not my pick for a wedding spot! In the park close by there is a skating rink which turns into a little lake in the summer where you can rent a row boat. So nice! Then we headed on to see St. Stephen’s Basilica. Though seriously damaged in WWII, the neo- renaissance façade of the city’s largest church has been largely restored. The inside of the church is beautiful and offers an interesting sight- St. Stephen’s mummified right hand, which is one of Hungary’s most revered religious relics.

The next stop on our tour was the State Opera House which is one of Europe’s leading performance centers. It was at this Opera house that the scene where Evita sings Don’t cry for me Argentina from the balcony was filmed. Cool! We continued on our tour and we were about to cross Chain Bridge (The oldest bridge in Budapest). but we weren’t allowed because Green Peace was doing a demonstration and protesting by hanging from the bridge by ropes. Apparently protests such as this our common in Budapest. Interesting. So our guide had to revamp our tour a little.
So we carried on another way and saw a monument to the families that were killed for resisting communism. As you walk along the Danube you will see many brass shoes at the edge of the water. This is a memorial to the people that were lined up along the river side and shot. Whole families were killed here for resisting communism. The memorial is very sad as there are even tiny kids shoes. It is very hard to imagine that things like this were happening even in recent years.

Our next stop was to see the Parliament building. This was one of my favourite buildings in Budapest. It was beautiful. The building stands 96m tall, a number that symbolizes the date of Hungary’s millennial anniversary, the palatial Gothic Parliament was modeled after the UK’s, right down to the riverside location and hieratic façade. Our guide told us that the Parliament has 11 entrances which she thought was quite stupid as it makes it rather unprotected. A funny little tidbit our guide shared with us was that the metro system in Hungary was the first on the continent. The metro in London was actually the first to be built Hungary wanted to be the first at something so they decided that London didn’t count because they were not on the continent. Kind of funny!

So that was the end of our excellent walking tour, and by this point we were starving so we went to grab something to eat and then headed to Gerbeaud Confectionery which is a famous cake house and we tried their specialty cake. It was delicious. Then we decided we better head back to the hostel to get our suits and head to the Baths!!! We had heard that it was best to go to the baths at night- and they were right! The baths are outside but it is all lit up and it is so beautiful. There are three different pools- one that is about 29 degrees Celsius with a whirlpool, one that is just a regular swimming pool and one that is 33 degrees Celsius. There are sculptures and fountains all over and it is really very nice. We spent some time in the first pool and played in the whirlpool and laughed the whole time as it really just does spin you around and people are running into each other and it is hilarious. At one point there was so many people in there that we all kept running into each other and my friend didn’t want people to run into her so she just picked me up by the waist and used me as a shield- Thank Jaimie!!! Then we headed over to the hot baths and just relaxed and talked and then we all headed in for massages! It was a great night and we all felt fabulous after! We were so relaxed that we just headed for some supper and then hit the bed early!

The next day would be our last full day and we still had much we wanted to see so we decided to get up early and head out for a full day of touring. First we walked up to the Castle district. Towering above the Danube on Castle Hill, The Castle district has been razed three times in its 800 year history, most recently in 1945. This area appears much now much as it did in the Hapsburg times with its winding, statue filled streets, breathtaking views, and hodgepodge of architectural styles. Our first stop in the Castle district was the Fisherman’s Bastion. Construction was started in 1885 and was sited on the place of the medieval fish market and the walls protected by the guild of fisherman, hence the name. the neo-Romanesque bastion has only ever had a decorative role, and we enjoyed it very much for this! It was so neat. We then walked past Matthias Church, but unfortunately it was under construction so we could not go in. But we could see if form the outside and the multi-coloured roof is one of Budapest’s most photographed sites. The church was converted into a mosque in 1541, then reconverted 145 years later when the Hapsburgs defeated the Turks. Our last stop in the castle district was to see the Royal Palace. One of the symbols of the nation, the palace has witnessed wars and occupation from the 13th to the 20th century. The Turks occupied it, as did the Hapsburgs, it was destroyed three times and then rebuilt each time in the architectural style of the age. Today’s neo-classical style was taken after WWII. I thought the building actually wasn’t that nice because it looked so modern. Perhaps they should have reconstructed it back to its original architectural style instead.

After we were done touring the Castle District we headed back down to see the Great Synagogue. This is the largest synagogue in Europe and the second largest in the world. It was designed to hold 3000 worshipers. Outside the church in the garden is the Tree of Life (see picture for details).

Next, we went to see the House of Terror which is one of the most powerful museums in Europe. Illustrating the grim decades of Nazi and Communist repression, the museum is the former headquarters for the secret police of both the Nazi and Communist governments. The building's awning has the word TERROR cut out of it, and when the sun projects through these letters, it symbolizes the terror which was projected onto the Hungarian people for fifty years.
After allying themselves with Hitler to save their own skins (and their Jewish population), Hungary was overtaken by the Nazi-affiliated Arrow Cross in the waning days of World War II. Arrow Cross members did their best to exterminate Budapest's Jews. They killed Jews one-by-one in the streets, and were known to tie several victims together, shoot one of them, and throw him into the freezing Danube — dragging the others in as well. They executed hundreds in the basement of this building.

When the communists moved into Hungary, they took over the same building as headquarters of their secret police (the ÁVO, later renamed ÁVH). To keep dissension to a minimum, the secret police terrorized, tried, deported, or executed anyone suspected of being an enemy of the state.

The museum's atrium features a Soviet tank and a huge wall covered with portraits of the victims of this building. Each room is stocked with free English fliers.

The museum has many memorable exhibits, such as rooms featuring Gulag life, Social Realism art and propaganda, a labyrinth of pork fat bricks reminding old timers of the harsh conditions of the 1950s (lard on bread for dinner), and religion (joining the Church was a way to express dissent). While following elderly Hungarians through the corridors, it was poignant to think they had personal memories of the terrors that came with Hungary's "double occupation." They knew many of the victims…and perpetrators.

The last section begins with a three-minute video of a guard explaining the execution process played while you descend by elevator into the prison basement. In the 1950s this basement was the scene of torture. In 1956 it became a clubhouse of sorts for the local Communist youth club. It's renovated today, circa 1955. During the 1956 revolution, 200,000 fled to Austria and the West during the two weeks of chaos before the USSR pulled a Tiananmen Square. The Hall of Tears remembers 25,000 who died in '56.

The last two rooms — with the only color video clips — show the festive and exhilarating days in 1991 when the Soviets departed, making way for freedom. Scenes include the reburial of local hero Imre Nagy; the pope's visit; and walls of "victimizers" — local members and supporters of the Arrow Cross and ÁVO, many of whom are still living, and who were never brought to justice. This museum was for sure one the best museums I have been to. Although it was hard to learn about what went on there, I am so glad I now know because it makes me really appreciate how good life in Canada really is. It also just makes me feel like a less ignorant person knowing about these events

We then carried on to take a quick walk through a museum that explained what traditional Hungarian life was like and how it evolved. It was interesting to see the traditional dress and learn about the ways they did things. They were so resourceful back in the day making what they could and trading for whatever else they needed.

After the Hungarian museum we had to quickly head back to the hostel and get ready for the Taming of the Shrew ballet at the State Opera House (we got tickets for $3 Canadian!!!- can you believe it). Now, I am not a big fan of the ballet but just to get to go inside the Opera house for 3 dollars is amazing and I ended up actually enjoying the performance because the Taming of the Shrew had a good story line (the movie 10 things I hate about you is actually based of the Taming of the Shrew) so I knew what was going on and there was a lot of acting as well as dancing so I didn’t get bored. After the ballet we headed back to the hostel because we were going to meet some people that I had met in Krakow and go out for the night. We asked the guy who worked at the hostel where we should go and he recommended a club called Cha Cha which is actually located in a metro station, kind of weird, but he said it was a popular place and it was close to the hostel so we all headed out and danced the night away and it was a really good time.

The next morning Jaimie and I got up early and went to the biggest indoor market. It was really cool. The bottom floor just had a bunch of stinking fish stands- not cool so we left that floor ASAP and headed up to the next floor where there is a bunch of bread, fruit, veggie, and food stands. Then the next level had a bunch of souvenir stands and places to eat. It was really neat. The market was the only thing we had time for that day as we had to head out to the airport to catch our flight back to Paris. And that was it for my big spring break trip was over, but it was an AMAZING trip and I had so much fun and learned so much. I am so glad I got to see everything I did!!!

I still have some day trips in France to write about and I am off to Cinque Terre, Italy and Nice tomorrow so I will fill you in on that trip when I get back.

Take care everyone.

Lindsay

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Photos

Széchenyi Thermal Baths
This was amazing!!! The baths were so nice and the whirlpool was an actual whirlpool that spun you around- very fun!

House of Terror
On the outside of the house of terror there are pictures of the victims of the communist regime.

The Little Princess Statue with Buda Palace in the backgound
This is "The little princess" but when you take a closer look, it could just as well be a prince. The statue was made by Laszlo Marton in 1989. The statue is said to be his son and is a memorial to him. That small statue is sitting there on the fence of the tram going along the Danube

Me and the 60 kilo white chocolate statue of Muichael Jackson
This was in the Marcipan Museum in Szentendre, which is just outside Budapest. The statue is made of white chocolate and decorated in Marcipan.

Fishermans Bastian
Me and Jaimie up at the Fishermans Bastian. This was really cool because you get a great view from up on this hill.

Parliament
A view of the Parliament from the Castle district.

Wine Tasting
Jaimie, Me, Stephanie, and Hannah at out Hungarian Wine Tasting. This was really fun because our guide was hilarious, but there were a couple really sweet white wines that I didn't like- but the rest were delicious!

Heroes' Square
This is where many protests take place. It is also where there are statues of all the great Hungarian Kings and Leaders.

Tree of Life
This is a Holocaust memorial and it sits above a mass grave for thousands of Jews killed near the end of the war. The Hebrew inscription on it reads: "Whose pain can be greater than mine?" and the Hungarian underneath reads: "Let us Remember." Each leaf bears the name of a family that perished.

Gellert Hill
All of us up at the top of Gellert Hill. We hiked up in the rain, but it was worth it for the view!

More good luck for me......
This is a hooded statue of King Bela IV's anonymous scribe, to whom we owe much of our knowledge of medevial Hugary. If you touch is pen it is thought to bring you good luck.

Hungarian Forints
This is what the money looks like in Hungary. It was so nice to go somewhere that was not on the Euro!!!