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Published: August 9th 2009
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I. Bathing in Budapest
I didn't know what to do with it at first. It was a piece of cloth, about the size of a small handkerchief, with two long strings. This, apparently, was the "costume" for bathing in the thermal baths, at least for the men's only day. I am not quite sure what purpose this little flap is supposed to serve. If it is meant to foster a sense of modesty, I think it might have the opposite effect. Nothing draws attention to the fact that you are all but naked more than a little apron that barely covers anything.
So there I was, standing in my rather drafty bathing attire, trying to figure out just what I was supposed to do. But of course all the complicated signs were in Hungarian (which just made it all the more complicated). A kind soul took me under his wing and showed me the ropes, directing me through the labyrinth of cabins down to the central hot pool, pointing out the other pools of various temperatures, the
saunas (wet and dry). Finally, I could relax under the Turkish dome, the filtered light falling upon my not so modest self. Welcome to the Király!
***
That first bathing experience in Budapest at the Király was perhaps the most confusing, but each bath that I have sampled since has its own unique "flavor" and set of obstacles one must overcome when first getting a lay of the land, err, bath.
The Széchenyi, more of a spa-water park than a thermal bath, and by far the largest of the Budapest baths, was strangely the easiest to manage. This probably had a lot to do with the fact that I was with a Hungarian friend, but I still think I could have handled it. It was mixed gender, so you were required to wear a bathing suit (thankfully, no "apron"!). Much of the complex was outdoors, basically big, heated swimming pools with a few decidedly non-19th century features like jacuzzi jets and a whirlpool. Inside, at least in the parts that were not being renovated, there were saunas and smaller pools of varying temperatures. My friend loved taking me through the masochistic ritual of sweating it out in
a hot, hot sauna till we could barely breath and then plunging into the icy cold pool next door. I thought I was going to have a heart attack each time, but it was strangely refreshing!
The Gellért, perhaps the most famous of Budapest's grand baths, is a lavish, Art Nouveau affair. This one had the twist that part of the complex is mixed gender (hence requiring swimsuits) and parts were separate, men and women. I can't speak for the women's side, of course, but in the men's section there seemed to be a democratic approach to bathing attire. Some wore trunks, others opted for the little white flap. A few decided to bare it all (rules, shmules!). One guy, going his own way, had the apron tied behind him - did he think it was a protective seat flap?
Rudas, the last of the baths I tried, was perhaps my favorite of all. Like Király, it is from the Ottoman period, complete with dome. But, having been built on the order of the famous Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmet Pasha, Rudas is grander, more extensive. Plus it has been restored nicely (Király is a bit worn around
the edges). Here the use of the modesty “apron” was again the norm (none of that confusion seen at the Gellért!) as one bounced between the central pool -- with its fountain fantastically encrusted in several centuries of mineral deposits, forming a frozen cascade - and the four sides pools, with temperatures ranging from pleasantly cool to boiling hot. There were also the wet and dry saunas, the wet so hot it seared your lungs.
The baths of Budapest were definitely a highlight of my stay. I have indulged in a fair amount of bath tourism - Turkey, Iceland, Japan, etc. - over the years, and Budapest definitely joins the ranks as one of my favorite thermal bath destination!
II. Searching for Green
Vegetables are a rare species in Central Europe. You might get a potato, maybe onion. But otherwise you really have to hunt out anything that is not meat or bread based. Although I am far from being a vegetarian (if you dig into my blog entries, you’ll find that I have gone as far as to sample whale blubber), I have found myself craving the green stuff from time to time.
During one
of my attempts to track down the elusive creatures, I decided to try a Chinese restaurant that got high marks for “authenticity”. When I scanned the bewilderingly long menu, I had to try to decipher the limited English labeling (Chinese and Hungarian not exactly being fortes of mine). I settled on beef with vegetables, which seemed promising. Well, it turned out to be about 90% beef, with some slivers of carrot and onion thrown in for good measure. Thwarted again!
Still, in my limited experience of Germany, the Czech Republic and Hungary, Hungary wins on the traditional culinary front. Even though still extremely meat based - goulash really is just beef in a paprika broth - the variety and flavoring exceeds most of the local fare I’ve consumed along my journey. (Czech food was good, stick-to-your ribs, stuff - but, really, bread dumplings?) There also is an amazing variety of ice-cream flavors here, including some delightful ones that I’ve never seen before - like chestnut, poppy-seed, and even cheese curd. Chestnut wins so far.
Maybe Austria will be better on the green front. But I'm not holding my breath.
III. Construction
A large percentage of Budapest,
and particularly Pest, is being torn up at the moment. Between the construction of the new metro line and the pedestrianization of several roads, you sometimes have to wiggle through narrow passages and cross wobbly plywood platforms to get from point A to point B. The sounds of jackhammers fill the air. In addition, many of the historic buildings are being renovated or have recently completed the process (thankfully, the Géllert and Rudas baths were finished by the time I got here!).
I can only imagine what the city will look like in a few years. Hopefully, though, they don’t polish it up too much. Budapest’s air of faded grandeur suits it well.
IV. Oddities
One of my favorite things to do in any city is to keep my eye out for the quirky / odd sights. Budapest is replete with them, some I’ve already shown in photos in earlier posts. But here are some that I encountered over the course of my week in the city that didn’t make it into my earlier posts:
1. Within the imposing neo-classical Basilica of St. Stephen, in a side chapel, there’s a gilded glass container with the mummified
hand of the basilica’s namesake (St. Stephen was the Magyar king that helped Christianize the pagan Magyars). That in and of itself might be odd, though religious relics of this sort abound around the world. What made this all the more fun was that for 200 forints you could light up the box! St. Stephen aglow in Technicolor!
2. Continuing on the religious theme, just across from the Gellért Hotel and Spa, at the base of Gellért Hill, is the Cave Church. Run by an order of Paulite monks, it’s a warren of chambers, lit rather brightly (no gloomy caves for this group!) and decorated with obviously fake plants and flowers (well, there is no natural sunlight, I suppose). It was boarded up for decades, but reopened in 1989 (that year again!).
3. Less an oddity, and more an intriguing dimension of Budapest nightlife, I discovered that there are a number of bars/clubs that exist essentially in or between abandoned buildings. They operate till the building gets renovated or neighbors move in. In some ways, this reminded me a lot of Berlin, this using of spaces that others might ignore. A Hungarian friend of a friend introduced me
to this “scene” - the last place he took me was a laid back courtyard bar called Mumus, or Boogeyman!
***
Budapest will linger long in my thoughts. I must return, as a week is insufficient to understand this mystery of a city.
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