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Budapest, as you cycle in, smacks you in the face with the majestic towering spires of the massive parliment building overwhelming the landscape. It is strikingly beautiful.
We shower and change ready to do a reconoiter of the city to set what we would like to see in detail over the next five days off from cycling. So our first stop is the information centre as we always do. Who just happens to already be there but none other than Nick & Terese once again. We have a giggle that for the umpteenth time we knock into each other and agree to rather chat over a beer with all our respective info in hand, on the riverside.
Budapest is alive, whimsical, arty, creative and has a great ambience to it. It has been owned, plundered, revamped and taken back (as have many others mind you) but has kept all of those reflective ownerships well portrayed. A lot of the other cities we find have tended to demolish and remove any detail of past control or religious dominance of previous periods.
Our accomodation for 5 days is an appartment owned by Iboya, a lady film director, and lives next door to
us. Over a number of red wines one evening, she gives us an interesting insight to Hungary and in particular, Budapest and all of its foibles. A very interesting lady, we could have spent a lot more time with her......but ran out of wine !
Our 5 day break from riding also allowed us to take our bikes in for a badly needed service. My chain is stretched and slipping badly and generally needs some TLC. We find a great bike shop close by and a few days later they both emerge like new. I have a new chain, new rear cassette, removed and repaired the bent front cluster, removed and straightened both bent (by the airline) disc brakes, serviced the bike and labour all for Aus $80 ! I nearly fell off my bike !
Great guys, great shop :-
Nella Kerekparcentrum, 1054 Kalman Imre (street), Budapest
Www.nella.hu
They do Trek, Bontrager etc all the known brands.
During our extended break we enjoyed Castles, street musicians, a plethora of whimsical statues, war monuments, an evening river cruise, thermal baths, bohemian quarter and sensational authentic food (and cheap), the Jewish quarter etc.
Then on our last day we
decided to visit Memento Park, out of the city. So caught the local bus to a park full of past Russian Memento statues from the days of Russian control and rule. Quite over bearing really. Probably the most interesting though was, the Trabant car at the exit. A 2 cyclinder, 26 horsepower car made of Duroplast (recycled material, cotton waste & phenol resin). You paid 50% in advance and the waited between 6 - 8 years for delivery !
With a bit of a sad face and a slight drizzle we pedal out of Budapest on our way to Donafoldvar. Under grey skies we cycle past horse & cart loads of hay, dodge 500m of massive fallen trees across our path from a previous storm, a fellow taking his bull for a drive squeezed into a little home 6 x 4 trailer on the back of his Diahatsu Charade equivalent. When the heavens really opened, we pulled up under some trees for some cover, and were joined by a German tandem couple Andreas & Christine. They inspected our Montague folding fullsize bikes and we checked out their custom tandem that packed away by unlocking and seperating the tubes in
the frame, made by 'special steel' in Berlin..........such bike tragics !
Wet and bedrazzled we found our penzion, with shared bathroom, diminutive room (in what previously must have been the stable) that was underwhelmingly rather messy to say the least. Both a little unimpressed from what they had advertised. But the bed was comfortable and we both slept like babies.
Next morning we were up and outta there in such a rush Jan even forgot her helmet behind (shes been trying to lose it, so she doesnt get hat hair !) And we found the owner running after us down the road shouting (that foiled her plan, hehe).
When we got to our ferry crossing and had to wait 30min for the ferry man, and hadn't had breakfast yet, decided on a coffee over the road. A rather run down, dischevelled roadside bar, we had to mime our need of 2 coffees & the only food available was last nights leftover 'zander' (Danube speciality) lying miserably under its warming light bulb. Another mime for one of those. Have to say the taste belied its appearance, although Jan politely turned my offer down.
2 cars, 2 vans and our 2
bikes and we were on the other side, off to Baja (said Baha). Well nothing on route other than a sheperd, his dogs and flock, some geese crossing our track and rather put out at our presence, and some odd statues in the middle of nowhere (for a pilgrimage) so it seemed, and we were in Baja.
A nice little town, clinically manicured. We found a great little cheap restuarant and settled in for a beer, wine and dinner when Traudl & Eugen (we had seen cycling before) joined us at our table. An Austrian couple from Salzburg that took cycling holidays together or hiked with their pair of Llamas ! They had newspaper articles and a host of other interesting anecdotes that we swapped with each other in broken 'germanglish' until late and exhausted we all retired to bed.
The next morning we were waved off by our very sweet little Ol man host, showered with gifts of 2 litre Lemon tea and water bottles (as it was going to be 35 degrees ! Not realky that hot for us from West Aus) that were too large, but he forced into our water bottle holders on the
bikes alk the same. We were on our way to another ferry crossing to get to Mohacs.
Mohacs is a quaint if not a bit run down and plain outside the centre of town, and hsd derived its name from the earlier Mohac tribesmen, that resembled, horned wooly Mongolian warriors that must have frightened the living daylights out of the local kids, let alone the enemy.
The following day we decided on an alternative route through the National Park to Osijek and hopefully see some wildlife. Birdlife was plentiful but distant riding along the levee bank, and then as we rounded a bend Jan was almost bowled over by a shoulder height wild deer, startled by our sudden apperance. Then in close pursuit the following 9 of the herd followed in quick succession. I never quite realised how large an animal they are !
We then ambled upon another 'Hapsburg' residence which, now is disarray, was the original hunting lodge and hence the grounds now turned into a National Park.
Our Osijek home was a modern, polished and tiled nice affair, but of little character, so we took a walk into town. The first thing that struck us
within 50m of walking, was that it looked like some homes had bullet holes in them, and literally with each step we take closer to the centre of the town the more prolific they become. Did we book our room in the wrong part of town ?
We have crossed out of Hungary into Croatia, and the bullet holes now a plentiful sight become the norm and testimony to the Serbian/Croatian war of independence from 1991 - 1995. We are both a little shel shocked to say the least.
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R John Warren
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Fascinating Account of Your Travels
We are enthralled with your description of towns, places, & journey! Keep strong!