See what we got up to on our first few days of travel here, otherwise read on…
-day 3
We awoke on our second full day in Budapest, still slightly sore and tired from the day before. This was in no small part due to two factors: one, the paper thin walls that surround the rooms of our hostel and two, that they had chosen to house a walrus with sleep apnoea there alongside side us.
When we first heard the noise that this sea mammal was emanating we assumed that someone above us was dragging a fridge across a rubber floor, then we thought perhaps had put some wellington boots on spin cycle in the washing machine. It was only after the noise had continued for several hours that we realised that this guttural cacophony was being caused by a human being.
Three rooms away from us, three rooms through which the ceiling panels shook and lights swayed, this giant beast slept and vibrated the foundations of the building with each choking breath. Killing him would be our only escape but sadly harpoons are not as prevalent in European hostels as they might be.
Content with small amount of sleep that we had managed to get, we set out for another day of relentless exploration.
Our first stop for the day was the expansive Heroes Square. A large area to the north of the city which is home to a set of statues dedicated to those Hungarians that are credited with playing some key part in the formation of the country. The area was packed with tour groups, each clambering to take exactly the same picture from exactly the same angle. This one in fact:
We then headed into City Park just to the north of the square, home to the Vajdahunyad Castle and the most famous baths in the city, Széchenyi thermal bath. After a quick tour around the grounds of the park as well as the castle we were satisfied that we had seen enough and headed off for one of the major highlights of any trip to Budapest, a dip in one of the many thermal baths.
Despite being very close to Budapest’s main bath, we decided that we’d forgo the prestige and head for one of the smaller ones in the hope that it would be less crowded. In the end we went for Kiraly Bath, across the river in Buda.
We were definitely not disappointed. Kiraly Bath doesn’t look much from the outside, but it’s interior is simply stunning.
The baths were built in the late 16th century and you really feel like you are stepping back in time as you enter. The old stone walls under the ancient Turkish domed roof make for an amazingly atmospheric and relaxing experience as you sink into the medicinal waters.
The dome is perforated by about 16 head sized holes which allow sun rays to pierce through the misty darkness of the main bath area. Cameras are not allowed in but believe me when I tell you that it truly is a site to behold.
After two hours of soaking in the soothing waters of the bath, and now shrivelled and wrinkled like hairy prunes, we exited the baths in search of some much needed lunch.
Having eaten, we had a relaxed stroll along the Pest side of the Danube, past the Hungarian Parliament, quite probably the spikiest parliament building in the world.
It was now headed into late afternoon so we thought it a good time to head to one of the most famous bars in the city, the For Sale bar.
The For Sale bar, from the outside appears fairly non-descript but once you enter it becomes apparent that this is not your average bar. Every piece of ceiling, wall, column and bar is completely coated in pieces of paper that house the writings of its many visitors over the years.
While this does make for an interesting site, the service there is outrageously aggressive. We had not been there 5 minutes when 3 Scottish ladies came in and committed the shameful crime of asking whether they served Southern Comfort. The bar-woman rolled hers eyes before screaming at them that they needed to read the menu before they order and she would not speak to them until they knew exactly what they wanted. For this woman, the presence of customers seemed little more than a nuisance and, after a good laugh about it with the Glaswegian girls, we left with a sour taste in our mouth.
We headed off for a short walk and found some food before heading home for another night of hoping our earplugs can filter out the sound of someone suffocating on their own tongue.
Day 4
Following a second night of being serenaded by our fellow guests, we quickly gathered what we needed for the day and headed out for our final day in Budapest.
We got the Metro over to the Buda side of the river before heading up Gellert Hill towards the Citadella and Liberty Statue. What we thought would be a moderately challenging amble up to the summit was revealed, on closer inspection, to be a leg-destroying hike up some of the steepest paths that we’d ever encountered. Exhausted, we dragged our pathetic bodies to the top of hill and through our tear drenched eyes, saw a view that told us it had all been worth it.
The Citadella was built in 1851 and has had an eventful history, having been occupied by the Soviet Union in the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and used as the staging post for the assault that eventually led to the overthrow of the Hungarian Government. This history is literally written all over the walls in the pock-marked façade upon which you can trace the machine gun fire that hit the building.
The walk down was markedly easier than the walk up, however we had still worked up a serious appetite. Fortunately we were relatively close to the Great Market Hall, a huge building in which hundreds of stallholders sell their wares and foods of all types can be purchased.
If you ever spend any time in Hungary, you’ll soon realise that the place has a serious obsession with paprika. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the Great Market Hall. We went in thinking there were maybe three types of paprika – this is incorrect – there are approximately 4 million types each so subtly different from the other that they immediately negate their own existence. I’m dubbing this the paprika paradox, an idea that would be illegal in Hungary, punishable by death.
Dizzy from swimming our way through the oceans of paprika, we sought solace in a restaurant on the upper level and finally got to enjoy a very tasty, if red and smoky, lunch.
Blimey, I don’t half bang on about paprika, don’t I?!
The afternoon was given over to preparations for our fast approaching departure from Budapest. The next day we were due to head off on the train to our second destination - Siófok.
We settled in that night, excited to see what this change of scenery was to bring.