Hungary

Go shorty, it’s your birthday. On June 18th 1976, a beautiful young lady named Nadia gave birth to an amazing little boy (me). Amazing because he was born with incredible super powers. Word got to Europe so quickly that they created a biscuit in his honor.

Goose liver. We promised Jay and Gabi some of the good stuff. Unfortunately we knew nothing about it and the staff in the store could not speak a word of English. We wanted the whole liver not the pate. I hope we got it right. We’ll find out soon enough.

Galuska. We also promised my sister Manel a galuska (dumpling) maker. Sis, we scoured the city in search of one and eventually found something. You might be pleasantly surprised when we get home.

Shopping. Bought a few things for ourselves. They had some really cool clothes and everything was reasonably priced.

Szia Magyar. We are a little sad to leave Hungary today. Budapest is a truly beautiful city and it treated us well. The people were always so pleasant and helpful (except for the Rail Control lady) and we were greeted with nothing but the warmest hospitality. Apart from only recognising vegetable matter as a form of garnish (to be honest, veggies are commonly used in soup which makes up a significant part of the Hungarian staple), we really loved everything about this place. I’ll just have to get a salad elsewhere! I enjoyed watching Vic report back to her parents every night with such exuberance and enthusiasm. Jay and Gabi, thanks for all the tips and for topping up our knowledge of the region’s history.

There is smoke coming from that cabin. Vic got talking to a couple of Hungarian girls sitting across from us. They were smokers too and the three of them had worked out that the symbol for no-smoking was absent. In fact, there was a sign saying you could smoke so they simultaneously lit up. The drinks guy explained that it was a non-smoking train and if they were caught by control the penalty would be a hefty fine. Time to spray a bit of deodorant and enjoy the view of the wind farms and lavender fields passing by.

Happy Birthday, Luka. Best day of the year mate!

Lukacs. What better way to start the day?!

Margitsziget. An island in the middle of the Danube between Buda and Pest. We came across those little electric cars and just had to hire one. I drove Vicki around the island providing detailed explanations of all the sights I knew nothing about (in a mixed European accent). We then switched and Vicki drove. I continued the tour.

Buda Castle. Ohh, this is what it looks like. Glad we got to see the real one after our failure a few days back. The area surrounding the palace was just as impressive as the palace itself. Lots of photos then made our way through the parklands towards the Danube. Vic gave a gypsy violinist 3 Euro for a tune. He then refused us passage until they had a photo together whilst playing Waltzing Matilda.

Chain bridge. Vicki’s Great Great Grandfather worked as an engineer in the construction of this bridge. Two stone lions guarded each of the entrances. The composition was a combination of stone and metal. Bit of a graffiti problem in Budapest and unfortunately the bridge was not spared. Nor was it spared when the Germans decided to collapse it when the Soviets were advancing. Up close you could see where the lions had been repaired. Superb bridge.

Gerbaud. Another Budapest institution famous for it’s sweets and particularly the icecream. I thought I’d just have something small before dinner. No such thing. Serving sizes in Hungary start at large and work upward from there. Check out the size of the beast below!

Menza. We found a cool little pocket of restaurants and bars not far from where we were staying. It was my birthday tomorrow and I somehow knew we would be up past midnight. I think that fuelled my thirst for the ethanol-flavoured drinks. What a place though, cool music, cool people and great food. Nice way to spend our final night in Hungary. Bit pissy but I’ll deal with that in the morning.

Lukasc. Ham and egg croissant with mustard (I think). Gabi, Vic dobbed you in by saying the egg salad is a specialty of yours. As a special gift for letting you look after our beloved low maintenance kittenz, I’m gonna allow you to make it for me every time I come over and maybe even when you come to ours. Magyar egg with ham, Sam I am.

Terra Haza (House of Terror). A building formerly known as the 'House of Loyalty', occupied by the Nazis, Arrow Cross, AVO (secret police) and Communist parties. It was used as their headquarters to interrogate, imprison and execute. It has since been transformed into a museum/exhibition to highlight the suffering of the Hungarian people under each regime. The message may well possess a form of bias and not sure if the sentiment is shared amongst all Hungarians but it certainly got our attention. It was extremely well laid out with chilling music, spooky lighting, authentic war memorabilia and video confessions. Keen to get our hands on a few good books when we get home.

Fruit and nut. We walked from the station to the lake along a street containing an abundance of fruit and nut trees. Many were overhanging the sidewalk. Mainly cherries and almonds. It's a good thing that I am taller than the average Magyar otherwise I would have had Vicki on my shoulders to grab some of nature's finest.

Lake Balaton. Time to visit the famous lake Balaton. The largest in Europe outside Scandinavia. We grabbed ourselves some Hungarian fast food, Langos and Schnitzel then headed to the lakeshore for a nibble. I didn’t wait the required 30 minutes before swimming, simply couldn’t hold myself back. So peaceful in the water. The lake across the horizon gave the appearance of the ocean and so it should considering that it stretched over 77km. Marvellous.

Balaton Dinner. More guyasleves and schnitzel. Still not sick of it! Zac, you would have loved it here. Schnitzel city.

Control. “Show me your ticket!” These fuckers are known to target and trap tourists and this chick was no exception. She swooped on us as soon as we pulled out the metro map. We had tickets but apparently only those short trip types valid for 3 stops. We travelled 4. We bought the tickets and validated them but it was apparently our fault for not reading the fine print on the back. “Lady, you’re being unreasonable. If I buy a ticket after telling the attendant where I wish to go then I simply validate, put it in my pocket and board the train. If I was trying to evade the fair then I wouldn’t have bought a ticket at all.” “Not my problem Mister, you problem, you pay 6000 forint” “You’re not getting it, I bought a ticket from the metro attendant…” She just wouldn’t budge. Infuriating. I lost it, she threatened to get the police and I welcomed it. They’d surely have more basic logic than this cow. Some other lady took over. I could see in her eyes that she understood our plea but the other little bitch kept butting in whenever we made progress. Vic negotiated a single fine of 6000 between us then sneakily pulled out 2 or so thousand and claimed it was all the cash we had. She also tried softening them up by attempting to speak Hungarian. The “nice” lady escorted us to an ATM and away from that $#%*. I had a feeling she knew the ATM was broken and decided to let us off. Vic gave her a kiss and we walked back to the apartment. After explaining the story to the hotel staff, they told us to just walk off in future. They cannot touch or detain you. They are within their rights to call the police (rarely do) but cannot force you to wait for them to arrive. Sucked in you little mole, we win this round! Tourists beware.

Happy Birthday, Zo-Zo!

Lukasc. To Vicki’s dismay, Lukasc had run out of Dobos Torte (a classic Hungarian style cake) on our last few visits. The dessert consists of alternating layers of biscuit and chocolate cream topped with crispy caramel. It is very difficult to make without turning it into a piece of abstract art but these guys had it mastered. I think Vic would have been heartbroken if she didn’t get to sample a piece from her now favourite cafe. Check out the smile.

Adventure. We used a combination of tram, bus and metro to get to Statue Park. The rubbish directions we were provided easily doubled our travel time. Not a total loss. We saw parts of the city that we may not have otherwise stumbled across.

Budafok. We didn’t find out until after we had spoken to Vicki’s Parents but the park we were visiting was in a leafy green suburb called Budafok. This is where Vicki’s Grandfather lived. How cool! If we had known earlier, we would have spent some time tracking down the family home.

Statue Park. The new communist movement or Soviet occupation in the fifties saw Budapest littered with statues of the various leaders and figure heads, none more notorious (or commonly depicted) than Lenin. Most of the other countries under the Iron Curtain had destroyed all remnants of Communist occupation. Hungary decided to keep those that survived (many were destroyed by the public once the curtain fell in 1989) and placed them in a park as a reminder of the past (I think Poland has done the same thing). I really admire that. The past is the past and irrespective of a nation’s (or the world’s) current views on Communism, it is something that had a significant impact on Hungary and it’s people and should not be forgotten. It also made for fascinating viewing from a tourist perspective. The statues were big, bold and often sent a powerful message. Fascinating stuff.

Cherries. After a hot day in the sun we eventually made our way back to the Bus stop. We snuck behind the bus shelter to hide in the only shade available. A couple of elderly laddies had the same idea and shared an empathetic smile. We couldn’t understand what she was saying but I’m sure it was something like, “grab a handful” as she opened a bag of the biggest, sweetest and most plump cherries ever. I swear these things were the size of plums. Just the natural sugar fix we needed. Thanks, Old Lady Magyar!

Gundel. One of the oldest long standing restaurant names in Budapest, which has won almost all there is to win in Europe and it wasn’t hard to workout why. We should have really been wearing a tux and ball gown for this place but the service was not compromised based on our somewhat casual appearance. I think I counted 10 to 12 different waiters for our table alone. Maitre d’, aperitif waiter, food waiter (initial order), wine waiter, a new waiter to deliver and clear each course, dessert waiter, someone to check how we liked each course, digestif waiter and finally someone to bring out the bill. Marvellous service. We felt like royalty and the food was amazing. No other word for it and none of those pissy little serves you normally get when fine dining either. We couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces. Gundel had their own gift shop selling memorabilia so I asked if I could buy a menu. They just gave me one. Icing on the cake. Thanks for the tip, Rob!

Hosok Tere (Heroes square). Dinner should really have increased our gravitational pull but instead we felt light as we floated toward Hero’s square. The square paid tribute to the millennial anniversary of the Magyar conquest of the Carpathian Basin in 1896. We topped the night off with a casual stroll back to the hotel down tree lined Andrassi Ut.

Buda. Now that we’d explored part of Pest, it was time to cross the Danube and take a closer look at Buda. We stopped for a couple of beers before pulling out the tourist map. The waiter serving us was hugely opinionated and full of political angst. It was good to just shut up and listen to his views on some of the deep-stemmed political issues that we in Australia are fortunately foreign to. He reminded Vic of her Pappa and Uncle Nick, he had the same piercing blue eyes and olive complexion.

Fisherman’s Bastion. Most of the exterior was covered in scaffolding, maybe part of a restoration project in preparation for the imminent tourist season but it was unrecognisable to the untrained eye. We originally thought it was Buda Palace. To be perfectly honest, we didn’t come to that realisation until the following day.

Marzipan. For anyone that has taken a peep inside our pantry, you will know that Marzipan is a standard addition. I don’t eat the stuff but Vic has a dependency on it. We stumbled across a museum showcasing incredible structures made entirely of Marzipan. Vic wasn’t terribly interested in the art but that didn’t stop her from hitting the gift shop.

Ruszwurm Cafe. Another Budapest institution (recommended by Vic’s Mum who was a regular in her younger years). Apparently the best Vanilla slice in town and as we soon found out, the biggest Sundaes too!

Gellert baths. I was getting antsy in need of a bath. Gellert is one of the most famous Hungarian mineral bathhouses. Hot and cold, indoor and outdoor, saunas, plunge pools, this place had it all. The complex was built in the early 1900s with a distinct Art Nouveau flavour. It was the perfect way to rest our tired legs after a full day of exploration. I could easily spend a week here although we were a bit prune like when we left. Didn’t get to try the massage, Rob but only because of the advance booking system. Next time.

http://www.gellertbath.com/

Gabi’s apartment. After soaking in the mineral baths for a few hours we set out to find the apartment Vic’s Mum grew up in. I couldn’t keep up with Vic as she scurried down the street, map in hand. It was surprisingly close to the Gellert. I could tell that Vic was filled with mixed emotion as she frantically tried to capture the perfect shot before dark which included pics of the building, the entrance, the street and the park across the way, where Gabi used to walk her pooch (Ronnie Bonnie Boxer). Although Gabi was thousands of kilometres away it almost felt like she was there with us.

Vic's Mum lived on the right side, first floor

Schnitty. Back to Vaci Utca for Dinner. We ate the tastiest schnitzel with almond flakes in the crispy breaded exterior. If it wasn’t for the goose overdose the night before, I would have eaten two!

Liberty Bridge. After dinner, we walked along the Danube towards the Liberty Bridge. It was incredibly beautiful under lights and complemented the cityscape well. Countless pictures thwarted only by Vicki’s patience. She eventually confiscated the camera only to start taking pictures herself!