We'd selected the three countries/cities on our route as we'd never visited before and they all seemed to offer an exotic and different experience from ones we'd had on previous trips: there was not much more planning than that. Normally we'd make use of highspeed rail around Europe but the trains into Poland, in particular, are notoriously unreliable and slow. We had an 8 plane interchange for our 17 days!
Straight after school on Thursday, to Hong Kong, then Frankfurt and onward to Budapest, we arrived early Friday morning through the magic of erasing time zones, and taxied through a flurrying sky and snow kissed landscape to Budapest city. Ensconced at the gate to the old Jewish quarter we met the first of our hosts for the private apartments we would stay in all three cities. After a quick orientation session of the quirks and features of our very comfortable space, we were able to set out on a first foray into the city.
Cass had armed herself with a guide book and I had various apps and maps electronically, but our first mission was to grab some cash in "forints", nail down the metro, then get some supplies to stock our little apartment's larder to ensure we didn't need to brave the snow to get some breakfast. We worked the ATM, then worried over the rather confusing metro instructions for a while before buying a book of ten tickets, getting them validated then diving onto a very "communist era" looking train to travel a few stops down the line. We disembarked in a very un-communist looking sparkling mall where I sourced the right electrical adaptor I was after (come on, iPad, iPod, phone and camera all needed some help by now!)then we braved the underground dwelling masses to get some Hungarian foodcourt food: even that was delicious! It was -6 upside and we wondered how our Taiwanese down jackets were going to cope when we trained back and emerged into a bitter flurry. Scarf swathed and hats on, we were surprised to find they were coping really well!
Over the next five days, we had some of the most magical experiences you could possible imagine. Our second afternoon and evening was on our only organized tour, one which turned out to be an eye-opener. The Alternative Budapest tour was a walking one over 3 and a half hours and we saw street art, crumbling synagogues, yarn bombing, dead drops, hidden corners and the coolest bars and venues we've ever seen anywhere in the world. Our trip culminated in a trip to the A38, a massive Ukranian container ship moored on the Danube and a visit to the VIP bandroom out the back, deep in the working bowels of the ship. It's the number one bar in the world!
Our visits to the twinkling nighttime Christmas markets were almost too magical to believe: the snow wafted down on steaming cups of mulled wine and skaters danced on tiny ice rinks set up in the central courtyards. The wooden stalls sheltered wood and wool, marzipan and leather, pottery and paintings. We walked and sampled and marveled. We soaked up delicate and perfect concerts of Hungarian maestro Liszt in churches on Christmas night and feasted on local delicacies in late night suppers just off the main square in toasty restaurants. During the day, we crossed the Chain Bridge, explored the Buda Castle hill and warded off the cold by ducking into restaurants and bars to sample more Hungarian coffees, wine and food. We traveled by underground to visit the magnificent Heroes' Square and in the shadow of the thousand dancing ice skaters were delighted to stumble on a major Cezanne exhibition....what does this city not have?!
One day, we boarded a bus for a tour of the city which, remarkably splashed straight into the Danube itself and continued the tour! The River Ride bus/ship was a unique engineering achievement and it was exciting to experience the splashpoint with rousing music as accompaniment. Check our little video here. We caught trams all round the city from Pest to Buda and back again, in the morning and the fading light and later at night. The double city split by the Danube is a perfect little gem of crumbling Gothic architecture, a thriving little metropolis pulling itself ever so slowly from its recent communist neglect and austerity. Even though cold and stark for much of our visit, Budapest is a succulent bud pushing its way out of a neglected garden bed, and we want to return to watch it blossom. Here is a link to the Budapest album once it disappears. Berlin here we come!