Budapest
N 47°33'994'' E 019°03'675''
Day: 61
Sunrise:
06:30 a.m.
Sunset:
6:43 pm
Total kilometers:
1621.64 Km
Temperature – Day (maximum):
28,8 °C
Temperature – day (minimum):
21 °C
Temperature – Night:
7,3 °C
Latitude:
47°33’994”
Longitude:
019°03’675”
Maximum height:
108 m above sea level
After breakfast, we ask the hotel reception how best to get into the city. “By train or bus,” the young woman replies with a smile. We find out where the train station is in this part of the city and set off to explore one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. “Do you see a ticket machine around here?” I ask Tanja. “No. Maybe you can buy the ticket on the train.” “Hm, maybe,” I reply. When the train arrives, we get on and try to find someone to buy a ticket from. “There doesn’t seem to be a conductor,” says Tanja. “I hope they don’t check much here. It would be really unpleasant to be caught fare dodging in Hungary. We can’t explain to them that we wanted to buy a ticket, can we?” I say with a bad feeling.
Thank goodness we arrive in the center of Budapest without being checked. We discover the library directly opposite the bus stop. I buy a map of Hungary and we take the opportunity to check our emails. Then we walk across the Chain Bridge to the other side of the city in beautiful weather. Before we take the time to explore the capital, we check whether we need a visa for Croatia or Serbia. If we want to follow the Danube, these are the next countries we cycle through. We run from travel agency to travel agency and no one can give us the right information. “Everything has changed since the war. The terrible war in Yugoslavia is still in our bones. There are very few Hungarians who spend their vacations there,” explains the travel agent at a travel agency. We manage to call the helpful lady at our hotel. “I’ll take care of it,” she promises. We contact her again hours later. “It wasn’t easy to get hold of someone at the Yugoslavian embassy. They don’t speak Hungarian there. But I was able to find out that they don’t need a visa,” her answer relieves us.
Because of the high prices, we make ourselves comfortable on a bench in the afternoon, unpack our thermos flask and eat our ready-made meal from the bag at the foot of a monument in the middle of the pedestrian zone. “It’s a good thing nobody knows us here,” I laugh, spooning up my Travellunch meal with relish. “If you think about it, our seat here is even nicer than the one in the high-class restaurant next door,” says Tanja happily, toasting me.
Then we board a boat to enjoy a round trip on the Danube. “It’s definitely the best way to learn as much as possible about Budapest in a short space of time,” I say, looking forward to the sightseeing tour.
The sun is already low when the excursion boat sets sail. The pearl of Hungary, the cosmopolitan city, city of artists and operettas shows itself from its best side. It doesn’t take long for us to be captivated by the magnificent houses, the church towers, the incredible parliament building with its 365 spires, the castles and palaces of the former royal city. The charisma, the splendor, the aura of this pulsating metropolis tells of the past glory of the monarchy with every pore.
Later, as the sun sets, we stand in amazement on the shore and enjoy the successive flickering of the lights. Houses, towers, palaces, castles and bridges shine in artificial light. It looks as if the city of cities is wearing a golden crown. Soft music can be heard from the alleyways and restaurants on the promenade. People dine by candlelight. Glasses clink, laughter rings out and in the distance we can hear the low hum of the many cars, buses and trucks that pour through the streets, boulevards and avenues like glowing ribbons of light, like insatiable snakes. It is a sight that makes us dream. A sight that strengthens our desire to visit other cities, other peoples and cultures and to explore them for ourselves.
