Icing on the Cake
Hungary – Sightseeing in Budapest (2-3 Oct 2018)
Weather: 4⁰C min – 19⁰C max, mostly cloudy
“Dream as if you’ll live forever, live as if you’ll die today” ~ James Dean
My focus yesterday was on sourcing a cardboard bicycle box to pack my bike for its easyJet flight to London tomorrow. After trying in vain at about eight bike shops, in desperation I tried a large general sports store in a shopping centre. I ventured into the storeroom at the back of the store, which got me a stiff reprimand from the storeman, but when I explained that I was just after an empty box he pointed to several lying in the corner awaiting disposal.
Carrying the huge box 2 Km back to my apartment was not easy, then when I arrived it was too big to fit into the small lift so I had to carry it up three flights of stairs. After cutting the box back to size with a pocket knife, I dismantled my bike (pedals, front wheel, seat, and handlebars removed, tyres deflated) then packed it into the box. Then I booked an airport shuttle minibus to pick me up tomorrow. What a relief!
Now I can get down to some serious sightseeing in this fantastic city. With no bike to ride I decided the best way to get around was the hop-on hop-off red bus. However, my impatience with the heavy traffic got the better of me when I got as far as the Chain Bridge stop on the Buda side of the Danube so I got off and walked to the sights I was interested in.
Chain Bridge is Budapest’s magnificent suspension bridge that connects the Buda (West) and Pest (Eastern) sides of the city, arching over the River Danube. The first point of interest I came to after walking across to the Pest side was the Shoes on the Danube Bank, a memorial that pays tribute to the Jewish people killed in Hungary during World War Two. It’s comprised of 60 pairs of iron-cast, sculpted shoes, a poignant tribute that gives remembrance to the 3,500 people (800 of them Jews) who were shot into the River Danube during the time of the Arrow Cross terror from 1944-1945.
From there I headed over to St Stephen’s Basilica, the largest church in Budapest and also one of Hungary’s most iconic structures that can hold up to 8,500 people. The mummified right hand of the patron saint of the church and first King of Hungary, St Stephen, is kept in a glass case to the left of the main altar. But it was the architecture that impressed, with a dome 96 m high and decorated with many ornate religious paintings on the inside.
From there I made my way to the Jewish Quarter, where I discovered Szimpla Kert which, until it was redeveloped in 2001, was a huge, dilapidated building with an open courtyard and a labyrinth of rooms. Now it has been transformed into Budapest’s most famous and most atmospheric nightlife area, with all kinds of interesting furniture, artwork and mind-bending communist memorabilia. Click the Szimpla Kert button above if you want to be blown away like I was.
Nothing can top Szimpla Kert, so I found a great little coffee shop then headed back to my apartment to get ready for the Hungarian Folklore concert tonight. On the way I will eat at Hummus Bar where I feasted last night for 1,790 Forent (A$7.90).
Today is just the icing on the cake for what has been a great tour!
