Discovering Budapest, Hungary 03/08/2018
Hungary is the Central European country with its name dating to early middle ages, when the Pannonia Basin was populated by Hungarian tribes (Magyars), a semi-nomadic people that migrated from Eastern Europe. Namely, the Hungarian language belongs to the Uralian language group, such as Finnish and Estonian. To me this unusual language does not resemble any other language, but luckily many of 1. 8 million citizens of Budapest do speak fair English and communication is not a problem.
The City of Budapest is becoming increasingly popular European destination, with many things to offer, from its café culture to sight- seeing. With cheap flights to Budapest and reasonably priced accommodation and services, the Budapest is now a popular worldwide destination for the both, tourists and movie makers. Few times during our short stay in Budapest we have witnessed the movie filming on the spot. Similar to Bratislava, Vienna or Belgrade, the City of Budapest owes its beauty to high extent to the beautiful Danube river. Yet, none of the above mentioned cities has such spaciousness as Budapest, as compared to Prague or Vienna, the Budapest is much grander in scale.
I have experienced Hungarians as hardworking, calm and kind people, but of a bit introverted and reserved mentality. Perhaps, we the noisy people from Balkans are too used to hearing loud children and adults in city parks and public squares. Despite joining the EU in 2004, the Hungarian leadership with Viktor Orbán remained critical of Western European multiculturalism and immigration, and not many immigrants may be seen in Budapest. However, the streets of Budapest are well crowded with tourists and tourism is well organised. The Hungarians seem to care a lot about sports, culture and arts, and it is common to see people jogging along the river banks or live performing in the centres of worship and culture. The concerts, exhibitions and other live events are plentiful in Budapest.
Short Budapest City Break – Quick Guide of what to see and do
My first recommendation would be to climb the Budapest Eye in the Central Pest to get the larger perspective of the city, especially noticing the contrast between the hilly Buda side and flat Pest side, the natural contrast that adds so much beauty to this metropolis. The great sightseeing is possible from all elevated spots in the City from the Buda Castle, Citadel to Gellert.
Hop on – Hop off city tours
Recommendations for the tourists on low budget is to use the Rbmb or Booking flats instead of hotels (although the hotels are also very affordable, compared to other cities in Europe), and purchase three day Hop on – Hop off ticket from local tourist agencies. Namely, these tourist packages allow constant use of public transportation, the river cruising and use of professional tourist guides at a fair price. The premium packages may also include the use of thermal baths, night dinner cruises and cultural shows by wish. This ticket enabled us to cheaply tour the city visiting its five parts few times in only three days: Buda Castle district, Gellert /Taban, the Central Pest/ Parliament area and Varosliget. The Hop on Hop off touring is all well covered by great audios in many languages, explaining not only the history, but the tradition and lifestyle of citizens in Budapest. Because of its turbulent past, Budapest’s architecture and sights offer a great deal of diversity, from the Roman ruins of Aquinicum, Turkish baths to the Neo Gothic Hungarian Parliament. The centuries long strive for independence from the foreign rulers, be it the Ottomans, Habsburgs or the Soviets, reflected in the arts, history and culture of the City.
River Cruises
As a tourist you should not miss cruising along the Dunabe river, as the cruises offer the best close ups of the major bridges over Dunabe, the great view of the Margaret island and the splendour Hungarian Parliament, the second largest in Europe. From the boat one can also enjoy the major highlights on the Buda side hills: the Buda Castle built by King Bela IV in XIII century, the famous Statute of Liberty (the controversial statute dominating the City built in 1945 to commemorate the liberation of Budapest by the Soviet Soldiers, one of rare monuments from the communist era which has not been removed after the liberation), and St. Matyas Church (the coronation church of Hungarian kings from the XV century). Apart from these excellent sights, the agencies also offer the night cruises that include dinner and shows of traditional folk dance – czardas.
Recommendations for arts, history and culture lovers
Among numerous places of worship worth-vising in Budapest, one of major is St.Stephan Basilica in the Central Pest, the grandest church built in XIX century named after country’s first king St Stephen. The magnificent Basilica is also the centre for great classical concerts, where you can hear music by the great composers from List to Beethoven. An important place of culture to visit is the Hungarian National Museum that gives a great overview of the rich Hungarian history. From Roman to Turkish influences, the World Wars and Communist area, the Hungarians had a long history of fighting for their independence. The major arts institutions in Budapest originate from the XIX when Hungarian artists and builders were mostly inspired by their Austrian, Italian and French contemporaries. The Hungarian National Museum has special section devoted to Franc List, the renowned Hungarian Composer from XIX century, also educated in Vienna. The architecture in Budapest is predominantly of neo classical style, resembling to those of typical European cities (Vienna or Prague). The National Gallery within the Buda Castle Complex offers a great overview of Hungarian art master pieces. In the visual arts and music the Hungarians were very much looking up to their Austrian and Italian contemporaries, and the major art institutions in Budapest were founded in XIX century.
Eating out, shopping and leisure
Budapest will certainly not leave disappoint you in this area. Varoslight area of Pest offers a great deal to sport lovers and families with children. One can choose from big zoo, large ice-skating area in the Central Park (Hungarians are famous ice skating lovers), to indulging in thermal baths and pools of Varoslight.
The Central Pest again is filled with restaurants and bars, from Asian to Italian cuisine, perfectly complementing the traditional Hungarian food culture of goulash. For those with sweet tooth I would certainly recommend the great Kings Marzipan, the unforgettable luxury treat of many aromas, from domestic white wine to chocolate. The traditional chimney cake is being sold out all around the city, however, to me its sweet cinnamon smell is superior to taste. The Hungarians do serve exquisite coffee, and I have certainly not tried the poorly made coffee in Budapest. The night life is very diverse and rich, from electronic music to jazz, the local clubs and bars will surely make the night birds enjoy their stay in Budapest.
For the shopping lovers the Vaci Street is an excellent choice, the city’s commercial and social hub. However, do pay a visit the nearby Central Market Hall as well, as this is a place of historical value and grandiose architecture, but also famous for its paprika spices, great cheese and salami selection.
UNTIL NEXT TIME, DEAR BUDAPEST
Re-published from blog Cokoholic