Szia from Budapest, Hungary!
We arrived in Budapest, Hungary at the Kelenfold station via a 6 hour train ride from Zagreb, and what a beautiful journey it was. Glued to our windows the entire trip, we passed through Slovenia and saw some of the bluest lakes we’ve ever seen, this unreal turquoise color. They were surrounded by cute little towns, all with magnificent churches at their center point. I wish I could tell the train to leave me here. Come back tomorrow for me!
We did not know too much about Budapest, Hungary before we came here. When planning our trip we saw that it was on the way to where we were trying to go, and it ended up being a good halfway point to break up long travel days. We looked into it enough to know that it was safe, had some good food, beautiful architecture, and a lot of history. Of course I wouldn’t mind spending a few days there. Silly.
Buda and Pest
On the way to our Airbnb, we passed over the Szechenyi Chain Bridge which spans the Danube River and separates Buda from Pest. Yeah, I didn’t know Buda and Pest were two different towns. We were staying on the Pest side which is known for being the more touristy side of town, and where the Hungarian Parliament Building sits. Our Budapest history lesson of the day was brought to you by our local taxi driver.
Live Like a Local
We are staying in this super cute, modern loft apartment. It was on the very top story of this building, and we had to walk along a narrow walkway with just a thin little rail that would do absolutely nothing if I started to fall. This is going to be great. I’m fine. Have I mentioned I have a fear of heights?! Once inside the apartment, it had this huge window that overlooked the streets. It was a beautiful sunny day, people were performing in the streets, restaurants and shops surrounded us, and there was this big beautiful library {link Metropolitan Ervin Szabo Library} at the end of the street. I immediately got over my fear of heights. I could sit here all day long and people watch.
We took advantage of staying in an apartment and got some much needed laundry done. If you have never been out of the US, please look into the size of washer/dryer units in other countries. It’s like it belongs in a doll house. They are so small. So. Small. And most of them are washer dryer combos. You can fit a shirt and a pair of pants. Maybe. So it ended up taking the next two days to get our laundry done. While I had been doing laundry, there was a freak thunderstorm! It had been so sunny out all day, not a cloud in the sky. Out of nowhere it started to down pour and big thunder booms! And yes!! This window was the perfect seat for the show.
A Walk Along the Danube
The next day we ventured around Pest seeing all it had to offer. There are a lot of souvenir shops and clothing stores around. We walked by the Great Market Hall, which is the largest and oldest indoor market around, people watched in Heroes Square, and strolled along the Danube. There was a nice breeze coming off the water, so we decided to find something to eat around here. While searching for food, we noticed something across the river. It was some sort of structure built into the side of a hill. It was spectacular! We found a cute cafe with the perfect view of this place. We were told it is Gellert Hill. It was once a monastery and houses a series of caves. We did not have the time this trip to explore that, but we most definitely will next time!
This cafe was so cute. The ladies working were so nice and recommended the best bagels we had in a long time. I got a sesame bagel with camembert cheese, homemade blueberry jam, and spinach. It was SO GOOD. The cheese and the jam together. Perfection. Seth had the “Hungarian bagel” which consisted of a vegetable “stew” (called Hungarian Lesco), sausage, and cheese. It was very hearty, and so flavorful. So Hungarian.
I thoroughly enjoyed our time here. It was not enough time, per usual. Now that I have gotten over the fear of traveling through Eastern Europe, I cannot wait to come back and explore more.
Follow as we explore a new country while waiting for a train change!…
