Bolger Family Travels

Monday, December 9, 2019

The Best of Pest in Pictures

This lion guarding Chain Bridge

is actually in Buda. So sue me.

Buda Castle, the Danube, and on the extreme

right, Chain Bridge. For a Sunday morning

coming down, there was a lot of boat

traffic on the river.

Yes, I did risk life and limb for this

shot, stepping into non-existent

traffic. Don't fret -- I survived!

Fisherman's Bastion

The east side of the

Parliament building.

A cool building behind Parliament.

The back east side of the Parliament building

A memorial to the victims of Soviet

oppression in the 1956 Revolution.

Torie, Carol, and the two soldiers guarding the

Hungarian flag post. Photo not possible

during the Cold War.

Like a lion in the winter, I

can hear the summer call.

Monument to Lajos Kossuth, who was honored

for something. Daniel Webster wrote a book about

Kossuth's life.

Another former Hungarian leader.

I'm not sure which conflict this

memorial represents, but it is

done in the eastern European style.

Don't want to meet this guy

in a dark alley, or in battle.

A sun-splashed spire on the south

side of the Parliament building.

St. Matthias on the hill, and the

Calvinist Church on the Danube.

I still think Calvin and Hobbes is

the greatest comic strip of all-time.

Don't try to change my mind.

One last look at the Parliament building.

The shoes on the Danube.

St. Matthias.

I gotta believe this is left over

from their commie days.

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Selfies In Budapest

Parliament in the background.

Basilica Christmas market.

We enjoyed, but did not love, our first Christmas market experience. (Spoiler alert -- we absolutely adored last night's market in Vienna, but you'll have to wait on that).

Chain Bridge is very cool to cross, and we picked up more and more people walking with us toward the common goal -- the Christmas markets on the Pest side of the Danube. Our first stop was the Christmas Fair and Winter Festival at Vörösmarty Square.

Our first stop at the first stop was for our first taste of gluwein, which is mulled wine. Well, it was the first taste for Carol and I -- Torie had it before. Well, it's possible that we've had gluwein at a Christmas Party in the States, but none comes immediately to mind.

Carol got plum gluwein, while Torie and I went with the blueberry. You probably know that gluwein is mulled wine, but if you didn't know that, now you do! Ours was piping hot, while Carol's was lukewarm at best. Hotter is better, and so is blueberry! There was not much flavor, nor much alcohol in the wine, but it was worth trying.

The Christmas market was jammed packed with people. Like hard to move around jammed-packed. We were there for the Christmas decorations, but there were not a lot in the stalls. There was a lot more stuff you would buy for Christmas presents. The food stalls looked amazing, although we did eat in a restaurant after a while.

Fashion Street was just off the square -- there were lots of expensive stores, and a Ritz Carlton. The lights on the buildings and the various lights/fake trees made for an attractive block.

We then headed to the other main Christmas market in Budapest, at Basilica Square (there are small markets in various areas of the city). That was a more enjoyable experience, as it was not quite as crowded.

Torie really wanted to have chicken paprikash for dinner. We tried one restaurant where she thought her group had eaten a year ago, but without reservations there was no room. We found a nice restaurant, Hilda, on a side street.

There were plenty of open tables, but apparently those were reserved. We sat at the bar and enjoyed dinner, and beer (not Carol, of course -- she had her g & t). Torie said the chicken paprikash was not as good here as the one she had a year ago.

Back to the Christmas market by the Basilica -- the lights were fabulous. We had chimney cakes (not the real name). Torie had the cinnamon/sugar and Carol and I split a raspberry. The cinnamon/sugar was better, but both were good. We wandered around a bit more before heading back across the river to the hotel.

After flying overnight across the pond, a two hour sleep, and eight and a half miles of walking (pretty good considering we didn't walk much in the morning because of travel), I was exhausted. Nine hours and fifteen minutes later, I woke up.

Pest and the Christmas Markets

Looking up at Buda Castle from Pest.

One of the more impressive food

tents at a Christmas market.

This may give you some idea of the

crush of people at the market.

Putting on the Ritz.

One of the buildings on Fashion Street.

Carol and I split a raspberry one,

while Torie had a cinnamon one.

Called "chimney cakes," the real

name is KÜRTÖSKALÁCS

The Basilica and a Christmas market.

Very cool tree.

The Parliament building from Chain Bridge.

You Say Budapest, I say Buda Best!

The funicular to Buda Castle was just a short walk away from our hotel. The sun goes down early in Budapest in December, so we wanted to see what we could up on Buda Castle hill before dark.

Heading to the funicular, we were bombarded by all sorts of entreaties to take this golf cart like-ride up, or a bus, or anything else. I felt like the pilot walking through the airport in Airplane, although I didn't actually assault any of them.

The funicular was a quick zip up to the top of the hill. Once outside, we were struck by the beauty of the surrounding buildings, and the setting. Torie had been there before, so she took us around. We didn't go in the castle -- we didn't really have time, and apparently it's only modestly interesting.

So, we walked around the back of the castle, through a tunnel to the front. The views of Budapest, the Danube, and especially the Parliament, were magical. The light was dying, snuffed out partly by the clouds and fog, and partly by the ending of the day (sunset was 3:54 pm!).

Then, we walked through Buda town to Matthias Church (was unfortunately was closed), passing cafes, art shops, beautiful houses from the times of the noblemen, and enjoying the views. Christmas lights are a thing here, as are Christmas trees. There were a lot of people, mostly tourists but some locals out enjoying the Christmas scene, but it didn't feel crowded at the same time. (Don't worry, we'll get to crowded soon enough).

Matthais Church is an amazing building even from the outside. Beautiful spires, colorful tiled roofs, and statues of ravens on some of the spires. It has the famous black spire as well.

We walked all the way down to the Church of Mary Magdalene at the other end of Buda hill, passing a Lutheran Church, the stunning National Archives building, and a T-34 tank. On my way to check out the tank more closely, I managed to step into a hole full of icy water, freezing my sneaker, my sock, and, of course, my foot underneath.

After climbing some stairs to the overlook, we realized the parapet was essentially an ice skating rink, so we built a hasty retreat. Night fell as we were walking back through town, and we came to the Fisherman's Bastion, another UNESCO World Heritage site (Budapest is chock-a-block with them).

I quickly realized I had not allotted enough time for Budapest. For some reason, I only had us staying one night, in a city where there is so much to do and see. We definitely need to get back here.

Fisherman's Bastion might have been the best part of Buda hill. It's an amazing structure, affording fine views across the Danube, especially of the Hungarian Parliament building, which might be the most striking Capitol building in the world. There were lots of people up there with us, all enjoying the cold early night and the striking views.

After a while we headed down the hill, winding our way down through the town to our hotel. I needed to change my soaking cold/wet sock and sneaker. We loved Buda hill, and I feel like we easily could have spent all day there (you know, instead of waiting for a cab at the airport!)

Off On The Wrong Foot

Carol, Torie, and I are doing a lightning round trip through some of the Christmas market cities of Central Europe. We've heard about the markets for years, and decided this year we wanted to see them for ourselves.

Torie joined us because she had done a similar trip in January for her last J-term at Elon University. It is nice having a guide who has been these places before. Of the places we are going (Budapest, Vienna, Salzburg, and Munich), Carol and I had only been to Vienna (2011). We loved Vienna back then, but that was summertime.

I got about two hours of sleep on the flight over to Frankfurt, despite taking a generic Ambien (also watched Toy Story 4, so that's a happy movie that makes you feel good about everything). Well, in the Budapest airport I wasn't feeling good about everything.

There was supposed to be a taxi driver waiting for us just outside of the arrival hall (arranged through the hotel), but instead there were multiple women with long lists of arriving passengers. I checked in, and she told us to wait. After 10 minutes with no sign from them, I checked back -- five more minutes I was told.

It was pretty much chaos. I was regretting having set up the ride -- it would have been quicker to go out and grab a cab. Finally she called my name. We went outside into the cold, cloudy weather and crammed into the cab. And then sat there. Because three buses were trying to fit where there was space for two at most, there was a massive back-up. I watched the cabs in the lane closest to the airport drive away unfettered. Finally traffic in our lane starts moving!

We checked into the hotel -- turns out it was right on Danube, very close to the Buda Castle funicular, the UNESCO World Heritage Chain Bridge, and a medium-length walk from everywhere. It was a funky Marriott hotel (good use of points!).

Just down the block was a Michelin recommended restaurant (not starred, but just a bit below), Zona. Our check-in clerk at the hotel also recommended it, saying it was the favorite restaurant of the guests. She also made it clear we should not eat at the hotel, and we took that advice.

Torie and I had the deconstructed Hungarian pork Goulash, while Carol had some lamb. I thought the goulash and the lamb (had a taste) were both fantastic. Torie was underwhelmed by the goulash, but I suppose not everyone can like every meal.

After feeling tired and a little put upon, the meal perked me up, and we were ready to go exploring.

Before we get to that, the three of us, at some point, had a discussion over whether this was a vacation. We decided it is not -- it is a trip. A vacation is when you go to a beach or a resort (a cruise too perhaps) and do very little. A trip is when you go multiple places with the goal of sightseeing and immersing yourself in the culture. A journey is similar, but a bit more intense. Any perspectives on those different types of travel is welcomed from readers!

Buda Photos

Budapest is a revelation -- such a beautiful city! For those who don't know, Buda and Pest were two separate cities on the banks of the Danube. The two cities united in 1873, and the rest is history. Here's some of too many photos of our first afternoon.

The sun goes down early -- the first day was a mixture of sun and sun hiding behind the clouds. There were wisps of fog as well.

Royal coat of arms. Elements date back to the

Middle Ages, but this was reinstated in 1990.

I would not have been allowed to take

this photo during the Cold War.

Oh, by the way, we've adopted a

rescue dog. We get her when

we get back to the States.

Buda castle.

That's the famous Hungarian Parliament

building off in the distance. In case you

don't know, that's a snowman in

foreground!

Lot of lion sculptures in Europe.

Matthias Church near the Castle.

A UNESCO World Heritage sight

it was unfortunately closed.

Apparently the raven with the ring symbolizes a story of when King Matthias took off his ring and a raven grabbed it and flew off with it. King Matthias then chased down the raven and slew it in order to get his ring back. I guess he liked the the ring.