Ok, so now for the long-awaited Budapest report. First of all, like I said previously, we decided to go to Budapest because of the cheap flight via Ryanair. We wanted to go on just a quick weekend trip, one last hoorah before the baby, if you will, so a 2 euro flight to a cheap Eastern European country was exactly what we were looking for.
I didn’t really know that much about Budapest before, other than that it used to be two cities (Buda and Pest), and that there were thermal baths there. After visiting, I can’t really say that now I have a deep knowledge on the history of Budapest, but this is probably because I don’t really buy into the whole bus/tour guide operation. I prefer to experience the city for myself, to explore, get lost, etc. So that is what we did. In retrospect, I would say that in my current condition, this backpacking mentality didn’t work out great. Wandering aimlessly, getting lost at night, etc, can be even charming in good conditions, but at 6 1/2 months pregnant, it was not as much fun. By the end of three days, my feet were literally twice their normal size. Nevertheless, I will still look back on Budapest as being a beautiful city and will give it another chance in the future.
The thing about Budapest is that when you were where you were trying to be, it was fantastic. The city is very beautiful, especially in the center. It is very similar to Prague in structure and architecture. There are two sides, divided by a river, with a castle area on one side, and city center on the other, so it is really easy to confuse with Prague. Budapest is in general cheaper than Prague, and most of Western Europe. Many of the meals we ate were around $5, and included multiple courses. Like Prague, beer was cheaper than water (unfortunately for me). If you ordered water, you were given a tiny glass bottle of water, which if you know me, could get very expensive, even in Budapest, given the amount that I drink. The public transportation was quite good; the metro ran about every 4 minutes, so not much waiting. It took a little getting used to the routes, like with any city. The city was, for the most part, clean and well kept (near the center at least). There were many things to see and do there, surprisingly. Maybe it was just the pace we were moving, but I think staying a couple more days wouldn't have hurt, especially since we never even made it to the thermal baths.
It was however, easy to see why people generally choose Prague over Budapest. Prague has really grown their tourist industry since the fall of the Iron Curtain. Budapest seems to just now be hopping onto that train. Most signs, public announcements, etc, were only in Hungarian, which is not exactly the up and coming language in the world. I would expect that in a smaller town, but I thought in the capital English would be more present. Also, there wasn’t great signage. We spent almost two hours looking for the castle area, because it wasn’t clearly marked on our map, and we couldn’t see signs for it, even though it’s probably the main attraction of Budapest. Once again, these are probably things that wouldn’t have bothered me so much if I was not pregnant. That’s my bad; I overestimated my abilities.
All in all, I think Budapest should make it onto more people’s travel lists. Many people who come to Europe only come to the big 3 (London, Paris, and Rome), but there really are a lot of other gems out there waiting to be seen. There is a certain charm to a place that hasn’t been completely overrun by tourists, and a better opportunity to understand their culture. Paolo actually ranked Budapest as his #2 favorite city, right behind Venice, so that’s high praise. I would like to go back sometime when I’m in better shape to traipse around a city; I think I would appreciate it more that time around. I took some videos while I was there so you can virtually visit and maybe it will inspire a real visit someday! And also, I apologize for Paolo’s sometimes sideways videotaping, and my sub-par reporting and editing skills, or lack thereof.
There you have it! Let me know if the video doesn't work; I wouldn't be terribly surprised based on my technology skills.
Ciao for now,
Kathleen
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