Activities ......

There are so many Sights of Budapest that describing all the ones we have seen might be rather tedious.  So instead, perhaps I will mention a couple of other activities we have pursued. Of course, gilt-covered columns were ubiquitous, from Basilicas …….

to coffee houses …….

The baths were certainly worth their few hours.  Budapest is a major spa centre with numerous thermal baths that were first developed by the Romans. In this part of Europe, the river Danube follows the geological fault that separates the Buda Hills from the Great Plain. This allows over 40 million liters of warm mineral water to flow to the surface each day from a hundred or so thermal springs.

The baths can be prescribed by a doctor in which case, entry is free but we dutifully paid our fifteen dollars. It was worth it.

Our visit to the Hungarian State Opera was rather less prodigious. The venue was of course, spectacular (yet more Art Nouveau gilt …. how blasé) but the performance of Don Pasquale did not inspire us.

The river trip down the Danube was a day well spent although as the scenery was not particularly spectacular en route (other than in Budapest itself), I would probably opt for the faster hydrofoil next time. There were a number of possible destinations and we chose the small medieval town of Visegrad.  Quite a hike to the fort on the hill but rewarded with one of the best views around. The displays were quite well done and in addition to the historical information, I also learned about Black Sea sturgeons and European bison. Both now almost extinct.

This trip has also taught me about a part of Europe I am not familiar with. My knowledge of Central Europe was certainly sketchy at best. Those borders certainly floated around a lot throughout history and defining a “country” gets to be rather tricky. Defining Hungary itself by today’s borders, its historical empire, linguistic boundaries etc. obviously produces vastly different pictures. And the Hungarians themselves are not loath to remind you of this.

Intense days in Budapest

The last three days were intense.  First getting over the train ride & “running errands” (buying tickets, grocery shopping etc.), the second spent with Sharon’s cousin and yesterday exploring (at length) the Art Nouvea district in Pest. David & Linda moved here from Malawi where they had lived for 26 years. He is Regional Director (Eastern Europe & the Middle East) for the missionary activities of the church they belong to and chose Budapest as their base.

They took us to visit their friend, Elizabeth who was born in Hungary (she is now in her 70s), married an American so left in the early 1960s but returned to her homeland where she now lives. She has been through so much in the post-war Stalinist years. Notwithstanding the hardships their parents’ endured under communism, it is just not an issue for the next generation. The concept of “they will not be forgotten” seems to be fine in theory but not very robust in practice. 

Returning to the theme of comparison, I suppose Prague inevitably pops up on the radar screen, being so close to Budapest. However, whereas Prague is the more “beautiful” of the two, I think Budapest might be considered more “grand”.  In fact, UNESCO’s vote for the city that can claim to be Europe’s greatest Art Nouveau architectural masterpiece is actually Riga in Latvia. Who would have thought it?

If you miss the train I'm on, you will know where I have gone

So ……. we took the train from Krakow in Poland to Budapest in Hungary and passed through the Republic of Slovakia without even knowing it.  How times have changed since 1989. Travelling light as usual.

The couchettes were excellent tho’ the clickity clack, clickity clack does not have the same soporific effect upon me as it does for Sharon.

First impressions of Budapest are very favorable.  We negotiated the notorious cab-sharks at the airport with the help of another (Hungarian) traveler who graciously phoned a cab company for us. Interesting that SIM cards do not appear to be universally and easily available. In China they have dispensing machines at the airport.

The apartment we are in is HUGE …. larger than many of the cottages in Rosedale. A well-respected café below us and a pub just down the road. Full agenda of course. Tons to see and a huge city so we bought underground/tram week passes. Sharon’s cousin and his wife have lived here for 12 years so we plan to spend much of the day with them.  

Krakow: checking out the sights

This morning was rather chaotic; we made a strategic mistake to go to the cathedral & the castle on a Saturday, along with a gazillion others. I am not sure that the Polish Royal Architects don’t need to reconsider: stone, brick & stucco all within a few feet of each other (and yes, I do realize they were hundreds of years apart).

However, the St. Mary’s church interior designers certainly know how to lay on a spread.

And the Jewish quarter finally begins to recover in small numbers but the area still retains its genteel shabbiness, at least for now. Adding insult to injury, the anti-Semitic campaign of the 1960s had caused most of the few remaining holocaust survivors to finally abandon Poland.

The salt mine & an illusionist

We spent the morning in the salt mine at Wieliczka. The visit exceeded my expectations although it is now solely a tourist attraction rather than a working facility.  I suspect the tour did not capture the misery of actually working down there but it was undoubtedly impressive in its scale and grandeur. This hall is 300 feet underground.

On the way back, we saw an illusionist with a neat little trick.  I did figure it out after a few minutes but it was very clever.

In the evening we met another Polish friend, courtesy of Gil. She was a young university student, Ewa Nagy, and it was interesting hearing her take on the new Poland in contrast to Janusz Sepiol’s of a couple of days ago. She is studying law and the history of art and exhibits all the optimism that many of Poland’s young must have, tempered by the concerns of a 13% unemployment rate. 

Our new Polish friend

Miss Sharon in the best spot to watch the world go by. Click on either photo to go to the complete album.

This afternoon was spent wandering around the Old Town with Professor Janusz Sepiol who teaches at the 14^th century Jagiellonian University. He was a true delight with an extensive knowledge of Polish history. However, what made our time together more engaging was that he had lived though the immediate post-war period, the domination of Poland and then the fall of communism. Even though he fully embraced the new Poland, he still exhibited little mannerisms and habits that must have been adopted the survive the dark ages of Stalin’s communism.  We only recognized these signs because we had seen similar quirks in colleagues in China who had experienced the harsh life of Maoist China. Professor Sepiol did not miss an opportunity to gently chide the British for being tardy in coming to the aid of Poland at the start of World War II.

And this is glassware in a liquor store:

Auschwitz

Today we went to Auschwitz.  I am not sure what there is to say.  Everybody presumably experiences different emotions; interest, incredulity, despair, guilt, need for a catharsis. The camps were inundated with hundreds upon hundreds of tourists during our visit (which, of course, is exactly what we were) but, ironically, that seemed to dilute the solemnity of the place. Shuffling through the various buildings in a never-ending snake of people and gazing at the sad displays as we shuffled, somehow did not have the effect it should have. I was, perhaps, more in awe of the tragedy as presented by the Holocaust museum. 

Krakow - orientation

I have decided that I love Krakow.  I realize that I had no idea what a jewel it is in Europe’s medieval crown. Which other cities can compete I wonder? Bruges maybe? And, as an added benefit, the tourist/restaurant business is managed and run by pretty young women who all speak perfect English.  I consider that I am now old enough to get away with that comment; I probably remind most of them of their granddad.

While we usually try and “have a go” linguistically (with apologies to Wilfred Pickles), I suspect that both Polish & Hungarian might be beyond us. Today was a veg-out and orientation day. Bought our train ticket to Budapest, found a beautiful Art Deco hotel for our return to Krakow and stocked up on delicious yogurt, blackcurrants and raspberries at the open-air market. Fortunately, both of us love markets. As part of the errand-running activities, we did get to cover most of the Old City, in an initial, cursory fashion.  And yes, these are sunflowers at the market.

Poland - arrival

Arrived safely in Krakow despite astonishingly surly Continental Airlines cabin staff and a seven-hour layover in Frankfurt. However, Polish airlines (LOT) won our hearts by offering free wine & beer in economy class. Upon arrival, I was approached by an elderly Berkeley professor who asked me if I was attending the conference on classical Iranian history, thereby confirming my claim that I am of scholarly appearance. Our apartment block is in a perfect location on the 13^th-century market square though the eight flights of stairs with two heavy suitcases did test my patience as a porter. A delightful snack & beer on the square complete with bread and pork lard offering a low cholesterol end to the day.  You can go to the photo album by clicking on any of the photos.