Budapest, Hungary

Hungarian Parliament Building

My globe trotting, intelligent, well-read, adventurous, sexy, multi-talented, excellent cook, funny, exquisitely put together friend (she's single and a total catch and will remain nameless...but if you have a probable male match between the age of 38 and 45, contact me) told me years ago about her love for Budapest. I just thought, yeah, yeah, another European city, what could be that special. Where is Budapest anyway? But, again, she is exquisite in numerous ways and I just knew it was a place I must visit. In our (Jason and my) opinion, you can judge a city by the vibe you feel as soon as you step off the train. We instantly felt connected to this city. The vibe is alive, happy and energetic. It's just a happening place. Typically I research what to see, do, eat and drink and Jason figures out the transportation and most efficient route to hit as many things as possible. Here, however, Jason recalled an Anthony Bourdain special and as he searched the web for what Mr. Bourdain ate, he found that Anthony spoke mostly of the architecture. "If there is such thing as building porn, it would be this", he said. And we couldn't agree more, it was hard to take your eyes off the fantastic architecture that this city has to offer. One of Bourdain's favorite things to do here is to ride around the city, looking at architecture. This is the one, if not only, city in which he does this. We couldn’t agree more with my nameless friend and Anthony, the city, as a whole is stunning. Every building has some unique quality. Even a row of apartment houses is stunning in their artistic creation This city was built with integrity, vision, ingenuity and stunning simplicity. The buildings aren’t meant to make a statement, like Abu Dabi or London, but they do. The architects of Budapest simply make the earth more beautiful, using practicality and subtle magnificence.

Hungarian Parliament Building

We had some daylight left after arriving from Slovakia and headed straight for the three story indoor Great Market. The basement is where the "stinky" stuff is housed: seafood, meat and fermented, pickled foods. Our first purchase was made here, in the form of pickles, pickled cauliflower and pickled kraut filled peppers. These little treats were filled with pungent flavor and spicy kick. The pickles were crisp, sweet and delightfully flavored, two weren't enough and we returned for more, which we enjoyed for a few days after.

The market is bustling with energy and people. The ground level floor is filled with fresh fruit and vegetable stands, bakers, cheese makers, candies, caviar, spices and spirits. The second floor is packed with souvenir stands and eateries, serving up some local grub. It was so packed up here that we decided not to stay and eat. But we did stock up on our fruits and veggies.

Budapest is easy to get around and in one day we visited the following (remember, we are tired of cathedrals and other "must sees" so by visit I mean walked by): Gellert Hill, which includes The Statue of Liberty, Citadella and St. Ivan's Cave. We took the time to tour the cave, via audioguide. This functioning Catholic church was used during WWII to successfully hide numerous Jews and other persecuted persons.

On the hill next to Gellert Hill is Castle Hill, where we saw Matthias Church and Fisherman's Bastion.

Matthias Church

From both hills you get a great view of the city but our eyes were consistently drawn to the Hungarian Parliament Building (pictured above). It is exquisite and extensive. To get there we walked across the Chain Bridge

and stopped to pay homage at the monument Shoes on the Danube Bank (please Google it), Dohany Street Synagogue and rode a number of electric trams through the city.

A trip to Budapest without visiting one of the many thermal baths is a waste, my nameless friend advised us of this fact too. We aren't really bath kind of people. We aren't really the showering type either. I’ve been invited to spa days with the ladies, but have always declined, preferring to pluck my leg hairs one by one. The thermal baths in Budapest have been an integral part of Hungary's culture for centuries and are known for their healing abilities. Often, doctors will prescribe some spa time for their patients. We chose Rudas Baths, a traditional Turkish bath built in the 1560's and ended up spending four glorious hours here. Dipping between five pools (numerous saunas were also available as well as a whole other section for men, open to women on Tuesdays and co-ed on weekends). Each pool is a different temperature, the warmest being 112 degrees and the coolest 64 degrees. We’d practically melt our skin off and then freeze it all back together and called these our "health dips". It was invigorating! Spending half a day here was just what our pack mule bodies needed. We slept well, both at nap time and throughout the night and woke up feeling as if we had had massages the night before.

Budapest, come here! Eastern Europe, come here!! The energy here on the east side is vibrant and happy. The prices are right, the beer and wine is flowing, affordable and delicious. English is spoken often and beautifully. Trains may a wee bit slower, but the scenery makes up for it. We blazed through Western Europe, excited to get to the east side. Now that we've been here for a bit, we don't regret that decision at all. More on the east side to come!! Stay tuned.