City break to near-by cities - Budapest

This time it's Budapest! The Hungarian national capital stretches on both banks of the Danube River, which is an important traffic artery as it connects central Europe with the Black Sea. In the past the city was divided by the river into two cities – Budim on the left bank and Pest on the right bank of the mighty river. Today, both sides are a unified city offering many interesting sights and worry free exploration of city’s secret corners.

 

As I usually wonder, where to go next, and there’s nobody around at that time that would like to do the same thing I’d feel like doing, I usually travel on my own. I see that as a good thing and always return home full of good spirit and will to plan new adventures abroad. But there’s always somebody, who is questioning my decision about my lonely exploration of our planet. “Aren’t you bored? Don’t you get lost in a crowd? What do you do in the evenings? do you go alone to eat dinner?” These are usual questions I get from my friends. I feel it’s a weird idea myself, but that’s also the best way to learn about what you can do and you also focus your attention on other things and not your travelling companion. You get to see the place you’ve visited in a whole new light. I found, however, that keeping yourself amused is one of the hardest things possible. When you’re low on energy and have no desire to see that one more famous attraction on your list and feel like giving up, but still convince yourself not to sleep in the hostel covered in self-pity when you can see something new, unknown and worth your visit. So I walk around streets and if there’s somebody there I start talking to them or tourists start asking me for directions. This happened to me quite often in Budapest, when I put my map and camera away. So we found the place they were heading for together and that’s how my independent exploration of Budapest progressed.

 

I started from Ljubljana by “car-share”, which is really budget friendly and above all much faster than public transport. I’ve met quite a lot of interesting individuals in the car, who were traveling to the same destination for all the different reasons. At the outskirts of Budapest we went our own separate ways after sharing a ride for 5 hours. My hostel was on the other side of the town, but I’ve met a young Hungarian bloke who was going to the same district so I could follow him until my final stop. It was getting late and the long drive exhausted me, so I was all the happier to see the doors of the hostel. I got a good map of where the hostel was and a lot of useful information by mail, a few days prior to arriving at the hostel. I stayed at a small, but well furbished place at the great location. It was Aventura Boutique Hostel, a member of Hostelling International group. If you want a quality service and above all peace and a feeling like you’re right at home, that’s the right place for you. You’ll also be able to get many information and stories of other travellers while you were relaxing and resting. It’s at a great strategic location, where most things are at the tip of your hands. You can reach the nearest metro station – I was using it constantly – in 5 minutes by foot and if you really hurry even less. And there’s vivid night life just a few blocks away, but if you prefer some club far away, there’s great public transport during night as well, to let you travel the city and back “home” safely and without getting too tired.

 

I’ve spent my fist day – after morning bed rest and coffee – applying sunscreen as the daily temperatures were way above 35°C. Then I headed out. The numerus streets of Budapest and crossing bridges, passing churches and squares, took me to a shop. I got myself an ice-cream, bought a lemonade at the stand from a nice lady and sat down on the bench in the shade of a mighty tree. This was more or less how my five days seemed like, when I was escaping the everyday routine of my home. 

 

The thing to see in Budapest are undoubtedly the many bridges crossing the River Danube. My favourite was the chain bridge, where mighty lions escort you at the beginning. It’s also the first permanent bridge built across the Danube. Also, your eyes will stop at the largest building in Hungary – the neogothically styled national Parliament. I went along the river past many staircases that are all along the Danube and become a true ant farm of people who want to hang out together during evenings. 

 

I was lucky and have met many locals, who took the time and made whole lists of things I should see while in the city. I bought a 72 hour city pass covering all modes of city public transportation and it was a great choice as the public network is really excellent. I went to the western part of the city called Normafa. You can reach it by bus umber 21 that stops at the metro station Széll Kálmán tér. After riding for half an hour you get a great view of the city. An even better view is when you go to the castle hill. There are several paths taking you there and you can even find a corner where you’ll be all alone in the densely populated Hungarian capital. 

 

I’ve spent the evenings in the company of young people, travellers some, locals others and people who came to live in Budapest to find a job. A bar you should visit is the Szimpla Kert, which is about a decade old artistic centre of the city which makes the magical night feeling and is free of charge. But you might have to stand in cue before getting in as during weekends this is among the most popular places for young people to go! They usually hang out in parks and bars around the city before heading to the centre. On Sundays in the morning, there’s an interesting market place organized, selling local products, mostly food and drinks and this is a great spot for a Sunday lunch! 

 

The Square of Heroes always has something happening. It can be a large group of Chinese tourists, or a British stag party with beer flowing down the street in streams, with people climbing the statues to get a shot of a great photo that just doesn’t happen. I walked there from the Aventura Boutique Hostel as it is only 15 minutes away. There is also a museum of fine arts there, but for me the building was more interesting itself, due to many architectural details. The road leads forth to the city park with the castle Vajdahunyad and its museum, many baths, a zoo and a theme park.

 

Every short stop ends quickly and so did this one. Budapest surprised me nicely even though this was already my third visit. The nice people, safety you feel, good food and a comfortable bed at the Aventura Boutique Hostel, crowded streets and many new acquaintances are something that leave a mark on a journey. I saw a lot and probably could see more, but my way of travel always lets me leave something to see next time, so I’d return to a place I like.