Winter Caught Up With Us in Budapest

A sample of the Budapest grafitti! Most of it is not in English, of course, but one can figure out the general idea. We really noticed the contrast between Budapest (post-Soviet city) and Vienna or Salzburg. Post Soviet cities have a much rougher edge to them. The infastructure, roads, etc are not as well maintained and only the most famous sites are cleaned up for display to tourists. Most of the buildings are grey with pollution and many are crumbling from neglect.

Winter caught up with us in Budapest. So did post-Soviet era accommodation. The hostel recommended to us by the tourist information staff was, I am sure, once upon a time a Soviet workers hotel. I won’t go into detail, but if you are ever in Budapest, don’t stay at the Marco Polo hostel. Just don’t. We did kind of enjoy listening to the boys in the next room singing slavic party songs, though.

The weather was cool and rainy on our first day, we climbed up to the castle on the Buda side of the city, admired the view across the Danube (grey, not blue, at this time of year) and ate goulash for lunch. Then we toured the “labyrinth” that’s been created in the tunnels under the castle. It was a lot of fun, there are different “archeological finds” on display, including a fossilized lap top computer imprinted in a rock, ancient footprints that look a lot like running shoe tracks, and one area that we had to go through in complete darkness, following a rope along the wall.

One thing I have read in about Budapest is that the “baths” are famous. We would call them hot springs. So we went along to the Gellert Hotel pool, where we paid to go into the elegant and confusing spa area. Pay for your entrance, pick up a till slip and a plastic card. Enter the pool by swiping the plastic card at the turnstyle, something like getting onto the metro. Go down the hallway, up the stairs,, down the stairs, around the corner....large woman looms up and asks for tickets. She doesn't want the plastic cards, she wants the till slip. It says we have paid for admission and a locker each, but not a change room. Ladies go upstairs around the corner. Benches and lockers. Attendant locks the locker and gives customer a metal tag with a number on it. The number on my metal did not match the number on the locker. Hmm. Downstairs, around the corner and into the famous hall of pools and steam.

There was a large hot tub with lots of marble dolphins spraying water and a small swimming pool (cool) for men and women. Separate areas for men & women contained two pools at 34 and 36 degrees, two saunas -- one hotter than the other -- cold plunge pools and many clinical looking staff members ready to give massages, etc. Bathing suits optional in the segregated areas, but most of the women (I can't say about the men, of course) were opting for modesty. There was a wave pool outside but it was closed because of the weather. The place was not a great hit with John, because there was no place to really play, but it was relaxing and kind of fun to imagine all the rich folks who’ve been there before us. It was a good thing I remembered my locker number because the woman with the key did not! On the way out we had to swipe our plastic cards at the turnstyle. Lo and behold, we had been in the pools for less than two hours so we got a partial refund on our entry fee. That was a suprise!

Next day…no rain but a howling wind that just about froze us off the street. What to do, what to do? Find another swimming pool! This time we went to the modern Aqua World Park, where we had a dozen water slides, a wave pool, a whirl pool and other things to play with, around, in and on. That was much more fun for John, and Nelson and I enjoyed it too. There was a co-ed sauna area, it had separate sauna rooms: Russian, Finnish, tepedarium, steam, salt, ultraviolet, etc. It was confusing and most people were exercising the bathing suit optional option. We did not partake.

Next day…no rain, but more howling wind. I went exploring and found a big old farmer’s market building. One side of the building was still set up with booths and individual stalls where people were selling everything from soup to soap. On the other side was a branch of the local super market - complete with computerized check out, neon lights, and all the trimmings. The contrast was startling. Nelson and I left John at the hotel and went to tour the synagogue, which was also interesting, and we met a really friendly young man at a coffee shop/bakery who told us stories about living in Budapest and how it is necessary to have a website to advertise the family business.

But it was still cold out….so we picked up John and went to another pool! This time it was the famous Széchényi baths. You know those pictures you have seen of people sitting in a swimming pool playing chess while the snow piles up on the pool deck? This is the place! We did not get snow, but the rain was icy and there REALLY were men playing chess on the edge of the pool! We felt like pros going in & out because the routine was the same as at the Gellert, but this time we did not get a refund because we spent hours splashing around. They have a great whirl pool that alternates swirling current and blowing bubbles and lots of statues that spray warm water. (Everything is co-ed and it appears that bathing suits are required, if you are wondering.)

In spite of the weather and the post-Soviet grubbiness I really enjoyed Budapest and I would like to see it in the sunshine. But sunshine was not in the weather forcast for central Europe, so we booked a train to Thessoloniki (Greece) and trundled off to the train station again.