Budapest Won't Let Me Leave...

So as you know, getting to Budapest was almost IMPOSSIBLE- i bought my ticket on board and had to pay about double for it; it would’ve been 15 euro at the station, but cost 30 on board. I did arrive in one piece, and safe, so I can’t really complain. PLUS traveling through central and eastern europe has proven to be soooo cheap that I’m way under budget!

I don’t even know where to begin with Budapest. It is such a strange city. I’ll start by painting it for you. Imagine old, old ornate buildings, all about 5 stories high. They are all unique with intricate architectural details and flower-filled window boxes and small satellite dishes and open windows with delicate curtains breezing into the streets.

On street level, small markets and restaurants peek from inside. On main avenues they are obvious, with flashy signs, on side streets they are almost hidden. The people are so unique to this city- the men large, rough like bull dogs with hair gel. They stare, smiling as you pass and crane their necks to follow you down the avenues. The women are thin with bleached hair and a fashion sense unique to this part of the world- they wear sequins and gold lame (i mean lah-may not lame haha) and lace tights with denim shorts and tall boots and hold hands with each other....

And I’ve just been walking around, taking it all in. I spent the day by myself and started with a Hungarian meal- chicken leg (off the bone) with roasted potatoes. I could barely eat half of the portion and left so full that I didn’t feel up for the walking tour I had planned. I took it slow and made my way to Szechenyi baths. I ended up walking completely across Pest to get there, but it was worth it. FYI: Budapest is actually 2 cities, Buda and Pest. They are separated by the Danube, but connected by bridges and metro lines. Surprisingly, there is no real rivalry, it’s just accepted that the Buda side is ritzier...

Anyway- the baths were amazing! So relaxing, and I floated around and breathed deeply and had a water massage and relaxed. When I came home around 11, new travelers had turned up at our hostel. The place only has 12 beds, so we all know each other. They told me that we were going out- me, 2 Canadians, another American, and an Argentinean. Our hostel owner, who is QUITE the character, recommended a disco for us- Studio.

We paid a taxi to take us to the island between Buda and Pest, where the discotech was. I was wearing sneakers and a denim jacket and did NOT feel comfortable with the locals dressed to the nines- none of us did! We cabbed it back to Pest to a place I had seen on my walk- The Old Man’s Pub. The music was no good, but I ran into an Australian friend from Bratislava and we all hung out together.

We bar-hopped and as we walked, I heard some bass from a small, unmarked door, just below street level. I pushed the door open, and the night BEGAN!

It was an underground spot and it was packed! Mostly locals, but we hit it off with some travelers from London and a few Hungarians eager to practice their English. A strange, drunk-o approached our group, and when no one would pay him any attention, he, how can I put this delicately, whipped out his penis and started peeing all over the floor. WOW.

The Australian ran to his aid and told him, “The wall is your friend, just go to the wall...” And we got him under control and the Hungarians told us they had never seen anything like it, and we just laughed it off. When the DJ finished his set, around 4am, he and I became fast friends. He invited me and “just 2 others” to an after hours spot. I took the Australian and his traveling mate.

The after hours spot was also insane and a group of Spaniards chatted with us and bought me a beer. It was mostly just conversation and winding down. A lot of people bought stale pizza from the bar, which they all topped with ketchup(?) and I watched it all... I headed home around 9am...

-H*

Pics from Budapest: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2144654&l=279eb&id=22001348