Photos From Budapest

The parliament building on the shores of the Danube, 'Pest.' Partly modelled on London's Westminster. Viewed here from across the river in 'Buda.'


A view across Szechenyi Lanchid bridge to Pest, from Buda.


Getting ready to board the fernicular , to the top of the hill in Buda.

Revolution Day celebrations in Budapest.

Barclay, the Hungarian flag, and the blue Danube. Views of Buda across the river.

Buda and the bridge over the Danube.

A Hungarian style pizza with paprika sausage, goat's cheese, a little flag, and a bite missing.

A church, near the castle in Pest.

Barclay on Andrassy, Pest.

Andrassy, Pest.

'Hero's Square', Pest.

Inside the beautiful old apartment block, where our hostel was located. Pest.

Entrance to the 'Red Bus' hostel, Pest. A nice, quiet hostel with good rooms. Very friendly clientele, but not so friendly staff!

Budapest

Budapest is a pretty awesome place. It's divided into two; one part is Buda, the other part is ... you've got the idea. We checked into a hostel called the Red Bus. It was a good hostel, in a beautiful courtyard style building. We met some interesting people there, so the good times rolled.

We spent the first day exploring Pest. We started at Heroes Square, which also houses the National Museum and some other fine looking bulidings. From there, we explored the old palaces and the thermal baths. We then walked a couple of miles down the main avenue, stopping along the way to eat some goulash and dumplings. We noticed that there were Hungarian flags on most of the buildings. We didn't really think anything of it (except that maybe it was a highly nationalistic kind of place), but when we got back to the hostel, we were told that it was Hungary's National Day the following day.

We woke up the next morning and the weather was beautiful. The sun was shining and everyone seemed to be in high spirits. We headed to Buda for the day. The city was busy because it was a holiday. As we walked over the main bridge to Buda, there were all reenactments going on about the struggle for independence. It seemed to be a day for kids, they all had balloons and painted faces. The adults seemed to be drinking, dancing and gossiping. All in all, there was a good atmosphere and Buda was exquisite. There's a castle to explore, parks to sit in and good views of the river to be admired.

Back in Pest, there was a different story being told. Hungarians aren't very happy with their government, Last year, they had some pretty nasty riots that got out of hand. When we came back into Pest, the first thing we noticed were all the police and soldiers on the streets. Apparently, they were leaving nothing to chance this year. There was a huge (peaceful) protest near the hostel, but I couldn't understand any of the signs or chants, so I have no idea what the nature of the discontent was.

Photos From Vienna

A free classical concert in front of the monument at Karlsplatz, Wien.


The grand church, casting its shadow over the market square, Wien.


A mime artist in the market square, Wien.


View of the Oberes Belvedere from its vast gardens, Wien.

Statue of 'Sissy', or Empress Elisabeth, Wien.

Barclay outside the Kunst Museum... no, that's 'art' in German.

A statue on Mariahilferstrasse, Wien.

Mariahilfer Kirche (Church to you), Wien.

It Means Nothing to Me....Ohhh

Vienna is the most beautiful city I have ever visited. We arrived and checked into the Ruthenteiner Hostel. It's a really good place, I would highly recommend it. We spent the first evening catching up with washing and having a few beers in the bar. There were some Koreans staying in the hostel, and it was cool just listening to what they had to say; mainly that it was difficult to eat food with a knife and fork. They also missed kimchi and green tea. Anyway...

The next day we headed into the city to the Belvedere Museum, which houses The Kiss by Klimt, as well as many other famous paintings. It turned out to be a bit of a mission. The map we had was not very good. It was spread over two pages and the roads didn't really correspond to anything at street level. After about 6kms and 3 hours walking around, we finally stumbled on what can be only described as one of the world's largest museums! It is beautiful. There was a temporary exhibit by an Austrian artist called Oskar Kokoscha. He did a piece called The Doll in which he had a doll maker make a 'lifelike' doll of his estranged lover, Alma Mahler. He then used this figure and photographed it in different, quite perverse, poses. It's even said that he took the doll to the opera!. The results are quite frightening as I'm sure you'll agree.


"Where's the Klimt?"

After lunch, we felt refreshed, so we just walked all around the city. We saw the theatres, the university, the parliment, the cathedral and many wonderful churches. That night, we feasted on cheap (but good) wine, bread, cheese and ham. The next morning we set of at about 10, as we had a train to catch to Budapest!

Oswiecim (Auschwitz)

Krakow

The two hour train journey to Krakow was an absolute breeze. We arrived in Krakow to be met by a bright sun, a million (mostly British) tourists, and a beautiful city with loads to do and see. After a 30 minute walk to the hostel, we showered and went out to explore. We found ourselves at Wawel Hill, which boasts an impressive castle and cathedral. The sun was shining, so we just walked around until dusk. By that point we were pretty hungry, so we found a cheap place to eat (more kebabs!).

We were staying in a 4 bed dorm during this part of the trip. Both Barclay and I are used to staying in hostels, but neither of us had had to do it for a long time. It was a relief when the room was empty. In fact, to say there were so many tourists in Krakow, not many people seemed to be at our hostel. There was a group of German school kids who were really noisy. Needless to say they were more than a little scared when Barclay went and told them all to be quiet! It didn’t stop the little angels putting about 6 rolls of toilet roll in the middle of the hallway one afternoon. Oh, the joys of being 16.

We had decided to go to Auschwitz the following day. I’ll not lie to you, it’s extremely heavy. I’ll also tell you that the museum is both incredibly moving and informative. After being there, I would recommend that people go, but if you do decide to go, be prepared to be upset, affected, and shocked.

Krakow - Where the Sun Always Shines!

Wawel Hill, Krakow.


Cathedral at Wawel, Krakow.


Wawel.

Enjoying a sunny afternoon in Krakow.