We checked into the Hotel
Victoria at 1:00 p.m. Budapest time. After showering we headed to
Castle Hill which was nearby.
We went to the
Fishermen’s’ Bastion, St. Matthias Church, the North Gate, some
Roman ruins and finally to the Budapest History Museum in the Palace.
It was very extensive.
We came down from the hill
and walked along the Danube for awhile while looking for a place for
dinner. We chose Sicilian and we each had a very good tomato salad
and shared a mushroom, bacon, salami and pepper pizza. I tried the
Hungarian beer and Teresa had wine.
Back to the hotel to sleep
at 9pm.
In the morning we ate
breakfast at the hotel, then on to Pest across the river. We crossed
the chain bridge ingeniously designed by William Tierney Clark, past
Roosevelt Park to the Ethnographic Museum which had displays of
Hungarian culture. We then tried to take a Parliament tour but the
tour was fully booked for that time.
We walked to Liberty
square that still contained a Soviet emblem. Heading down the Karzo,
we saw the Concert Hall and then found the Paris Court, a glass
roofed arcade. Next came the Franciscan Church, University Square
and the Serbian Orthodox Church on the way to the Central Market
Hall; an attractive old building that had stalls selling just about
everything. We got an idea of pricing for possible future purchases.
We then crossed the
Liberty Bridge, meeting a UPS pilot from The UK now living in
Tennessee. We couldn’t get into the cave church as it was closed.
We walked along Vaci Utca, the touristy pedestrian street, until we happened upon a dancing exhibition at Liberty Square.
We decided to take a
Danube Cruise for dinner which gave us an opportunity to sample
several Hungarian dishes. They had live music and Drake was working
there.
After the cruise we walked back over the Chain Bridge to our hotel.
From there we went to St. Stephen’s Basilica where we saw his 1000 year old mummified right hand. We climbed up the cupola for the view.
Next to Androssy Utica
where we first walked through Liszst’s Park to his concert hall
before going to the State House of Terror. 60 Androssy Street had
been the headquarters of first the Nazis and then the Communists to
incarcerate, torture, interrogate, and execute political prisoners.
We took the audio phone and saw and heard of both regimes’ impact
on the lives of Hungarians.
We then walked to Hero’s Park and walked around viewing the exterior of the Baths, Museums and Castle.
We then walked to Hero’s Park and walked around viewing the exterior of the Baths, Museums and Castle.
We took the subway back to
Pest where we caught some Chinese food.
Back to the room where we
cleaned up, and decided to climb up Gellert’s Hill to see if we
could get to the Citadel.
It was much more than we
expected. The climb took a while but we could get in the citadel
where you could read about its history from Celtic and Roman times.
At 9:00 p.m. a 10 piece
band with 3 cute Hungarian girl singers started belting out American
hits from the 70’s and 80’s. There was a big crowd there and
elaborate bars. It was a great place to view Budapest lit up.
It was quite a contrast after viewing the misery visited on the Hungarian people we saw at the House of Terror as hundreds of natives were obviously enjoying themselves.
The next morning I had a
big breakfast: cereal with cherries, mushroom and cheese omelet, rye
toast and a pastry.
We walked to pick up our
car and headed for Szentendres. It is a quaint artist community that
has become perhaps too touristy.
We found the scant Roman
ruins then went by City Hall before visiting the Serbian Orthodox
Church and Museum. We also saw the Catholic Church before visiting
the Museum of Margrit Kovacs. After checking out the view of the
Danube we did find good gelato.
Next to Visegrad. We
decided to drive to the Citadel which has been a defensive fortress
for several centuries. From there we went down to the Palace where
the royalty stayed when they feared attack.
We then drove to Eztergom where we found a room at the Delsci Penzione. After cleaning up we walked around until heading to Mediterraneo Panzio for dinner. I had prawns with chili and orange sauce as an appetizer, lamb “New Zealand” style, doughnut potatoes and ½ liter of Gosser beer. Teresa had mozzarella, tomatoes and olives, rosemary roast duck and 2 glasses of wine. It was all delicious- with a generous tip- $35.
I still had room for
gelato on the way back to the main square where we sat and listened
to some jazz from a young group before going back to the room.
Teresa had wished for cool
weather and it came the next day. We went first to the Cathedral in
town, the largest in Hungary. We, of course, climbed to the cupola
and went down to the crypt.
After visiting the Church we went to the Castle /Museum. The city had a defendable hill and it was a natural crossing of the Danube so fortifications were inevitable. The Celts were there first but the Romans had the earliest remains of a fort.
By then it was raining
some so we headed off in the car. We stopped at a Tesco supermarket
and bought bread, ham, cheese, tomato, olive oil, a dessert and a
large carbonated lemonade. On to Pannonhalma Monastery the trip to which was an adventure, including a fallen tree. Luckily the book
was wrong as to the times of the tours so we made it for the last one
of the day.
Pannonhalma is a
Benedictine Monastery on a hill established in the 11th
century. Most of its buildings are newer though the church is from
the 13th century.
It withstood the Mongols but the Turks eventually conquered it.
Because it was so late we
decided to go to Gyor (not one of our targeted destinations) for the
night. It turned out to be a good choice.
We found a hotel on the
first try and got a huge, modern room with refrigerator for $65 in
the middle of the old town.
After showering and
dressing warmly, we headed out and found Kebabs for dinner. After
walking around the old town for a while we got gelato, despite the
cool weather.
We walked some more before
heading back toward our room. Some music alerted us to a gathering
close to our room. A large outdoor stage and chairs were set up and
there was folk dancing with live music. A few hundred people were
gathered to appreciate the show. The performers in traditional
costumes were quite good.
The next morning we headed
first to Tihany. This is one of the many resorts on Lake Balaton and
occupies a peninsula into the lake. It is somewhat touristy but
quaint, clean and a Unesco Site. It was a cool day so no one was
swimming but there were plenty of sailboats out.
We went south west along the lake to Balkascony which is another resort with an extinct volcano, now with a forested top and vineyards on the lower slopes. There we ate a quick lunch (I might have had blood sausage) and then the day turned freaking miserable. It was bad enough to climb the mountain once, but we ended up climbing it twice because we freaking lost our freaking way! (Including the steps from hell, must have been a thousand of them!) 2 ½ hours later we made it back to the freaking car. The lesson is… if you are following a trial with a red triangle, don’t try and head back following a blue rectangle regardless of whether or not if you had seen it paired with your triangle earlier.
We then drove around the
south end of the lake to Pecs, a university town. Because of getting
lost on the mountain we didn’t get in until 7:20 but were able
to get cleaned up and to a restaurant by 8:15.
We both had chicken dishes
but the portions were so large we had to pass on the gelato.
Our hotel is Pecs was nicely situated and comfortable, $65 a night.
In the morning we first
went to the Cathedral. It was not the largest, nor was its outside
impressive, but it was probably the most beautiful inside we had ever
seen.
We then saw the Christian burial sites and then went to the Kolony Ceramic Fountain. Finally we saw the mosque/ turned church. Since it was Monday, no museums were open so we hit the road.
We decided to stop at Boya
for lunch and ate at a local restaurant. This was an industrial town and definitely not a tourist destination. We both
got the daily menu. That meant they brought a huge bowl of soup to
the table with 2 bowls and a ladle. After we finished the tasty
starter, a pickled vegetable dish was brought (mostly cabbage, very
good) and a goulash- beef cubes in a brown sauce over dumplings- excellent. For
the two of us the bill came to $5.50. I felt obliged to leave a large tip.
It had been raining much
of the day and we picked up a man and a women who were hitchhiking.
Neither spoke English and both smelled of cigarette smoke. They were
going to our destination and we dropped them off in town. We arrived
in Szegerd and found the Romance/ City Panzio. It was a great room
for $105. The car park was unusual. You pulled the car in a small
space and elevators moved it up to the next floor.
Szegerd is a university
town. We first went through the synagogue, then to Reek Palace, the
University and its ‘singing fountain’.
We visited the Catholic
Church but had to leave after 20 minutes as Mass was starting at
5:00pm. Although it was a Monday, there was a big crowd, apparently a
Thanksgiving feast day.
We saw the clock with
student and professor figures that moved at 5:45. The “throngs”
of visitors mentioned in our travel book consisted of Teresa and me.
For dinner we went to a
very nice restaurant and both had fish. Very good. The cost was about
$35 for dinner. We spent some time on the internet. For dessert we
had bought a very rich chocolate caramel pastry which we ate in our
room.
The next morning we headed to Romania. At the border a large man with a crewcut started repeating “problem” after I gave him all my papers. It turned out he was asking if we had any health “problems” of the swine flu variety as this was apparently now part of crossing protocol.
Our first stop was
Timisauro where we visited the square and Orthodox Chruch where the
December 1989 Revolution began.
We then went to the
Revolution Museum where we had our own guide and saw a half hour film
showing the sequence of events leading to the overthrow of the
Communists. They asked us to email any articles we could find about
the revolution from American Papers. (which Teresa later did)
I had a milkshake and
gelato while in town.
We left there and
travelled over roads that were either just bad or being worked on
until we got to Deva.
Our thought was to clean
up and take the funicular to the citadel and then find a restaurant.
The funicular was closed so we decided we would climb up the next
morning.
We had Turkish for dinner,
then a chocolate banana clatite (crepe) then I had a gelato. We
stayed at Axim Villa, about $85, very nice place- used to belong to
the fearless leader Nicolas Cioascescou who was executed after a
quick trial in December of 1989.
The next morning we
climbed up to the Citadel in town. The fortress itself was closed but
we learned its history.
Next to Huneadora where,
after some difficulty, we found the castle. It was an impressive
edifice with many rooms we could go through. It seemed they sold
concession rights to some of the rooms.
We next drove to Sibiu
where we decided we would stay the night. The roads were better but
the traffic was worse and we did not arrive until 3:00 p.m. We found
Panzio Lea very quickly. It was very basic but only $35 a night and
very well located; both to the sights and where we parked our car.
After checking in we
visited the 3 squares that are located close to each other. You know
how anagrams for things try to sound like what they are? Special
Weapons And Tactics. SWAT! The official tourist helpers have one
also in Sibiu.
Actually everyone was nice
there which was consistent throughout our trip.
After that we toured the
Art Museum. It was an old palace that had rooms preserved. The
artwork was Transylvanian, Dutch/Flemish, and Italian, Although there
were some Rubens’ and Rembrandt's, its most prized painting was
by Van Eyck.
We got some gelato and
then went to the Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church, the Powder
Tower and ramparts; down the pedestrian street, to a Franciscan
Church, the park and an Ursuline Church which had a mass at 6:00 p.m
on a Wednesday which was well attended. The Orthodox churches we
visited had always had lots of worshipers any time of the day.
Back to the room for clean up and then to Le Pizzeria recommended in Fodor’s. It was crowded. I had a gorgonzola, mushroom and salmon pizza. Teresa’s was ham and mushrooms. We strolled before going to the internet café. No dessert tonight.
In the morning we went to
the supermarket and 2 pasteserias before heading to Bucharesti. Even
with better roads and better traffic it took us 5 hours to get there
and another 45 minutes to find our hotel.
It was a nice new hotel-
Hotel Berthelot. About $100 a night but great room, great service,
great location, new Samsung flat screen on the wall- the breakfast
buffet was good too.
The first day we walked
and saw several churches, Urinisi Sqare, the Parliament building,
Revolutionary Square; spent some time in the park. At the square we
watched with a standing crowd two South American Indians wearing
their native clothes and playing music. There were very good, using
pan flutes and drums with some background recorded music. They of
course were selling CD’s. A little rain but we stopped for dinner
at an outdoor restaurant/bar that had umbrellas. We each had a large
Greek salad as we had eaten a large late lunch. No dessert again.
In the morning we walked north to the open air museum. This was much better than expected.
After that we walked south
along Embassy Row (Kasseleff Street) to the Folk Museum which was
disappointing. We then took the subway down to the southern part of
town intending to tour the Parliament Building but as we didn’t
have our passports we couldn’t get in. We then went to see some
more churches, Bucharest’s oldest beer hall, Dracula’s (Vlad the
Impaler) Bucharest Palace and a few more sites before heading to the
internet café.
That evening we got
dressed up and walked to a nice restaurant, only to find out it had
been closed. It then started raining and we were far from the main
section of the city and so determined to drop in the next available
restaurant. We ended up in a Pizza Hut! We had Salad Bar and
Spaghetti Bollognaise, and for me, a Brownie Sundae. As expensive as
any meal we had but the spaghetti wasn’t better than fair.
The next morning we left
Bucharest in the opposite direction from which we entered which meant
I had the pleasure of driving all the way through it. The drive to
Constanta went very well for the first 2/3rds on a major road and
then a few miles of slow travel through towns.
We checked into the hotel
after a bit of searching and went to the beach. We thought we knew
the way to the beach but a little girl straightened us out. She also
offered some of her popcorn. It was different from Bucharest where
the children only knew the English word “money” which they
repeated endlessly. The Black Sea is not black. It is as blue as any
sea I have seen. The water wasn’t as cold as the Mediterranean is
this time of year.
The beach was crowded. We
read, we took walks, and got ice cream. We both went swimming so now
we can say we swam in the Black Sea. The water was very shallow with
some seaweed in places but this didn’t stop everyone from enjoying it.
Back to the hotel to clean
up before walking around the town and getting dinner. We went through
the Roman ruins and then ended up at the Irish Pub. The only thing
that made it like an Irish Pub was that it served Guinness Beer.
Otherwise it was like an upscale restaurant. I had a salad and garlic
shrimp (and Guinness), Teresa had a salad and chicken with spinach
(and wine).
We walked back toward the
port and looked through the translations of the Roman grave markers
which were actually quite touching.
We followed some amplified music and talking and found a rock concert with a jumbotron so we stayed for the whole outdoor concert, viewing from a hill with a number of other people. There were a couple of thousand people coming and going who seemed to be enjoying themselves. We later found out there was a Beer Festival going on with the live music. The band was very good. Although we didn’t understand what they were singing, the band’s rhythms and voices were very enjoyable as was watching the people around us. A young, really cute, girl, maybe three or four was wandering around by herself, totally comfortable. She came and sat beside me and started playing with my hair and leaning against me. She wandered off, attaching herself to other people nearby. At one point it looked like she went to a parent not too far away but then wandered off again. She came back to play with my hair some more even though I tried to discourage it. She showed interest in my jewelry, Steve’s watch etc. Before she left, she started scratching her head with both hands. Of course head lice popped into my head and I washed my hair as soon as we returned to our room!
We followed some amplified music and talking and found a rock concert with a jumbotron so we stayed for the whole outdoor concert, viewing from a hill with a number of other people. There were a couple of thousand people coming and going who seemed to be enjoying themselves. We later found out there was a Beer Festival going on with the live music. The band was very good. Although we didn’t understand what they were singing, the band’s rhythms and voices were very enjoyable as was watching the people around us. A young, really cute, girl, maybe three or four was wandering around by herself, totally comfortable. She came and sat beside me and started playing with my hair and leaning against me. She wandered off, attaching herself to other people nearby. At one point it looked like she went to a parent not too far away but then wandered off again. She came back to play with my hair some more even though I tried to discourage it. She showed interest in my jewelry, Steve’s watch etc. Before she left, she started scratching her head with both hands. Of course head lice popped into my head and I washed my hair as soon as we returned to our room!
In the morning we went
first to the archeological museum which had mostly Roman artifacts
and statues, but others from up to 5,000 B.C.
From there we went to the 20,000 square foot mosaic Roman edifice. We walked around town for a while before going to the hotel and the beach.
It was kabobs for dinner
and again we were drawn to the live music at the port. The beer
festival had another band which was not as good as the night before.
In the morning we ate our
ham and cheese omelets then headed west. We managed to bypass most of
Bucharest on our way to Bran castle. This is referred to as Dracula’s
Castle although its only connection to him is that he may have laid
siege to it once.
After touring the castle,
it was north to Brasov. We were quite fortunate in quickly finding
the old city and a hotel, the Gott Hotel, just off the main square.
It was brand new and the people there were very friendly and helpful.
Because it was new they had some bugs to work out, including the
electricity, but the stay there was nice- about $85 a night. It was
drizzling as we walked through the tourist friendly city. By tourist
friendly I mean it had internet cafes, good bakeries, and gelato open
late.
We ate at Normandie
restaurant. I had chicken breast stuffed with mushrooms and cheese,
pickle salad, and potatoes with onion and bacon- and Ursus
beer.Teresa had a large Greek salad and wine boiled in cinnamon and
other spices. The bill was $17. A while on the internet, sharing a
pastry $2 and gelato $7! and back to the room.
First thing next morning
we headed to the Black Tower and then the White Tower. Neither were
open yet. We decided to walk to the Schei district where native
Romanians once had to live because they weren’t allowed in the
Saxon Brasov City (then Kronstadt). From there we went to the Black
Church which is known for its organ and oriental rugs everywhere but
on the floor.
We tried the White Tower again but it was unattended although well past its opening time. We walked along the stream to the Prefecture Building and to the graves of those who were killed in the revolution of 1989. We shopped for bread and meat, then back to the room for the rest of our stuff for our planned picnic.
We then walked to the
Cable cars and took one up to the top of Tampa Mountain. We were
warned about bears by a former resident, now living in Stockholm. We
then walked to a spot near the Brasov sign and prepared our
sandwiches of Vara salami, sheep cheese, tomatoes, olive oil and
three different types of seeded bread. The bears left us alone.
After coming down we
visited another church, the Franciscan monastery and the world’s
most narrow street. At 4:00 it was drizzling again so we went back to
the room. At 5:45 we went to the organ concert at the Black Church.
It featured Mozart and Bach but some of it was boring.
We then went to Serginia
for dinner for Transylvanian food. Teresa had pork and rice rolled in
cabbage with Polenta and 2 glasses of wine. I had steak, sausage and
chicken liver in a reduced carrot sauce with polenta with cheese and
a fried egg and a ½ liter of beer. $18 and we both enjoyed it. The
restaurant was very nice and had 2 large separate sections for
smoking and non. The guy running the place had worked at the
Admiral’s Cove in Jupiter, Florida and was very friendly.
Just internet after as we
were too full for dessert.
In the morning we headed
for Sinai to see the Peles Palace. It was built by Charles I. After
the Romanian provinces were unified they wanted a leader the world
would respect- so they got one- from Germany. Like many rulers he
used national money to live lavishly. At least he had good taste. The
Palace was magnificent- inside and out.
From there we went to
Rasnov. In Romania it seems the guilds and other townspeople took
responsibility for defending themselves and built town walls, or in
some cases, separate citadels above the city. The one in Rasnov,
built after the Tartars looted the town, was particularly successful.
It withstood the Turks 3 times, but did fall once to the Hungarians
who were able to deny them water. Much of the citadel was extant or
restored.
Then to Sighisaura. It had
a similar story with a citadel, however with very little work done to it, it is
much the same as it was in the Middle Ages. It also holds the
distinction of being the birthplace of Vlad Tepes (Dracula)
We arrived and found a
place to stay in the Citadel- $33 a night. We cleaned up and walked
around – went back to the room to wait out a shower and then to
Sighiasaura Hotel Restaurant for dinner. I had mushroom and
gorgonzola stuffed voul a vent as an appetizer with pork loin filet
oblivio with mashed potatoes and a ½ liter of beer; Teresa had a
Greek salad then roast duck over stuffed cabbage; everything great-
$22.
We then walked down to the
lower city but they had already rolled up the sidewalks. We climbed
back up and went to the actual building Dracula was born in for
dessert. Teresa had a chocolate mocha cake she didn’t like too much
and tulac schnapps; I had a Belgian Waffle with whipped cream, ice
cream and chocolate sauce. It was delicious. That bill was $9- back
to the room.
Throughout our trip we had
seen many horse drawn carts. The carts were often crudely made except
for the chassis, which were all the same- with rubber tired wheels.
Teresa had tried to get pictures of them but there was always a
problem. That morning we saw several on the road in our direction. We
soon found out why. There was a livestock fair in a field at
Dumbravesi where loads of farmers brought their cows, calves, pigs
and horses to sell. We stopped and looked around. One man tried to sell Teresa his horse. They had tents
where they were cooking sausages on a grill. We hadn’t had
breakfast so we each had one with bread and mustard sauce. Delicious.
Total - $1.70.
From there we went to
Beertan (great name for a spring break locale) but here was what they
called a fortified church. It was similar to the citadel idea. In
this case they erected
2 ½ concentric rings around the church and that is where the townspeople would head when they were threatened with attack.
2 ½ concentric rings around the church and that is where the townspeople would head when they were threatened with attack.
From there we headed north
and stopped at a store in Targu Mures called Real. It was like a Wal
Mart Superstore but better. It had 30 open cash registers and 44 different kinds
of olives in the deli. Besides the fish laid out on ice, they had 2
huge aquariums filled with swimming fish so you could be sure your
purchase was fresh. In the Produce area, a girl bagged, weighed and tagged
your selection for an easy check out. We bought ham, cheese, olives,
bananas, pastries, peanuts, and water.
We had our picnic in the
wooded mountains of Transylvania (no bears or bats). We drove through
the lovely mountain area of Moldavia and arrived in the monastery
district. We decided on a Penzione in Humorlui- $27 a night.
After cleaning up we walked down the road to the Restaurant Elegance passing several people out walking their cows. We both had Pollo Italiano and a mixed salad. The chicken was stuffed with mushrooms and cheese with a light mustard sauce- reminiscent of the one we had with our sausages. I had a ½ liter of Tuborg beer. Very good- $17
The next day was Painted
Monastery day. In Southern Bucovina there are several monasteries
that are covered inside and out with fresco type paintings;
considered Eastern Europe’s Sistine Chapels ranging from the 14th
to the 16th
centuries.
Breakfast was bananas and
baklava.
First to Humor with its
wooden stockade. It introduced us to familiar scenes; the Last
Judgment, Tree of Jesse, martyrs on their last day, and various
representations of Biblical events.
From there to Veroncet.
Besides the usual, this one had paintings of philosophers as well as
saints, demons, and angels.
Lunch was in the car: tomatoes, olives, peanuts, and chocolate- lunch of champions.
On to Moldovitei. It was
founded by Stephen the Great’s illegitimate son, Petri Rares.
Although by that time the locals were paying tribute to the Ottomans,
this monastery reflected scenes of a failed Persian attempt to take
Constantinople many years earlier. In one scene Herod the Great is
being dragged by the beard to hell by a demon.
Next to Sucevita. This was
the last built and was well preserved. It was founded by two brothers,
one of whom was poisoned by the other’s wife to help her son get
the throne. She got her comeuppance as she died in the Sultan’s
harem.
Last, but not least, was
Putna, one of the major religious centers of the local Orthodox
faith, and political center of the Romanians. Stephen the Great is
buried here. He is the George Washington and Abraham Lincoln of
Romania. It is the one monastery where you are permitted to take
pictures inside (for a fee) so I did. Gold was much more prevalent
here as the others were dominated by lapis lazuli blue, where it was
apparently first used.
From there we didn’t
want to backtrack so we picked a likely route on the map which would
avoid major roads. We then had 2 ½ hours of pothole clustered dirt
roads with rocks, logging trucks, cows, and horses scattered about.
The scenery was nice I suppose, but I was looking for the next
pothole or herd of livestock in my path. Finally it was over, we made
it to good roads and travelled to Vatra Dornei.
We found Vila Clars with a very large room, refrigerator, TV, balcony with rocking chairs- all very modern $50 a night.
We found Vila Clars with a very large room, refrigerator, TV, balcony with rocking chairs- all very modern $50 a night.
We went straight to
dinner, I had a pork kebab with salad and a ½ liter of Stella
Artois. Teresa had her wrapped cabbage leaves, 2 mountains of polenta
and a glass of wine- $15.
The next morning started
with the scenic tour of the Maramures. This was an area of forested
mountains and included the Parcel Rodna National Park. We met some
Americans at the top who were from St. Louis but had Romanian ties.
We ended up in Sighetu
Marmatiel where we visited the market to buy some peaches. Among the
items sold were black market cigarettes smuggled across the nearby
bridge from the Ukraine. We also had 2 scoop ice cream cones, a
longosh ( a pastry like bread with cheese and sauce warmed over it)
and a hot dog. Total purchases $3.
We then headed for Hungary
and picked up 2 hitchhikers. We bought some gas with the last of our
Romanian money near the border.
We stopped in Scarpinta to
see 2 things: the Merry Cemetery and the wooden Orthodox Church. The
Cemetery consisted of gravesites with wooden markers (no, they do not
hold up well in the elements). A famous woodcarver carved out and
painted images of the decedent, how he lived or how he died or both.
There would be humorous or ironic poems spelled out celebrating their
lives (or discussing their deaths).
We then went to Monastery
Peri, which is the tallest wooden tower in the world.
We then went to Tokaj.
This is a famous wine making area. The city was quite charming though
there were lots of tourists- surprisingly, many of them were young.
Teresa wanted a relaxing dinner. We ate at Czandra Terrace
overlooking the river. We both had the mixed salad, which was pickled
and delicious. Teresa had Hungarian stew with boiled potatoes and
some of the local wine. I had chicken breast in a garlic cream sauce
with potato croquettes and draft Gosser beer. Total bill $27. We
walked around the town and over the bridge before eating some gelato.
Back to our room at Panzio Lux- very basic - $30.
The next morning we
continued through wine country. Our first stop was the castle at
Boldogkovarlja. It was a nice castle with some history. We also got a
demonstration of fights with swords, axes, and maces.
Next was Viszola where we
saw the 12th
century church and one of the original bibles first translated into
Hungarian.
From there to Sarospatak.
We first toured the castle and exhibition. It was in this castle
where a plot was hatched to overthrow the Hapsburgs. It was done in a
small room with a rose crown in the ceiling. It was therefore a
secret “sub rosa” meeting and “sub rosa” has meant secret or
clandestine ever since.
We then took a tour of the
wine cellars of Racoczi. Mold was evident throughout which seems to
help the wine. Our guide spoke English and Teresa and I were the only
English speakers in the group. We were the only Americans the tour
guide had led during her 2 years working there. Teresa had 3 glasses
of wine as part of the wine tasting. I abstained.
We then drove across the
bridge and found Panzio Var Vendeglo- very nice, large, air
conditioned room with a view of the river and the castle across it.
$64 a night.
We ate at the restaurant at the Panzio and it was phenomenal. I had grilled trout with almonds and parsley potatoes with a fresh salad with cheese sauce. Teresa had a Greek grill with salad and boiled potatoes with tzutzisi sauce for the meat. I had beer- Teresa had a local wine $32
We drove back into the
main area- walked some and played on the internet.
In the morning, after
cheese omelets, we headed through farm country to Aggtelek to see the
caves. The setup was first class. We chose the popular
1 ½ hour 2 kilometer
walk. It was on nonskid concrete with handrails wherever they were
needed. It was well-lit except where we had the light and sound show
at red lake (no water). We had a guide but he only gave the tour in
Hungarian.
The trip included the
largest known stalagmite in the world, but just as impressive were
all the others, that were consistently spread throughout.
It was 50 degrees F but we
were well prepared. Teresa was probably the only one in Hungary that
day with gloves on.
After that we tried to
find our way to Eger through the Bukk (beachtree) Forest, but
couldn’t make the right connections. We arrived in Eger around 6:00
and found a nice hotel- The Panorama- big room, a/c, tv, gym, free
tickets to the thermal baths, free breakfast, and free parking. $130
a night.
We walked around the city
and saw the outside of the castle. In the mid 16th
century 2,000 men and women withstood 80,000 Turks from there and
drove them off. Istvan Dobra, their leader, was made a hero.
We saw the outside of the
Cathedral, went in the Manorite Church and found a place to eat. I
had a Serbian dish- minced meat, luscious onions, salad and steak
fries- and Gosser beer. Teresa had a salad, chicken breast with
tomato and mozzarella with wine, then cherry brandy- $26. We had
gelato on the way back to the room.
Teresa started next morning with a workout at the hotel gym. After breakfast we headed to the Manorite Church and then the Cathedral – 2nd largest in Hungary.
Next we walked to the minaret. It is the most northern remnant of Ottoman Muslim worship in Europe.
Next the castle. We spent
a lot of time there. The history exhibit was great. It had English
and gave a succinct but inclusive account of what went on there,
including the heroic defense in 1592 and the fall in 1596.
We picked up some things
at the store and our free tickets for the thermal baths and headed
there. It was quite a complex. Seven or eight pools ranging in
temperature from comfortable to hot, as they were fed from thermal
springs. There were hundreds of people there. We stayed most of the
afternoon, snacking on cheese and crackers and pastry; swimming and
reading our books. Thank goodness Teresa brought a blanket on the
trip.
For dinner we went to the
Senator Haz so we could enjoy the live music on the square. I had
spaghetti with ewe cheese and bacon, salad and a local beer. Teresa
had sliced chicken breast with mushroom sauce over rice with a
pickled salad and wine - $22.50. We walked around a while before
gelato.
For our last full day in
Hungary we headed southwest toward the airport. We stopped at Godollo
where we visited the Hapsburg Palace there. Queen Elizabeth, “Sissy”,
preferred this Palace. She was married to Franz Joseph. She had a
soft spot for Hungary and pushed for an Austrian Hungarian
compromise, theoretically more of a partnership than domination by
Austria. She had a somewhat tragic life. Rudolph, her son and heir to
the throne, committed suicide when he was 33. She was killed by an
anarchist who stabbed her.
After the Palace we walked
through the gardens, then the town; each had a pitiban gyro that was
very good. I followed it with gelato, Teresa had pastry.
The trip to the Airport
Hotel went well for the first 98%- the final 2% gave us trouble
finding the place, but we were in our room with the car delivered
back to the airport by 4:30. The Budapest Airport Hotel is very nice-
large rooms, attractive interior, free pickup and delivery to the
airport and pleasant staff. We ate dinner at the hotel but I forgot
what it was.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful trip with us here on #MondayEscapes. It sure looks like you packed so much in. I haven't had the pleasure to go to Hungary yet, but I did go to Bucharest earlier this year and I loved it - although your photos are a bit differnt because it was sub zero and snowing while I was there!
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ReplyDeleteAbsolutely loved your trip of Hungary and my native country, Romania. Loved the details you gave, and of course, seeing places I am so familiar with. Glad you had this opportunity to visit those countries! Hope you enjoyed the trip over all!
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