Day 15
More Hopping Around Budapest
Tuesday, September 3, 2024
Jó reggelt kívánok,
Budapest Castle
We started the day with a rough plan to visit Buda Castle, Margaret Island and perhaps the Great Synagogue. So we hopped on the Hop On Hop Off bus and set off for Buda Castle.
Buda Castle is built on top of a hill. There are several ways to get up the hill:
There were a bunch of "lovely young men" that would give you a ride up on a special "Castle Tour Bus". This was basically a really long golf cart. Even though the boys were cute, tight arse Grandma didn't think they were worth €15. Each.
Ride up in the funicular. The queues were a bit long, and we couldn't be faffed. Or,
If you were young and fit, you could walk up the hill. Grandma saw a sign that said something like "300 steps". We do 94 steps up to our apartment two or three times a day, so 300 should be no trouble.
Being young and fit, Grandma & Koro decided to walk up the hill,
It did not take long at all, and it was not very hard. As we walked we were able to stop and take some pictures of the scenery, including the funicular.
Once at the top we came across more of a construction site than a castle. Buda Castle was first built in the 14th century. It has been revised and upgraded many times since. The castle complex was badly damaged during World War II, and rather than repair it the post-war communist government left it for many years, before finally rebuilding part of the castle it in a simplified manner. Other parts were demolished.
Starting in 2019 Hungary embarked on the National Hauszmann Program, which aims to rebuild or restore a number of buildings, gardens and parks within the Buda Castle district to their former glory. This work is scheduled to be completed in 2030. So currently Buda hill is full of cranes, workmen and machinery.
In typical Austrio-Hungarian style, the castle was huge. We walked around, took some pictures then went looking for an ice cream.
To get down the hill we chose to walk again.
Margaret Island
At the bottom of the hill, we hopped on the Hop On Hop Off bus and rode a short distance down the road to the Margaret Bridge. The Margaret Bridge was built in 1876, and for the first time this allowed people to walk or drive to Margaret Island. Previously the island could only be accessed by boat.
Margaret Island is a large island in the middle of the Danube River. It is basically a big park, and includes sports fields and a swimming complex, as well as gardens. We walked onto the island, and then suddenly realised how far it was to walk to the other end. By this time the day was an absolute scorcher, probably the hottest afternoon we'd had so far. We just couldn't be bothered walking that far.
We briefly toyed with hiring bikes and riding to the end. After downloading the MOBI app to hire a bike, we then had to register (of course), and upon registering we were sent a six digit code each via TXT. But when we put the codes into the app to confirm we were who we said we were, the app said, "There has been a problem".
Too Hot to Carry On
At that point we'd had enough, it was just too damn hot. So we walked back to Margeret Bridge and carried on to the Pest side of the river. We found the bus stop and patiently waited for the next Hop On Hop Off bus.
As we were waiting, a group of young people in their twenties were preparing to board "The Booze Bus". This single-decker, open-roofed bus had seats of four grouped around tables, and at each table was a beer tap. While being driven around the city, passengers could pour their own pints of beer.
Of the passengers that were boarding there were about four young men and 40 young ladies. Koro and Buzzy Bee both suddenly started feeling thirsty. Too bad they didn't have tickets for that bus.
When our bus arrived we sat on the top deck, and right at the front. As we have mentioned, each of the buses in the fleet is slightly different. This one had the roof closed, and there was no air conditioning. In the hot sun, sitting behind the glass windscreen, and no air circulation, we felt like little roasted chooks in a microwave oven. The ride couldn't end soon enough. Besides, a beer was calling.
And that was our day.
Love to you all from Grandma & Koro & Buzzy Bee.