Beautiful day in Budapest

Beautiful day in Budapest

Budapest, Hungary, Europe

Last night was a little annoying because someone kept buzzing the hostel door at 3:30am to get in, and no one was answering them. It went on for six full minutes, and the buzzer is right outside my door. It was just so annoying because there was really nothing I could do about it. We had already been told not to let anyone in if it buzzed because it was sometimes just drunk kids being stupid. Regardless, I got up at about 9am, left the hostel by 10am, and joined a walking tour by 10:30am.

It was a perfect day for a walking tour. It was sunny with a bit of cloud, and about 18*C (70*F). The group I joined was less than enthusiastic, but it still got me around town to see the sights. Budapest is a really beautiful city, with a rich history. We heard about how the country was ruled by the Ottomans, then the Austrians, then the Nazis, then the Russians, and now are independent. We checked out the different sides of the city, starting with Pest, and then to the west side of the Danube river to Buda.

After the tour finished, I went to St. Stephens Basilica and climbed up to the top of the tower. It was a pretty cool view of the city from the top of the tower. I left there and checked out the museum called House of Terror. It was amazing. It was the second most powerful museum I’ve ever been to besides the Vietnam War Museum in Ho Chi Minh City. The House of Terror was all about when Hungary took the side of the Nazis in WWII. This building was used in the war to interrogate and torture Jews. It was horrific to see what these people were put through.

After going through the museum, I couldn’t take much more history, so I came back to the hostel for a little rest. I met some girls in the hostel who recommended a place for dinner called Cafe Jubilee. It was a great recommendation. They served their own beer, and traditional Hungarian food. I had the beef goulash which was pretty good, and apple pie for dessert. The dessert was excellent! All-in-all it was a pretty good dinner. It’s always good to try out the local cuisine in a new place.

I’ve spent the rest of the night at the hostel trying to sort out my trip to Russia. I know it can be a pain in the ass when you arrive there if you don’t have all your accommodation and transportation sorted for your whole trip. So I’ve booked my hostels for Moscow and St Petersburg, and the train linking the two cities. Hopefully that will make things easier when I get into Russia…

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