One thing I miss on this vacation is the daily trivia. Sometimes I feel I am just too smart and the trivia keeps that in check. You may feel as I do. Here are a few questions to keep you in line.
- Which 3 cities merged to form Budapest in 1873?
- Which U.S. President has a statue in Liberty Square?
- Which toy/puzzle was invented here?
- Which two musical famous music composers were born here?
- Which famous journalist is from Budapest? (There is a prize named after him)
Answers near the end.
Our train ride was interesting. Reminded of riding in a huge Oldsmobile with bad shocks. When passing over a crossing, the railroad car seemed to go up and down 4 or 5 times. Much more aggressive than being on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
A continental breakfast was delivered to our room about an hour before Budapest. It is easy to complain but I tend to look at positive things. No preparation, no cleanup. Food was delivered. Trash taken away.
We grabbed our bags and headed towards the hotel. We stopped at McDonalds for a coffee. The cafe Americano was more European than I wanted but it beat having none. The hotel was less than a mile and it was a nice walk. It was only 9 am and our room was not ready but the young lady at the desk said we could wait 20 mins or so and it would be ready. We decided to wait. We put our bags in the room and headed out for a walking tour of the city.
Today we are going to visit the Pest side of the Danube River. Tomorrow is the Buda side.
The Hungarian Parliament was first. Wow! Very impressive. We are touring the inside on Thursday.
The next stop was Shoes on the Danube. This represented what the Nazi’s did to the Jews in the early 40s. They lined people up along the Danube River and shot them. They fell into the river and floated downstream. The Nazi’s first demanded that shoes be removed. I doubt that they were looking for a nice pair of loafers, it was just another way to further humiliate them. Shooting them is too quick. Small people need the pleasure of beating them or humiliating them as a way to feel more powerful.
One of my all time favorites was next. Ronald Reagan. The people of Hungary loved him for ending communism in 1989. Hungary chose to team up with the axis powers in 1940 and helped attack the USSR. For doing that, they enjoyed living under communism for the next 50 years. Lovers of socialism need to come what it has done all over the world.
We crossed the chain bridge next. This bridge was built with actual chains holding it up. Unfortunately, the Germans blew it to pieces on their retreat and it was rebuilt.
St. Stephen’s Basilica is probably the most beautiful church we have been in. Enjoy the photos.
We ate lunch in the old Jewish section. Something said Paris here.
The heat was incredible.We stopped to buy some water many times. I would have carried in the old days. Now it is too heavy to lug around.
We walked back to the hotel and cooled off. Yay!
Dinner was at a steak house down the street. Steak was good. Atmosphere was the table next to us. Two men and a boy. One of the men was having a conversation with someone on speakerphone. Rude. It lasted our whole dinner. He didn’t shut up until his mouth was full of food.
Trivia
- Buda, Pest, Obuda – if you got this one, my hat is off to you!
- Ronald Reagan
- The Rubin’s cube by Erno Rubik. Remember we thought it was impossible? I still think that.
- Franz Liszt and Bella Bartok. Good for you. I have a minor in music history.
- Joseph Pulitzer