Budapest!

Hello All!

My last blog from this wonderful trip!  I am on a bus on my way to Nottingham right now and have had quite the day of travel!  I suppose it was to expected that something would go wrong today because of how smooth our trip has been.  I mean every trip has to have some travel horror story right?

Well ours started this morning at about 1am when Kelli and I were awakened by our drunk hostel mates coming home who knows what they were doing but they then decided not to go to bed until around 3 am.  So we had a very restful night of sleep before our crazy day of a plane and three trains plus all the little ways of travel between those three main trips.  However as Kelli and I got through security and were on are way to find some long overdue breakfast we got a text from one of our flatmates with a news article the headline “Huge Fire At Nottingham Station.” Thats right folks our train station has officially burned down… so our crazy day of travel now gets to include a plane, a train, a tube ride, and a bus!  Because for some crazy reason they don’t send trains to stations that currently resemble a burned out bonfire pit.  However todays adventure aside Budapest was amazing! 

Budapest was our last city and Kelli and I had an amazing time.  We got to Budapest just before two in the afternoon and got all checked in to our hostel.  We decided to go out and explore a bit after of course we got food! our hostel was on the square of St. Stephen's Basilica one of the tallest buildings in the city so we decided to start there.  The Basilica was beautiful like most churches in Europe and it was cool to see a building that held so much significance for the city.

After St. Stephens we wandered down to the river and across the famous Chain Bridge.  We enjoyed the river and the many sites around it.  On our way home for the evening we stopped by the Gelato shop right next to our hostel picked two delicious flavors and were handed a rose! A perfect end to our first day in Budapest. 

Our next day in the city was extremely busy! We started with a walking tour that took us from the Pest side across the river to the Buda side.  It was well done and a good introduction to the city.  Kelli and I then decided to wander further down the Buda side of the Danube to the next bridge and to walk back up the Pest side.  This gave us a great view of the Parliament building and we got to see the Shoes on the Danube memorial.  However it was a lot of walking and when we finally made it back to our hostel we decided to rest for a bit before finding some dinner.

This is Technically Buda Castle and at one point there was an actual Castle that stood here however it was destroyed and this place was built where it once stood

Looking from the Buda side to the Pest side

The Buda Side has beautiful rolling hills

St. Mattus Church

Fisherman's Bastion 

The Hungarian Parliament Building

The Shoes On the Danube Memorial for the Hungarian Jews that were shot in to the river.

The Next day was my Birthday! So Kelli and I decided to treat ourselves and visit one of the Famous Budapest Thermal Baths.  Kelli and I spent the day at Szechenyi Thermal spa and had a lovely day soaking away our many aches and pains in the healing water. The palace of Szechenyi Bath was built between 1909 and 1913 in Neo-Baroque and Neo-Renaissance styles by Gyozo Czigler. However, the history of the baths goes beyond 100 years, back to the 1870s and 1880s, when the deep hot spring wells were drilled under the Heroes’ Square near the City Park in Budapest. 

That night we decided, since I was turning 21, to visit one of the famous Ruin Bars.  These bars are built in Budapest’s old Jewish quarter in the ruins of abandoned buildings, stores, or lots. This neighborhood was left to decay after World War II, so it was a perfect place to develop an underground bar scene. From outside, these bars look like normal homes and unless you know the specific name or someone has told you how to get their they can be hard to find. Each of these ruin bars has its own personality, but they all follow a few basic principles: find an old abandoned place, rent it out (maybe?), set up a bar, fill it with flea market furniture, have a few artists come in to leave their mark on the walls and ceiling, add in some weird antiques, serve alcohol, and watch people flock in.Our guide the day before had recommended a bar called Szimpla, the original ruin bar, and it did not disappoint! 

By this point in our time in Budapest both Kelli and I were starting to feel the effects of traveling for 27 days and we decided to take the next two days easy.  So on Wednesday we headed out to see the main shopping streets of Budapest and the Central Market Hall.  The Hall has two levels the main level was filled with stalls selling fruits and vegetables, eats and cheese, and many other delicious things.  Kelli and I enjoyed wandering around and watching the natives barter and shop.  After a while we headed upstairs to the second level.  This level was filled with stalls for tourists they sold many had made Souvenirs as well as the factory made ones.  We wandered this floor for a while looking at the all the goods and buying a couple as well before we headed off to find some lunch from the vendors on the other side of the hall.  Kelli and I both had traditional Hungarian Goulash in a bread bowl which was delicious and also very filling.  

Our Final day in Budapest we spent wandering the Historic Jewish Quarter.  Kelli and I found a do it yourself walking tour that lead us around to the different synagogues and historic spots in the quarter giving insightful descriptions along the way.  The Quarter while filled with history is also now very much an up and coming area filled with incredible and unique restaurants, quaint cafes, and fun boutique stores.

We finished our stay with a ride on the Budapest eye and a night of packing or stuffing to be honest.  

Im very melancholy about our trip being done.  I am so excited to sleep in my own bed with a roommate who wont’t wake me up 20 million times in the night but also when I think back to all of Kelli and My adventures Im not ready to go back to the same old same old of Nottingham.  However I do have another month of traveling to start planing and a trip to Ireland! 

Cheers!

Meghan!

“We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place, we stay there, even though we go away. And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there.” 

― Pascal Mercier, Night Train to Lisbon

Vienna

Hello All!

Kelli and my trip is quickly coming to an end.  We are in our last city and greatly enjoying Budapest.  We also had an amazing time in Vienna.  We enjoyed the cities huge art presence and spent our time touring the cities many museums and taking advantage of 3 euro Oprea tickets!

Our first day in the city was very busy we started our day with a free walking tour of the city and had a lovely guide who gave us a much better understanding of the history of the city and country.  We learned about the Habsburg Dynasty and Vienna when it was the seat of power for most of Europe.  He also shared how Austria and Vienna fell to the Nazis during WWII and many other stories of the city and countries rich history.  After our tour Kelli and I decided to check out St. Stephen's Cathedral while the Cathedral inside was of course beautiful it was is the roof that makes this church so memorable.   We got a great view of its beauty from the top of its tallest tower as well as incredible views of the city!

After Exploring St. Stephens Kelli and I decided to race the sun and see if we could get to Vienna Hundertwasserhaus before it got dark.  The Hundertwasserhaus is a condominium in Vienna. It was designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser and built in the 1980's. The novelty of the wavy, uneven floors, the roof covered with grass, large trees growing out of the rooms, and their branches out of windows attracts many visitors.  I found that if brings out many peoples inner child and wandering around the building is like an easter egg hunt with surprises around every corner. 

From the Hundertwasserhaus Kelli and I then headed back to our Hostel to get ready to go to the Staatsoper or State Opera house.  We decided to go tonight because the Opera playing was Hansel and Gretel and since the Opera was definitely sung in German we had a better chance of following the storyline.  The show was incredible and it was an amazing experience to get to see a show at the Viennese state opera! 

On our second day in Vienna we visited two museums, the Albertina and the Hofburg Palace Museum that had an exhibit on Empress Sisi and on the Royal Apartments.  The Albertina was amazing! The museum had an incredible exhibit that walked you through the different artistic movements from Monet to Picasso I appreciated how the museum gave you enough information to really get a grasp of the history without overwhelming like so many other museums. 

After the Albertina Kelli and I headed in to the Hofburg Complex to see the Sisi Exhibit and the Royal Apartments.  Sisi or Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie von Wittelsbach was wife of Francis József I. she was therefore Empress of Austria, Hungary and Queen of Bohemia. She was dubbed the most beautiful woman of her time and was much loved by her people.  It was interesting to learn more about the family that ruled in Vienna for so long and the exhibit and Royal Apartments were interesting to see.  

The next day in Vienna Kelli and I took a day trip to Salzburg.  Although it rained all day we still had a lovely time taking a rather speedy walk through the Mirabell Gardens where Sound of Music was filmed. We then headed off to Mozart's Birthplace and enjoyed the museum there.  

Kelli and I then headed for Hohensalzburg Castle.  This Fortress was first built in 1077 and was added to through the years. It is the largest fully preserved castle in Central Europe and offers incredible views of Salzburg as well as a look at how the famous mountain town began.

After the Hohensalzburg Castle Kelli and I spent time wandering the old town before deciding to rest our feet and dry out a bit in a cafe.  Once we had warmed back up a bit and were re-caffeinated we headed of to check out the inside of Salzburg Cathedral before finding some dinner and then heading back to Vienna.  

Back in Vienna for our fourth day in the city Kelli and I spent the morning at Kunsthistorisches Museum or Art History Museum.  We wandered through the many halls that were absolutely filled with incredible paintings by many famous painters.  Kelli and I then decided to head out to Schönbrunn Palace to wander around and explore the palaces gardens.  This palace was the Habsburg family's summer home and so the gardens are extensive Kelli and I wandered them for about an hour and still probably didn't see even half of the land that was set aside for Austria's Emperors.  

Our Final day in Vienna was spent at the famous Leopold Museum, packing, and visiting the Staatsoper.  The Leopold was incredible and like the Albertina so well done Kelli and I saw works by Klimt, Egon Schiele, Anton Kolig, Ferdinand Hodler, and Victor Hugo.  All the their works were incredible and it was cool to get to see each artist in depth.  I didn't take many pictures of this day but here is rather famous piece by Klimt.

That Night Kelli and I headed back to the opera house to see The Nutcracker Ballet! It was of course incredible and extremely well done. A perfect way to end our time in Vienna.

Cheers!

Meghan

“And then there is the most dangerous risk of all — the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later.” – Randy Komisar