Jan 07, 2025
47.4979° N, 19.0402° E
First a geography lesson for the parentals:
First question: ¿Dónde está Budapest?
East of Italy, and just a touch to the north, Budapest resides in Hungary, in Eastern Europe. It’s super safe, don’t you worry, but any more east might be a no go…
Budapest is a city of two halves - Buda and Pest. While now joined by the exquisite bridges that cross the Danube River, the two sides have distinct personalities: Buda, a rugged landscape that hosts landmarks like Buda Castle, Fisherman’s Bastion’s and Gellert Hill, all overlooking the Danube; and Pest, the lively city side, home to the bustling people of Budapest and night-life spent in ruin bars and thermal baths.Given its geographical location, I was not surprised to find that Budapest was absolutely freezing. Connor and I did some pre-trip shopping and purchased these sweet puffer jackets. As helpful as they were, they didn’t quite offset the PF Flyers that I was wearing, so ya boy was still a little chilly. I learned quite concretely that I do not do well in the cold.
Day 1: Madrid to Budapest & Buda Castle @ Night
Connor and I’s first trip solo trip together!
We arrived in Budapest no pasa nada and it occurred to us that the Hungarians did not use the Euro, but rather feet (ft). This led to a week’s worth of the cost of distance jokes from Connor and an extremely confusing conversion rate. I gave them €50 and received 20,400 ft.
I tried to use a few Hungarian phrases and asked for the correct pronunciation, you know, to not be the ugly American only speaking English in a foreign country. As a matter of respect and principle. However, we quickly learned that Hungarian is an impossible language to pick up, especially for a 5-day venture. The fortunate part was that the locals were abundantly aware of that so everyone spoke English. I still tried to say “köszönöm” (thank you) a few times in Hungarian, and I butchered it. Probably got laughed at a few times too. Points for trying? Siempre.
Our Hungarian taximan graciously delivered us to our hostel and informed us we were in a phenomenal area in Pest. We checked in and met some of the characters that would make our time in Budapest so entertaining. The boy, Francisco, showed us the room: a quaint 6-bed shared dorm, bunkbed style. Oh, to be 25 and able to do such a thing. But €20/night? I’ll say yes, please.
It was earlier in the afternoon so we ventured out for a bit before it got dark. We stopped for lunch at a hostel-recommended spot and ordered beef goulash in a bread bowl. Couldn’t think of a more Hungarian food in the world. It was quite good, and in the cold, I understand why the dish is such a hit. Soup and bread on a chilly day in California always satisfied, but now authentic cuisine in 0° weather and you’ve got a darn good first meal in Budapest.
We walked to the Danube River and were pretty wowed by what we saw. First, the Danube is absurdly large. This makes sense because unbeknownst to me until I’m writing this after our trip, it is the second-biggest river in Europe (after some river in Russia which I don’t count as Europe, so the Danube is the biggest river in Europe). Then across this immense river are these giant suspension bridges. Each one is differently designed: Széchenyi Chain Bridge, Liberty Bridge, and Erzsébet Bridge. Today, we would only be crossing the original and my personal favorite: Széchenyi Chain Bridge.
Széchenyi Chain Bridge, from Buda Castle
Took this photo a whole bunch of times
Fisherman’s Bastion
Buda Castle as seen from Pest
Pano view of the Danube
One of my photo goals for the trip was to capture the Széchenyi Chain Bridge at night when the lights illuminated the bridge, the city, and Parliament in the distance. The best angle could be found from Buda Castle, another epic landmark on the Buda side, looking back at the bridge and Pest. So Connor every so kindly trudged along in the cold with me to this vista to get the shot. And when I say cold, man, I mean cold. For those that don’t know: Hace demasiado frio! Soy de California, y me gusta el calor!
We were able to get a quick view of Buda Castle as we found the right vantage point and it was pretty darn cool up close. The remnants of the Christmas market were still up so I indulged in some mulled wine for three reasons: 1) to keep my body from turning into a block of ice 2) creative PED, and 3) I’m on vacation!
I love exposing for a longer time than normal
Just get’s prettier at night
That night, Connor and I happened to partake in the hostel social events. We met some fun people from all over the world, including a new friend from Bali, Romania, and a group of German girls who invited us to Carnival in Cologne. Will we ever see them again? Espero. Que. Si.
We went to a few poppin’ spots in Budapest, including Szimpla Kert, the original ruin bar. Ruin bars are a staple in Budapest nightlife; built out of old abandoned buildings, they look not so poppin’ from the exterior. Stepping inside shows an eclectic atmosphere that usually consists of many different environments: one room might be bumping party music with a huge dance floor, then you step into a mini-wine bar; upstairs is a lounging area with a terrace area outside, and many different music genres in many different rooms. Quite the experience, and to be honest, my favorite in the nightlife category.
Day 2: Market Square, Liberty Bridge, & Gellert Hill
View on a stroll
First stop: bagels. Incredible. Until we missed the hostel tour. We made do.
Connor and I made way regardless. First up: Market Square. After a quick walk from the hostel, we came upon what seemed like a State Street of sorts. Fun vibe, lots of shops, and a lively atmosphere. The Market Square itself had similar vibes. Cool, but nothing to write home about.
We crossed Liberty Bridge and took an epic selfie.
We hiked up Gellert Hill, which was no small task. We followed the very similar, yet slightly different trail markers.
There were various vistas you could stop at along the way up, each one getting more incredible to the eye, and less incredible to the camera.
Tram 3 taking the scenic route
My Photoshop skills have improved…
Smiling through the pain
Connor through a snowball at me
Green instead of red? Porqué?
Unfortunately, the top of Gellert Hill was under construction. Normally, there is a giant citadel that sits atop the hill overlooking both Buda and Pest. With the construction, many sections seemed unavailable. So naturally I found a deer path that led a little farther past the crowd and found it connected to a different trail around the bend. I asked a couple where it led and they said it led down to Buda Castle. Perfect, now we had a loop instead of an out and back.
We followed the new trail down a little bit, but I hadn’t found the view I was looking for quite yet. We were already heading down away from the construction, and the view was drastically covered by the trees looking out over the view. I took another detour and ran up a staircase that looked like it was blocked off by the construction to find a thin deer path that ran along the fence. Up here, above the trees, you could really see the whole city. I called for Connor to follow, we enjoyed the view, and I took some really unremarkable photos.
We meandered our way down the paths to the bottom of the hill, similar to the hills in Prague and Nice that had no direct path down, simply a series of offshoots that all brought you to where you needed to go, but almost purposefully ensured no one took the same path.
Through the crowd...
A clearer view
Todo
Mesmerized
We reached the bottom and started our journey back to Pest right as the sun was setting. We crossed the river and found ourselves on the same State Street as before. The only difference was this time it was tunnel cake time.
“Tunnel cake”, as great a name as it might be, does not exist. I do not know why I could not remember the name “chimney cake”, as it is called, and for good reason. This delicious hollow pastry, when served out in the cold, has a steam that emits from its fresh dough and emulates a chimney. Tiene sentido.
Apart from the aesthetic appeal, that shit was so damn good, excuse my French. Speaking of, put some Nutella on it and it might have topped crepes in Paris, a previous favorite of mine. It seems that Europe is invoking a sweet tooth upon my palette and I’m not sure how to feel about it.
Tried to capture the chimney smoke, but it looked like this was just a tunnel
Look at that smile
A big appeal of Budapest, as I have alluded to, is the city at night. A favorite amongst travelers is the night cruise of the Danube. Connor and I had pre-bought tickets to one of many boats that do the cruises. However, our ever so rowdy hostel recruited us to their cruise that was a little more booze than cruise. Throw in a ruin bar post-boat, and we were fully immersed in the Budapest nightlife culture. And don’t forget the gyro at 4 AM with the randoms from our hostel we split a cab with. Authenticity at its finest. Just make sure Connor gets his face dry on the blow dryer.
Parliament... at night
Day 3: Parliament, Fisheman’s Bastion, & Lebanese Food
More bagels. Small hangover. Told a stranger it was January 5th when he asked about the syrup. Good start to the day.
The hostel tour was headed to Parliament so Connor and I tagged along. Our new friend Stephen also happened to be joining so he spent the day with us exploring.
Why don't our buildings look like this
Crew for the day!
It was a real moody day. Wisps of cloud floated through the buildings which normally I would love for a moody shot. But it wasn’t hitting as well as I wanted it to, and instead brought down the temp. We saw parliament, and I was hoping our guide would have some more details on the history, but I think her job was literally just to walk us there.
2 hooves in the air means he died from a battle wound, but not in battle
Toda del tour
Connor and I decided to split off since we had other sites to see that day, and Stephen joined. We walked along the river and saw the Shoes on the Danube. Then we headed towards Fisherman’s Bastion, in the freezing cold and now slightly wet Budapest weather.
Fisherman’s Bastion was cool! It was slightly less enjoyable due to the dreary weather and the vistas were a little inhibited by the clouds, but overall a fun excursion. We paid 10,000 ft to go up the tower and get an even higher view of the city. Going up the spiral staircase was dizzying, to say the least, but even more disorienting was hearing Stephen speak Romanian to the group at the top.
We finished the day with a belly-filling Lebanese course in the heart of Budapest. It even snowed for a millisecond on our way home. So yes, it snowed when we were in Budapest.
Atop the spiraling tower
You could pay 10 ft for this view but 10 ft higher
There was a Starbucks that we sadly sat in to get warm just to the left…
That night I was struggling. My energy was low, my social battery was dead, and I was ready for my creaky hostel dorm bed. Connor re-enthused me, and we met our Colorado friends at Szimpla Kert, the OG ruin bar, and discovered even more than what we first encountered. Other rooms unlocked: live indie-jazz band, quiet jazz room, whole new bar area upstairs, and endless little pockets for a cozy conversation. We spent the night in one of these pockets, partaking in cozy conversation, on our last real night in Budapest.
Day 4: Hero’s Square, Vajdahunyad Castle, and Rudas Thermal Bath
Kinda turned out cool for a not-so-cool landmark
Last day! We had one more location to check out site-seeing-wise, and then the day was left for relaxation at the thermal baths.
Hero’s Square was the most touristy thing you can imagine: a giant plaza with some statues and a ton of people.
We stumbled upon a park behind the square, and it turned out to be Vajdahunyad Castle, a destination I thought we wouldn’t be able to fit in. Good planning Ryan! We walked around the park and were surprised by how cool the castle was. We took some good flicks, got a cafe, and since we were about an hour's walk home, took a taxi.
Our last stop on the trip was the thermal baths. Budapest is known for these giant spa centers that have everything from saunas to salt rooms to, of course, thermal baths. It was a rather delightful experience. Connor and I opted to go to Rudas, which was the more low-key option, and I think we made the right choice. My hair and skin have never felt softer. 10/10 would recommend and a refreshing end to our trip.
I’d love to reside in this castle with a moat
Better photo, worse picture
Worse photo, better picture
“How much to jump in the lake?”
Day 5: Budapest to Madrid
6 AM flight. Lounge open before! Boujie one. Left Budapest with a full stomach and a fuller SD card.
What a trip.
Don’t forget the video!
