Sept 11

Sept 11 Budapest sightseeing

We did not realize just how weary we were and we slept in til after 8! Breakfast is included at this hotel, so we dress and go to eat. Breakfast is buffet style, with sliced cheeses and sliced meats,  scrambled eggs, small boiled sausages, 3 kinds of juice and a machine that dispenses several types of coffees, like lattees and cappuccinos. It also serves hot water. There is plain and flavored yogurt, crussoints and sweet breads and bread to make toast. There are jellies and also a spread called hazelnut spread which tastes surprisingly like chocolate.  Napkins are the same texture as our paper napkins at home, but only a single sheet—like one quarter of ours. As we eat, we make a plan for the day. We know we want a city tour, so decide to ask at the desk about tours. The clerk is very helpful. We decide to buy tickets for the hop-on/off tour bus to get an overview of the city, and we also buy tickets for a Hungarian folk show tonight which is followed by a dinner cruise on the Danube. We buy one more tour, called a Royal tour for the next day. What this helpful clerk fails to tell us is that all public transportation is free for seniors over 65! It takes us 24 hours to find this out—but I get ahead of myself.

We get directions from the hotel to find the nearby stop for the hop on/off bus and board. It is already hot here at 11 am. We ride the entire two-hour circuit to get a layout of the city, get some history and take photos. We stayed on the bus for another half cycle to get off on the Buda side (the upper side) to eat a late lunch in a restaurant near the castle, with views overlooking the river and the city. Their display cases were filled with luscious desserts, but this time we passed them by. We enjoyed a leisurely lunch and got back on the hop on bus, thinking it would take us back near our hotel, but we had read the schedule wrong and when it got back to the city center,  that was the end of the tours for the day. Even though we have tickets for the downtown folklore show tonight, we need to get back to the hotel to change and get the tickets. We have ordered a taxi to pick us up at the hotel. We have not yet figured out how to use the metro. We discussed whether to try to walk back, but with our limited time, rejected that idea. I see the sign for the Astoria hotel, so we walk over there and ask the desk to call a taxi for us. We do not want to hail a cab from the street as the guidebook says the drivers here are notorious for ripping people off. Only trust drivers called by your hotel. The consierge is most willing to help us out and soon we are in a taxi and on our way. Freshened up, we wait in the hotel lobby for our taxi. He comes early, and is not quite sure of the destination for the show, even though we give him the brochure with the address and a map. He heads downtown and finally stops at the end of a block, pointing the way for us to go. David waits with the taxi while I walk down the sidewalk. I confirm with an outdoor restaurant waiter and give David a wave to pay the cab. We are at the right place. He pays the driver, who was irritated at having to wait.

We enter the ornate building, but theater doors do not open until 7:30, so we watch people and see the dressed up patrons and also musicians carrying instruments arriving on bicycles and scooters. The doors open and they say second floor. We do not realize that this means climbing four huge flights of stairs—this is a palace after all. Whew! We find our seats and admire the hall. The curtains open and we are wonderfully entertained for over two hours by fabulous gypsy violin music, with hammered piano. There is a variety of types of songs, some are just the orchestra and some have energetic gypsy dancers performing. David is especially moved by one of the violin pieces called “The Lark”. What a great musician this man is! After the show, we wait as a group in the lobby and walk about 5 minutes to the pier to board the ship for the Danube dinner cruise. We enjoy a buffet dinner while we cruise a ways up  the river, then turn and come back. The city lights and those on the bridges are magical. The skies are clear and we have a great view. Beautiful weather, a lovely evening, and average buffet food. The ship staff call a taxi for us and we enjoy visiting with the driver as we return to the hotel. It is after midnight.