BUDAPEST
A City for All Senses
A city that graces
both sides of a legendary river, crossed by a succession of regal bridges.
At night, the lights on the monuments and bridges gleam in the dark
like jewels. Grand, tree-lined boulevards and neoclassical buildings
from the 19th century. Neighborhoods with winding, narrow, cobblestone
streets from medieval times. Antique-filled flea markets, fascinating
book stores, inviting cafés with strong coffee and sweet confections,
museums and concerts to delight the eye and ear. Paris? No, Budapest.
A name that conjures
up an image more exotic and mysterious than any other Western capital.
A stop along the fabled Orient Express. Inaccessible behind the Iron
Curtain for nearly half a century. A city destroyed many times by invasions
and wars - most devastatingly and recently during World War II. And
lovingly rebuilt every time by a proud and creative people, who give
the place its tremendous warmth and singular charm.
Distinctive Flavor
Budapest offers
the sophisticated traveler the familiarity of European culture with
a tantalizingly distinctive Hungarian flavor. You see it in the domed
baths, originally built by Turks during 150 years of occupation, and
in the Eclectic style of turn-of-the-century architecture throughout
the city. You taste it in the complex cuisine influenced by the Magyar
founders from Central Asia, Turks, Serbs, Austrians and French (see
Year of Wine and Gastronomy, p. 12). You hear it in the folk music and
unpronounceable language, unlike any other. (In Budapest, though, you
will find many who speak English, particularly among the young.) And
you especially feel it in the verve, the humor and the sparkle of the
people.
When you visit Hungary,
you not only see monuments and reminders of the past, you are actually
witnessing history in the making. As it seeks to weave a new richer
tapestry of Hungarian culture, the nation is reviving the traditions
of the pre-Communist era - some as fundamental as religious instruction,
others as frivolous as the glittering New Year's ball. It's exciting
to watch a country creating a new future and asserting a new self.
Hungary - unlike
many former Communist bloc nations - did not destroy its Soviet monuments.
The Liberation statue on the Citadel - commemorating the defeat of the
Nazis - remains where the Communists erected it. Other colossal statues
in Socialist Realist style were moved to a fascinating open-air Statue
Park Museum (just a cab ride outside Budapest), dedicated exclusively
to these relics of Soviet domination. When you return, stop and have
a drink and a chuckle at a café that spoofs Communism, called
Marxim (a cross between Marxism and Maxim) in Buda, near Moszkva tér
whose name also recalls the recent past.
The city known
as Budapest is actually three cities: Óbuda, the oldest section,
with Celtic and Roman ruins, on the Buda side of the Danube; Buda among
the gently rolling hills on the western bank, famous for its historic
Castle Hill and beautiful residential area; and bustling Pest with its
shopping, government and commercial districts on the flat plain of the
east bank.
A City for Walking
United in 1873,
Budapest is ideal for walking. And exploring the city on foot is the
best way to burn off all the calories from the delicious food and wine
you'll be enjoying. Afterwards, there is no more rejuvenating way to
relax than in one of the city's many soothing spas - fed by 80 thermal
springs.
Start by strolling
along the winding streets on Castle Hill, where the medieval character
of Buda has been best preserved. The entire panorama of the two banks
of the Danube all the way from Margaret Island - Budapest's green Central
Park in the middle of the river - to Gellért Hill and the Castle
District has been designated a World Heritage preservation site by UNESCO.
At the top of Castle
Hill visit the Royal Palace, which houses the Budapest Historical Museum,
Hungarian National Gallery and National Library. The 700-year old Matthias
Church with its Gothic spire and multi-colored tiled roof is where the
nation's kings were crowned and now the site of organ and choir performances.
Be sure to catch sunset at Fisherman's Bastion, with its view of the
river, Chain Bridge, Parliament building and Pest spreading out across
the horizon.
For a view that
takes in sights on both sides of the river, go up Gellért Hill
to the Citadel. The hill is home to three famous and historic spas:
the Art Nouveau-era Gellért and the 400 year-old Rudas and Rác
Baths, the latter two built by the Turks.
City of Caves
It is a cave on
the southeastern side of Gellért Hill which gave the city half
of its name. Seeing the hollow in the hill, and the other caves that
underlie the Buda Hills, the Magyar conquerors from Asia - with no word
of their own for cave - borrowed the Slavic word, "pest,"
from tribes living in the area. They named what is now Gellért
Hill "Pest Hill" - or hill of caves. In 1926 a lovely chapel,
known as Rock Chapel, was built inside the hollow of Gellért
Hill and can be visited today. The miles of caves under the city are
the inactive vents of hot springs, the source of thermal water for all
the city's spas. Sections of the labyrinthine cave system may be toured,
for example Castle Cave at the corner of Országház and
Dárda streets. Many caves have served as wine cellars and air
raid shelters.
Antiquity
If you're looking
for antiquity, Óbuda (Old Buda) is the place to see excavated
ruins of the Roman city of Aquincum. An amphitheater once holding 16,000
seats, discovered under the houses in Királydomb, is considered
one of Europe's largest open-air arenas. Relics from the Romans' occupation
are on display in the Aquincum Museum.
If you cross the
Danube from Buda to Pest on the Margaret Bridge you enter the enchanted
oasis of Margaret Island, Budapest's largest park, where no cars are
allowed except an occasional taxi. Explore on foot, by rented bicycle
or minibus the gardens, medieval church and chapel, game reserve, swimming
pools, spa-hotels, tennis stadium and 10,000 trees that make the island
in the middle of the river seem miles away from the bustle of a modern
city. Originally housing a convent (still being excavated), Margaret
Island was turned into a harem by the Turks!
Turn-of-the-Century
Pest
Stepping back into
the urban action on the Pest side, you can stroll along Andrássy
Boulevard, very much like the Champs-Elysées, and admire the
mix of neoclassic, Romantic, Art Nouveau and uniquely Hungarian Eclectic
style of architecture in the buildings - mostly from the turn of the
century.
Outstanding examples
include the Opera House, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Post Office
Savings Bank, Museum of Applied Arts, St. Stephen's Basilica and, of
course, Parliament, which you have seen at sunset from the Buda side
across the river. At the end of Andrássy you will find the magnificent
Heroes' Square with statues of Hungary's greatest leaders from the founding
of the state to the 19th century.
At the National
Museum, you will learn about the saga of Hungarian history and see the
legendary crown jewels of King Stephen. Although they post-date the
sainted Stephen by several centuries, the crown jewels nevertheless
have a spectacular history, having been lost, stolen or misappropriated
at various times since the Middle Ages.
After World War II, fleeing Hungarians brought them to the United States
for safekeeping. Jimmy Carter returned them to Hungary in 1978.
Worth seeing for
both the building itself as well as the exhibits inside is the Museum
of Applied Arts, a fantastic combination of traditional folk elements
with Art Nouveau, Islamic, Hindu and Persian motifs. The roof is covered
with ceramics from the famous Zsolnay factory in Pécs. The spacious
white Victorian interior with glass dome overhead seems a complete contrast
to the multicolored Oriental exterior. Exhibits include furniture, textiles,
metalwork, ceramics, porcelain and glass.
The superb Museum
of Ethnography originally served a different purpose. Its designer was
the first runner-up in the turn-of-the-century competition for the Parliament
building, and it housed the Supreme Court and Chief Prosecutor's Office.
Go inside just to admire the frescos on the ceiling and the splendid
staircase.
To make it easy
for visitors to see museums and all the city's sights, the 3-day Budapest
Card allows the purchaser to travel free on all public transportation,
visit most of the city's top museums and provides discounts on guided
tours, at selected restaurants and shops. You can buy the Budapest Card
in the US or upon your arrival in Hungary at the airport, at hotels,
museums, travel agencies and metro stations.
Budapest had the
first subway on the European Continent. That first line is still in
operation, along with the modern lines built after World War II.
One area that must
be explored on foot is Erzsébet Town, the charming old Jewish
quarter. The Byzantine-looking Dohány Street Synagogue was recently
restored to its original grandeur. With 3,000 seats, it is Europe's
largest synagogue and the world's second largest after New York's Temple
Emanu-El.
In the courtyard
is the moving Holocaust Memorial in the form of a weeping willow, its
metal leaves engraved with the names of victims. Theodor Herzl, founder
of modern Zionism, was born nearby. Wander through the courtyards connecting
residential buildings, forming a protective cocoon for the quarter.
Then stop for pastry or lunch at one of several kosher restaurants and
cafés.
Shopping
Give in to the temptation
of shopping for antiques, Herend or Zsolnay porcelain, intricate needlework
with folk art motifs, fine Hungarian wines and liqueurs, as well as
goose liver pate and a variety of paprikas. The most elegant and popular
shopping areas are Váci Street, Petõfi Sándor Street
and Vörösmarty Square. For the largest selection of merchandise,
check out the many shops along Károly Ring and Kossuth Lajos
Street.
If you want an insider's
tip, go south on Váci past Elizabeth Bridge. There you'll find
excellent shops and galleries for browsing Éand fewer tourists.
At the end of the lower section of Váci, recently converted to
pedestrian-only traffic, stop in the splendid and colorful Central Market
Hall overflowing with food and folk art stalls. A true sensory experience.
On Saturdays, tour buses leave from the Central Market for the Ecseri
Flea Market - a shopping and bargaining paradise.
Going Out
Some of Budapest's
best restaurants on both sides of the river offer music as well as fine
food. Be serenaded while you dine at appropriately named Bel Canto near
the Opera House, or by Gypsy violins in Kárpátia Restaurant.
Try the Fél 10 jazz club or Café Pardon, where you can
hear live music every night.
Other outstanding
restaurants to sample: Légrádi Antiques, above a charming
antique shop; Mûvész Restaurant with piano music and dark
royal blue walls; Múzeum Restaurant with Art Nouveau tilework
and stained glass; Fortuna Restaurant on Castle Hill; legendary Gundel
Restaurant in City Park, which has hosted Habsburg weddings, or its
less formal sister restaurant next door, Bagolyvár (Owl's Castle),
staffed entirely by women and serving home-style Hungarian cuisine.
You'll also notice
a multitude of boats docked on the Pest side of the city. You can take
a daytime or evening sightseeing cruise - and drink in the view with
a cocktail in hand. Some cruises also include a dinner and dance music.
All year round,
there are concerts, opera, operetta, ballet, modern dance and folk dance
performances throughout the city. Listen to the works of Hungary's native
sons - Ferenc Liszt, Zoltán Kodály, Béla Bartók,
Ferenc Lehár - in the land and city that inspired them. And don't
be surprised if Budapest, the Pearl of the Danube, inspires you, too.
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Hungary
is predominantly flat. The Danube River forms part of Hungary's northwestern
border with Slovakia, and then flows south through Budapest, dividing
Hungary into two general regions. A low, rolling plain known as the
Great Hungarian Plain also called the Great Alföld, covers most
of the region east of the Danube extending east to Romania and south
to the FRY. Highlands along the northern border of the country extend
eastward from the gorge of the Danube at Esztergom and include the Mátra
mountains, a part of the Carpathian Mountain system. Mount Kékes
(1,014 m/ 3,327 ft), in the Mátra Mountains, is the highest peak
in Hungary. The area west of the Danube, known as Transdanubia, presents
a variety of land forms. In the south rise the isolated Mecsek Mountains.
In the north are the Bakony Mountains, a forested range in the Transdanubian
Highlands, which overlook Lake Balaton. The Little Alföld, or Little
Plain, in the extreme northwestern section of Hungary, extends into
southern Slovakia.
