Budapest

Click for my Budapest post

I went with my family to Budapest, so the guide isn’t as thorough as the places I went alone

The currency is the Forint, and the conversion is roughly 1 Euro = 275 Forint, so again you’re paying in HUGE amounts and it feels great.

They speak Hungarian.

Fun Fact: it’s actually two separate cities (Buda and Pest) separated by the Danube River.  I liked Buda more, personally.

Food

Cafe Miro: Located right near the castle, it had amazing traditional Hungarian food.  We ordered goulash and a roast goose with cabbage and apples and it was amazing.  We also got the ice cream dessert after.  Overall, it was really, really good.

Noe Cukraszda: It’s right near the synagogue.  You MUST go to get Rachel’s Flodni, which is a delicious Hungarian-Jewish cake with honey and nuts and dates and jam and deliciousness and you really just must go there.  It’s pretty famous, apparently.

We didn’t eat at that many places because it was Passover so 1 meal was spent at the sedar at the Intercontinental Hotel (GORGEOUS place) and then we ate a lot of matza and stuff.

Activities

Synagogue: In Pest.  It was closed for Passover when we went, but it was gorgeous.  Pretty sure it’s the biggest synagogue of its style in Europe.  Pretty tree of life in the back. Built in a “Moorish Style”, highly influenced by Arabic architecture. Built on the birth site of Theodore Herzl!

Shoes on the Danube Prominade: During the Holocaust to save bullets they would order people to take off their shoes and then shoot them so their bodies would fall into the Danube.  This is the Holocaust Memorial on the river.  It’s pretty moving.

Hospital in the Rock: In Buda.  They described this as being “perfect for people interested in medicine and history”, and that’s pretty much me.  It was cool because it was a secret hospital and also a nuclear shelter and decontamination zone.  It was also extremely creepy.  I’d only recommend it if you do like medicine or history or if it’s rainy, but it was fun.

St. Matthias

St. Matthias Church: In Buda.  Only saw the outside and paid to go on the walk along the walls to get a better view of Budapest.  Really pretty, definitely a must see. Coronation of Charles IV (of the Habsburgs) was here.

Castle: In Buda. It was pouring and we didn’t have that much time before our flight, so I didn’t go personally but it’s there! And huge.

The Baths: we went to Szechenyi, the big yellow one.  Have one person buy a private cabana and everyone else just the regular access bracelets so that you will have a private cabana for everyone to change in.  They give you these plastic bracelets that unlock the doors and grant you access and that was a plus.  Honestly, I hate the idea of the baths it seemed gross, but the place itself was very clean and nice and for people who like taking baths with strangers it was a really nice facility.  I think you have to do it just to do it.