Budapest travel story

Published in DASH/HiFliers


Mesmerising City on the Danube: Budapest


This city on the Danube mesmerizes us with its authentic beauty, and a unique culture that has been crafted as a result of hundreds of years of invasion, liberation, rehabilitation, rebirth and renaissance. Music, particularly gypsy music is everywhere in the city, on its streets, in restaurants – no less than in the grand theatre or opera houses. This Hungarian capital may best be described as a bustling city that has both life and soul, is alive at all times, no matter day or night. The magnificent amalgam of the old and the new at once charms a first-time visitor to the region that boasts a wide variety of architectural styles that blend elements of Classical, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Art Nouveau in a single building.

We immediately warm to the city that is visitor-friendly with a variety of transport modalities and an excellent metro system with three underground lines, a suburban railway line and several trolleybuses, trams and regular buses plying every corner of the city. We also observe that it has a well structured inter-Europe railway network that makes for an extremely comfortable intra-Europe travel. Coaches, hydrofoils and ferries make commuting between Budapest and some European destinations, easy and convenient.

Talking about historical facts, unlike many of its European neighbours Budapest was fortunate to have escaped the ravages caused by the two World Wars. Pre-Second World War Budapest had a robust entertainment culture with casinos ruling the roost which is presumably yet evident in several areas of the city. The twin cities of Pest and Buda combined to form the great city of Budapest which straddles a bend in the azure waters of the great Danube. Even for the first time traveler to the region, it is at once palpable that perhaps no other city along Europe’s longest river embraces it as much as Budapest, with nine bridges linking the two sides. A major promenade along the river offers sweeping and pulsating views of Pest and Buda. Incidentally, history records that Budapest was called Pest-Buda when it was first created as an amalgam in 1873. The two regions today compliment and contrast each other: the one is hilly, residential and scenic while the latter is flat and industrial.

As we leisurely take strolls down its lanes and by-lanes, it is not difficult to see the vestiges of the imperial era, reflected in the scintillating architecture that characterizes imposing structures like the Great Synagogue, The St.Stephen’s Basilica and the State Opera House, to name a few. The Saint Stephen Basilica, the largest Roman Catholic church in Budapest enjoys the second highest ecclesiastical status in Hungary. The building, the construction of which began in 1851 and took fiftyfour years to complete, is a rich blend of the classical and neo-renaissance styles of architecture. Its interior, we learn, has been created using fifty different types of marble. From the left tower of the church one gets to have a spectacular panoramic view of Budapest with its bustling squares and streets and also the Buda hills. As we approach the right tower, we get to witness Hungary’s largest bell, weighing all of 9 tons!

We come upon the Parliament building, the symbol of Budapest, sprawled over 18,000 square metres. The portals boast unique architectural style and décor with eclectic diversity. With 27 gates, 29 flight of staircases, 691 rooms and 10 courtyards, the building it is said is Hungary’s most expensive construction, ever. Of course, we are a trifle disappointed that only few sections of this building are allowed for entry of visitors.

As all tourists to Budapest do, we too visit Hero’s Square, a most frequented area at the end of Andrassy Avenue, considered a World Heritage Site. Here we get to see the millennium monument, built in 1896 to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the arrival of Hungarians in the Carpathian Basin. A pair of semi-circles define the structure, on top of which one can see the symbols of War & Peace, Work & Welfare, Knowledge and Glory. Statues of important personalities in the history of Hungary who played a role in shaping the country, decorate the niches of the structure. For museum lovers, the Square is a treasure trove in that it is home to at least a couple of museums that house several works of art from all-time greats including Rembrandt and Van Gogh.

The opera House, one of the most modern in Europe, built in neo-renaissance style over a period of nine years, is as renowned for its brilliant and elegant décor as it is for music. The facade is decorated with the statues of renowned composers and the Greek Godesses of art. The statues of Erkel, founder of Hungarian opera and also the Opera House’s first director, and Liszt by Alajos Stróbl decorate the niches next to the main entrance.

Our next sojourn is to the Castle District of Buda, a World Heritage site, with its imposing castle-fortress of Buda, made from stone. It was built in the 13th century and reached its golden age during the Renaissance period after which it was expanded and transformed to a palace. However, the majestic construction suffered extensive damage during the Second World War. Today the buildings house the National Gallery, the National Library, the Ludwig Contemporary Collection and the Historical Museum. We drink in the magnificent view of the Pest side from its panorama terrace. The district itself is but a mile long and four blocks wide, half of it consisting of narrow, cobbled alleys lined with old homes and a few shops.

The Holy Trinity Square, Szentharomsa Ter, brings us bang in front of the Mathias Church, a junction point for all streets of the Castle District. The Matthias Church or the Church of Our Lady in Gothic-Oriental-Baroque style still preserves some parts of the original church. It is believed that King Matthias celebrated his wedding in its premises and even today in the Southern tower of the church, one can still see his coat of arms with the black raven. For a brief period during the Turkish occupation of Buda, the church was converted to a mosque.

Behind the church is the famous Fisherman’s Bastion, built between 1895 and 1902 in neo-Gothic style. It houses seven towers that symbolize the seven chieftains who conquered Hungary. The Fishermen’s bastion greatly dominates the cityscape on the Pest side and offers a breathtaking panorama of the area. An equestrian statue depicting Hungary’s first king, St.Stephen, towers in front of the Fishermen's bastion and a lookout point here enables a breathtaking view across the Danube to the Pest side.

Budapest’s downtown pulsates with life in the Vaci Utca, a chic shopping street that has it all – from cafes and restaurants to souvenir and books shops. It extends about one mile to the Central Market Hall, a huge, indoor food emporium. The Central Market is replete with history, color and life. It is in effect a huge hall, roughly the size of a couple of football grounds, built of steel and glass with a very high ceiling enclosing the vast space. Built in 1896, this hall that looks like a classic railway station from the exterior, houses several food stalls that serve up a myriad variety of cuisines and mouthwatering dishes.

The buildings lining the street lend it a splendorous charm with their cast iron balconies and art nouveau style ornamentations that are as varied in style and décor as are the wares and services they sell or cater to. As we walk parallel to Vaci on the Danube Promenade, we witness a breathtaking view of the Buda Castle and the Gellert Hill. As we amble down further we come upon the Vorosmarty Square with its street musicians, painters, portrait sketchers and several folklore fairs. This is perhaps one of the most beautiful vista in town, from the banks of the Danube River along the Belgrad Rampart, just two short blocks from Vorosmarty Square. From here we view the Chain Bridge, the icon of Budapest, opened to traffic in 1849 as the first permanent crossing of the Danube linking Buda and Pest.

The river front is studded with several five-star hotels of the city and the entire environs including the Chain Bridge sparkle with shimmering lights as they get illuminated close to dusk. The play of light on the waters of the Danube adds to the romantic charm that emanates from the mellifluous aria of gypsy and folk numbers that get belted out by gaily clad street musicians. Souvenir kiosks add gaiety to the rich riot of colors that is all-pervading with wares ranging from postcards, T-shirts, and hand-crafted items of clothing and drapery.

Even as we soak in the warm surrounds that typifies Budapest, the pressure of time hangs on us like Damocles’ sword and we have to wrench ourselves from basking in this ambience. Our greed for more takes us to one of the several thermal baths that Budapest is known for. We learn that Budapest is the world's only city and capital where there are more than 80 thermal springs and well which pump up to the surface, almost 70 million litres of water everyday! Several of these baths, we are told, are fed by natural medicinal springs or drilled thermal wells.

As with most capital cities in the world, Budapest has plenty of bars, restaurants and eateries to suit practically every kind of taste bud and nationalities of people. For those who prefer the tried and tested, McDonalds and Burger King outlets serve up their typical fare. For the more adventurous who are game to embark on a gastronomic odyssey they are spoiled for choice in Hungarian cuisine, which has an overtone of paprika in most dishes. There is the mouth-watering zsiros kenyer (bread dripping with raw onion sprinkled with paprika), the cheesy pogacsa which is pan bread generously topped with cheese and paprika or caraway seeds or the lecso made from peppers braised in fat with onion and tomato. For the non-vegetarians, the typical Hungarian fare would be bean soup followed by pork goulash seasoned with paprika or hideg libamaj or goose liver that is fired in its own fat.

Desserts and alcohol is a ritualistic aspect of Hungarian socializing and Budapest is no exception. If you are not obsessed with adding a few kilos on, just give in to the ‘sinful’ temptation of having a go at Gundel, the nut and raisin pancake topped with chocolate sauce or retes, the fruity and cheesy pastry, both of which are irresistibly scrumptious. Our friends, occasional drinkers, washed these down with Dreher, the native Hungarian beer, supposedly a weak counterpart of the British lager.

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