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| Budapest and its Magnificent Waterfront - is a World Heritage Site |
This was our third day and last morning in Budapest. In order to see a much as possible of the highlights of Budapest, we booked a tour of the city which was worth every single penny yesterday, our second day.
There were three different lines to choose from and we chose the green line bus tour which gave us two days unlimited hop on hop off use of the tour bus with English pre-recorded guided tour at a great price.
It even included 2 free 1 hour boat cruise of the Danube River, free Goulash soup on the Budapest Castle hill stop overlooking the city and free beer at another stop.
I was glad that we did the one hour boat cruise because the scenery along Budapest's waterfront was breathtaking!
We learned from the tour that the castle district and the Danube embankment of Budapest was declared a world heritage site in 1987 and it truly deserves this honour!
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| A vendor booth selling Budapest souvenirs |
I truly wish we had another day at this ancient and well preserved city which is an architectural paradise for people who are interested in building designs.
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| Night Scene - Budapest |
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The New York Cafe in Budapest
Before we boarded the train to Serbia, we visited one of the most beautiful and probably most photographed buildings in Budapest - The New York Cafe
Two main reasons which are drawing tourists to this city - the beauty of the city and very reasonable prices.
From the outside of the New York Cafe, you would think that it might cost you an arm and leg to eat there, but in fact it was very reasonable.
Actually, everywhere we went in Budapest, everything was reasonable. And it was no exception at this first rate restaurant.
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| New York Cafe |
People went there to have a drink or dinner just for the chance to take pictures and we were glad we did before we left.
Unfortunately, we only had time for a coffee there but was grateful to have seen the inside of this magnificent building.
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| The New York Cafe - The Epitome of Beautiful Architecture in Budapest |
Budapest is a beautiful city with many magnificent buildings.It is a must see for anyone who is interested in architecture or students who are studying in this field.
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| McDonald Restaurant - Budapest |
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| McDonald's Restaurant - Where else in the world could you find a more beautiful Mcdonald than in Budapest? |
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| Train Station - Budapest |
We got on the afternoon train at 1:00pm to Novi Sad.
The seats were more private this time for us as we were sitting in a 6 passenger cabin with only the two of us and another passenger, Laszlo living at the border town between Hungary and Serbia.
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| Train Station, Budapest |
Stan took the initiative to introduce himself and that set the stage for a wonderful conversation with this Hungary university student for the next three hours.
Lazlo is studying history at a Catholic University in Hungary and Stan, though an engineer by profession, has a passion for history as well.
I made use of this opportunity and asked Laszlo a lot of questions about Hungary's social and education system. Laszlo was a good sport and he answered all our questions with patience and in detail. He said Hungarians enjoy free medical and basically free education, similar to what we Canadians enjoy at home. Medical schools have two streams; the Hungarian for locals and English for foreign students who have to pay a fee. Students from countries like Germany and South Korea find that the fees are cheaper than their home country and are attracted to Hungarian schools. Dentistry standards are high but cheaper than Western Europe and this quality dental care at a good price encourages “Dental tourists” to flock to Hungary.
Stan's work involves develop plans and specifications for highrise buildings in Toronto, naturally he is always interested in house construction which led to the discussion about housing construction in Hungarian villages. We learned that many houses in villages are made of a special kind of bricks that provides good insulation and remain cool even in the summer heat. In winter, heat is generated from wood stoves and distributed throughout the house from tubes carrying warm water. Some Hungarians are starting to consider using geothermal heating, which is abundant in his area.
When asked about the economic crisis in Europe, Laszlo, along with other Hungarians we met on the street, expressed concerns about their country's future and especially youth unemployment.
In our short three days' visit to Budapest, we learned a lot about it; one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and the rich culture and history of Hungary.
We will definitely return to Budapest in the future and will plan to stay for a much longer visit so that we would experience all the wonderful things that Budapest has to offer. Believe me, there are a lot to see and do in this charming and enchanting city that has been kept in a time capsule. But it would not be long once when tourists and business people en masse discover this gem city!
R.T., Budapest, enroute to Serbia
Aug. 9, 2012
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