SOAKING UP BUDAPEST

PARTY ANIMALS?

Budapest 

Full discloser: Your favorite wanderers certainly can’t burn the candle at both ends, at least not at our advanced age, but in Budapest we didn’t stand a chance with keeping up with the revelry. Expecting a Communist-era dreariness to the Hungarian capital, Budapest instead is a vibrant city with more to offer than ornate buildings from the Hapsburg dynasty era and lots of history.

A thriving nightlife of live music venues, raucous nightclubs and trendy (swanky) rooftop bars overlooking the city, and trendy (hipster) Ruin bars that are found in the old Jewish quarter of the city awaited us as well as a lively thermal bath scene that was packed even in the middle of winter!

Budapest lived up to the hype of being a party destination and though we “tried” to enjoy some of the antics we just couldn’t compete! There were two attractions that everyone visiting Budapest should experience.

ROCKING THE ROMKOCSMA

The Ruin Bars are a number of drinking establishments that have been opened in previously neglected pre-war buildings in the Jewish Quarter. They are very trendy and so popular it is mostly overrun by tourists and backpackers and foreign students rather than locals, but are so off beat and bizarre it should be on your list to go...no matter your age.

Szimpla entrance

Szimpla Kert was the first Ruin Bar (romkocsma in Hungarian) to open in the old derelict Jewish quarter. It is a heavily graffitied warren of corridors and open spaces and nooks where there are 9 separate bars over two floors. There was live acoustic music when we were there. There was an open-air courtyard with old cartoons being projected on the side of the building in the middle of this gritty but convivial complex. It is very tourist friendly and though there was a youthful vibe, there were plenty of older people (ahem) shuffling through grabbing a beer or wine. In our research we saw Szimpla Kert and knew we had to go. There is no entrance fee, and the place gets very crowded as the night advances. We lingered awhile to listen to the acoustic group, scoring a couple of seats near the alcove that served as a stage. We were able to pay for our drinks with a credit card and the bartenders all spoke English.

Haver

SZIMPLA KERT 

Near by to Szimpla Kert is Karavan, a food truck courtyard where you can eat everything from Hungarian to burgers to vegan food.

KARAVAN BUDAPEST

Szimpla Kert is not the only ruin bar to be found in Budapest, but it is the most renown. The bar was crowded while we were there, and it was an early Friday evening the first week of January. In the summer the place must be packed to the gills.

FLOUNCING IN THE FÜRDŐ

Another unique attraction of Budapest is the prevalent spa culture. There are numerous thermal baths found throughout the city and are popular with locals and tourists alike and early on we also decided we had to go to Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő.

Budapest lies on a geographical fault line and where the hills of Buda mash up against the plains of Pest thermal springs bubble up everywhere. It is said a thermal spring will erupt if one pokes a hole in the ground anywhere around Budapest. Pest is the Slavic word for furnace.

Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő

The spa culture was started by the Romans and during the century and a half rule by the Ottomans many ornate bathhouses were built. Two still in operation today are the Rudas Baths and the Kiraly Baths, but we wanted to go the most popular spa in Budapest, Széchenyi.

Opened in 1913 the ornate neo-Baroque and neo-Renaissance baths feature three outdoor pools. One is a lap pool where a swimming cap must be worn, while the other two are for soaking and relaxing in the heated water. One of the outdoor pools also features a whirlpool that whips you around. There are also 12 indoor pools of different temperatures, including a cold plunge pool and saunas. Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő is the largest thermal spa in the Budapest area and on a late Tuesday morning the first week of January it was packed. 

Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő

No need to be shy about this experience. You will find people of all ages and various degrees of bulges and curves that frequent the baths and after seeing a couple of speedo-hiding belly overhangs you’ll feel right at home.  

SPARTY ON HAVERS

Now, the nighttime revelry party held at Széchenyi on Saturday nights from mid-February to November might be a bit more intimidating for some. Thankfully we didn’t have the chance to go, but from the website it seems like a frenetic event combining a club atmosphere with lights and music and the thermal baths. They call it SPARTY © (Spa-Party get it). Check out their website. SPARTY is a whole separate entrance fee structure. Alcoholic drinks are available.

(“Haver” is Hungarian for “dude”.)

SPARTY BUDAPEST

Before you wade:

Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő

To get the best view entering Széchenyi enter on the far side of the golden dome to the entrance across the street from the zoo. After paying and activating a waterproof wristband that lets you through the turnstile and gives access to a locker, first go up the stairs to get a beautiful captivating view of the Széchenyi complex, before going down to change for the thermal waters. Just make sure you go to the right area. Férfi is man in Hungarian, and női is woman.

Széchenyi Bath

Here’s a 3d model of Széchenyi,

3D model of Széchenyi Baths

Costs

Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő

There are several tiers of entrance fees, depending on the time of day and whether you’d like a private changing cabin and a massage. Before 5 pm weekdays the entrance fee with a locker is HUF 9400 (about $25.00). After 5pm the price drops to HUF 9100. Széchenyi is open until 10 pm. Not sure about how long SPARTY goes on though. 

Don’t get a Standard Package at HUF 29000, like we did. Though this package comes with flip-flops (footwear is required), a disposable robe and towel, a swim cap and hair band it boosts the price to nearly $80.00. Better to bring your own towel and a shirt or robe to cover up when moving from pool to pool. Bring a bag to store your wet clothes and spend that money in better ways. If needed you can buy a suit at the bath house, but you must pay cash for that. Credit cards can be used for the entrance fee and other amenities, or you can online in advance.

Széchenyi Gyógyfürdő

Budapest card

This tourism card is great for discounts on entrance fees to the baths, admissions to museums and free public transportation, and guided tours. We briefly looked into that but decided to pay for a private 1 ½ day tour instead. Otherwise, the card is a great way to see a lot of Budapest and not spend a lot of money. Purchases are made on the amount of time spent in the city, i.e. 72 hours, 120 hours…  Széchenyi says they accept the card for daily tickets. 

BUDAPEST CARD

Széchenyi is the most famous thermal bath in Budapest, but there are several others in the city. Here’s a website of all the thermal baths not just in the city but throughout Hungary.

THERMAL HUNGARY 

PARTY POOPERS

We only scratched the surface of this city, but at least we got to experience two of the main draws. Both the ruin bars and the Széchenyi thermal baths were on the top of our list, but there’s so much more to Budapest, which we’ll tell you about soon.

Thanks for reading.

Love Janet and greg

© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj

Szimpla Kert

THE DANUBE RIVER

A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME

Budapest

The Danube is the second longest river in Europe after the Volga. It begins in Germany in the Black Forest and flows through 10 countries before emptying into the Black Sea in Ukraine. The Danube also has the unique distinction to flow through the capitals of four countries: Vienna Austria, Bratislava Slovakia, Budapest Hungary and Belgrade Serbia. With each country and language there is a variation in the spelling of the Danube River.

In Germany the Danube is called Donau. In Serbia it’s Dunav. In Hungary the Danube is Duna. In Slovakia and in Poland it is Dunaj.

My name is Gregory Dunaj.

SWIMMING UPSTREAM

My father’s heritage was Polish, Mom’s was Slovakian, but according to a family tree compiled by a cousin I also have family in Hungary. According to the current borders the Danube does not flow through Poland, though my family name is Dunaj. Somewhat confused we learned while in Budapest, the “J” at the end of my name means “from the area” of the Danube and southern Poland is a part of the Danube River basin.

In any event a visit to this central portion of Europe is akin for me to swimming upstream to the old spawning grounds.

A MELTING POT

paprika

As we did our research for this side-trip out of Nantwich England where we spent the holidays, Budapest Hungary became more and more alluring. Budapest was once part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, fought with the Axis powers during WWII and was ruled by USSR until the collapse of Communism in the late 1980s.

It was first settled by the Romans, then came the Magyars, then the Mongols, then the Turks ruled, then the Austrians and Germans and then the Russians, each leaving behind a bit of their culture. Between the opulent buildings erected during the Hapsburg dynasty and the dour Soviet-era edifices, the many thermal baths, popular with the Romans and the Ottomans, now found throughout the city, the Hungarian opera, the paprika and the goulash and the Ruin Bars that rose from the Jewish Ghettos after WWII, there was a lot to see and experience. With Janet's research and planning we managed to see everything on our list.

St. Matthias Church

Today, Budapest is a melting pot of Hungarians and Germans, Jews and Slavic people and though the Hungarian language is unwieldly and nothing we’ve ever heard before, nearly everyone in Budapest speaks English! There’s a certain elegance and sophistication and ease to this sprawling city and it was an easy choice for us to make, especially since the Florin, the local currency, was tanking. At the time of our visit, it was 1 Florin to $0.0026 USD.

Hungary is part of the European Union and you can pay in either the Florin or Euros, but you get a great exchange rate with the former. If you pay in cash you’ll get Florins back as change.

YOU CAN GET THERE FROM HERE

Once in Europe it is easy to get on a low-cost airline like Ryanair to go anywhere for a fraction of the cost of flying directly from the United States. The combined cost of our flights roundtrip from Manchester to Budapest was less than $500, but that’s because we wanted to check bags, in order to bring back some Hungarian wine, and to pick out our seats beforehand. Without those add-ons though the flight could have been about $125 each.

Hungarian Opera

We also used Ryanair to book round-trip transfers from the airport, rather than taking a train to Budapest. That cost $60.

RYANAIR

Janet of course did her research and had planned a great itinerary for our 5-day visit to Budapest. Part of her plans included a couple of dinners out, a visit to a thermal bath, a night at the opera, a night at the Ruin bars, 1 ½ days of a personal tour guide, a visit to the Parliament and to St. Stephen’s Basilica and to the vast Great Market Hall and a visit to the Soviet era Memento Park, situated just outside the city’s limits.

Yes, we made ourselves right at home in Budapest.

Thanks for reading

Love Janet and greg

© 2023 by Gregory DUNAJ

a relative of mine

TRAVELS TO BUDAPEST

IDEAS v. DETAILS

Once we decided on a side-trip to Budapest Hungary after the Christmas holidays in England I got out of the way. Janet willingly and with great expertise handled every detail of the trip from Nantwich to Budapest.

She made all the difficult travel arrangements with Ryanair, the low-cost British carrier, and navigated through their unwieldy requirements for baggage weights and paying for the extra bags we wanted to take. She arranged for all the airport transfers through Ryanair as well.

RYANAIR

She chose the hotel, conveniently located across the street from the Hungarian Opera, noting that K+K Hotel Opera had some of the largest hotel rooms in Budapest and a very nice breakfast.

K+K HOTEL OPERA 

A night at the Opera

She bought Opera Tickets for a performance of Die Fledermaus Operetta by Strauss. We were fortunate the performance was held while we were visiting Budapest and she managed to get second row seats as well! 

HUNGARIAN OPERA - BUDAPEST

She researched the Szechenyi Thermal Baths, like costs and the best place to enter. On the far side near the zoo the entrance to the baths is dramatic with marbled columns and a grand view of the outdoor pools. Szechenyi is one of several such thermal baths located in Budapest, but this facility had a number of outdoor naturally heated pools along with a sprawling complex of indoor pools.

SZECHENYL BATHS

SZECHENYI THERMAL BATH

She arranged for Andrea, a highly regarded personal guide for 1 ½ days, a van included on the first day, a walking tour for the second, to show us this beautiful, vibrant, lovely and historic city, trading countless emails in the process.

Enthusiastic, engaging, thoughtful and knowledgeable Andrea made our tour of Budapest fun as well as informative. Some of the sights were touring Gellert Hill and St. Matthias Church in the Buda section of town, the Dohany Street Synagogue in Pest, and the collection of Soviet-era statues at Memento Park, just on the outskirts of Budapest. 

PRIVATE GUIDE BUDAPEST 

MEMENTO PARK

Not that this is an issue, but Andrea required we pay her in Euros and not in Hungarian Florin and because Janet wasn’t sure if we could withdraw Euros from an ATM in Hungary, she made arrangements with a bank at home to have the necessary Euros sent to the house before we left for England for Christmas.

Speaking of British Pounds, when that currency tanked a few months ago and was just $1.09 USD to the Pound she sent her daughter money to buy some Pounds at that great exchange rate.

Janet laid out the entire itinerary for our 5-day trip to Hungary including restaurants like Menza, and visits to historic buildings like St. Stephen’s Basilica or the Parliament Building. She also researched and decided that we should visit the historic Café Gerbeaud, which was very popular with aristocrats in the 19^th Century.

CAFE GERBEAUD - BUDAPEST   

She also researched the Ruin Bars, which during WWII were the Jewish Ghetto was located and hundreds of thousands of Jews were sent from here to Auschwitz, but now is a sprawling warren of “hip” bars and eateries. She made note of Szimpla Kert and made sure we visited that one first.

RUIN BARS - BUDAPEST 

By the end of our visit to Budapest, we will have done everything Janet wanted to do. Everything, every detail of our trip was planned by Janet, except one.

I learned how to negotiate the hotel room in the middle of the night to find the bathroom.

Thanks for reading

Love Janet and greg

© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj

DABBER'S PARADISE

CENTER OF EVERYTHING

wattle & daub

There are countless reasons the good citizens of Nantwich, England are called Dabbers, and many of them are sketchy at best. The most plausible explanation of the “Dabber” nickname comes from the reputation the locals had in making the wattle and daub structures found throughout Nantwich, where gaps in wooden framed buildings were filled with “wattle” little twigs and mud called “daub”. These structures are found all throughout the town, but this article is not about this charming feature of being a Dabber.

Nor is this article about the Beam Heath Trust that awards qualifying households for just living in Nantwich. Being a recipient is a true mark of being a proper “Dabber”. 

Though a modest dividend, currently £40 give or take, the ancient trust stems from the common lands called Beam Heath that were mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. If you want further information, go here:

BEAM HEATH TRUST

I can’t even say this article is about the Nantwich Town FC, a semi-professional team nicknamed appropriately The Dabbers. Founded in 1884, the Dabbers play their games at Weaver Stadium, a short walk from the center of town.  

On January 2^nd, an English Bank Holiday, they played Warrington Town FC and we went, getting in on an elderly discount or “on concession”.

We stood with the grandson at the rail just feet off the pitch and he got to chase down an errant ball and toss it back onto the field.

And finally, this article is not about the number of pubs in town, far too many to visit on a pub crawl. Yet, every time we return to Nantwich, our second home, there are several pubs I long to have a pint at again. No trip to Nantwich would be complete without a visit (in no particular order) to: The Leopard, The Vine, The Rifleman, The Crown, The Wickstead Arms, The Nantwich Club….. dang I gotta go, I’m getting thirsty.

Thanks for reading!

Love Janet and greg

© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj

The Vine interior

THE WORLD WE LIVE IN

THE CENTER OF YOUR WORLD…
It is beautiful and vast. It is chaotic and calm. It is serene and it is edgy. It is here, and it is there. There is much to see and much to explore and if this world keeps spinning there will always be more to embrace. 

For the remainder of my days, I will embrace the road.

But remember this so you will thrive, that wherever you are that is where you belong. The center of your world is where you choose to make it. As long as you live and love, your travels, whether near or far, are yours and will enrich the time you have in this Garden of Eden.

Happy New Year and safe travels.

Love Janet and greg

© 2023 by Gregory Dunaj