There's only one way to see an entire city in one day, by bike. I found a brochure for a Budapest bike tour in my room so asked the front desk how to get to the bike shop. He rattled off the metro stops I would need to take and I felt uneasy. I am still intimidated by the metro. We don't have one in San Diego and I always end up getting lost. He explained I only needed to jump on the blue line in the direction of Kozpont and it was only two stops. It sounded pretty dummy proof so decided to give it a whirl. I only had thirty minutes until the eleven o'clock tour so hoped it went smoothly. I wouldn't have any time for me to get lost today because I was heading to Vienna this afternoon.
I walked down the underground stairs to the metro and bought a ticket for 300 Forint. I began toward the escalator to the metro and a guard motioned for me to stop. There was a little metal box that had to stamp your ticket before entering that I missed. I backed up, stamped the ticket and continued on. The host was right, the metro was very straight forward- for the most part. It's funny how things that are unfamiliar to us can appear intimidating. After you try it once, you laugh wondering how you could be afraid of it in the first place. When I first arrived to Hungary, the directions to my hostel instructed me to take the metro and after reading take the blue line to the red line, I closed my phone and hailed for a cab. Now I wanted to take the metro everywhere.
Once I arrived to the Arnay Janos stop, I pulled out my map. It appeared Lazar Utca was off the Main Street so just headed toward the busy road ahead and followed it until I reached Lazar. I walked in at a few minutes before 11am. The clerk checked me in and I asked if there were any other people signed up for the tour. He replied, "Yes, four lovely ladies are biking today." I replied, "And now five." He laughed and repeated, "Yes, now five," as he guided me over to the girls. They each introduced themselves and told me they were teachers in Ireland traveling for their summer holiday. I made sure to not drag out the "Ire" this time as I told them I stayed with a few girls from Ireland in Dubrovnik.
Our guide introduced himself as Thomas, a young proud Hungarian. He told us he would be keeping score along tour and handing out points to those who paid attention.
We biked through the busy streets and arrived to our first stop at the Opera House. He rang the bell on his bike to gain our attention. He began to tell us the history of Hungary. Budapest had the first metro in Continental Europe. Which is Hungarian for saying they were the second, he explained that Hungarians are very proud. London was actually first in the world but Hungary claims because London is not in the continent, so Hungary was first in Continental Europe. He then went on to tell us the history of the Opera House and then we followed Thomas down the famous Andrassy Avenue. This was a world famous avenue because it was built to connect the city center with the city park. It also was one of the first avenues in Budapest to follow the new trend, Neo Renaissance. This was a blend of Italian and French architecture. We biked past the eclectic mansions and townhouses until we reached the Heroes Square. This held statues of the seven Kings and Heroes of Hungary. Thomas went over the history of each King and then rang the bell on his bike to quiz if we were paying attention. Clearly, by my lack of explanation on the Kings, I did not receive a point.
We rode along the park, and stopped at the Vajdahunyad Castle. Thomas rang the bell on his bike and asked if we realized that there is an English word that we use on a daily basis that actually originates from Hungary. We each shouted out wrong answers, mine Pariokosh but he informed us the correct answer was "Hello." He told us that a Hungarian inventor Tivadar, traveled to America and became Thomas Edison's assistant. While Edison invented the first telephone, Tivadar invented the first Telephone Exchange. In Hungary the word "Hallo" means "to hear." So Tivadar, would pick up the phone when testing the telephone exchange with Edison and say "Hallo," to confirm he could hear him. I don't know much much truth there is to this because I researched it when I got home and no internet source could confirm with certainty, but it is rumored to be true.
We biked through the rest of the park and then back through the city until we reached what Thomas referred to as "The Half Time Show." We parked our bikes on Vaci street, the main shopping district lined with Louis Vuitton, Chanel and other designer shops. He took us to a club and ordered us a lemonade Hungary specialized in gourmet lemonades along with sponge cake. Thomas asked if we had ever tried their famous dessert dish and I shook my head no. He clapped his hands together with excitement like a little kid when he turned to the waiter to order six sponge cakes. I took my first bite of the sponge cake and paused mid-bite when I felt Thomas intently staring with his head nearly leaned over the entire table. I quickly placed my my fork down assuming I had done something and asked him what was wrong. "Oh nothing, I was patiently awaiting to see your reaction to our famous sponge cake Julie!" Hungarians really were proud of everything claimed to be their own. Relieved, I laughed and told him it was very good.
The Irish girls asked about my travels and how long I would be exploring Europe. They asked if I had come across any dodgy hostels in all of my stays. I told them about the chaotic night I had in Zagreb with my driver so that was the only hostel that wasn't very nice because it was last minute. They told me I was very brave because they couldn't imagine having to figure all of those details out alone.
After our Half Time Show concluded, we biked over the Chain Bridge. We then had to bike up a never ending steep hill all the way up a mountain. Now sweating and out of breath, the girls and I overthrew the bike tour and detoured to the store to buy waters. This bike ride was way more difficult than we had anticipated. Thomas swore we only had to climb one more hill until we reached the panoramic view of all of Budapest and it would be worth our huffing and puffing. He was right, once we reached the top it was an breathtaking view of all of Budapest. Thomas rang his bike bell once more and asked if we knew the difference of Buda and Pest. With blank stares, he awarded no points to the group. I was trying really hard to beat the Irish, but got nothing. He went on to explain the Budapest was once three separate cities. Buda, Old Buda and Pest. The Danube River divided Buda from Pest. Pest lay within the city and was very lively and popular. Buda lay across the river out of the city, much more quite and subdued. Once the Chain Bridge was built connecting the cities in the late 1800's, they combined the three cities and became one big city Budapest.
As we biked to our next stop, Thomas biked beside me and said, "Julie, now that you took the Bike Tour what is your impression of our city?" He asked in such a proud manner and I almost felt the pressure to be sure to give him the exact answer he was dying to hear. This is a man that at every stop, spilled out so many random details and history of the city at such a young age it was inspiring. I admired how proud he was of his country. I rattled off a list of my favorite stops from the tour and the things I had learned. I told him his city was very beautiful and unlike anything I had ever seen. His proud smile now dominated his face. He then asked,"So even after your chaos on getting here with the bus troubles? It was worth visiting Hungary, Julie?"
"Of course!" I exclaimed. "One little hiccup on my trip, would never affect my time here. That may have been an unpleasant few hours but there are way more positives than negatives in that situation, Thomas. And I made it here, I got to take this unbelievable tour of the city with all the beautiful buildings. No, that hiccup did not affect my trip, Thomas." He smiled and told me, "See that's why I love Americans! You always see the brighter side of things. When something goes wrong, people grow upset. Americans? They see the positive in every scenario. Hungarians are so negative when something does not go right, but Americans, you are always so full of optimism!" This was the second person on this trip to say this about Americans. It was nice to hear they didn't always make fun of us. They actually sort of envied our attitude.
After our final stop at the castle, I asked Thomas if he had a good recommendation for me to eat Chicken Paprikosh before I headed to Vienna. He grew excited and went on about how Chicken Paprikosh is a Hungarian favorite. I told him how it was mine as well and that we cooked it a lot growing up in Ohio. He asked how I prepare mine and as I began rattling off the recipe, he cut me off and said " No, you see, it all starts with the onions. You must sauté the onions on the stove making sure..." The remainder of the bike ride through the city consisted of Thomas guiding me through the way his mother makes Chicken Paprikosh. He was so passionate about this dish and told me if I was staying one more night he would arrange for his mother to cook it for me. An authentic homecooked Chicken Paprikosh prepared by a Hungarian, that did sound like a dream but I did have to be on my way to Austria this afternoon.
After Thomas's final bell ring, he quizzed us on one last question. The final score card was America: 5 points and Ireland 12. Sorry America..
I took Thomas's recommendation and had my final Paprikosh meal around the corner but this time served with veal. It was delicious yet again ate very last little homemade dumpling. I headed to the metro now that I was a pro but was quickly shot down. There was no where to purchase a return ticket. The ticket window was closed. I asked someone for help and he shook his head and said "No English." He guided me to a newsstand around the building and the man shook his head "no tickets." I have no clue where you buy your tickets but decided since I just took a tour of the entire city, I would just walk home. I followed the Main Street passing the Opera House and then cut across to Vaci Street. I retraced our route until I found familiar ground by my hostel. I walked one last time through the palace, got directions to the Train Station from the front desk. He instructed me to hop on the bus to the Nyugati Station.
Once I arrived to the train station, I bought my ticket and ordered a cappuccino. The train arrived on time and I quickly found a seat by the window alone. This train was much more modern and was a traditional train set up with two seats between the aisles, air conditioning and newer technology. Nothing like the old train from Zagreb to Budapest.
Three hours later, I arrived to Vienna. It was very different than Budapest. The Architecture looked more modern, a little bit more classier. Which I later learned Vienna followed Classicism architecture. This stemmed from Greek and Roman architecture so all the streets were wider, buildings standing with decorative stone columns. It was a very beautiful city.
I arrived to my hostel Meininger by taxi, it was late and I didn't want to mess around with getting lost. This hostel was actually a dual hostel/hotel. It was a very modern hotel. The most posh place I had stayed yet. It was interesting all the different environments I was staying in on this trip. This place felt like a Hilton hotel and had a very sleek lobby and was looking forward to my stay in Vienna.
After checking in, I headed up to the fourth floor to ditch my bag before scouting a place to eat dinner. I opened my door and three boys cheered "Hey!!!!" As if they had never seen a girl before. I don't know why every where I check in, they place me with men. The three of them introduced themselves, all single travelers. Alessandro from Italy, Emilio from Chile and Michael from Georgia. I later found out he was referring to the country, not Atlanta. For the first hour, I assumed he was referring to Georgia the state.
I asked if they had dinner yet and they said they were on their way out now if I wanted to join. The four of us walked through the city over the bridge heading to the main drag of restaurants. As we walked I asked the boys where they had explored so far and Emilio motioned his hand in the air and spoke very slow, "I no great in English. You need to speak slower, Julie." I slowed down my sentence and asked again. He motioned for me to stop again and pointed to the Italian. "You tell him your question and he translate for me." I turned to Alessandro and asked the question once more. He motioned for me to stop and said, "Still to fast for me. You tell Michael, Michael will translate to me and I will translate to Emilio." We played this telephone game to dinner and I worked on slowing down my speech for my new roommates.
Once we reached the strip we walked up to view the first menu, Italian. Alessandro shook his head no and spoke very slowly, "I did not come all the way to Austria to eat my own food. I don't want Italian." We walked up to the next restaurant and it was Indian. Emilio shook his head no. He told us that he always eats spicy food and did not want spicy. We moved on to the next restaurant which was Mexican. I shook my head and said slowly, "That's all we eat in San Diego, moving on!" I felt like we were in the book Goldilocks and the Three Bears, trying to find the perfect porridge. We finally came to the conclusion that the one meal we could all agree on would be Vienna sausage so headed to a sausage cart stand and got dinner to-go.
We talked (slowly) back to the hostel and discussed our plans for tomorrow. It was very late and I crashed as soon as I climbed up into my bunk.
So I made it to another country. I was very excited to explore Vienna tomorrow and happy that the guys in my room were very nice. They may not speak the best English, but still spoke my language the whole night so that I could be included. It's always funny to me how easy it is to relate to people even when you don't speak the same first language. No matter if you are from the same country or not there is always a way to find a common denominator- travel.