Travel Stories | Expat Life
Mike had a lot of fun this summer playing with the super-speed function on his camera. I took all of his little clips from the countries we visited together and made a little video.
Five countries in less than two minutes… here we go… !!!
Dizzy?
xo, jill
*Where my travelators at?!
A pun would be too easy.
Novelty Snack: Jana lemon lime water (dedicated to my sister, Jana)
Description: Lemon lime flavored water
Tastes Like: Water with a teeny tiny aftertaste of citrus, you almost don’t notice it
Verdict: Thumbs up!
Novelty Snack: Langos
Description: “a Hungarian food speciality, a deep fried flat bread made of a dough with flour, yeast, salt and water.” – wikipedia
Tastes Like: Similar to a savory elephant ear but thicker and with garlic sauce, very good.
Verdict: Thumbs up!
Novelty Snack: JoReggelt!
Description: A healthy cookie with vitamins and minerals. I imagine this being something recommended in a commercial for a work lunch at the cubicle.
Tastes Like: A chocolatey, crumbly, cookie with visible chunks of wheat and oatmeal. The chocolate chunks were also melty which surprised me but could have been due to the amazingly hot train we were on.
Verdict: Thumbs up!
Mike ate a lot of goulash during this phase of the trip. If I was thinking I would have made him compile a novelty snack report.
With the addition of Jana water, every member of my immediate family has their very own novelty snack, except for my mom. I now consider it a mission! Mom, I will find you a snack! (see my snack and my dad’s snack)
xo, jill
We boarded the train and made ourselves comfortable in our very own little cabin (not sure the proper term for those). Very few people were riding the train that day. Nearly every other cabin was empty. So imagine our surprise when an elderly Hungarian couple made themselves comfortable in our little cabin too! Luckily, they were sweet and adorable. When offering us water the woman put the bottle up against Mike’s leg to help demonstrate that it was cold!
After 4 hours they disembarked and we spent the remaining 5 hours on our own. I was glad for the extra space since the train was HOT and sprawling was really the only comfortable position.
Although many of the displays required reading long paragraphs on copy paper to be understood, the experience was still powerful. The scariest part was realizing that these horrible events happened really not so long ago.
After our somber visit to the House of Terror we walked around a bit searching for our next attraction. For me, that happened to be really tall ice cream.
We also stopped by The Great Synagogue (the largest in Eurasia) and The Great Market Hall.
I was mostly interested in getting a taste of lángos, fried bread with garlic.
That evening we strolled out to a bridge to get a nice capture of the city at golden hour.
Then we continued on to Margaret Island to spend our evening in the park. We enjoyed laying in the grass and listening to the musical fountain. It was so much simpler than the fancy one at Dubai Mall. We both decided we’d take the simple fountain over the lavish one any day.
Budapest is filled with Turkish style baths. Thermal springs run beneath Budapest and power the many pools. The baths are believed to contain healing waters and many people bathe as a medical treatment for arthritis, joint and back pain, and gynecological issues (although I can’t imagine that last one). The waters can even be ingested to treat gout, kidney stones, ulcers, and calcium deficiencies. Judging from the smell, I bet it tastes great, too.
Upon the recommendation of our hostel, we decided to visit the Széchenyi Spa. This spa allows men and women to soak together, which might be an important factor to consider if you’re traveling with a member of the opposite sex.
The Széchenyi Spa was built in 1913 and is the largest medicinal spa in Europe. I loved the contrast of the yellow buildings and the blue pools. Such vibrant colors. If you’ve seen pictures of local old men in tiny swimsuits bathing and playing chess, this is the place.
We started slowly in the warm outdoor pools before going inside to the main event. Indoors you can choose from icy baths, hot baths, hotter baths, and several temperatures of saunas. I enjoyed the hot baths and avoided the saunas (I hate hot air on my face). Mike tested out a little bit of everything.
I have to say, these were the fanciest baths I’ve ever taken. I would say the stinkiest too, but the hot springs in Peru will probably forever hold that title. Visiting the baths was definitely a fun and relaxing experience.
Later in the day we cooked a quick pasta dinner at the hostel and took another walk along the water.
We ended up on a bench in a park watching fire dancers with me fighting to keep my eyes open.
xo, jill
Twice as nice.*
After our short stay in Bratislava, we hopped on a train to Budapest. The ride was pleasant and comfortable. The thing about train travel is… I really like it until the train nears my destination. Depending on the train it’s not always super clear which station you are approaching. Not to mention, trains usually only stop for a few minutes (if that) at each stop. If you’re not prepared you could find yourself far down the rail line… and without a ticket. That’s why I became hyper-vigilante when the time of our arrival drew near. Unfortunately, the train was at least 45 minutes late arriving at the station in Budapest. That meant that when Mike kept telling me to calm down and stop standing up to press my cheek up against the window for a better look, he was actually right.
We arrived at our hostel a bit later than expected and were greeted by the very friendly proprietor. He took out a map and immediately began jotting down the best routes for our visit.
We started off walking along the Danube and quickly came upon Shoes on the Danube Promenade. The shoes are a memorial to the people who were shot into the river during World War II. I really appreciated the uniqueness of the memorial. It’s haunting to see abandoned shoes on the edge of a river.
Just past the memorial is the Hungarian Parliament Building. Completed in 1904, the building was built in the Gothic Revival style. Not that I have to say it, but…this building is striking. I have several photos of it from many different vantages. It just demanded to be photographed. Although we didn’t enter the building, it was immediately obvious why Parliament is one of Budapest’s main tourist attractions.
We crossed the bridge and rode a funicular to the top of Castle Hill. A folk festival was taking place so a good portion of the grounds were closed to those who hadn’t paid admission. That included us. Instead, we walked towards Matthias Church. I’m sure the interior is beautiful (we weren’t able to enter at the time), but could it be more interesting than that roof? I love the colorful design.
I had to laugh when I saw this little boy attempting to scale this statue. I almost felt like I was back in Abu Dhabi.
From just beyond the church a viewpoint looks out over the Danube towards the Parliament Building. There just happened to be a string quartet playing close by. And did I mention it was golden hour? Well played, Castle Hill.
We lingered on the hill a bit longer before descending to get a look at Parliament from directly across the water.
I’m not orange. It’s just a weird setting on Mike’s camera that hates my skin tone.
We stopped on our way back over the bridge for some nighttime photos of the city.
On our way to dinner we happened upon an outdoor concert. We tried to eat quickly and hurry back to the music but the show was wrapping up just as we sat down on a bench to listen. I think I was half asleep at this point so it was probably just as well.
xo, jill
*Budapest became a single city after the smaller cities of Buda and Pest united in 1873.
