Budapest, Hungary (Day 3)

The one train we wanted to be late was of course early! Instead of arriving at our 5:00 am expected arrival time, we arrived at 4:50 am. First order of business was to get Hungarian forints. Luckily we found an ATM right outside the train station. Second order of business was to find a bathroom. We first tried the McDonalds and Burger King right next to the train station. However, since it was only 5:00 am, neither was open. Next we tried the bathroom in the train station, but as with almost every bathroom in Europe, it cost money to use it. This would not have been a problem since we had just taken money out of the ATM, but all our bills were large bills and the bathroom cost like 50 cents. This meant that the bathroom operator did not have change! So, we had to sit in the train station until 6 am when McDonalds opened. 

An hour later, we walked into the warmth of McDonalds (it was freezing outside) to grab a bite to eat and use their restroom.  We wasted an hour or so in McDonalds because we told our hostel that we would not be there until 8 am. It was okay though because it was warm in McDonalds as I mentioned, and we were able to charge some of our gadgets! After leaving McDonalds, we had to navigate our way to our hostel. They had provided directions before we left, so all we had to do is follow them. Before we could jump on the Metro that would take us to the hostel, we had to buy a ticket from a little machine. It was not cooperating and would not accept my money! 

 Layne captured the frustration on camera!

And of course it worked first time for Layne! Since I still could not get a ticket, this homeless man came by trying to sell us a ticket. I was skeptical about this and did not buy one, but probably could have in retrospect. After about 45 minutes of trying to get a ticket for me (and seriously contemplating just going on the Metro without a ticket but I did not want to start the trip with a major fine!), Layne was successful in getting another ticket. With tickets in hand, we tried to find the Metro. We didn't realize it was an underground system until someone who spoke limited English pointed down a set of stairs. Once we found the Metro, it was very easy to get to the hostel.

Neither Layne nor I had ever been to a hostel, so we were a little nervous about what we would find when we got there. However, we were pleasantly surprised! This hostel was in an old apartment with individual rooms with up to 10 beds in the room, a living room, a kitchen, and three bathrooms for all the guests. It was clean and had a modern decor. The owner gave us a short tour of the hostel and told us about the sites to see in Budapest. She then offered to make us breakfast, but since we ate at McDonalds, we declined.  Although we are tired from our train ride, we changed into some other clothes and started off on seeing all of Budapest in three days!

I had planned out our days before we left, and on the first day we were to see all the buildings on the Pest side. We took our map from the hostel and found our first destination- Heroes' Square.  The monument in Heroes' Square was built in 1896 and each part of the monument depicts some part of Hungary's history. 

 Heroes' Square

After Heroes' Square we walked around the area a little and saw the spa we were going to the next day. Our next stop was the Dohany Synagogue. Layne wanted to take a tour since it was the only way we could get in and see the inside. Once we got inside, a little old lady told us she was the English-speaking tour guide. She led us the front of the synagogue and then told us all about it. I had a very hard time understanding her because English was not her first language, and I actually almost fell asleep a few times. This was partly because of my lack of sleep the previous night, and partly because I could not understand the lady. After she told us all about the synagogue and its history, she led us out to the museum and sculptures out there. It was an interesting tour, but wouldn't say it is a must do in Budapest. While on the tour, there was another American in our group. We asked him where he was from and turns out he goes to Wash U in St. Louis. We talked a little about St. Louis and what he was doing in Budapest alone (He actually wasn't in Budapest alone. None of his friends wanted to go on the tour.). It was nice to talk to somebody from America who I had something in common with.

 Outside of the synagogue

Inside of the synagogue (a little blurry!)

 At the end of the tour, we were hungry. After a little bit of walking, we found this little restaurant that sold langos. (I made a list of all the Hungarian foods we needed to try and langos was on it.) I decided to go for the classic: fried dough, garlic paste, sour cream, and cheese. It was delicious and cheap! Layne does not like sour cream so she went for one that had onions and cheese on it. Hers was good too, but did not compare to mine!

The classic langos!

With a full stomach, we made a quick stop at the Opera House before going to St. Stephen's Basilica. This was a massive church! 

 

 St. Stephen's

There was no entrance fee, so we decided to check out the inside. It was pretty and as I said before, massive. We spent some time walking around the church for two reasons. First, it was pretty and ornate. Second, it allowed us to defrost! Here is a picture from the inside. 

(Taken with Layne's camera since mine does not seem to do well inside churches, synagogues, mosques, etc..)

From the church, we headed down to the Danube River to see the shoes on the Danube. The shoes honor the Jews who fell victim in Budapest during World War II, and represent their shoes left behind on the bank when they fell into the river after being shot. Right next to the sculptures was the massive Parliament. We did not spend much time at either because it was so cold and windy along the river, but definitely worth a visit.

 Shoes on the Danube

Parliament

At this point, we saw all of the sites on the Pest side. During our sightseeing, Layne's only pair of jeans ripped. We decided to head to this huge mall we had seen to try and find her another pair. At the mall, there were so many stores and an H&M. Layne had wanted to go there anyway, so we spent some time looking around. I didn't buy anything because I don't have room in my suitcase! Layne bought a few items for her trip with her parents, but no jeans! After the mall, we headed back to the hostel. 

We hung out in the living room and met all the other people staying in the hostel. They were all super nice, and we ended up going to eat at an Italian restaurant with this guy from Spain who was super entertaining. When we got back to the hostel, everyone was drinking and preparing for that evening's pub crawl. Although we were tired, we decided to go to the first stop on the pub crawl. It was not that fun because neither of us wanted to drink, and we had a hard time keeping our eyes open. We ended up leaving early to go back to the hostel. We both took showers since we hadn't taken one since we left Bar (more than 2 days!) and passed out. I was out within minutes. A great first day in Budapest!