Nothing too thrilling has happened in the last week, but I'll share it anyway. On Saturday I went out with Andy and some of his friends that he went to school with, including Chris Smith who I had met last summer in LA. We went out in Clapham, and I probably drank a little too much wine (shocking, I know). The most amusing part of the night was when I started chatting to Dave, the flatmate of one of the guys Andy knew. He asked how I felt about GWBush and I said I, well, hate him and what he's done to my country, particularly on the international stage. He proceeded to tell me he thought Bush has done a good job, in Northern Ireland (thank you Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and John Major - NOT BUSH!), and he was forced to go to war with Iraq because we were being threatened with nuclear war. Needless to say, I sort of lost it, and Andy started giggling at me. He turned to Chris and Kay and said, "She'll kick his ass..." It was a little upsetting that someone could be so ignorant, but still... kind of funny at the same time.
On Sunday we went out to Andy's parents' house in Amersham for lunch. They live in such a cute little English town - sort of in the country... kind of like Lexington, really. Bigger lawns, large hedges, 40 minutes outside of London. His mother cooked lamb, pototoes, broccoli, carrots, and we had wine and cheesecake, and watched cricket and took a walk. It was a lovely afternoon despite having shitty weather.
That's pretty much it. I'm mostly moved to Andy's, which is good. Tonight we're going to see USA v England football at Wembley! America... fuck yeah!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Cranium and Champions League
Marina came back in from Europe yesterday for a 18 hour trip to London before heading off for home. After dropping her bags off, we walked up to Ciao Bella, an Italian food place near Russell Square tube to meet up with a bunch of my coursemates. We had an Italian feast before playing Cranium at Marc's dorm. In addition to a raucous game of Cranium we watched the Champions League final. The Champions League is the best club teams in Europe play in a tournament throughout the year. For the first time ever, the final had two English teams: Manchester United and Chelsea. It was a 1-1 draw at the end of regulation time, and it ended up going to penalty kicks. Very exciting match, and Man U pulled it out in the end (Chelsea is something like the Yankees of the premeireship).
A visit to Oxford and Hogwarts
Tuesday afternoon I took the train to Oxford to see Alison, Mary's junior year college roommate. She is doing a second BA and then an MPhil from Oxford in English literature (with a heavy emphasis on Middle English). We weren't close friends in college, but it was fun to see her. We walked around the town a bit (Oxford is very small, only about 140,000 people) to see the sites. We wandered through a couple of the colleges. Magdalen College had a lovely trail and natural gardens throughout the back, as well as a flood plain. We wandered through another college, and Alison took me into the Hall (which is where they eat), and as I looked around, I stopped dead, turned to her and said,
"WAIT. HOGWARTS IS HERE."
She laughed, and she said she couldn't believe she forgot to take me there. The Hogwarts entrance hall and great hall are filmed at Christ Church college at Oxford, so I got to go and SEE WHERE HARRY POTTER EATS. No joke. Where the magic happens! I will post pictures as soon as I get a chance.
Other than that, we also went to the top of St Mary the Virgin, to check out the view (you can see much of Oxford from there), had some tea in a very quaint garden, and went to the Ashmolean, which is a anthropological and art museum of sorts. We went to Evensong in the Exeter (Alison's college) Chapel, and ate second dinner in her hall. Very cool - very Hogwartian. I was psyched. We ended the evening with a round of cider, but I had to get back to London. It was a relatively unexpectedly great day, and hopefully I'll make it back out there soon. It's always nice to be out of London!
"WAIT. HOGWARTS IS HERE."
She laughed, and she said she couldn't believe she forgot to take me there. The Hogwarts entrance hall and great hall are filmed at Christ Church college at Oxford, so I got to go and SEE WHERE HARRY POTTER EATS. No joke. Where the magic happens! I will post pictures as soon as I get a chance.
Other than that, we also went to the top of St Mary the Virgin, to check out the view (you can see much of Oxford from there), had some tea in a very quaint garden, and went to the Ashmolean, which is a anthropological and art museum of sorts. We went to Evensong in the Exeter (Alison's college) Chapel, and ate second dinner in her hall. Very cool - very Hogwartian. I was psyched. We ended the evening with a round of cider, but I had to get back to London. It was a relatively unexpectedly great day, and hopefully I'll make it back out there soon. It's always nice to be out of London!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Cricket devirginization
Yesterday I had my first cricket experience at Lords, which is the "Home of Cricket" and basically a religious mecca for Andy and his father. As cricket is a cousin to baseball, we all figured it'd be a good day out. We saw Day 4 of the test match between England and New Zealand. To be honest, I couldn't really tell you much of what happened during the actual match, because the whole game is really lost on me! What I did learn, however, is THEORETICALLY, nothing can happen all game. They can bowl (pitch) the ball, and even if the batsman (batter) hits it, he doesn't get penalized unless he gets thrown out, the ball gets caught or the stumps get knocked over (there's no such thing as a strikeout, etc). So one guy can literally bat all day with nothing. I guess it's kind of like hitting a foul ball all day. Weird. Anyway...
Cait and I met up with Andy at about 10am yesterday. The seats that Andy chooses are only available to members (Marylebone Cricket Club) and their guests, so they're quite good. Lords only seats about 30,000 so it's a small ground (aka stadium, though they hate that I call it that). Rich and Anna met up with us around 11, which is when the match actually started. There was a picnic (set up by Andy), wine, champagne (which Andy managed to get all over himself, classic) and Pimms (yummy and dangerous). I learned a bit about the game, enjoyed the sunshine and the company. I'm not convinced about cricket though. Baseball really is much better, there's a better pace to the game. However, cricket is so charmingly English with its lunch and tea breaks, and a drinks break every hour! And Andy seems to love it, which is quite cute. I told him I'd give it a few more chances before I reach my final verdict, as I think I'll have tickets to a few other matches throughout the summer.
Andy covered in champers
Drunk before noon!
Pimms...mmmm
Cait and I taking the match very seriously through our free paper binoculars
Us late in the afternoon...3 o'clock haze?
Cait and I met up with Andy at about 10am yesterday. The seats that Andy chooses are only available to members (Marylebone Cricket Club) and their guests, so they're quite good. Lords only seats about 30,000 so it's a small ground (aka stadium, though they hate that I call it that). Rich and Anna met up with us around 11, which is when the match actually started. There was a picnic (set up by Andy), wine, champagne (which Andy managed to get all over himself, classic) and Pimms (yummy and dangerous). I learned a bit about the game, enjoyed the sunshine and the company. I'm not convinced about cricket though. Baseball really is much better, there's a better pace to the game. However, cricket is so charmingly English with its lunch and tea breaks, and a drinks break every hour! And Andy seems to love it, which is quite cute. I told him I'd give it a few more chances before I reach my final verdict, as I think I'll have tickets to a few other matches throughout the summer.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Exams exams exams
I just finished my first exam. One down, five to go! WOO! I was the first one done, AS ALWAYS, and it went fine. I hope I got good marks but it's out of my hands now! I have another one tomorrow - boooo. But this weekend I can relax, work on my dissertation, watch some cricket, it'll be good. So, I apologize in advance for the blog silence and the boring nature of everything, but I spend most of my time revising or complaining about revising, so... yeah. That's all! :)
Monday, May 12, 2008
Some pictures from Europe
Summer weather in Londres
Having returned to London with the full intention of dedicating all of my free time to revising for my impending exams, the god of weather decides it's a great time to bring a beautiful, sunny heatwave to southeast England for the weekend! Well, I managed to get some studying done but I also was able to get outside for some sun and relaxation. On Saturday I met up with Andy and we took a walk from Southbank to Knightsbridge (where I showed him Harrods for the FIRST TIME), and then we had dinner and we ran around in Hyde Park for a bit until it was dark and teeming with creepy homeless people.
On Sunday I studied in the morning and then met up with Andy for some baseball in Green Park. The weather was absolutely stunning. We played catch and whiffle ball and lazied about in the grass. Afterwards we went for a BBQ at Andy's sister Catherine and her husband, Adrian's flat. They have a beautiful terrace that overlooks much of London and on a clear day like yesterday you could see everything - from the Eye all the way to Canary Wharf - unbelievable! We had lots of meat - burgers, chicken, some sausage with the cider, beer and wine (no, I didn't drink all three). I made some blondie brownies to wrap up the evening, and we also watched some footie and some baseball. Definitely a success! Some pictures:
Today I spent the morning at Andy's flat waiting for delivery men but I got a LOT of studying done whilst I was there. I met him for lunch to return his key and got to enjoy EVEN MORE sunshine - I actually have a tan now! Very exciting. The next few days are nose to the grindstone but come Thursday, we all get a bit of a break!
On Sunday I studied in the morning and then met up with Andy for some baseball in Green Park. The weather was absolutely stunning. We played catch and whiffle ball and lazied about in the grass. Afterwards we went for a BBQ at Andy's sister Catherine and her husband, Adrian's flat. They have a beautiful terrace that overlooks much of London and on a clear day like yesterday you could see everything - from the Eye all the way to Canary Wharf - unbelievable! We had lots of meat - burgers, chicken, some sausage with the cider, beer and wine (no, I didn't drink all three). I made some blondie brownies to wrap up the evening, and we also watched some footie and some baseball. Definitely a success! Some pictures:
Today I spent the morning at Andy's flat waiting for delivery men but I got a LOT of studying done whilst I was there. I met him for lunch to return his key and got to enjoy EVEN MORE sunshine - I actually have a tan now! Very exciting. The next few days are nose to the grindstone but come Thursday, we all get a bit of a break!
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Praha Day 2 and return to London
Sadly, our trip has come to and end and I am back in London while Marina is off to Espana for a couple of weeks. Today we met up with Leona at a park called Vysenev (or something), which was lovely, peaceful, and had beautiful views of the city (this is a theme of Prague, it seems). We had some tea and nursed our hangovers, and enjoyed the bright sunshine! Unfortunately we only had the morning and we had to go to the airport to catch our flights... It was really a great week.
Highlights include:
Car-bike excursion in Budapest
Maze and labyrinth at Schonbrunn
Revisiting Sissi
Cute Austrian tour guide
Seeing Leona again
Lots of sunshine
The swinging table
Spending time with Rina!
A very successful trip. We have tenatively planned a trip around Germany the first chance Marina has a week off from dental school. Now, to the grind of studying for exams!
Highlights include:
Car-bike excursion in Budapest
Maze and labyrinth at Schonbrunn
Revisiting Sissi
Cute Austrian tour guide
Seeing Leona again
Lots of sunshine
The swinging table
Spending time with Rina!
A very successful trip. We have tenatively planned a trip around Germany the first chance Marina has a week off from dental school. Now, to the grind of studying for exams!
Praha Day 1
We are in love with Prague! Yesterday we had absolutely perfect weather, and really enjoyed just taking everything in whilst walking around the city. We felt less compelled to run from site to site, and just walked around and felt the atmosphere. We started out with breakfast in Old Town Square, which at 8am is a ghost town (we liked it better this way). We then walked across the Charles Bridge, which is an old pedestrian bridge of cobblestones, lined with Biblical statues. We managed to get there early before it was riddled with people, so we got some nice pictures.
We climbed up to Prague Castle to check out St. Vitus' Cathedral and some of the other sites up there. We were trying to conserve money so we didn't see everything it had to offer, but we poked around for awhile. After that we went to the Petrin Tower, which is a large viewing tower that looks just like the Eiffel Tower. The views from there were amazing - you could see the entire city and much of the countryside. As a side note, we also got to take a FUNICULAR up there, and we know how I feel about funiculars (giddy like a schoolgirl). ;)
We walked through (Good King) Wenceslas Square and a nearby market, which had a lot of toys, food and other goods. Including - YES - a HARRY POTTER MARIONETTE. Don't worry, pictures are coming! After lunch, we climbed to the top of the Old Town Hall tower, which also had very nice views - we actually liked it better than the previous two because it was so much closer to the architecture, and you could really see the sights from up there. We then walked through St. Nicholas' church, which had a gigantic chandalier and beautiful frescos painted inside. Lastly, we walked by the National Theater but were unable to get in.
After our marathon week of sight seeing, we were knackered. So we went to a restaurant that had tables that SWING - think of a child's swingset, where you have the swing when two people can face each other in chairs. Now, put a table full of cocktails in the middle. HEAVEN! After a couple of drinks, we met up with Leona for some wine and chat. This morning we're off to meet Leona at a park in southern Prague, and then to the airport to return to London town (for me, Marina is off to Barcelona).
We climbed up to Prague Castle to check out St. Vitus' Cathedral and some of the other sites up there. We were trying to conserve money so we didn't see everything it had to offer, but we poked around for awhile. After that we went to the Petrin Tower, which is a large viewing tower that looks just like the Eiffel Tower. The views from there were amazing - you could see the entire city and much of the countryside. As a side note, we also got to take a FUNICULAR up there, and we know how I feel about funiculars (giddy like a schoolgirl). ;)
We walked through (Good King) Wenceslas Square and a nearby market, which had a lot of toys, food and other goods. Including - YES - a HARRY POTTER MARIONETTE. Don't worry, pictures are coming! After lunch, we climbed to the top of the Old Town Hall tower, which also had very nice views - we actually liked it better than the previous two because it was so much closer to the architecture, and you could really see the sights from up there. We then walked through St. Nicholas' church, which had a gigantic chandalier and beautiful frescos painted inside. Lastly, we walked by the National Theater but were unable to get in.
After our marathon week of sight seeing, we were knackered. So we went to a restaurant that had tables that SWING - think of a child's swingset, where you have the swing when two people can face each other in chairs. Now, put a table full of cocktails in the middle. HEAVEN! After a couple of drinks, we met up with Leona for some wine and chat. This morning we're off to meet Leona at a park in southern Prague, and then to the airport to return to London town (for me, Marina is off to Barcelona).
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Wien Day 3 and arrival in Prague
Last night after I gave you all an update (whilst it was pouring rain in Vienna), we headed off on another adventure. We didn't want to head back to our shady, dirty hostel (BLUE CORRIDOR - avoid it), so we went to Prater, which is the amusement park a little ways outside of Vienna. There is a famous "giant ferris wheel" there a la the London Eye, though this one is wooden and perhaps not quite so cool. We were glad to do it, though, it provided some nice views and it was a little different than the other things we had done in Vienna.
This morning we started early, and headed off to the Beethoven rooms. We were told they opened at 9 but were unhappy to find on our arrival at 8:45 that they didn't open until 10. Conceding defeat, we headed to the Mozarthaus and had a cup of tea while we waited for it to open at 10. We wanted to see more and hear less about the mundane history of Mozart - we saw Amadeus, sheesh! Then we walked over the Belvedere, which is an old palace that has been converted into a museum. Despite the guidebooks saying that it is not to be missed, I was relatively unimpressed! When we got bored of art (read: very soon after arrival), we walked to the train station and managed to catch the early train to Prague. We had another uneventful journey. I finished reading Atonement, and took a long nap.
Our hostel in Prague (Clown and Bard) is very nice, clean and friendly. We are sharing our room with three Scotsmen (excellent accents). Tonight we met up with a friend of mine called Leona, who I hadn't seen in five years. We had a class together when I was a sophomore in college while she was studying abroad at GW. We had sporadically kept in touch over the years, but it was so great to see her again! We had some Czech food and some wine, and we are going to see her again tomorrow! She is going to look into Opera tickets or something else fun we can get up to for our last night on my tour of Europe (for now, of course). She is actually moving to Denmark in a few months so I will now have someone to meet up with when I go there (now on the list of places to go!).
As we are off to another early start tomorrow, I am off to bed. Need lots of time to explore Prague manana!
This morning we started early, and headed off to the Beethoven rooms. We were told they opened at 9 but were unhappy to find on our arrival at 8:45 that they didn't open until 10. Conceding defeat, we headed to the Mozarthaus and had a cup of tea while we waited for it to open at 10. We wanted to see more and hear less about the mundane history of Mozart - we saw Amadeus, sheesh! Then we walked over the Belvedere, which is an old palace that has been converted into a museum. Despite the guidebooks saying that it is not to be missed, I was relatively unimpressed! When we got bored of art (read: very soon after arrival), we walked to the train station and managed to catch the early train to Prague. We had another uneventful journey. I finished reading Atonement, and took a long nap.
Our hostel in Prague (Clown and Bard) is very nice, clean and friendly. We are sharing our room with three Scotsmen (excellent accents). Tonight we met up with a friend of mine called Leona, who I hadn't seen in five years. We had a class together when I was a sophomore in college while she was studying abroad at GW. We had sporadically kept in touch over the years, but it was so great to see her again! We had some Czech food and some wine, and we are going to see her again tomorrow! She is going to look into Opera tickets or something else fun we can get up to for our last night on my tour of Europe (for now, of course). She is actually moving to Denmark in a few months so I will now have someone to meet up with when I go there (now on the list of places to go!).
As we are off to another early start tomorrow, I am off to bed. Need lots of time to explore Prague manana!
Monday, May 5, 2008
Wien Day 2
We had a another marathon sightseeing today here in Vienna. We started out at Nachtsmarkt, which is a market a la Borough Market, selling meat, veg and yummy things. We picked up some breakfast there. We went down to Karlskirche, which is a church with a beautiful painted ceiling and a view of all of Vienna - nice despite the rainy haze. After that we wandered through Stadtpark, which is where there are a multitude of statues of famous composers and other Austrian artists. I got a couple pictures of Strauss and Schubert. Following this we went back to St. Stephens Cathedral to explore a little more. We went into the catacombs, where we saw the urns where the internal organs (not the hearts) of the Habsburgs are kept. Bizarre.
We went out to Schonbrunn to continue our love affair with the Habsburgs. We went through the palace at warp speed (enough furniture!) and spent a lot of time in the gardens. We did the maze and the labyrinth and all the games that were in that park. We also climbed the hill to the Glorietta, and then walked through the woods. Glorious! Beautiful flowers, it smelled like green... Really glad we went out there.
We came back to central Vienna and went to the Augustinian church to check out the urns that contain the Habsburg hearts, but it was closed - Boooo. So, we took a little break, and started wandering down to the famous ferris wheel when it started to pour. We´re trying to wait out the rain, otherwise we´ll head back to our shady hostel to get some rest before finishing up Vienna tomorrow and heading to Prague!
We went out to Schonbrunn to continue our love affair with the Habsburgs. We went through the palace at warp speed (enough furniture!) and spent a lot of time in the gardens. We did the maze and the labyrinth and all the games that were in that park. We also climbed the hill to the Glorietta, and then walked through the woods. Glorious! Beautiful flowers, it smelled like green... Really glad we went out there.
We came back to central Vienna and went to the Augustinian church to check out the urns that contain the Habsburg hearts, but it was closed - Boooo. So, we took a little break, and started wandering down to the famous ferris wheel when it started to pour. We´re trying to wait out the rain, otherwise we´ll head back to our shady hostel to get some rest before finishing up Vienna tomorrow and heading to Prague!
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Wien Day 1
We made it to Vienna! I apologize if my grammar or spelling is bad, I am on a German computer and the keys are in different places! The train from Budapest was only three hours long, and we got a lovely view of the Hungarian country side whilst we read and rested our VERY tired legs! We got to our hostel at about 1 - it isnt as nice as the Yellow Submarine, but for two nights, it will certainly do! We promptly went out to lunch for authentic Austrian food (Weiner schnitzel and fries of course) at a place called Centimeter. Good, huge portions, cheap.
We wandered through the Museum Quarter, and to the Hofburg Palace (the winter residence of the Imperial family) to see the Sissi museum. For all of those who dont already know, Sissi was the Empress Elisabeth of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, consort to Franz Joseph for much of the 19th century. We named our first dog, Sissy, after her. Marina was excited to learn what all the fuss was about and I was keen to refresh my memory of someone who clearly made an impression on my eight-year old-self! To be honest, despite the fact that she seemed a bit odd, I can definitely see why I loved her when I was young. Independent, moody, a little glamorous, shrouded in legend. Just my type of girl!
As its Sunday, most everything else was shut by the time we finished with Sissi, so we have been walking around Vienna taking it all in. We walked by the Votive Church and St. Stephen's Cathedral. We are going to go back to explore the inside a little more (its a bit rude to tour whilst mass was going on). Otherwise, there are a lot of people and market-like goings on in Vienna today and we are busy taking it all in. Tomorrow we want to go to Mozart and Beethoven residences, a couple of museums, a market, and a couple other sites. If we have time on Tuesday morning (and if its sunny), we will head to Schonbrunn Palace to get some more of Sissi!
We wandered through the Museum Quarter, and to the Hofburg Palace (the winter residence of the Imperial family) to see the Sissi museum. For all of those who dont already know, Sissi was the Empress Elisabeth of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, consort to Franz Joseph for much of the 19th century. We named our first dog, Sissy, after her. Marina was excited to learn what all the fuss was about and I was keen to refresh my memory of someone who clearly made an impression on my eight-year old-self! To be honest, despite the fact that she seemed a bit odd, I can definitely see why I loved her when I was young. Independent, moody, a little glamorous, shrouded in legend. Just my type of girl!
As its Sunday, most everything else was shut by the time we finished with Sissi, so we have been walking around Vienna taking it all in. We walked by the Votive Church and St. Stephen's Cathedral. We are going to go back to explore the inside a little more (its a bit rude to tour whilst mass was going on). Otherwise, there are a lot of people and market-like goings on in Vienna today and we are busy taking it all in. Tomorrow we want to go to Mozart and Beethoven residences, a couple of museums, a market, and a couple other sites. If we have time on Tuesday morning (and if its sunny), we will head to Schonbrunn Palace to get some more of Sissi!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Budapest Day 2
We had another jam-packed day dominating this city today. For the most part, the lovely weather held up (with a slight, hour-long break in the sunshine in mid afternoon). We started off early and climbed to the top of the Citadella, which overlooks the city. It was built in the 19th century by the Austrians to keep watch on the city. The view was really spectacular, but we were already tuckered out from the climb before 10:30! After that, we walked down and through a small part of Buda to end up at the Buda Royal Palace. We enjoyed the walk - Buda is a much prettier, more liveable city than Pest. It reminded us more of the country, which more green, hills, and home-like houses and buildings. The Palace itself held a museum by which we were entirely underwhelmed (luckily, students get in free, so no loss!). There was a beautiful view that overlooked St. Stephen's cathedral, so we got a nice view of Pest to compliment our view of Buda from yesterday.
Following this we took a walk to the "House of Terror" which is a museum converted from the Nazi and Soviet central building in Budapest (Andrassy Ut 60). They had some translations in English, so we were able to learn a bit about the experience that Hungary had during the transition periods. We were both surprised at how little time Hungary was occupied by the Nazis (not to diminish their suffering, of course). We both think that if we had been able to understand more of the films and commentary included, we would have gotten even more out of the museum.
After this we walked over to Margrit Sziget (Margaret Island), which is basically a giant park with athletics centers, pools, open parks, side walks and dirt trails to walk around. However, by this time we were nearly dead on our feet, so we jumped at the chance to rent a, erm, "car bike". It was basically a bike for two, but we sat side by side and there was a steering wheel - very touristy, you get it. We had a LOT of fun tooling around on it, I took it for some off roading adventures, and we had one mishap where we went careening uncontrollably into a field. Stupid Americans... ;) We had to turn the car bike back in after a half an hour, but we both agree it was worth every minute!
We wanted to head back to Central Market to pick up some more trinkets for ourselves and others today, but when we arrived it was closed! So we wandered around Vaci utac, which is the main tourist drag. We picked up some things (including wooden moose, donkeys and a couple of magic secret boxes - YES), and then had a long, leisurely dinner. Tonight we're going to pack up, get some rest.
Tomorrow, Vienna!
Following this we took a walk to the "House of Terror" which is a museum converted from the Nazi and Soviet central building in Budapest (Andrassy Ut 60). They had some translations in English, so we were able to learn a bit about the experience that Hungary had during the transition periods. We were both surprised at how little time Hungary was occupied by the Nazis (not to diminish their suffering, of course). We both think that if we had been able to understand more of the films and commentary included, we would have gotten even more out of the museum.
After this we walked over to Margrit Sziget (Margaret Island), which is basically a giant park with athletics centers, pools, open parks, side walks and dirt trails to walk around. However, by this time we were nearly dead on our feet, so we jumped at the chance to rent a, erm, "car bike". It was basically a bike for two, but we sat side by side and there was a steering wheel - very touristy, you get it. We had a LOT of fun tooling around on it, I took it for some off roading adventures, and we had one mishap where we went careening uncontrollably into a field. Stupid Americans... ;) We had to turn the car bike back in after a half an hour, but we both agree it was worth every minute!
We wanted to head back to Central Market to pick up some more trinkets for ourselves and others today, but when we arrived it was closed! So we wandered around Vaci utac, which is the main tourist drag. We picked up some things (including wooden moose, donkeys and a couple of magic secret boxes - YES), and then had a long, leisurely dinner. Tonight we're going to pack up, get some rest.
Tomorrow, Vienna!
Friday, May 2, 2008
Budapest Day 1
Okay I know it has been ages, but my parents were here and I haven't had time to update everyone on that so we're just going to gloss over it. It was good.
Last night Marina and I arrived in Budapest and we are staying at the YELLOW SUBMARINE hostel, so I'm very amused. (Yes, I'm that pathetic). It's small and clean and relatively quiet, so it definitely serves our purpose (we're not that keen on partying... I've done Barcelona and she's heading there so we're taking it a bit easy). Today we basically dominated Pest (the north side of the Danube) and did basically all the sites!
We started out at the Jewish Synagogue, which is the largest of its kind in Europe. It was really beautiful, with gold and red and oranges on the inside. I was surprised to hear it was the largest in Europe because it wasn't overwhelmingly huge. There was also a Jewish museum and a memorial garden. There was a memorial tree that seemed to be made of tin (you're going to have to wait until my return to London for pictures, sorry), which was very cool. Names were carved into the leaves to commemorate those who were killed in the Holocaust.
After the synagogue we had intended to go to the National Museum (we wanted some much-needed Hungarian history), but it was shut. So we walked down toward the river, where there is a two-story covered market. The bottom floor is fresh food: meat, fruit, veggies, nuts, etc. The upstairs consisted of handmade Hungarian goods (wood carved pieces and a lot of embroidered tablecloths, etc), as well as your usual touristy stuff. I bought a couple post cards and a gift or two.
We walked down a main tourist road, had some lunch, and then followed the river down to the Parliament building. Along the river is a really subtle (we almost missed it) Holocaust memorial, commemorating people who were SHOT BY ARROW into the Danube in 1944-1945. I might have to do some more research to find out what actually happened there! The Parliament building looks remarkably like Westminster Abbey with a colored cathedral dome. It's lovely. We opted to not take a tour, simply because there were so many other things we wanted to do (and we know nothing about Hungarian government... sad). Following Parliament we walked through a park where, in 1945, the Soviets tore down the Hungarian flag and posted a Soviet monument. Now there is a Hungarian flag with a hole in it standing close by (and higher than) the monument, to signify its importance as well as what the Soviets attempted to steal from their national identity.
Following this we went to St. Stephen's Basilica. St. Stephen was the first king and seemingly the patron saint of Hungary. It was a beautiful church (though with a little too much gold for my taste), though it was mobbed with people. There was also St. Stephen's hand there. I thought that odd, but who am I to judge?
Lastly, we walked up to a city park to check out the Turkish baths. Neither of us had swimsuits, but we were in sandals so we splashed our feet in and enjoyed the sunshine (it was about 70 degrees and sunny today!). Then it was about five, we stopped by the train station to pick up our tickets to Vienna for Sunday. :)
Last night Marina and I arrived in Budapest and we are staying at the YELLOW SUBMARINE hostel, so I'm very amused. (Yes, I'm that pathetic). It's small and clean and relatively quiet, so it definitely serves our purpose (we're not that keen on partying... I've done Barcelona and she's heading there so we're taking it a bit easy). Today we basically dominated Pest (the north side of the Danube) and did basically all the sites!
We started out at the Jewish Synagogue, which is the largest of its kind in Europe. It was really beautiful, with gold and red and oranges on the inside. I was surprised to hear it was the largest in Europe because it wasn't overwhelmingly huge. There was also a Jewish museum and a memorial garden. There was a memorial tree that seemed to be made of tin (you're going to have to wait until my return to London for pictures, sorry), which was very cool. Names were carved into the leaves to commemorate those who were killed in the Holocaust.
After the synagogue we had intended to go to the National Museum (we wanted some much-needed Hungarian history), but it was shut. So we walked down toward the river, where there is a two-story covered market. The bottom floor is fresh food: meat, fruit, veggies, nuts, etc. The upstairs consisted of handmade Hungarian goods (wood carved pieces and a lot of embroidered tablecloths, etc), as well as your usual touristy stuff. I bought a couple post cards and a gift or two.
We walked down a main tourist road, had some lunch, and then followed the river down to the Parliament building. Along the river is a really subtle (we almost missed it) Holocaust memorial, commemorating people who were SHOT BY ARROW into the Danube in 1944-1945. I might have to do some more research to find out what actually happened there! The Parliament building looks remarkably like Westminster Abbey with a colored cathedral dome. It's lovely. We opted to not take a tour, simply because there were so many other things we wanted to do (and we know nothing about Hungarian government... sad). Following Parliament we walked through a park where, in 1945, the Soviets tore down the Hungarian flag and posted a Soviet monument. Now there is a Hungarian flag with a hole in it standing close by (and higher than) the monument, to signify its importance as well as what the Soviets attempted to steal from their national identity.
Following this we went to St. Stephen's Basilica. St. Stephen was the first king and seemingly the patron saint of Hungary. It was a beautiful church (though with a little too much gold for my taste), though it was mobbed with people. There was also St. Stephen's hand there. I thought that odd, but who am I to judge?
Lastly, we walked up to a city park to check out the Turkish baths. Neither of us had swimsuits, but we were in sandals so we splashed our feet in and enjoyed the sunshine (it was about 70 degrees and sunny today!). Then it was about five, we stopped by the train station to pick up our tickets to Vienna for Sunday. :)
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