The famous baths of Budapest

Budapest, Hungary

I'd love to write one of those travel books. I think I would do a pretty good job at it. I'm a level-headed guy, have fairly good taste, and can write with ease (although the quality can certainly be questionable at times).

I'd really love to write one of those travel books about Hungary. Or maybe just an article in Southern Living or something. Or maybe just a blog entry.

Hungary. It's a lovely country...really, it is. Budapest, formerly the city of Buda on the western shore of the Danube River and Pest on the eastern shore, is a beautiful place located right in the center of Europe. The great location seems to have provided the city with a decent economy and an interesting cultural twist. Buda is the quaint area of the city: narrowly winding streets and cute little shops litter the landscape surrounding the majestic Royal Palace and beautiful Matthias Church. Pest is the commercial area of the city: busy and colorful streets and Westernized clothing stores dot every corner.

We visited all the major sights of the city, excluding a walled-in park of the various Communist statues saved from long ago. There were plans to attend, but we just do not have the time now. Upon arrival on Wednesday, we did a bit of trekking around to find a place to stay (as Sarah outlined in the first blog entry from Budapest). On Thursday, we checked out the largest church in Budapest, St. Stephen's, as well as the 2nd largest synagogue in all of Europe. Additionally, we saw the Parliament building, the opera house, and did some shopping in a great outdoor market. After bartering at the market, we returned home with the groceries for a feast of a dinner. Yesterday we saw various sights, including a long visit to the national Museum of Modern Art. My favorite painting was a nice Monet, while Sarah loved a Rodin sculpture called The Kiss. The afternoon was spent at a famous Hungarian "bath."

This is where my writing of the travel book would come in handy. The travel guides make the Hungarian baths sound like these marvelous natural spring baths with massage parlors, saunas, hot tubs, etc. Of course, Sarah was quite excited. Of course, I was less than excited. In any event, we ventured over there yesterday afternoon and both of us were sourly disappointed. The baths turn out to be little more than a public swimming facility. Mind you, I have nothing wrong with public swimming facilities. But I was expecting something right out of the Roman history pages. We swam for a modest 30 minutes and then jetted the set.

Today, we saw the previously mentioned Palace and Church in Buda. But this brings me to my final point for the travel book. All in all, the city was a nice one to visit with many interesting sights, good food, and a busy night life. But time and time again, Sarah and I were confronted by rude and unhappy people. I will not go as far as to make any generalizations on this point. Afterall, our landlady and two sellers at the market were quite nice. But other than that, I have noticed that the people are not nearly as friendly as in other places in Eastern Europe. In the end, Hungary needs to learn a little southern hospitality.

In other news, the plans have changed. We are going to Cluj-Napoca tonight, which is the unofficial capital of Transylvania. Then we're hitting up two nights in Brasov so we can visit Dracula's castle. And finally we'll make it to Bucharest on September 7th -- right in time for my online fantasy football draft!

Speaking of football, I am sick to my stomach about missing the first big day of college football. To set the record straight, Auburn is number one in my heart. WAR DAMN EAGLE! But I've gotta give a shout out for #2. HOOK 'EM HORNS!