Travel With Me Tuesday:Budapest Walk

Our rive cruise ended in Budapest and I found that after seeing so many little towns and cities, that I really didn't have the energy of enthusiasm to really explore Budapest as I'd hoped.  On our prior trip in 2008 the city still had the heaviness of a Soviet Block country. Buildings were drab and dirty and Budapest was no Prague by an means.  On this visit, 4 years later there was a lot of vibrancy in the people, especially the younger ones, many buildings has been sandblasted but there was more schlock present, a 'westernization' of the worst kind. Prices were higher and some were willing to talk about the local corruption that had replaced communism. It was a sad reminder of what could have been... Who knows, countries take time to evolve and where there's life there's hope.

However we did have an afternoon & evening that we enjoyed a lot.  Our first priority was lunch after we had been dropped back at our hotel. We were ready for walking and just looking around before we had an afternoon trip.

No tea for me this time but a nice looking teahouse.

A metro station we remembered from our earlier trip with the original tile work still in place and below some info on getting tickets.

While we didn't take the metro we walked under the Oktogon intersection to cross the street. Nice Christmas lights already up.

Aha! I spotted what I wanted to see. A food market, albeit small, it was a market. I wondered what would be available in winter. Hopefully not just potatoes and onions!

No, there was color in the market. Of course in a land where paprika chiles are a national heritage.

The grandma here had almost sold out which was good for her as she could get on home early.

Plums for homemade brandy as well as cracked and ready walnut. I could imagine Christmas desserts.

Just enough for a pot of soup. I love how the Europeans have long sold this kind of 'just enough' quantities.

No time for this museum but another trip, another year perhaps. Perhaps...

But finally Dick spotted a tiny place to eat. Really small and with a limited 'buffet' but just enough for two people who had eaten more than their share during this cruise.

A bowl of sturdy soup, a pickle & sauerkraut of course and some fried things. I was never really sure what we'd had but it was basic and good and we had time for just a siting down break which is always nice.

Then it was time to get back to our hotel for our afternoon trip out of town. We had a busy schedule on these three extra days.

Another day, hon'

I'm hoping it will be a quiet day. We had a very full day yesterday with two parties, one across the bay and the other nearer to Washington. It is rare, very very rare, that I ever nap. However after getting home betwixt events and feeding the cat, I totally conked out. I slept sound for a full hour, deep rem sleep! DH nearly had to wake me up to go out again.

So today, while I had planned to go up to the Farmers' Market in Baltimore, I realized I just needed to stay home and be still. Tho we have three markets today right here in Annapolis, so if the urge strikes, I can still get a market 'fix'. But Baltimore? not today, hon'.

Fisherboy checks in

I had a nice call from fisherboy up in Alaska. He and dgrandson are having a great time. I'm told that dgs's mouth tends to just hang open in awe as he sees the magnificent scenery of that state. They also got to call my ds who is halfway round the world, nearly 12 hrs away from Alaska. Technology...ya gotta love it.



Today the 'boys' went up to Mendenhall glacier which dh and I explored back in 2000. DH says it is receding at the rate of 300-500ft a year, and so they had to do a lot more walking to get to it. I'm soo glad dgs was able to make this trip and I can tell dh is enjoying the company. DGS was 6 when we got married and it's been so nice to have a grandfather to add to me as a grandmother.



Tomorrow they start their fishing - halibut and salmon - and I hope to hear that this 2007 photo has been duplicated.



And what did I do today??? Went to the Farmers' Market and got some upscale food pour moi..rosemary and hazelnut bread, seafood soup. a box of mixed mushrooms, and a berry tart. Betwixt and between working on a lot of ATC cards, I watched a dvd of MI-5 (I'm in the middle of season 3) and reorganized my studio so I can get some of the a/c on the tall work table. A good day all around for our family.

Tomorrow I clean and esp deal with all the semi-hidden areas where dear Sebastian has lost his cookies dinner. Oh yeah...I have to clean defrost one of the freezers in anticipation!