Another day, another adventure. That's what an avid traveller would claim. After having a blast at Vienna, we took a short train ride (three hours to be exact) to Budapest. Even before going to Hungary, I had already heard a fair share of positive reviews about this amazing country.





First, the place itself was gorgeous. Then, most important of all, the food was incredibly cheap and delicious (not compromising on quality) as well! Hence I was pretty looking forward to visiting Budapest during the second leg of our Europe trips. 

Day 1

Central Market

We had arrived Budapest with much hope (at least I did). Everything seemed to be going well. We checked in at our Airbnb accommodation and the host was really friendly and kind enough to provide maps for us and also recommended some of the common tourist attractions for us to visit while we were here. The location of the accommodation was very strategic, being in the middle of the city, thus we were all satisfied and could even argue that this might be the best place we had stayed in Europe.

Enough of the talks, we went to the first attraction which was the Central Market to fill our starving stomachs. The Central Market was pretty huge compared to all the morning markets that I have seen  so far as it was double story. It was quite organised as the raw materials such as fruits and vegetables stalls were all on the left side of the market while the food shop lots were mostly on the right hand side of the market. On the second floor there were souvenir shops and more food stalls around.

We ordered some of the local food and we were not disappointed. They were yummy and sold at an affordable price (for student's budget). The fruits were a catach as I got to buy half kilogram of cherries for a mere 1.5 pounds. That was insane as it would cost me almost 10 pounds back in Asia!

Hosok Tere (Heroes Square)

With full and happy stomachs, we left the market and proceeded to Hosok Tere, one of the major squares in Budapest. What was interesting with this square was that there were seven statues that featured the Seven chieftains of the Magyars and also other prominent Hungarian national leaders. It would be great to have a guide book in order to get to know more about the Hungarian histories. The sun was scorching hot with clear blue skies, hence we fleed after taking N numbers of touristy photos.

Városliget (Budapest City Park)

All of us are park lovers so naturally we went to Városliget, Budapest's city park to chill and relax. This park happened to be the most favourite all-season destination for both locals and tourists as there were many activities that we could do. Below was the list of all the activities that are available at the park (with a price of course);

We could easily spend a day doing all of those things but the main attraction was the Széchenyi Medicinal Bath! The building was like a palace and it contained huge thermal pool with different temperatures to your liking. There were also sauna and massage sessions as well!

Kantin

We skipped Book Cafe as we were hungry lot and so we went directly to have our dinner instead. With much anticipation, we dined at the famous Kantin. The significant thing about this restaurant was that we could get a three course meal under 10 pounds! It was an insane thought if we were in other parts of Europe. Sure enough, the food was amazing and the service was even better. We had a classic Hungarian dinner and the waiter never failed to impress us with her bubbly and cheerful attitude throughout our meals. It was truly an unforgettable experience. 

The McDonalds (Budapest Nyugati station)

For night walk, we went to the McDonald's next to the Western Railway Station (Nyugati Station). It was claimed as the most beautiful McDonalds  in the world. We were surprised by the humongous size of the building and impressed by the architectures and the decorations in the building. Being a McDonald lover, I was proud to be able to witness this gorgeous branch! With that we called it a night and skipped Residence Parliament as we were all exhausted from all the walking and sight-seeings.

Day 2

Chain Bridge (Széchenyi Lánchíd)

Photos taken the night before

On our second day. we went to the eminent Széchenyi Chain Bridge. It was the bridge that connected both Buda and Pest (thus Budapest) which were the western and eastern sides of Budapest. In addition, it was also the first bridge across the Danube in Hungary. We could take a bus (the hop on hop off bus) but we chose walking instead to appreciate the bridge in detail. 

The Liberty Statue













It was an iconic emblem of Budapest located at the Gellert Hill. The monument was a woman holding a large palm leave above her head that commemorated those who had sacrificed themselves in order to achieve the independence, freedom and prosperity of Hungary. The statue was very tall at 14 meters in height and the scenery from the place was just magnificent/

Fisherman's Bastion

The views of Danube and the Parliament Buildings from this place was out of this world. The bastion featured seven turrets that represented the seven Hungarian tribes who founded Budapest in 895 and it had gotten its name from a guild of fishermen who had protected the bastion during the Middles Ages. The tower was also part of the Buda Castle.

Matthias Church

Image Source: travelpast50.com

This breath-taking church offered an uninterrupted views of the Pest side and the church was previously used as a coronation church for the Hungarian kings. It was just located in front of the Fisherman's Bastion at the centre of the Buda's Castle District. The interior of the church was very unique as it was very colourful  Just a reminder, the ticket office there only accepted hungarian dollars and credit card payments. 

Trinity Square 



It was a small square in front of the Matthias Church but extremely busy with locals and tourists walking around. There was an unusual looking Holy Trinity Column that stood in them iddle of the square that was built to assist the citizens to avoid the ravages of the Black Plague.

Ruszwurm Cukrászda (Ruszwurm Pastry Shop)

Image Source: lonelyplanet.com

This little hidden gem had all the reasons people willing to queue up for hours. We wait ed for sometime, being sceptical at first but was blown away by the delicious cakes and pastries that they served. Also we ordered a banana split-ish ice cream and we were loving it!

Buda Castle Hill

Image Source: planetware.com

Located in the heart of the Budapest city, the Buda castle hill was yet another grand spot to watch sunset as well as the city lights that illuminated both the city and the river (the bridge). It was definitely a strong recommendation to visit this place.

Hungarian Parliament Building

The night view of the Hungarian Parliament building was totally stunning. We were blown away by the massive size of the building and the magnificent lights that projected on the building, making it looked as if the whole building was painted in gold. Although I was not an architecture student. i had to admit that the building was really really well built.

Szimpla Kert Bar

Before we called it a night, we figured that we should go to bars as they were quite happening in Budapest. We stumbled upon the Szimpla Kert Bar and little did we know it was the most famous ruin pub in the city. This place was very cosy and a popualr nightspot as there were tons of young people hanging around. It was called the ruin pub as the the pub was essentially opened in a "ruin" building.

We had a good time looking around the pub as there were lots of artworks and also just sitting on the bench and chatting while sipping on our drinks, trying to spend out remaining hungarian money as it was impossible to change them back into pounds as they were not accepted by the shops. All in all, Budapest was a great place to visit and we enjoyed every moment of it. It did live up to our expectation and I thought it was also very budget friendly! The next post will feature our adventures on a new country, the Czech Repulic! Stay tuned.

Pro-Tip: Do not change too much Hungarian currency as you cannot change the excess into your own currency as the shop doesn't accept them!

Budapest Itinerary