Day 352, Budapest, Hungary
The home we chose was on the Pest side, and yes, the other side was the Buda. The large apartment was ideal; lots of bedrooms and bathrooms, sofas and comfy chairs in the living room, eat-in kitchen, a large dining room table to fit all of us, and then some. Homey in a Hungarian style. Paul enjoyed the balcony that looked over the river. Tour boats go up and down, especially in the evening hours. Wifi was not great, which frustrated the girls when they did their online work.
The closest grocery store was conveniently located in the basement of our building. Only had to go out the door and back in a different one. There was also a McCafe with outdoor tables if anyone needed a coffee or wifi fix.
Paul headed into the city earlier in the day to explore. I stayed with the girls so Cali could get in some much needed study time. Paul does not like to sit still, would rather be exploring. We met up with him in the afternoon and he showed us what he’d discovered so far. We walked along the river path that was next to our house, toward the main part of the city. We looked at some cathedrals, which are always open, and walked quite some distance through many of the historic streets.
After a bit of city exploration on foot, we were getting hungry. We chose a lively restaurant packed with locals, always the best endorsement. We ordered from the section in the menu labeled, “Traditional Hungarian Food.” When the food was delivered the portion sizes seemed almost comically large, and that’s coming from an American. Paul’s schnitzel was the size of a large pizza. We ended up eating about one third of each of the dishes and then asked for containers. We’ve learned it’s impolite in some cultures to take food home, and in others it’s simply not permitted and considered terribly rude. We took our chances, since so much food was left. We got a definite look of disapproval from the woman, she practically scolded us with her response. After we packed it all up and had our styrofoam tower completed, we asked for a bag, and she said they don’t have any. Which led me to wonder, were we the only ones who couldn’t eat these portions?
We slowly dragged our very full stomachs home along the river. One of the bridges was spectacularly lit up in green lights. Not sure I’ve seen a more beautiful bridge, at least not today. The walk home did us good, as it was getting a little chilly.
