Budapest-y Day
Today was my second (of two) full days to wander around Budapest and do as much as I can. I did get a lot done, but not enough. Isn't that how it always is. Oh well, I can always come back...
I started out at Kalvin Ter, at my hostel. I took the trap 47 accross the Danube to the 7 bus, and took THAT to Etele Ter. At Etele Ter I bought a special ticket for the Yellow bus that goes to Statue Park, and, following the signs, went to bus stop number 7 to wait for it.
There was a bus at number 7 and when I held up the brochure and looke hopeful, he shook his head and made a finger-pistol at me. Huh? Bang bang? Go away?? I was confused, so I tried bus stop number 5. The same thing happened there. Finger-pistol. Were people mad because I was going to a communist park? Was this a Hungarian way to tell me to fuck off?? I went to the ticket booth and asked them, and received yet another finger gun. This time I persevered. "WHAT are you doing with the fingers???" I wailed. He shook the finger-gun, and said something that eventually registered as the number two. OOOOH, two fingers. Finger gun. Bus at stop 2. Foreign things are confusing.
Statue park was now worth the haul. The statues were interesting, and there were souveniers - flasks with the communist hammer on it, and lighters with the symbols also. That was not the only symbol on the lighters. I turned one of them over and noticed a bit of printing on the bottom: MADE IN USA. Sorry brother, no prezzie from Commie Park. Getting back was not so easy as the 4-bus trip there. The yellw bus returning to Etele Ter did not leave for almost 2 hours, so I hopped a blue bus (there are red buses too, and black buses. They all mean something or other) and changed to a tram and another tran and another bus and eventually I reached the centre of the city once again.
I walked around the pedestrian district, looking for prezzies (nothing...kitch and things from other countries mostly) and then wandered into the downtown area.
I went for lunch at the fancy restaurant again. There was a singer and a bass and the music was great. The food was not so great. I had caesar salad with honey-roasted chicken and mangos, and the caesar dressing was tres fishy. Also there was something suspiciously resembling a cockaroach leg on one of the lettuce leaves. I hope it was not a cockaroach leg.
After lunch I was supposed to go to tour the opera house and then meet my host of the night before to be shown the libraries. I started walking to the opera house, but then I found a bench in a park, and dit not make the tour. I really regret not touring the opera, because when I arrived there it was gorgeous, however sitting on the bench in the sun was what I needed to do just then.
I showed up at the opera house in time to buy a post card and look around the lobby, and then to come out the from door, raving about the great tour I had had. (oops... bad girl, I know, but her feelings would have been hurt if I had said I did not want to do her suggestion)
So.. why the library? I am sure you are wondering that very thing. Well, I was telling people at the shul the story (I know, bla bla bla about myself, but I had a rapt audience, though few of them could understand a word of English) about how I could not find the score for Thomas' Hamlet in Rome, and someone mentioned that the head librarian from Budapest's music library was coming to services in the Evening and then I should ask her about it then. Well, she loooved my singing and she loooves Thomas' Hamlet and she suggested that I stop by the library and I could photocopy the score. Hm!
The library was in an old castle. We arrived 5 minutes after closing so the place was deserted. When we met the librarian she gave me a big hug and 4 Envelopes - They contained: The Hamlet Aria, 2 other arias I had mentioned in passing the day before as wanting, and the burned CDs of the other Arias and the Entire opera!! Now, in Edmonton it is almost impossible to listen to the CDs at the music library. Music librarians are usually worried about people copying things, and this was just SO NICE.
After that we went to the public library - it too is in a castle. It is just gorgeous. IT looks just like the ideal library library would look - why is it not in the tour books!? We ate a snack in the caf of the library. (Here is an example of the cheapness of Budapest: A cappucino, a mint tea, an egg sandwich and a gourmet cookie cost 2.2ö$ Canadian. For everything!
After that I headed off to the mall to look around (it was a mall. Nothing to say) and the to...the opera! The ticket cost 6öö Forints (that is 2.85$ Canadian), and the opera that was playing was The Magic Flute in Hungarian. It gets its own post. I have to write fast because it is really late and I still have not repeaired my bag.
I cannot believe I am leaving tomorrow. I would definitely come back here. Not only are the people nice, but my hair has never been so lovely. I can actually wear it without any clips or elastics, and it just swings jauntily. The bad haircut is not so bad in Hungary (or maybe it has grown out. It HAS been 3 months...)
One example of how lovely people are. I was doodling the costumes from the opera onto the back of an envelope on the subway on the was home, and the girl beside me asked me if I could show her how I do it, she loved how I draw. I was so flattered!!
Also, as a last last note (I am terrified that the power will go out or something - happens here a lot) and I will lose all this... must...finish... I am getting the hang of the language a bit. I know pitifully few fords, but there are English words hidden in signs and posters, they are just written in Hungarian. The language is entirely phonetic (like Hebrew) and as long as I remember that:
S=Sh
Sz=S
E=tres in french
É=École in French
and ü is like the German it is a good start...
I started out at Kalvin Ter, at my hostel. I took the trap 47 accross the Danube to the 7 bus, and took THAT to Etele Ter. At Etele Ter I bought a special ticket for the Yellow bus that goes to Statue Park, and, following the signs, went to bus stop number 7 to wait for it.
There was a bus at number 7 and when I held up the brochure and looke hopeful, he shook his head and made a finger-pistol at me. Huh? Bang bang? Go away?? I was confused, so I tried bus stop number 5. The same thing happened there. Finger-pistol. Were people mad because I was going to a communist park? Was this a Hungarian way to tell me to fuck off?? I went to the ticket booth and asked them, and received yet another finger gun. This time I persevered. "WHAT are you doing with the fingers???" I wailed. He shook the finger-gun, and said something that eventually registered as the number two. OOOOH, two fingers. Finger gun. Bus at stop 2. Foreign things are confusing.
Statue park was now worth the haul. The statues were interesting, and there were souveniers - flasks with the communist hammer on it, and lighters with the symbols also. That was not the only symbol on the lighters. I turned one of them over and noticed a bit of printing on the bottom: MADE IN USA. Sorry brother, no prezzie from Commie Park. Getting back was not so easy as the 4-bus trip there. The yellw bus returning to Etele Ter did not leave for almost 2 hours, so I hopped a blue bus (there are red buses too, and black buses. They all mean something or other) and changed to a tram and another tran and another bus and eventually I reached the centre of the city once again.
I walked around the pedestrian district, looking for prezzies (nothing...kitch and things from other countries mostly) and then wandered into the downtown area.
I went for lunch at the fancy restaurant again. There was a singer and a bass and the music was great. The food was not so great. I had caesar salad with honey-roasted chicken and mangos, and the caesar dressing was tres fishy. Also there was something suspiciously resembling a cockaroach leg on one of the lettuce leaves. I hope it was not a cockaroach leg.
After lunch I was supposed to go to tour the opera house and then meet my host of the night before to be shown the libraries. I started walking to the opera house, but then I found a bench in a park, and dit not make the tour. I really regret not touring the opera, because when I arrived there it was gorgeous, however sitting on the bench in the sun was what I needed to do just then.
I showed up at the opera house in time to buy a post card and look around the lobby, and then to come out the from door, raving about the great tour I had had. (oops... bad girl, I know, but her feelings would have been hurt if I had said I did not want to do her suggestion)
So.. why the library? I am sure you are wondering that very thing. Well, I was telling people at the shul the story (I know, bla bla bla about myself, but I had a rapt audience, though few of them could understand a word of English) about how I could not find the score for Thomas' Hamlet in Rome, and someone mentioned that the head librarian from Budapest's music library was coming to services in the Evening and then I should ask her about it then. Well, she loooved my singing and she loooves Thomas' Hamlet and she suggested that I stop by the library and I could photocopy the score. Hm!
The library was in an old castle. We arrived 5 minutes after closing so the place was deserted. When we met the librarian she gave me a big hug and 4 Envelopes - They contained: The Hamlet Aria, 2 other arias I had mentioned in passing the day before as wanting, and the burned CDs of the other Arias and the Entire opera!! Now, in Edmonton it is almost impossible to listen to the CDs at the music library. Music librarians are usually worried about people copying things, and this was just SO NICE.
After that we went to the public library - it too is in a castle. It is just gorgeous. IT looks just like the ideal library library would look - why is it not in the tour books!? We ate a snack in the caf of the library. (Here is an example of the cheapness of Budapest: A cappucino, a mint tea, an egg sandwich and a gourmet cookie cost 2.2ö$ Canadian. For everything!
After that I headed off to the mall to look around (it was a mall. Nothing to say) and the to...the opera! The ticket cost 6öö Forints (that is 2.85$ Canadian), and the opera that was playing was The Magic Flute in Hungarian. It gets its own post. I have to write fast because it is really late and I still have not repeaired my bag.
I cannot believe I am leaving tomorrow. I would definitely come back here. Not only are the people nice, but my hair has never been so lovely. I can actually wear it without any clips or elastics, and it just swings jauntily. The bad haircut is not so bad in Hungary (or maybe it has grown out. It HAS been 3 months...)
One example of how lovely people are. I was doodling the costumes from the opera onto the back of an envelope on the subway on the was home, and the girl beside me asked me if I could show her how I do it, she loved how I draw. I was so flattered!!
Also, as a last last note (I am terrified that the power will go out or something - happens here a lot) and I will lose all this... must...finish... I am getting the hang of the language a bit. I know pitifully few fords, but there are English words hidden in signs and posters, they are just written in Hungarian. The language is entirely phonetic (like Hebrew) and as long as I remember that:
S=Sh
Sz=S
E=tres in french
É=École in French
and ü is like the German it is a good start...
posted by Melamondiale @ 2:02 PM
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