BUDAPEST
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FRUZSINA BAKO
3RD YEAR
"Szia!" (Thats the Hungarian word for
their parrot when I visited
two words for the price of one!)
a few years back haha!
A few of you* (*nearly all of you tbh) probably
If you have a chance you
know that I'm Hungarian. So here's a little
can take a tour of the
article to convince you that Budapest should be
Parliament. The tours
your next weekend trip away. I've focused this
about £3 and you get to see
article on more niche things to do- rather than
on Tripadvisor.
Culture
PARLIAMENT
FISHERMAN'S BASTION
ST STEPHEN'S BASILICA
BUDA CASTLE
MARGARET ISLAND
SZIMPLA KERT
Here's a pic of me with
hello - it also means goodbye so you've learnt
just repeating ideas that you can find yourself
TOP THINGS TO DO
that its just as beautiful on
Nightlife
the inside as the outside!
Hungary is naturally rich with thermal water Budapest is famous for its ruin bars 'rom
that bathing in this water will help heal and cure all different kinds of salvaged bits and bobs. The
'gyogy viz' which translates to curing water.
Many Hungarians (my nan swears by it) believe
any underlying illness due to the high mineral
contents in these waters. Whilst there probably
isn't a strong scientific basis to this argument
it's a lovely, relaxing experience and you'll
emerge with less stress. Szechenyi baths is the
one most frequented by tourists. If you want to
visit Szechenyi I'd recommend booking onto a
Sparty which is when they open the Baths at
night and turn it into a club! It's so much fun and
it's something you won't experience anywhere
else.
kocsma'. These are old venues that have been
converted into pubs and they're decorated with
most famous one is Szimpla Kert but don't be
afraid to bar hop and visit the lesser well known
ones (these are often cheaper and less crowded
with the same atmosphere)
Hungary is similar to it's Eastern European
neighbours in the fact that alcohol is super
cheap. A pint of beer 'sor' will set you back
roughly £1.10/450ft. I'd recommend Soproni or
Arany Ász as the ones to drink!
Ah and Palinka - this is the one alcoholic drink
you must try. Traditionally Palinka is home
brewed from all the rotten plums 'szilva'
collected from the garden and it's made into a
really strong spirit. My grandads Palinka has
been tested at upwards of 50/60% but the
If you want to visit a bath during the day I'd
visit Pallatinusz baths which is located on the
Margaret Island. This has an outdoor area (with
slides) as well as an indoor spa. It costs £6 per
person and it's a great day activity when the
summer sun is too hot to sightsee (plus you'll
end up with a golden tan if you don't burn!)
Not sure if this is strictly culture but Budapest
is home to the Zoo Cafe! It's similar to a cat cafe
stuff you get in the bars is 50%. When trying
this beware because that extra 10% on your
traditional vodka or gin is lethal and will have
you seeing triple in no time.
Food
1. You NEED to try Lángos. They'll sell this on
street corners from mobile vendors. If you walk
up and down Margaret Island you're bound
to see someone selling this. Its fried potatoey
dough traditionally topped with garlic, sour
and it's the food
of choice when
per drink (roughly £2/3 per drink) and they
off small bringing you small hedgehogs, rabbits,
you've spent the
whole day in the
open air swimming
bearded dragons but the longer you stay the pools.
16 without me mentioning goulash )- Hungary's
bigger animals they'll bring. There's lots of cats
you can stroke in this cafe too!.
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CHAIN BRIDGE
SZECHENYI
BATHS
MATTHIAS
CHURCH
HEROES SQUARE
most famous dish. A delicious paprika based
meat stew with carrots, potatoes, parsnips
and dumplings. If you go to a traditional
Hungarian restaurant it may even be served in
an edible crusty bread bowl - yum yum yum. An
authenthic Hungarian restaurant in Budapest is
Regos Vendeglo. This is where I took my friends
whilst Interrailing and they all really liked it (or
perhaps they were too scared
to tell me otherwise). I
think trying local cuisine
is an absolute must
when going on holiday
somewhere- plus it helps
when the food's devine, but
I am biased.
3. The bakeries. My favourite thing to do when
visiting my grandparents is wake up, walk to
my local bakery and buy the freshly baked rolls
'kifli' for the day and a pastry for breakfast.
Kakaós csiga 'cocoa/chocolatey snail' is my fave
pastry and you must must must try one as they
are unreal! If you ever see the word 'Pekség'
when in Budapest it means bakery and there's
bound to be some irresistable treats for you to
try. They're also riduculously cheap with 'kifli'
being 10p and kakakos
csiga being about 30p!
4. Cakes. Dobos torta
(roughly translates to
drum cake) is my family's
favourite cake. It's got
about 8 layers of sponge and chocolate cream,
with a chocolate cream finish and a layer of
toffee! Nothing in the UK has ever come close
to replicating this - it's something you must try
whilst visiting Budapest. Therefore, if you ever
see a 'Cukrászda' when visiting then make sure
to order a slice of dobos torta.
cream and cheese
but has a lot more different animals! You pay
bring different animals to your table. They start
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2. Goulash soup /Gulyás leves - (haha did you
think you'd come to the end of this article
Lastly
Theres a FANTASTIC rooftop bar called Leo.
It overlooks the famous chain bridge 'Lanc
Hid' - what I would give to have a nice drink
overlooking a goregous view like the one above.
It's truly breath taking.
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