We were given a bit of time to wander around the wonderful, neo-Gothic 'Halaszbastya' (Fisherman's Bastion) and to admire the lovely views of the Danube and the Parliament across the river. The famous Matthias church was undergoing some restoration (!) so it was a shame not to be able to see it in all its glory.
Isn't this fanciful?
The Parliament across the river
We then moved on to the Pest side of the city, starting with Heroes' Square that bears a sprawling monument showcasing statues of important tribal leaders, kings and statesmen. Travelling down Andrassy Avenue, we saw many grand World Heritage-listed 19th-century buildings. Next was 'Vaci utca', Pest's extensive pedestrian shopping street, and we walked along until we arrived at the Great Market. We saw the locals buying fruits, vegetables and spices on the ground floor; and tourists buying souvenirs on the upper floor. We had a quick lunch there- bread, sausages (one of the many, many sausages we ate on this trip), and fries (which were the most awful fries we've ever tasted. Yuck.)
We made our way to St Stephen's Basilica, but we did not manage to see its precious relic- the mummified right hand of St Stephen! The chapel was apparently closed for a private function- oh well. The basilica itself was beautiful, of course :)
We probably could have walked around the Pest area a bit more, but my feet were killing me. We decided to cross the famous Chain Bridge and make our way back up Castle Hill, since we wanted to wait for nightfall to take some pictures (gotta put that tripod to good use after lugging it around!) No, we didn't walk up the hill of course; instead we took a ride on the Siklo Funicular, which was waaaay easier, heh.
We wandered around the grounds of the Royal Palace, took some nice pictures and ended up visiting the Hungarian National Gallery- which was free and the perfect place to kill time while waiting for the sun to set. Haha :)
The reward for waiting out in the cold until it was dark enough? This...
The lovely Fishermen's Bastion again
Chain Bridge- nicknamed the 'Necklace of the Danube'
Tired from all that photo-taking, we went in search of dinner. We decided to check out this restaurant called 'Fatal', which was recommended by Lonely Planet and also another friend. After a rather long walk, we finally found the restaurant- it was so crowded, but that did not deter us! We were warned by both Lonely Planet and our friend that the dishes are served in gigantic portions, so we figured that we could share one main course and another soup/salad between us. Imagine our horror when we were told by the rude waiter that every diner has to order a main course! Busting the budget aside (the prices were steep as well), we were low on Hungarian Forints, the moneychangers were already closed, and the restaurant did not accept credit cards! It was dreadful. We had to change our orders to ensure we could pay the bill, and ended up eating things that we didn't really want to eat.
Well, at least the baked stuffed goose leg was delicious; the fried chicken on the other hand, was just so-so (by that time we were too stuffed to notice, anyway). Also, as anticipated, there was way too much food for the both of us so some had to go to waste! Tsk tsk. We had such an unpleasant experience there; I have half a mind to give some feedback to Lonely Planet! Hmmph.
What a 'Fatal' experience! (Okay, so I exaggerate :p)
3 comments:
Eeyer, what a nasty experience at what should have been a pleasant pit-stop! End of the day some more and you were probably anticipating the meal you were going to have. And fancy not accepting credit cards.
You really should send some feedback to LP on your experience - else fellow travellers might have over-expectations of this place too and end up disappointed!
Wow... gorgeous night pictures. Do you have really steady hands, or had to use tripod? :)
Thanks May! Oh yes, definitely needed a tripod for these shots :)
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