Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Oh, Eastern Europe, how I heart thee!
HTHU (where H=Hungarian) [?]
Jerry and Danielle skip the streets of Budapest:
Mary Poppins pose:
Umbrella in a train station:
The top of the umbrella:
It's love at first sight for Jerry and the umbrella:
Danielle can't help but be humbled by the sight of the umbrella and its beholder:
After providing Jerry with the strength to reach the top of the volcano in Kazar, the umbrella allows him to experience his "the hills are alive" moment alone with the expanse:
Jerry is ecstatic when the umbrella is opened and has... camels and chickens on it (??):
Monday, March 24, 2008
Labyrinth of Buda Castle
On the last day of our voyage, we visited the labyrinth underneath Buda Castle. This is one of the places I was most looking forward to visiting and I'm glad we found time to squeeze it in. I'm under the impression that it was overly dramatized, but I'll let you make that decision on your own.
There was wine coming out of this fountain:
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Just Some Pictures
Family Day: Visegrad
The castle was ok, it was like the rest, but not as cool as the first one of course. This one was more museumy, kind of like the last. We then rode on these things. They were like little cars on a rail and you controlled the speed. The other one was like a bobsleigh type thing, but was on metal and you once again you controlled the speed. They were interesting and fun. After we got back to the other side of the river we got some ice cream. Of course it was delicious!!
That was my family day. Although I didn't spend it with my family it was still a good experience and I got some good pictures.
Hungarian Culture and Budapest
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Swimming in a cave
Before going, I was told we were headed to "thermal baths beneath a cave." It was about a two hour drive from the house to the caves, most of which time was spent sleeping, but also a small amount was spent looking at the small villages we were passing through (2000-3000 people), and talking to Emese's parents. We arrived, had some langos (basically fried dough with sour cream and/or cheese on top), and then went into the cave.
The "tickets" we received actually looked like watches, without a clock, and you scanned them when you entered or left. Dressing rooms were very interesting: the changing rooms were coed. There were rows of small, closet-like rooms with doors from both sides that functioned as dressing rooms when closed, and halls when opened.
We then went down to the pools. There were three main "sections" of pools--each a different temperature--and each had a series of smaller attached rooms of pools. They certainly weren't as warm as I was expecting (temperatures ranged from normal pool temperature to maybe a mild hot tub temperature), but it was pleasant nontheless. We tried out each of the pools, including one in a dark room with blue lights, which the famil called "mystic". Of course, we ended up spending the most time in the warmest pool...
The cave did have natural pools, but a few years ago, I guess, they decided to make this more of a tourist attraction, and so they installed "real" swimming pools.