Written By Chris Titus

On Friday, I went to Budapest with a fellow teacher, Nessa (pictured below). She is from Oklahoma and also teaches business English with me at Caledonian.

At 7:30 AM, we were barely awake enough to climb the stairs to the number 5 car. The train departed from Nadrazi Holesovice station, one of two train depots in Prague. Barricading ourselves into the first empty cabin we found, our belongings strewn everywhere, ensured us an uninterrupted journey with three chairs apiece to take naps. The seven hour journey passed quickly - a few naps, plenty of eating, pictures of sites out the windows (castle from moving train below), and reading books and articles about Budapest. If you ask Nessa, she’ll confirm that I didn’t stop eating the entire weekend.

We arrived at Budapest’s Keleti pályaudvar station, the city’s main train station, at 2:40. The locals were noticeably friendly as they helped us make our way to the hotel, CasaSol Hotel, located on Baross Street. We were able to see some beautiful architecture en route to the hotel. While there is a lot of construction going on, the buildings in Budapest have a more rustic feeling than in Prague.

After resting for a while, we headed for the bus. Bus tickets cost 230 or 270 Forint, depending upon where you purchase them. One US dollar is equal to 180 Hungarian Forint. We rode the # 86 to Deak Square (below). From here you can stroll the Fashion District, view the Synagogue, and tour St Stephen’s Basilica.

We went to the Basilica Restaurant, to the right of the basilica. I’ve not found it located in any guide books, however we had a nice experience. Basically, it was a reasonably priced tourist trap. We passed up on the Hungarian goulash for an order of paprika chicken (local specialty), Gypsy-style pork, and a Greek salad. We cracked a bottle of champagne over dinner and then spent an hour searching for a nice place to have dessert. We finally found a place back near the Synagogue.

The hotel, Casa Sol Hotel, was quite nice and affordable. I would recommend it to anyone. Upon returning from dinner, we found a bottle of champagne in the room with a card. It was a nice touch. Despite being on a main street, we didn’t hear any noise. When we mentioned that the shower had a problem, it was fixed immediately.

Breakfast the next morning consisted of platters of cold cuts, pastries, cereals, coffee, tea, etc. There was plenty of good quality items to choose from.

We purchased tickets for the City Circle Tour. The tour company has multiple red double-decker buses making loops through the city. Along the way, the buses stop and you can get on and off as often as you like. On our way to the closest stop (Parliament/Museum), we were able to snap many nice photos.

It was a very nice day out - very sunny, but cold and windy. Here are a few photos as we walked to Parliament.

After arriving at Parliament, we discovered that the tour we purchased ran on a limited basis due to the season. We found a nice little restaurant nearby and sat having tea and soup. I had cream of pumpkin soup (delicious). Nessa had a salmon soup. I guess you could say I didn’t get much sleep the night before (pictures below). The restaurant was just past the pub (sign below) and worth visiting if you go to Parliament.

Look at the contrast - who do you think slept better?

Museum

Parliament (unfortunately, most of the photos were deleted by accident)

The tour started at 2:00. We passed through Heroes’ Square, past the Museum of Fine Art, Vajdahunyad Castle, the Szechenyi Thermal Bath, and on up to the Royal Castle. We disembarked at the castle and toured Fishermen’s Bastion. From here it was possible to take many amazing photos. You can see the view of Parliament from the castle above.

Fisherman’s Bastion

Castle Entrance & Various Architectural Aspects

Church @ the Castle

Views from the Castle

As night fell, we descended from the castle in search of a thermal bath. Budapest is known for its hot mineral springs. Legend has it that all you have to do is poke a hole in the ground and you’ll find hot water. We searched and searched and searched. We first went to a spa recommended by our hotel. Apparently there are three different types of nights - mixed gender night, gay night, and lesbian night. This happened to be gay night. They recommended a spa in a nearby hotel. We walked for half an hour to get there. When we finally arrived, it was closed for a private function. They in turn recommended a third place along the river. Upon arrival, the janitor was mopping the floor. It closes for a period of two hours every night for cleaning.

With no luck in finding a spa, we decided to go for dinner at a nearby restaurant. It looked like a tourist trap, but we were the only tourists in the place. This was my best meal of the trip. It was called “Toureg” venison, cooked in a red-wine sauce - delicious. Nessa had a spicy chicken dish. I think she was jealous of my meal

After dinner, we went back to the last spa to see if they were open. And, keeping in line with our luck, it never re-opened! That’s when we decided to give up and head back. En route we snapped some nice nighttime pictures of the lighted bridge.

Lighted Bridge

Lions & Tunnel (standing in a rotary - on opposite sides)

Budapest @ Night

After breakfast the next morning, we spent an hour in McDonalds waiting for our train. The McDonalds was quite impressive. It had a separate cafe/dessert bar that looked too sophisticated to be in a McDonalds. There was a separate section that served as an Internet cafe. One thing we noticed about Budapest was the sheer number of fast food restaurants - McDs, BK, and KFC were everywhere. Overall, it was a great trip that I recommend.

Til next time
- Tito

Written By: Chris Titus

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Instruction: Fill in the gaps using articles (a, an, & the). Answers will be posted in a week.

I went with Nessa, another teacher, to see St Nicholas church in Lesser Town. Today was a cold day. And, it was even colder inside the church.. My hands were shaking as I was holding ___ camera. As ___ result, many of ___ pictures were blurred and unable to be used here.

Below is a post card you receive upon admission to ___ church.

On ___ inside of ___ church, you are greeted by ___ magnificent altar.

At every turn, you see sculptures that were made with painstaking detail.

___ sheer magnitude of ___ church was ___ little overwhelming. We were able to climb ___ stairs and reach ___ second floor, which provided ___ nice perspective of ___ church.

I would definitely recommend visiting Saint Nicholas church (in ___ summertime!)

Here are some additional pictures Nessa snapped:

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Written By Chris Titus

Every year the city re-enacts the Three Wise Men’s journey, beginning at the castle. Unfortunately, I happened to miss it. Luckily, Hana brought me to a concert at Panny Marie Snezne (Church of Our Lady, or PMS for short). The concert featured two boys choirs and Cardinal Wolf made an appearance (if you’ve never heard of him, you are not alone). Most of the boys in the back row were cracking up laughing and one kid fainted (probably laughing too hard). All in all, they did a fantastic job.

The second photo (at night) was taken from the web. The light is reflecting nicely against the fresco.

Today was the first ‘real’ snowfall of the year in Prague. So, I thought it would be a good day to see some of the sites. I jumped on Tram 11 which passes nearby my flat. I picked up the tram at Bruselska (schedule and map), a stop roughly 200 meters away. The tram winds its way past IP Pavlova, the main square in this part of town - home to KFC. Interestingly, KFC is across the street from a rotisserie that has the best chicken I’ve ever tasted.

The tram continues parallel to the river (500 meters away - cannot be seen), snakes around the ‘Muzeum’, and up through a section where I initially lived upon my arrival (Vinohradska). One more stop and we are at the official Church of Time, actually named Kostel Nejsvetejsího Srdce Páne (good luck pronouncing that one). It was designed in 1927 by a Slovenian architect, Josip Plecnik. He is also the same architect commissioned to update the Prague Castle.

According to Fodors, “The effect was conscious: during the 1920s and 1930s, the avant-garde imitated mammoth objects of modern technology. Plecnik used many modern elements on the inside. You may be able to find someone at the back entrance of the church who will let you walk up the long ramp into the fascinating glass clock tower.” I will have to return!

In this part of town, things are very pronounced…

Take a stroll around the square and you’ll see some nice pastel colored homes. Most buildings also have ornate statues.

Written By Chris Titus

In most western cities, you can find fast food on every street corner. Still straddling east and west, Prague has both eastern- (low-tech) and western-style (high-tech) fast food. I’ve included a few pictures below of some of my favorite, low-tech fast foods and desserts.

I always like starting with dessert. The danishes (below) have a mixture of cheese, poppy seeds and jams. They are amazing! I have not yet tried the second dessert, but I can guarantee that it won’t be long before I do