Szechenyi Bath

Bathing With the Locals
Budapest, Hungary

I had heard all about the therapeutic benefits of the many baths in Budapest. After walking the streets exploring this fascinating city for a few days it was time to reward my aching legs and visit one beautyful bath.

Budapest rests on a network of warm thermal and cool mineral springs. Due to this there are many communal bathhouses, pools and spas. These are big tourist attractions, but unlike many tourist traps around the world (most of which I have been sucked into visiting) they are also popular with locals.

After consulting the concierge at my hotel, I decided the Szechenyi Baths was the place to go. It had been built in spiritual atmosphere and as I considered my body to be a temple (albeit one in ruins) it seemed like a perfect match. Upon walking inside the Art neobarocco building, I felt like I had stepped back in time. The 1920s perhaps. The building seemed to ooze class and grandeur. I half expected to be greeted by a man in a tuxedo with a glass of champagne and a stiff British accent, saying “come this way sir.”

When no tuxedoed man appeared, I walked over to the ticket booth, handed over some forints and proceeded over to the first door. I was about to walk in when a gruff old lady stopped me and gave me a very menacing look. She then pointed to another entrance.

This led me to the male change rooms. Just inside the entrance was a man who was a spitting image of Fabio. I presented him with my ticket, he took it and in exchange handed me back a small piece of cloth about the size of a handkerchief. At the end of this cloth was a string tie. Puzzled I took the handkerchief and went upstairs.

There I saw men of all shapes and sizes. Most were naked. The ones who weren’t had the handkerchiefs tied around their waists, like an apron for the penis. The aprons barely covered their fronts and like a hospital gown left didn’t cover their backsides at all. It was a bizarre sight. I felt I was in some strange club. Or a fraternity party. Eventually I disrobed and tied the little apron around my waist. It was marginally better than the fig leaf Adam used to wear around the Garden of Eden.

With my buttocks exposed to the world and my little apron in place, I headed out to the baths. The majority were locals and there were large groups of men chatting away, as if they were at a local bar. I was also surprised to see many elderly men in the baths. The thermal water must be good for their arthritis and any other ailments they have.

After a few minutes I realized I had been staring, and not wanting to get thrown out by Fabio I stepped into the 36-degree bath. It was instantly soothing. Unfortunately my apron became transparent when wet and thus pretty irrelevant. I found a huge fountain of the pool. I laid back and took in my surroundings.

It did indeed feel like I was taking a soak in a cathedral. (Well a cathedral with lots of beautyful woman and man). The springs that supply the baths have been flowing for 2000 years and over the years there has been royalty and aristocrats soaking in these waters. Soon the warm thermal water started to work its healing magic on my weary legs and I was feeling very relaxed.

I got an approving nod from the group opposite me. I was now one of them. I was now truly a local.

Beautyful Budapest film

The film of 1938 Beautyful Budapest film introduce you Budapest with the Technicolor technique.

And here is a black and white Swedish film of Budapest:

Facts and some details of Hungary, Budapest

Climate

Hungary is protected from the polar and Siberian cold by the Carpates, Hungary has a moderate continental climate.
The winters are bitter and snowy, the summers long, sometimes stormy, and they can be very warm. It rains a lot in February and March. September is great! For those who are looking to relax, do not forget about the Balaton region with has more than 200km lakeshore and sweet water that can reach 22C in august. Balaton is one of the biggest sweet water lakes in Europe.

Formalities

Hungary does not demand a visa for French, Belgian and Canadians for a stay shorter than 3 months.
1 valid national identity card or passport.
If you're driving, national drivers licence and insurance card (verify that your insurance covers Hungary).
For all rented/borrowed vehicle needs, car registration papers and the owner’s authorization.

Money

The monetary unite is the forint. 1 Euro cca. = 260-270 Forint

Sight to Budapest downtown

The Citadel, was built by Julius Jacob von Haynau after the 1848-49 revolution, on the top of Gellert Hill. Almost all tourists visiting Budapest goes to Citadela checking the view, because here is the most beautiful view over the downtown of Budapest.
The Citadela under the World War II was a major military object, defence weapons were set up here. During World War II air-raid bunker were built with three level under. Now it hosts the panopticon and authentic objects. The exhibition documenting the historical events. The bunker can be seen also on the images the "Siege of Budapest"'s archive, is a powerful photo exhibition.

Directions: On foot: the Buda side of Erzsébet bridge, or the St. Gellert Square 10 minutes walk to the Gellért Hill, or 27 bus from the Moricz Zsigmond.

Budapest nightlife

What ever you like: atmospheric jazz bars, outdoor music lounges or palatial dance clubs, Budapest's exciting nightlife always has something in store for you! Each weekend, and even on most weekdays, people love going out in Budapest. Most clubs, pubs, strip bars and discos are open until dawn or morning. Budapest is a perfect venue for stag & hen parties, as the wide choice of clubs and the modest prices attract party people from all over Europe to Budapest.

Hungary vote 2010

Hungary has survived the worst thing what we were afraid of.
At the vote of 2010 in Hungary the biggest right party called FIDESZ has won the first round of the vote. The FIDESZ won 52% of the votes, the left party MSZP won 19,31% of the votes, the JOBBIK a far right radical party has won 16,67% of the votes, the LMP a new born leftish party won 7,44%, and the first governmental changing party MDF a rightish party didn't got in the Hungarian parliament. Hopefully the far right party called JOBBIK would not won too much votes at the second round. This was the first time in Europe that the governor party would have so complicated oppositor parties.

The Élő Duna project is currently the largest environmental investment to be implemented in Europe by 2010 (enviroduna)

From the 790 thousand households of Budapest, approximately 600 thousand cubic meters of wastewater is discharged into the Danube every day. Only less than 50 % of this amount is treated biologically with the present capacity of the capital’s wastewater treatment plants. Taking into account the amount of rainwater, it can be concluded that the larger proportion of wastewater is discharged into the river without biological treatment. This is not only a significant environmental load, but also has public health effects on the life of citizens living in the capital and along the banks of the Danube.

The Central Wastewater Treatment Plant will provide an answer to these problems, which, along with the necessary facilities, will be built by 2009 on Csepel Island. With the implementation of this environmental super-project with a budget of €529,1 million (of which €428,7 million was acknowledged to be cost by the EU Commission) and €304,7 million in support from the Cohesion Fund, Budapest – converging to numerous other European cities – will also have the capacity suited to manage the wastewater treatment services of the city with a population of 1,8 million.

World-class sprinter Overdose hoped to compete again
Hungary's undefeated world-class sprinter Overdose is hoped to recover soon and return to racetracks in the coming months, owner Zoltan Mikoczy told MTI in Berlin on Wednesday.
 
Overdose, who is considered to be the best horse to emerge from Hungary since the great Kincsem in the 1870s, has triumphed in twelve out of twelve races and attracted purchase offers as high as 5 million euros.

    Last April, however, the wonder horse fell ill with laminitis, a chronic inflammation of the hoof. It underwent treatment in France and later in Britain, and the horse is now being rehabilitated in Hoppegarten, the famous racetrack of Berlin.

    Rejoiced at quick progress in recovery, Mikoczy expressed his conviction that Overdose would perform better than before its illness.

    The owner was unwilling to specify an exact date for Overdose's return.

    "Actually we would like to prepare the horse for the Royal Ascot, to be run on June 19," he said. I think this time would be the best race after a long period of time of Overdose. It shouldn't be missed.

    If all goes to plan, it will run at least one preparatory race before that great derby, he added.

    The horse Mikoczy purchased in Britain in 2006 will turn five on April 2.

    The horse is scheduled to return to Hungary in foreseeable time, a condition for it to race in Hungarian colours.

An exhibition at Budapest of the
Faces Concealed in Gold - Gold Masks from Asia
The Zelnik Collection at the Museum of Ethnography Budapest

I don't really know how many people have gone crazy about gold. Throughout history, this noble matter has been at the center of interest and has been the subject of greed for centuries. Some lived for it, some died for it. Ladies wore it for beauty, emperors and kings owned it for projecting power. There were men put their lives on finding Eldorado, and alchemist tried to make it. Gold has always meant luxury, extravagance, wealth.


And art has used it. Not surprising, the exhibition called Faces Concealed in Gold – Masks from Asia, opening March 12th at the Museum of Ethnography, will also be centered around the precoius metal.

A world premiere, dr. István Zelnik’s collection is the largest and most exciting collection of golden art works, boasting 24 golden masks hailing from all around the globe; from China to the Java Islands to Southeast Asia and the Balkans covering more than two and a half thousand years of human history. The oldest piece is from the 5th century.

The exhibition explores the ritual significance of these masks as well as their role and power in our lives and afterlives.

Budapest from the birds eye

Here is Budapest from the sky in less than 4 minutes.

Batthyány Square (Hungarian: Batthyány tér) is a town square in Budapest. It is located on the Buda side of the Danube directly opposite the Hungarian Parliament Building. It is named after Lajos Batthyány, the first Prime Minister of Hungary, and a statue for him was erected in 2008.

Batthyány Square is noted for the Szent Anna-templom (Church of Saint Anne), a Roman Catholic church built between 1740 and 1762, and one of Budapest's most beautiful baroque buildings. The square is also known of its market hall.

The historical Fő utca (Main Street) crosses the square, and connects the lower end of the Budapest Castle Hill Funicular to the Buda end of the Széchenyi Chain Bridge. The French Institute of Budapest is also located nearby.

Batthyány tér is a station of the M2 (East-West) line of the Budapest Metro. The HÉV suburban railway originates from here, connecting Batthyány Square with Szentendre.

My favourite place is the Batthyány tér (square) from where you can see Budapest's decisive building the Parliament on the other side of the Danube. It's western face was just finished after 20 years of rerun.
The Hungarian Parliament Building (Hungarian: Országház) is the seat of the National Assembly of Hungary, one of Europe's oldest legislative buildings, a notable landmark of Hungary and a popular tourist destination of Budapest. It lies in Lajos Kossuth Square, on the bank of the Danube, in Budapest. It is currently the largest building in Hungary, and the second largest Parliament in Europe.

Budapest was united from three cities in 1873 and seven years later the National Assembly resolved to establish a new, representative Parliament Building, expressing the sovereignty of the nation. A competition was published, which was won by Imre Steindl, but the plans of the other two competitors were also realized, facing the Parliament: one serves today as the Ethnographical Museum, the other as the Ministry of Agriculture.

Construction from the winning plan was started in 1885 and the building was inaugurated on the 1000th anniversary of the country in 1896, and completed in 1904. (The architect of the building went blind before its completion.)

There were about one thousand people working on its construction in which 40 million bricks, half a million precious stones and 40 kilograms (88 lb) of gold were used. After World War II the diet became single-chambered and the government uses only a small portion of the building today. In the communist regime a red star perched on the top of the dome, that was removed in 1990. Mátyás Szűrös declared the Hungarian Republic from the balcony facing Kossuth Lajos tér on 23d October in 1989.


Similar to the Palace of Westminster, it was built in Gothic Revival style; it has a symmetrical facade and a central dome. It is 268 m (879 ft) long and 123 m (404 ft) wide. Its interior includes 10 courtyards, 13 passenger and freight elevators, 27 gates, 29 staircases and 691 rooms (including more than 200 offices). With its height of 96 m (315 ft), it is one of the two tallest buildings in Budapest, along with Saint Stephen's Basilica. The number 96 refers to the nation's millennium, 1896, and the conquest of the later Kingdom of Hungary in 896.

The main façade faces the River Danube, but the official main entrance is from the square in front of the building. Inside and outside, there are altogether 242 sculptures on the walls.

On the façade, statues of Hungarian rulers, Transylvanian leaders and famous military people are to be seen. Over the windows, there are pictures of coats of arms of kings and dukes. The main entrance is the stairs located on the eastern side, bordered by two lions.

When entering the Parliament, visitors can walk up on great ornamental stairs, see frescoes on the ceiling and pass by the bust of the creator, Imre Steindl, in a wall niche. Other statues include those of Árpád, Stephen the I and John Hunyadi.
There Holy Crown of Hungary is kept in the central hall

One of the famous parts of the building is the hexadecagonal (sixteen-sided) central hall, with huge chambers adjoining it: the Lower House (today the National Assembly meets here) and the Upper House (until 1945). The Holy Crown of Hungary, which is also depicted in the coat of arms of Hungary, has been displayed in the central hall since 2000.

Further features include the stained glass and glass mosaic paintings by Miksa Róth.

Due to its extensive surface and its detailed handiwork, the building is almost always under renovation.

During the Communist regime, the government added a large red star to the central steeple at the dome of the building, but after its downfall, the star was removed from the steeple.

The Parliament is accessible with Line 2 of the Budapest Metro, from the Lajos Kossuth Square station. In front of the building a 1956 Hungarian Revolution memorial is to be found, as well as the imposing Kossuth Memorial and the equestrian statue of Francis II Rákóczi. There is also a sitting statue of Attila József at the side of the Parliament building, as described in his poem By the Danube. Martyrs' Square (Vértanúk tere) is immediately adjacent to Kossuth Square, with a statue of Imre Nagy.

Beginning of Budapest

Data
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it serves as the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2009, Budapest had 1,712,210 inhabitants, down from a mid-1980s peak of 2.1 million. The Budapest Commuter Area is home to 3,271,110 people. The city covers an area of 525 square kilometres (202.7 sq mi) within the city limits. Budapest became a single city occupying both banks of the river Danube with a unification on 17 November 1873 of right (west)-bank Buda and Óbuda with left (east)-bank Pest.

History
Aquincum, originally a Celtic settlement, was the direct ancestor of Budapest, becoming the Roman capital of Lower Pannonia. Magyars arrived in the territory in the 9th century. Their first settlement was pillaged by the Mongols in 1241-42. The re-established town became one of the centres of Renaissance humanist culture in the 15th century. Following the Battle of Mohács and nearly 150 years of Ottoman rule, development of the region entered a new age of prosperity in the 18th and 19th centuries, and Budapest became a global city after the 1873 unification. It also became the second capital of Austria-Hungary, a great power that dissolved in 1918. Budapest was the focal point of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, the Hungarian Soviet Republic of 1919, Operation Panzerfaust in 1944, the Battle of Budapest of 1945, and the Revolution of 1956.

Tourist info's
Regarded as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, its extensive World Heritage Site includes the banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter, Andrássy Avenue, Heroes' Square and the Millennium Underground Railway, the second oldest in the world and the first underground in Europe. Other highlights include a total of 80 geothermal springs, the world's largest thermal water cave system, second largest synagogue, and third largest Parliament building.

Considered an important hub in Central Europe, the city ranked 3rd (out of 65 cities) on Mastercard's Emerging Markets Index (2008), and ranked as the most livable Central/Eastern European city on EIU's quality of life index (both 2009 & 2010). It is also ranked as "Europe's 7th most idyllic place to live" by Forbes. It attracts over 20 million visitors a year. The headquarters of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and the first foreign office of the CIPA will be in Budapest.
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