On Monday it was a national holiday; so, most museums and stores were closed. We decided to walk Andrassy Avenue which is the Champs-Elysees of Budapest. It is the major high-end shopping street in Budapest and has a number of significant landmarks. It was still quite cold; but it looked like we would enjoy mostly sunshine. The tree-lined Andrassy Avenue has the normal designer stores for a number of blocks but also becomes “Embassy Row” with consulate offices, foreign embassies and large mansions, some of which have been converted to museums, office buildings and apartments. Unfortunately, a number of these buildings have been managed by “Mr. Neglect” and need some work. The lower part of the street is the theatre district which is a World Heritage Site; so, the facades on many of the buildings cannot be changed. This includes the large building (formerly home to the Budapest Ballet) across from the State Opera House that was acquired 15+ years ago by a Dubai investor who wanted to create a 5-star hotel. It was a great idea but with the World Heritage designation, it makes it very complex. His $750k investment sits empty and boarded up.
During our walk we passed the House of Terror Museum (closed today) which was once the headquarters of the Nazi Party in 1940, and then the KGB. Outside in front of the museum, we read the sad stories on large placards detailing of the dark memories that the museum commemorates. The walk ended at the stunning and Budapest’s most impressive Heroes Square. Flanking the square is the city park, the fairy-tale looking Vajdahunyad castle, the zoo, the botanical gardens, several museums and a famous Turkish bath. There was a street fair in progress at the castle and we were surprised at the large “holiday” crowds. We paid a visit to the famous Szechnyi Thermal Bath, built in 1913, which is also housed at City Park. It happens to be the largest medicinal bath in Europe and we were told that it was visited by more than a million bathers a year from all over the world. Sounds very sanitary! Lesley was ready to go; but David had no desire, so as a compromise we went to lunch at a lovely little French restaurant.
In the afternoon, we toured the State Opera House which is magnificent and is reputed to be one of the finest opera houses in Europe. It has been wonderfully restored. Once inside, it is like going back 100 years. The horse-shoe shaped theater seats 1,200 guests. The tour included a powerful, moving “mini-opera” performance. Opera ticket prices range from 2 to 80 Euro. The 2 Euro ticket allows you to hear the music but not see the stage and is normally used by music students.
One of the unique contemporary sites in Budapest are the “Ruin Pubs”. These are bars that were initially established in the bombed out/otherwise dilapidated buildings in the Jewish Quarter. Our Budapest walking guide app had a tour of ruin pubs. We visited the oldest & most well known (voted by Lonely Planet readers as the 3rd best bar in the world). This bar is large (probably 4-5 bars inside it) and “decorated” with everything – even the kitchen sink and other oddities. These large bars often have entertainment and are well attended even in late afternoon by tourists like us. They are also cheap. A a beer & a wine is less than $4! Other ruin pubs include various themes or ties with youth hostels, which is a natural.
