"We are sooo not ready for this trip!!!" I exclaimed as Ralph and I crammed our already wrinkled clothes in our already stuffed bags.
"I know yeah, baby.." Ralph snickered, finding the chaos, the rush, thrilling and amusing. But five minutes before our first connecting train to Budapest, he stopped poking fun at our own self-inflicted, procrastinated mess. He had switched his military watch on and begged me to hurry up, "The train doesn't run on your time, Jezell."
Great. Now even his military tone is on. Scrambling to tie my gray chucks' bunny ears, I told him I'll meet him at the station. Having gone through my travel checklist, I seemed to have slowed down, obviously taking advantage of the fact that we live about 50 feet away from our town's little train stop. And about a split second as I headed through our mini, steeled gate, the chugging sound of the railroad cars came squeaking to a halt. Relying on the couple of days spent at the gym, I dashed to meet Ralph, down the underpass stairs and up, until we finally grabbed an empty dark blue, vis-a-vis train seat. Oh, hello puff first puff train connection, we puff meet puff again...Puff, puff, puff.
13 hours later...we stepped foot in Pest. Getting better at navigating and familiarizing ourselves with public transportation, we found our hostel, checked-in and went straight exploring the latter side of Budapest - Pest. First stop - FOOD! Hoping for some cheap eats, we took the metro to the Great Market Hall. Fresh fruits, vegetables, sausages, bread, ham, and lots and lots of red hot chili peppers tied with garlic, colorfully welcomed us. Up the second floor, we found various handmade items and souvenirs together with an array of food stands lining a narrow hallway. Craving for some sort of meat and wanting to try something Hungarian, I immediately went straight to order this fist-sized looking meatballs and some sauerkraut. It looked devilishly appetizing but somewhere in between my high expectations, unsophisticated palate plus eyes bigger than my stomach, it proved fatal. It was shaped like a meatball alright, but it was definitely not meat!
"How's your's?" Ralph munching his delicious sausage away. I hesitatingly shook my head, hoping that the Hungarians beside me won't recognize my distaste. But they did. And one of the older women looked half-baffled, half-offended. I know, I know, lady. I should've taken the food most familiar to me. I should've eaten the goulash. But where's the fun in that?
"I know yeah, baby.." Ralph snickered, finding the chaos, the rush, thrilling and amusing. But five minutes before our first connecting train to Budapest, he stopped poking fun at our own self-inflicted, procrastinated mess. He had switched his military watch on and begged me to hurry up, "The train doesn't run on your time, Jezell."
Great. Now even his military tone is on. Scrambling to tie my gray chucks' bunny ears, I told him I'll meet him at the station. Having gone through my travel checklist, I seemed to have slowed down, obviously taking advantage of the fact that we live about 50 feet away from our town's little train stop. And about a split second as I headed through our mini, steeled gate, the chugging sound of the railroad cars came squeaking to a halt. Relying on the couple of days spent at the gym, I dashed to meet Ralph, down the underpass stairs and up, until we finally grabbed an empty dark blue, vis-a-vis train seat. Oh, hello puff first puff train connection, we puff meet puff again...Puff, puff, puff.
13 hours later...we stepped foot in Pest. Getting better at navigating and familiarizing ourselves with public transportation, we found our hostel, checked-in and went straight exploring the latter side of Budapest - Pest. First stop - FOOD! Hoping for some cheap eats, we took the metro to the Great Market Hall. Fresh fruits, vegetables, sausages, bread, ham, and lots and lots of red hot chili peppers tied with garlic, colorfully welcomed us. Up the second floor, we found various handmade items and souvenirs together with an array of food stands lining a narrow hallway. Craving for some sort of meat and wanting to try something Hungarian, I immediately went straight to order this fist-sized looking meatballs and some sauerkraut. It looked devilishly appetizing but somewhere in between my high expectations, unsophisticated palate plus eyes bigger than my stomach, it proved fatal. It was shaped like a meatball alright, but it was definitely not meat!
"How's your's?" Ralph munching his delicious sausage away. I hesitatingly shook my head, hoping that the Hungarians beside me won't recognize my distaste. But they did. And one of the older women looked half-baffled, half-offended. I know, I know, lady. I should've taken the food most familiar to me. I should've eaten the goulash. But where's the fun in that?
After a quick tour around the Market Hall, we went sightseeing at Budapest's main street, Andrassy Ut. By three o'clock, we have reached the opulent Opera House. Mulling over whether or not to take the guided tour at four, we walked a few blocks away to the House of Terror, a museum about communism and not the haunted house I thought it would be. Bummer. So, Museum or Opera House? Opera House or Museum? Two out of two, Opera House wins.
At the Opera, we opted to go for the guided tour with an included mini-concert tickets. Having made his introductions, our lanky guide led us inside the slightly dimmed auditorium, making its cardinal and golden ceilings, posts, seatings and curtains shine brighter than sun, a sure sign warning that slightly touching it we'll turn us all into gold. He also pointed out the special balcony seating of the Hungarian's Prime Minister, right at the middle with the best view of course! Then the wooden panels and flooring specifically made so the orchestra's sound bounces back better. It is also said that in this very Opera House did Madonna filmed the part in Evita, where she sings Don't Cry For Me Argentina. Hmmmm...another tidbit for our pockets.
At the Opera, we opted to go for the guided tour with an included mini-concert tickets. Having made his introductions, our lanky guide led us inside the slightly dimmed auditorium, making its cardinal and golden ceilings, posts, seatings and curtains shine brighter than sun, a sure sign warning that slightly touching it we'll turn us all into gold. He also pointed out the special balcony seating of the Hungarian's Prime Minister, right at the middle with the best view of course! Then the wooden panels and flooring specifically made so the orchestra's sound bounces back better. It is also said that in this very Opera House did Madonna filmed the part in Evita, where she sings Don't Cry For Me Argentina. Hmmmm...another tidbit for our pockets.
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