Wofford Travels – 2018-10-07 – Budapest, Hungary
Day 2 – Budapest
We arose early for breakfast, around 7:30, to what was almost a smorgasbord of food. Ok, here is the basic list: scrambled eggs, sausage, cooked mixed vegetables (more like a dinner item), 6 different bowls of fruit, several cold cereals, 3 kinds of sliced bread, a basket of several types of rolls, another basket of croissants, 2 types of sliced cheeses, 2 types of harder cheeses, several varieties of small gourmet pastries, cherry-filled chocolate, chocolate covered marzipan-like pastry, 3 coffee machines (2 of which provided 6 types of coffee selections), 2 bowls of different-flavored jellies, liver patė (similar to those peanut butter packets), wrapped small triangular cheese, butter…well, I know I’ve left some things off. Needless to say, we have more than enough food, and I don’t believe that we are actually ever hungry.
We left the hotel at 9:30 and headed for Matthias Church (Mátyás-Templom) for Sunday Mass. This is arguably Budapest’s finest church inside and out. It has a frilly Neo-Gothic spire and guilded Hungarian historical motifs slathered on every interior wall. It is Castle Hill’s best sight. The church’s formal name is the “Church of Our Lady” or the “Coronation Church,” as Matthias Corvinus was not a saint but a popular Renaissance King.
It was a very uphill walk and we thought it would take 20 or more minutes, but it was actually about 10 minutes. Are we hardier than we think? We were asked as we were entering the church if we wanted to go to that particular service as it was 1 1/2 hours. If we did attend, they wanted us to stay for the duration. We agreed, although a 1 1/2-Mass was not part of our itinerary. My 1/2-hour visit to the bookstore afterwards did not help.
It was good that I took a number of photos before Mass started, although I was positioned at the back. My 40-zoom camera (point-and-shoot) helps a lot, and I could get shots of the altar. After Mass a woman told me, “No photos,” although I saw some folks taking some. So, I missed some good shots on the front sides. Oh well!
The booklet for the Mass had the left side in Latin and the right side in Hungarian. The Mass parts were read/sung in Latin, but a number of the prayers, and the homily were in Hungarian. The music was very well done with a wonderful choir, which sang in beautiful chant, and a talented organist. The music had an oratorio sound. It could almost have been a professional group.
As a musician myself, what I noticed most, besides the beautiful sound, was the blend. Not one voice stood out over another. You just heard a clean, vocal sound (not easy to achieve) and it resonated throughout the church.
We then followed Rick Steve’s Castle Hill Walk, looking at the different sites as Tom read the descriptions. About 1:00, one of my biggest fears, other than illness or injury, is some sort of camera failure. My camera jammed, I think, in part, because I was manipulating it too much. I messed with it a bit and then I asked Tom to look at it. He just pulled hard enough and it broke free, but then the lens would open and close three times before shutting down. It would do some other quirky things, and I figured I would be back to the camera store (dejá vu, Canada minus the injury). The trick was fitting a stop in our schedule. I was able to manage some shots, and I had my cell phone. But, I would miss the zoom and the wider lens shots. I would play this by ear and see what happened.
A couple hours later, my cell phone ran out of juice. I figured I was saved by my back-up charger that I had asked Tom to keep in his backpack. Was it there? No. He decided not to carry it because the day before I didn’t think I had the right connections for it (I actually did), and he figured there was no point hauling it around if it wasn’t usable. Drat! Does this sound like the blind leading the blind?
At 4:00 we returned to the hotel as we planned to have dinner at 6:00. But, because there were some amazing panoramic views we had just seen, and I was unable to photograph them, I decided to return. I charged my cell phone for 30 minutes and took the portable charger. The climb up to the Royal Palace, which has these iconic views, incorporates about 180 steps. So, within an hour, I walked up and down and had gotten all my shots. And…the hotel was at the bottom of the climb. Perseverance triumphed!
Dinner was at the Hungarikum Bistro. Our dining selections, by the way, are usually those recommended by Rick Steves, and prove to be good/excellent choices. Trying to stay with the Hungarian eating motif, we selected “Pig’s Knuckle”” with potato and cabbage stew.
Since we had been ordering vegetable side dishes, we continued to do so: Tom-cabbage slaw, Tita-cucumbers with sour cream. Now, when we placed the order, our very sweet waitress advised us that the meal had plenty of vegetables, but we were committed to our side dishes.
Travel Tip: (I will be sending these on occasion to save someone from making our mistakes.) When the waiter/waitress says the main course has enough vegetables for a side dish, and the side dish is not necessary…listen to him/her. We were just about eating our Pig’s Knuckle like the geese that are force fed for foie gras.
We finished dinner by 8:00 and headed back to the hotel. No trouble sleeping these days as we have yet to take any public transportation…just lots of walking!
Tita