30 September 2024

Early autumn holiday, 30 September 2024

Budapest, Hungary

The Swan Whisperer didn't go for a run this morning, although he would have liked to, but he said he had a but of a niggle. But after breakfast we decided to walk through Szechenyi Park, which was lovely. We ended up in Hero Square, where the main statue of the Archangel Gabriel had been removed for repairs, and its column was covered in scaffolding. As, indeed, is the statue of the large woman waving her knickers in the breeze that is on the top of the hill on the Buda side.  Then I said I'd like to see the Central Market, which we hadn't seen since our first visit here in about 2008 or thereabouts. So we took the metro from Hero Square. (line 1, the Földalatti) and then a tram back to where we had been last night, which was where the market is. We had a very pleasant wander around it, not quite sure whether it catered mainly to tourists or to locals - or both.

It was a little early for lunch, so we took the no 2 tram back past the Houses of Parliament, and then wandered up and down a main road looking for somewhere to eat - panini and beer, in the end!

I had had enough walking by then, so we decided to go on a bus to where we could catch a tram back to the aire - we took ourselves over the Danube on to the Buda side, and caught the tram in Obuda. What was really nice, though, was that you had to go on an underpass to get from the bus to the team, and it seemed, we thought, rather unnecessarily large, until we realised we were looking at the remains of a Roman bath-house that  had been excavated!

Back at the WoMo, we had a cup of tea, and then the SW went out for another walk, but I had had enough and stayed in, resting and reading and so on. And tomorrow we start the journey home, although we are only half-way though our holiday and have plenty more places to visit en route!

More photos on Facebook, as normal. 

29 September 2024

Early autumn holiday, 29 September 2024

Budapest, Hungary

The roads in this part of Europe are absolutely dire! The Swan Whisperer decided, quite sensibly, that our route today should take us along the Danube as much as possible (there were many roads I don't think we could have gone down last week - there was still standing water on both sides), and it was pleasant, but the road might have been corduroy! It jolted the shelves in the fridge and gave me a splitting headache!

However, we got here at long last, and, after a much-needed cup of tea, headed out across the city to meet friends who were, quite serendipitously, there at the same time (they were finishing a Danube cruise). We hadn't seen them for >30 years, but back in the day he had shared a flat with the Swan Whisperer, and she had shared a flat with me! And we totally blame them for our own marriage, as we both went to their wedding, and travelled on the same train - we were already friends, but somehow something ignited that day...

Anyway, it was lovely to see them and catch up, and then they had to go back to their ship for dinner, and we had a bit of a walk, and then got a bus up to the restaurant we went to last summer, where I have just eaten stuffed cabbage (too much salt, but otherwise delicious) and the SW has had duck and is about to eat apfelstrudel (I shall have a few bites, I dare say), and then we will catch a bus back to the Stellplatz (its official name). 

28 September 2024

Early autumn holiday, 28 September 2024

Bratislava, Slovenia

Such a frustrating morning! First of all, Lidl is totally not where Google Maps says it is, and I couldn't find it! Turns out it was in the nearby shopping mall, the other side of the big Tesco's! Meanwhile, the Swan Whisperer had kindly put on a load of washing, but when he went to put it the dryer, the dryer turned out to be another washing-machine, and there was no way of drying our clothes! I mean, who even does that?! What is the point of having a washing-machine for campers with no dryer?

Luckily Park4Night told us where there was a laundrette, so we drove quite a distance to it, and were able to dry our clothes and also do some shopping in a nearby Tesco Express.

Back at the campsite, we put the clean laundry away and had lunch, and then headed to the Old Town on public transport.Bratislava is not the most beautiful of cities, but the (small) Old Town Centre is lovely.We walked through it, and then down to the Danube, where we caught a tram back as far as the shopping centre. I had a quick look round DM, decided I couldn't cope with Lidl, but did pop onto Tesco (a huge one) to buy cream cheese, which I'd forgotten to get earlier, and also frozen peas. Walked back to the campsite, which wasn't far, but what with one thing and another, I've managed to do >10k steps today! I hope I'm not too tired to sleep...