Hungary and Slovakia

So we are still in Hungary, but we made an exciting excursion with Gabi and Zita today to Esztergom in northern Hungary and from there went across a recently rebuilt bridge (destroyed since WWII) into Slovakia for lunch. We did have to have our passports checked at the border and got a couple more stamps in them for our efforts. Esztergom was the capitol 1000 years ago when St. Stephen united Hungary. The largest church in Hungary is on the old castle hill, though the castle is now only a very large ruins with a neat museum. According to Gabi, the town on the Slovakian side was once very poor, but since the reopening of the bridge, they have been restoring parts. We had a traditional Slovakian noodle dish, Slovakian beer which is called the Golden Pheasant, and some Hungarian dishes as well since this small town caters to Hungarian tourists coming across the border for cheaper prices. Hungary, although further east than the Czech republic is actually about as expensive as other main countries such as Germany or France. Slovakia on the other hand, has prices like the ones we raved about in the Prague blog.

Yesterday we looked around Budapest some more, venturing out for a rare trip on our own while Gabi was at work. We saw the St. Stephen cathedral, which houses the Sacred Right Hand of St. Stephen...that's right, ONLY the right hand...disembodied. It is not skeletal like one might expect, but really well preserved, and that is part of the reason it is such an important relic. Bird wonders where the rest of the body is.....We also walked up Andrassy Ave., comprable to NYC's 5th Ave. The ornate and cool looking opera house was there and the avenue terminates at Hero's Square. The square is home to an impressive column and triumphant collonades and statues. There are facing museums on either side. Very neat. We took the subways (oldest subway on the Continent! and just renovated) and trams to Margit Island which is a park in the middle of the Danube. It was very peaceful.

Gabi then met us and we drove to Szentendre, an artist's colony and wealthy suburb about 20km north of Budapest. We ate a famous snack called Langos (in Hungarian, a single s is pronounced like sh in English) which is a fried dough with cheese, ham, or sugar or whatever else you might want on it. It's like Magyar pizza. Then we had ice cream after walking around the city some. It is on a hill and there are little staircase alleyways and all sorts of hidden places. Our neighbors in Brooklyn, Keith and Katia (whose apartment in Budapest we are staying in) like this place and suggested we come here, especially Keith. We weren't disappointed. There are Serbian churches here from 500 years ago when some Serbs fled the Turk invaders, so the most of the churches are Orthodox rather than Catholic, and the interiors are covered in icons. Very cool.

Tomorrow we go on another excursion to Eastern Hungary and Tokaj (pronounced To-kai) where the famous wine is made. We are going to be very close to the Ukranian border, although I don't think we will hop across the border there since the border controls are much more strict. More on this in the next blog! Also, check out the new pictures we posted. Click here.