Oct

Budapest, Fast and Slow

by Joyce McGreevy on October 2, 2017

You can race through Budapest at a gallop, but you’ll notice more at a gentle pace.
© Joyce McGreevy

Hungarian Travel Tips in Two Tempos

I’m lingering at a bisztro in Budapest’s Jewish Quarter, savoring every bite of cholent. It’s an Ashkenazi slow-and-low cooked casserole. Guests keep arriving in waves. So, when the waiter approaches, I assume it’s to drop the bill and hasten me on my way.

Instead, he recommends flodni, a 20-ingredient stuffed wonder he airily summarizes as a “light pastry.” Or perhaps another glass of rozé?

“Jaj! Most kell dolgoznum,” I sigh. “Alas, I must work now.” Back in Chicago, the workday’s in high gear. As a digital nomad, I’ve got a manuscript to deliver.

A patron and pianist at Spinoza Café, where the best travel tip is to savor the Budapest experience. Image © Joyce McGreevy

A neighborly chat at Spinoza Café.
© Joyce McGreevy

Meanwhile, the piano man asks, “Szeretsz énekelni?” “Would you like to sing?” As a newbie to Hungarian, what I hear is, “Would you like to hear music?”

In English I request, “Anything by Liszt, please.” Which apparently sounds like, “Anything by Elvis Presley.” Soon, the piano man and I are harmonizing—bilingually—on “Fools Rush In.”

Welcome to Budapest, fast and slow.

Savoring Budapest

Like flodni, Budapest comprises layers. The name alone combines three places, Buda, Obuda, and Pest—oh, my! For travelers on tight schedules, it’s tempting to gobble up Budapest in quick bites.

But like Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, exploring Budapest ranges between two tempos, fast and slow. “Budafast” can be fun, but slow down occasionally to experience “Budabest.” Here are my travel tips for experiencing “Oh, I see” moments.

A boat on the Danube inspires a travel tip: savor every moment of Budapest "fast and slow." Image © Joyce McGreevy

Lingering has its rewards. Evening is a lovely time to view the Danube.
© Joyce McGreevy

Researching Budapest

Fast: Top 10 lists promise to make travel easy. But “sticking to the list” can make travel exhausting and rob it of context.

Slow: Wade into Hungarian history and literature, from Antal Szerb’s enchanting A Martian’s Guide to Budapest, to Kati Marton’s harrowing Enemies of the People. Afterward, details will shimmer with significance: a plaque on a doorway, an architectural flourish, a name on a street sign.

You’ll imagine, as if remembering, events that impacted this magnificent survivor of a city. You’ll recall, though you never met them, people who lived and breathed in Budapest as you do now. You’ll feel your heart, blossoming and breaking, as your mind engages with this extraordinary place.

Books at Magvető Kiadó inspire a travel tip: Discover the best of Hungarian literature in Budapest. Image © Joyce McGreevy

At Magvető Kiadó, a publisher and café, literary traditions are alive and well.
© Joyce McGreevy

Walking around

Fast: Many visitors keep to the thronged main boulevards. But the day-to-day magic of Budapest unfolds along its side streets.

Slow: Wandering is safe and will reveal hidden gardens, architectural gems, historic landmarks, and quiet cafés.

A mosaic on a primary school at 85 Dob utca, Budapest, Hungary inspires a travel tip: notice the details. Image © Joyce McGreevy

A mosaic on a 1906 primary school.
© Joyce McGreevy

Getting Coffee

Fast: Grab your usual “to go,” if clutching a paper bucket of hot liquid while racing from place to place is what suits you.

Slow: While away the hours in cafés. Power down your laptop, retrieve that handwritten novel-in-progress, and live the tradition. In the 1900s, the most palatial cafés nurtured poets with steeply discounted “writers’ menus” and free paper and ink.

What WWII didn’t destroy, harsh regimes shut down. As gathering places, kávéházak were considered threats to rigid social control. Today, many Budapest classics have been gloriously restored, and recent additions pulse with new literary life.

A woman writing at Zsivago Café inspires a travel tip: savor the café culture in Budapest, Hungary. Image © Joyce McGreevy

Budapest’s New York Café is spectacular, but don’t miss quieter venues like Zsivago (above)
and Urania Nemzeti Filmszínház (bottom).
© Joyce McGreevy

Urania Nemzeti Filmszínház inspires a travel tip: savor the café culture in Budapest. Image © Joyce McGreevy

Urania Nemzeti Filmszínház.
© Joyce McGreevy

Picturing Budapest

Fast: Camera phones make it easy to capture beautiful images, but they’ve popularized a curious practice:

Notice something interesting.
Stop n’ click. “Got it!”
Walk on without a second glance.

Ornate architecture in Budapest, Hungary inspires a travel tip: take time to notice the details. Image © Joyce McGreevy

Look closely, letting your vision travel slowly.
© Joyce McGreevy

Slow: Treat yourself to a sketchbook . What’s that, you say—you can’t draw? This isn’t about skill. It’s about slowing down and noticing, because Budapest is in the details.

An annotated sketchbook inspires a travel tip in Budapest, Hungary: put down the camera and pick up a drawing pencil. Image © Joyce McGreevy

Synch or swim?

Fast: From hopping onto roofless tour buses to hitting the clubs, many visitors here pursue fast-tempo fun. Escape games are popular. Teams solve riddles to sleuth their way out of locked rooms in under 60 minutes.

I’m stressed just thinking about it.

Slow: Spend an entire day unwinding at one of Budapest’s thermal spas. All are affordable and feature multiple soaking and swimming pools.

My favorite is Veli Bej, which is hidden under a utilitarian building. Just when you think you’ve misread the address, you emerge into splendor. Recently renovated, Veli Bej was built by the Ottoman Turks in the late 1500s, making it the ideal place to soak up some history.

Bathers at Gellert Spa inspire a travel tip: discover the thermal baths of Budapest. Image © Joyce McGreevy

Bathers at Szechenyi Spa inspire a travel tip: discover the thermal baths of Budapest. Image © Joyce McGreevy

My number one travel tip

Ancient and innovative, bitter and sweet, Budapest is all you can imagine and more. Whether you’re on a long visit, or—gasp!—just passing through, allow yourself moments to breathe and just be here.

Oh, I see: There’s no reason to rush, only endless reasons to return. To paraphrase an old song: Like the Danube flows surely to the sea, some things are meant to be.

Visit WeLoveBudapest, here. Find pre-travel reading at BudapestLocal here.

Rediscover Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 interpreted by Budapesti virtuoso Adam Gyorgy, here.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy 1 Comment

Art of Travel/Cultural Encounters/Hungary

Comments:

One thought on “Budapest, Fast and Slow”

Honor on October 3, 2017 at 3:25 pm said:

I wish I saw a sketch of my face in your sketch book because that would mean I was sitting across from you at the Zsivago cafe or some other delicious place you’ve described. Thank you as always for sending my mind on a little voyage.

World Views:

Topics