First Time to the Heart of Europe - Budapest Summer Trip

I never thought I would come to the Pearl of the Danube, Budapest, when I listened to "The Blue Danube" before.

07.26-07.27

My first flight to Beijing was delayed due to weather. Initially, they announced a delay until almost 12 o'clock. I thought I would definitely miss the next Aeroflot flight at around 2 o'clock. I asked the check-in counter staff, and he told me to go to Beijing first and find the counter there to help me rebook. The customer service of the first airline also told me the same thing, that I had to go to the Beijing check-in counter to see if they could rebook.

I waited until after 12 o'clock at night to board. After boarding, I was told that the flight would be delayed another hour and a half, taking off at 1:30 and arriving in Beijing at 3:30. The shuttle bus took about 10 to 20 minutes. After picking up my luggage, it was already 4 o'clock. Then I quickly ran from T1 to T2. At the airline counter, they issued me a delay certificate and said they couldn't rebook me to the 5:50 Aeroflot flight because there were no seats left—they were oversold. I could only rebook to the 11 o'clock flight. The first airline couldn't change it either, so I had to wait until 8 o'clock when the Aeroflot office opened. It required a password and a card to enter, but ordinary people could press the airline code to enter. At first, I saw the sign on their office said 06, and Aeroflot seemed to belong to the A zone, but the keypad in the A zone didn't have 06. Later, I saw a staff member who said Aeroflot didn't belong to the A zone; that was just how the sign was labeled. Then I found their first two digits on the keypad in the B zone and pressed it. I expected no one there because it was only 6:30. The first airline's staff said Aeroflot's staff would come at 8, but other airline office staff said the start time wasn't fixed. Then I called Aeroflot, but the customer service kept saying the network was busy. The two numbers I got at the airport couldn't be reached either. I was really disappointed.

From 5 o'clock when I got the delay certificate until 6:30, I finally got through. A Russian girl answered the phone in Chinese. She had a bad attitude and was impatient; when I didn't hear clearly, she got harsh. I explained my situation, and she asked what the problem was. I asked her to help rebook. She asked for my order number and checked. She told me to go to the airline office, but I said no one was there. Then she said there was someone at the counter, and she successfully rebooked for me. She said it could only be changed once for free and confirmed the flight info, but she couldn't select a seat—I had to go to the counter.

At 8:30, check-in started. I saw many people already queuing, so I joined. In front was an aunt who was using her phone to translate English. She had two checked bags and three carry-ons and wanted someone to help her carry them because she was worried about overweight, but later it seemed fine. I started queuing in the regular economy line, but when it was my turn, they needed to verify my rebooking info again. So they called me to another counter to check, and I handed over the stamped delay certificate. The staff asked where and when it was issued, then told me to go to the nearby business class counter for check-in. I chose an aisle seat in a relatively forward position. Check-in was done before 9 o'clock. Then I went through immigration and security. Immigration was faster than in Changsha—they didn't ask questions, just glanced and let me through. Then I went to the gate.

On the flight from Beijing to Moscow, many Chinese people were traveling in tour groups. The plane food was okay. Russian staff spoke Chinese. I arrived in Moscow at 2:30 p.m. local time. After getting off, I walked straight ahead. The airport had Chinese signs. During transit, when checking passports, they didn't look much at my visa—just glanced at the passport front page and the ticket. There were many people. At first, only one security checkpoint was open, but soon another opened because of the long queue. I thought I had to take out my computer, but I didn't. After security, I went directly to the gate. There were many shops along the way, especially small shops and coffee shops, making full use of every space.

Boarding started at 5:30 p.m. local time, took off at 6 p.m., and arrived in Budapest at 7:30 p.m. local time. Finally, I reached the Heart of Europe.

In the taxi, I passed the Széchenyi Chain Bridge and Buda Castle Hill, drove through small streets, and arrived at the hotel. It was a small hotel, only two floors. I thought it would be big. The driver helped us take down the luggage. The first floor was a restaurant. Passing through the restaurant, I reached the front desk—a small room with a middle-aged man. He asked me to fill in personal information, including address and passport, similar to back home. After signing, he led us upstairs. There was no elevator because it was only two floors. The bed in the room was very high. Our room was called "Love Nest," hahaha.

At noon, I ordered a Hungarian traditional soup with beef, carrots, and potatoes. It was served in a small cup with some red oil floating on top. It looked oily but wasn't greasy at all. After eating, I ordered a dessert. M said it was the F1 race week, so hotel prices were high and fully booked.

After a five-minute walk, I reached the attractions. I originally planned to visit Matthias Church today, but there was a wedding, so it was closed. I first bought a ticket to Fisherman's Bastion. From the top, I could overlook the Parliament Building across the Danube. The ticket office was in an unmarked spot next to it. The castle rooms were gone, and some couples were taking wedding photos on top.

At around 2 p.m., it rained heavily. I took shelter in the castle, then continued to other sites. On the way, I passed two old ruins and saw many Chinese tourists, mostly in groups, and many souvenir shops.

Then I went to the History Museum, which had five floors. After exiting, I took a small cable-car-like vehicle down to Széchenyi Chain Bridge. I saw old-fashioned trams on the street, like in old Shanghai, and slow tram-track trains. I first went to a garden but realized that I could actually walk down from the museum.

At 6 p.m., I walked down from the museum, crossed the Chain Bridge, and went to a restaurant I found online. The first place was small and full, so I went to another restaurant on the Danube bank, dining outdoors. On the way, I saw a real estate company's ad in Chinese, saying they offer Chinese service, contact so-and-so. Chinese people really buy everywhere.

At noon, I ate at a restaurant at Fisherman's Bastion, dining outdoors. It started hot, but then the wind came and it became cooler.

I originally planned to buy a ticket to the Matthias Church tower, but only one spot was left for today, so I decided to go tomorrow. In the afternoon, I visited inside the church. Since it was the weekend, the morning mass was held.

I walked back the same way as last night to the Parliament Building, but today's tickets were all sold out. The prices for EU and non-EU tourists were very different. I checked online for tomorrow's Parliament tour tickets, but there were no English tours left either. So I didn't go inside this time.

Then I walked to St. Mary's Church, which was even more luxurious than Matthias Church. I bought a ticket to the church rooftop, where I could look around. I also visited the church treasury.

After that, I went to Heroes' Square, taking the second oldest metro in Europe. No one was selling tickets. Staff at the metro station told me to buy from machines outside, but there were no machines, so I continued walking. This street was full of luxury goods stores with many discounts, especially for winter clothes. At the next station, there was no ticket seller on our side, so I had to cross to the opposite station to buy tickets.

I got on the old metro. The carriages were new but very short, only two or three sections. They were simple with few seats. The trains stopped for a very short time, maybe only five seconds.

After visiting and taking photos at Heroes' Square, I went to a castle built by a former Romanian king. I found a restaurant on a Danube cruise ship online and booked dinner at 8 p.m. by phone. Then I took the metro back to the area near the Chain Bridge. On the way back, there was a ticket checker at the station.

After getting off the metro, I walked to the restaurant, passing by the one I ate at last night. I sat at a table by the river. For dessert, I ordered sago with fruit, which was delicious. After eating, I walked to Margaret Bridge and then took more than an hour to walk back to the hotel. I walked nearly 30,000 steps today.

Since I woke up late these days, I missed the hotel's free breakfast every time.

Today, I had lunch at the hotel restaurant. I ordered a Caesar salad.

After eating, I went to Matthias Church to buy a ticket for the 3 p.m. tower tour. Tourists were waiting at the entrance. At 3 p.m., a staff member opened the door and led us up. The steps were narrow and spiral, just like at St. Mary's Church yesterday. We stopped a few times to see the views outside. I came down before 4 p.m.

Travel Diary Contents:

1. 07.26 Changsha - Beijing: Flight delay and rebooking

2. 07.27 Beijing - Moscow

3. 07.27 Moscow - Budapest

4. 07.28 Fisherman's Bastion - History Museum - Széchenyi Chain Bridge

5. 07.29 Matthias Church - Parliament Building (not entered) - St. Mary's Church - Heroes' Square - Margaret Bridge

6. 07.30 Matthias Church Tower

Travel Information: Hotel Index, Guide Index, Ticket Index, Website Navigation, Travel Index, Cruise Index, Corporate Travel Index, Join Cooperation, Distribution Alliance, Friendship Links, Corporate Gift Card Procurement, Insurance Agency, Agent Cooperation, Hotel Membership, Destination & Scenic Spot Cooperation, More Cooperation. About Ctrip, About Ctrip, Ctrip Hot Topics, Contact Us, Recruitment, User Agreement, Privacy Policy, Business License, Security Center, Ctrip Content Center, Intellectual Property, Trip.com Group Algorithm Disclosure