TAHERA Part I: Budapest

A lot of us in the U.S. lament the loss of the extensive rail system that we once had, but no longer do.  I mean, the railroad basically built modern America, but today a good portion of the population hasn't been on a train, ever.  Subways and trams still exist in large cities, but most of us have to drive or take a bus, gah.  There's Amtrak, but it really only runs out of major cities.  For example, in the State of Ohio it only passes through the very northern and very southern border.  Ironically, the great western states of South Dakota and Wyoming don't have a single station.  When people travel long distances in America they usually hop in their cars or take a plane.  Train travel is a novel, old timey way to get from Point A to Point B.  People do it for fun.  Flying is the faster way to get around that vast nation.

So, when we, two kids from a non-train serviced city (the lack of which is actually mentioned in The Pretenders song My City is Gone), arrived in Europe we started taking trains as much as possible.  We had been kicking the idea of a train tour around for a while.  Even after the less than pleasant overnight train to Prague last month, the lure of an old fashioned rail tour was undiminished.  We chose a route that would hit Budapest, Bratislava, and Vienna in 4 days and the trip became known as the The Austro-Hungarian Empire Rail Adventure (TAHERA).  Adventure it was.  It turns out, rail travel in Europe isn't as cut and dry as you'd think.

It all started innocently enough.  We had an overnight berth booked from Munich to Budapest.  There was the promise of a nice little private compartment with a sink and two bunks, a dining car, and the peace of mind that comes with no transfers.  Then, a week or so before the trip we received an email informing us that the train was cancelled.  They didn't provide a reason, but my suspicion falls on that G7 Summit.  World leaders are always complicating everything.  No alternative routes were provided.  No worries, we found one on our own that ended up being the same price with upgraded tickets.  The only downside was that instead of a non-stop train, we had two transfers through Leipzig and Dresden.  It was risky but we thought we'd be ok.  All we had to do was get to Budapest.

The train to Leipzig was lovely.  It left on time.  We had a 1st class compartment which we shared with two awkwardly silent Germans.  We ended up conversing via text message before heading down to the dining car for a celebratory drink and auditory conversation.  I'd never been in a dining car before.  On our Prague trip we intended to breakfast in the dining car but it was disconnected somewhere and we almost stepped out into rapidly moving nothingness.  Anyway, this time there was a dining car and they had beer, tables,  and commuters in various stages of drunkenness.  Slurred German is hilarious, by the way.  Our spirits were high.  This was going to be fun.  Then, we got to Leipzig and learned the train to Dresden was going to be 30 minutes late.  That was unfortunate since the train we going to board in Dresden for Budapest was scheduled to leave 30 minutes after we arrived.  So, instead of grabbing dinner in Leipzig we stood in line at the information desk waiting for our number to be called in order to learn whether or not we should book a hotel in Dresden.  They weren't sure, but believed that if the conductor on the Dresden>Budapest train was a decent person they would hold the train.  The conductor on the Dresden>Budapest train was a decent person and did hold the train, so we collapsed into our sleeping compartment rather frazzled and very hungry finally bound for Budapest 5 hours after leaving Frankfurt.  Dinner ended up being microwaved hotdogs and two slices of bread, but it was food and at that point it was all we needed.  Thus ended the first day of AHERA.

The next morning we woke up a few hours out of Budapest and had a packaged croissant and coffee for breakfast.  One of the silver linings of the reschedule was that we scored a luxury compartment with a private toilet and shower.  It was basically a tiny hotel room that started in Dresden and ended up Budapest.  It was a great deal.  I was a little groggy from the night before.  I woke up at every station thinking I had overslept the alarm and then once more when some confused passenger had a shouting argument with the porter in the gangway at 2am.  Nevertheless, when we pulled into the station I was ready to hit the town.

From the train station we got on the subway (the oldest one in Europe) and popped out into Heroes Square with its massive monument to Hungarian history.  From there it was a walk around City Park, through the architectural hodgepodge of Vajdahunyad Castle with its creepy dry moat and Anonymous Statue, and past the famous thermal baths. From there is was a walk through the streets of Pest with a brief stop for obligatory chicken paprikash.

Inside Vajdahunyad Castle

Creepy Anonymous Statue

Creepy dry moat

Thermal baths

Hungarian Parliament with its guard.

One of the remaining Soviet era monuments

St. Stephen's Basilica

We were operating out of one backpack and shoulder bag for the trip so I had to be very conservative on the equipment packing.  I decided to go with the kit lens and the wide-angle and leave it at that.  It didn't end up being the best call.  I found myself wanting a long lens way more than I expected.  For instance, we came upon a folk dance performance and it would have been nice to shoot beyond the audience since I couldn't physically get closer.  The long lens and the wide-angle would have been a better combo.   I packed for doing architecture and scapes, but repeatedly and unexpectedly wanted some tighter shots.  But, so it goes.  Travel photography can be pretty tricky, especially when you only get 24 hours in a place.  I want to get everything possible, but that means carrying a lot of equipment.  That won't work on a trip when we live out of train station lockers.

From Pest we wandered across the Chain Bridge over to Buda for a stroll around Castle Hill.  We came upon the folk dancing at the Fishermans' Bastion.

Crossing the Chain Bridge 

Fisherman's Bastion

When the folk dancing was through it was time to head down to the Danube to do some sunset and blue hour stuff.

I used a 10 stop ND filter for the top shot.  The area across the river from parliament is a narrow concrete embankment just wide enough to walk behind a tripod, which a lot of people did.  It was a little tricky protecting the tripod and I was glad to move on.  The parliament building is incredible, though.  I think it wins for my favorite government building in Europe.  The second shot is taken closer to the Chain Bridge and was a more comfortable spot to shoot from, but a bit dangerous to get to.  Budapest isn't as pedestrian friendly as other cities.  There are traffic free zones in several spots, but the rest of the city is short of things like crosswalks and sidewalks in the most inconvenient locations, like to the docks on the Danube.  So, we ran across several lanes of heavy traffic to set up at this spot near the bridge.  There was also a strange insect infestation under the bridge.  It took about 7 tries before I got a shot without a bug on the lens.

The Chain Bridge

As blue hour began we shifted attention to the Chain Bridge itself.  Budapest has a few photogenic bridges, but this one is the most famous and the only one we had time to shoot.  On the Buda side of the bridge there is a magnificent tunnel that goes under the castle.  I would have loved to shoot it, but there was a massive construction project right in front of it.  However, at the Pest side there was a great traffic island from which to get this shot.  So, we dashed across traffic again and this shot ended our all too brief Budapest photo session.

But, that wasn't the end of the night.  Down the road when I think back on Budapest I will think most fondly of their unique nightlife spots- the ruin pubs.  Ruin pubs are vacant lots, abandoned warehouses, factories, or tenements that have been invaded with secondhand furniture, junked cars, random decorations, and at least one beer tap.  They're the place to be.  We worried a bit that it would only be for kids, but people of every age were hanging out at the one we hit, Szimpla Kert.  It's a place that's hard to explain.  A burned out car is in the center with booths, tv's are mounted randomly on a wall with fishnets, airplane bits, and all sorts of other weird stuff.  The beer was really good and the taco's looked pretty tasty.  Except for that awkward moment when my husband wandered off for drinks and a highly inebriated Hungarian tried to woo me with his Kung-Fo moves, the vibe was excellent.  By the time we left, it was standing room only.

Before it filled up.  I shot this handheld at 4000 ISO, 1/60, f/4.  At that ISO level
it's a little noisy, but still better than a phone camera. 

After squeezing our way out of Szimpla Kert, we headed to our hotel.  It was this great old place with a gorgeous spiral staircase, free tasty mini bar snacks, rooms with enormous windows and doors, and a restaurant that made breakfast to order instead of the usual tired buffet.  If we ever make it back to Budapest, we'd definitely stay there again.  So, make a note- GERLÓCZY CAFE & ROOMS de LUX is the place to stay if you're in Budapest.

Although we only had 24 hours there, here are our first impressions on Budapest.  Just like Prague, Budapest was full of surprises.  Despite a few remaining Soviet era monuments here and there, the cloud of the Iron Curtain seems to be fully lifted from the capital.  In fact, the city seems to cling more to the further past of the old empire.  Ancient restaurants where the waiters wear waistcoats and bow their heads ever so slightly still serve the same menu they had during the time of Franz Josef.  The architecture is magnificent, but some places look like they've been stored in mothballs.  It's a wonderful city for urban exploration, for peaking around corners into a mummified time.  However, it also embraces the now.  Unlike its Czech neighbor, it hasn't completely fallen tacky touristic mayhem just yet.  While it has plenty of shopping options, it took us quite a while to locate a shop to buy a postcard.  Except for the project in front of the Buda tunnel, very little scaffolding encompassed landmarks and no cranes blemished the skyline.  For the moment, it is a rewarding city to photograph.  The only downside is how difficult it is to get around because of the lack of pedestrian infrastructure.  Risking our lives a few times for a shot isn't so great, but it's worth it when the subject is stunning and untouched.  And, of course, the nightlife is incredible.  We live in an area in Germany where the bars close at 11pm, so it was nice to be able to stay out into the early hours surrounded by people enjoying life.  Budapest is a city that attracts a young crowd, there's a lot of American college students who flock there desperate to spread their wings in the "exotic east," but still crave the reassurance of the west.  It's a vibrant city which is very proud of its past and culture, that dances very carefully on the line of progress and preservation.  I'd happily return on an overnight train from Dresden.

So, the next morning after a lovely breakfast in the hotel restaurant, it was time to check out and head back to the train station...

Tune in next week for TAHERA Part II:  Bratislava.

For purchasable shots of Budapest head on over to the Budapest Gallery!