The title is pertinent, but I should give my extensive update in chronological order, starting at the weekend.
On Sunday, Brittany and I bundled up for a cold day, and then stripped down to take a dip in the hot baths that are famous in these parts. We went to one in the nearby park, and oh man was it luxurious. The building was palacial, and in the lobby there was so much antiquated artistry I could not decide what to take a picture of. For about 20 USD, we got a day pass to the baths and wound our way through the maze of halls to find the locker room, and then somewhow stumbled upon the outdoor baths in the courtyard. And wow, if I was astounded by the lobby, I was dumbstruck and senseless by the time we found the baths. Picture: three large oddly-shaped pools with steam rising above them and snow falling onto the steam. Golden palace towers on all four sides. Probably about 10 Greek-esque statues scattered around. People rolling around in their bathing suits in the snow. Everyone, laughing, smiling, happy, relaxed. Not a care in the world.
We started out in the third bath, the hottest one, in which two old men were playing chess, but it seemed as though the majority of people there were couples. So we moved on to the first pool, which was less hot, but had massage jets to sit on and a circle whirly-pool which kids (along with everyone else) could ride around in. As for the indoor baths, they were more like large hot tubs. There were so many, though; no wonder the locker room was tough to find.
After the baths, we were both hungry, which just made for some unpleasant crankiness. We finally landed at a pub-ish restaurant near our house and I ordered breaded turkey stuffed with salami and cheese, she had turkey with apple and Camembert, and we both had soup beforehand. Classic Hungarian food. So filling.
Today, Wednesday, started out with a trip to the embassy in Buda to get our residence permits, which allows us to travel outside the country beyond our visas. We gathered at 8 AM (ouch), and to get a day filled with official paperwork started right, about five BSMers showed up a few Bloody Marys down. I suppose it was a good day.
After getting stamped, we stopped by a school store to get supplies, and then Anthony and I went to the West End Mall at Nyugati Polyaudvar (subway station) to check out and possibly begin the fashion assimilation-transition towards Hungarian looks. (impression: neutral colors, dark jackets, sweaters, tight jeans with boots/heels (everyone here feels a bit taller for that, which I like), straight hair, classic pieces) Entirely unsuccessful, but hopeful. I headed home right after, hoping to conk out before our night at the Operahaz, but no such luck.
Ah, and the Opera. Taking the metro there alone, I dropped my cheap running watch on the sidewalk, which is the type of thing I’ve done so many times before but never get less frustrated about. Now I keep looking at my wrist for the time, and then sigh longingly. Things lost thus far: one watch, one earring, a bit of money. Not bad.
But the opera and the operahouse were cool. They were playing Csajkovszkij’s (Hungarian spelling) Anyegin, or Eugene Oredin. I recognized a few pieces, specifically the first dance scene in the third act, but it was a performance I was generally unfamiliar with. More importantly, though, the tickets were 400 ft–about 2 USD. How could I pass that up?
Ignorantly, we forgot to look up the synopsis before coming. The opera was in Russian, so they did put subtitles up on the screen above the stage, in Hungarian. In the first act we would nudge eachother in the elbow when they posted an easy phrase like “nagyon orulok” or “miert nem tancolsz”, but luckily one of the group gave in and invested in a synopsis program in English during intermission, which cost little more than what tickets plus coat check cost each of us separately, and read out loud the plot. Then we were able to say, “Ohhhh, the guy in red is rejecting that crazy woman with the blanket dance but she’s going to get with a prince.” Certainly a worthwhile show, and such a gorgeous venue. I took my camera, but forgot to take pictures–I suppose that means I might just have to go back.
Budapest and Beyond 