SPRING TRIP TO HUNGARY AND CROATIA 2019


DAY 1, 2 and 3


April saw us off to Europe on a three week trip.  Starting out from Comox we flew with Air Canada into Vancouver, then with Lufthansa overnight to Frankfurt where we had time for lunch in a restaurant overlooking the runways and then a final leg with Lufthansa again to Budapest where we arrived in the late afternoon.


To view a larger photo, left click on the image once or touch on a tablet.  To return to the Blog click or touch off the image.


Lufthansa Boeing 744 arriving at Vancouver Airport
This arrival was a little unusual as the pilot overshot the gate and had to turn round and try again. Fortunately he didn't  make the same mistake in Franfurt!

 At Budapest airport we purchased a multi day transit pass and took the express bus into Budapest where we found the apartment on the Danube river front - a great location, you could spend much of the day enjoying the view out of the fourth floor window.  We appreciated the elevator.

The apartment in Budapest, we were on the fourth floor 

Our view of the River Danube and the Elizabeth Bridge
 
Budapest has two parts - Buda on the left bank and Pest on the right bank where were were staying.  Buda is hilly and Pest is flat.

DAY 3 - RIVER AND RAILWAYS

On our first full day we went our to collect railway tickets we had ordered online for the journey to Zagreb, our next stop.  We used our travel pass that was allowed on buses, trams, river boats and the Metro.   We took a river boat to start us off.

 
One of the river boats


The Gellert Baths - more on them later

The Parliament Buildings 










After our mini-cruise on the Danube we took the Metro to one of the four main railways stations - Budapest Deli which runs trains to the South.  This was very easy as you find a ticket machine, enter the registration number and Bingo you have your tickets.  We were now on the hilly Buda side of the city and took a tram to find the Cogwheel Railway that climbs up into Buda hills.  That was the plan but when we got to the lower station we found that the railway was not running due to maintenance, a fact not mentioned on their website.  However we had a plan B so we took the tram again to the terminal station on the Childrens Railway. 

The Gyermekvasút  is a narrow gauge - 2 feet 6 inch - railway line and is 11.2 kilometres (7.0 mi) long. The former name of the line was Úttörővasút (Pioneer Railway, in reference to the communist scouts). Except for the train driver, all of the posts are operated by children aged 10 –14 under adult supervision.  It is the world's largest Children's Railway built in 1948.  During the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 the railway was closed but was not damaged.  It employs over 40 young boys and girls and is now part of the Hungarian Railways system - MAV.  Many of these join MAV.


At one of the terminal stations


On the route

Each station had staff waiting to greet the train often with a formal salute.


 The terminal at the other end is close by the top station of the not operational Cogheel Railway.  This railway was originally built in 1874 and replaced a line that had horse drawn carriages.  The current railways uses a cogwheel and rack system.


The narrow gauge rack railway track
This is photo that I didn't take to show you the rail car

There is also a bus that you can take back down to Buda, so we were not marooned at the top.


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