Magnificent buildings, freedom in chains and the democratic middle finger

"A journey that begins with Deutsche Bahn can only get better." We wrote this sentence over 9 months ago at the start of our travels during the sabbatical year – and it should prove true again for the smaller part 2 of our mini-world tour, which began in April. Our journey actually did not start at all – the train was canceled. But since we, as experienced rail travelers, had calculated a four-hour buffer, we still found time in Berlin for a short hike by the Spree and vegan dumplings before continuing with the night train from Berlin to Budapest – our first proper stop on this new journey. Traveling by night train is a wonderful experience, and we enjoy it, even if sleep at night is often poor and the ride can be quite bumpy. We certainly enjoyed in the night train that Mick (name changed by the editorial team) – a travel acquaintance from the Berlin station – ended up in another part of the train, as he was to be uncoupled from us before his destination, Dresden. Mick was able to give us one or two travel recommendations for Hungary and Australia (and we for Dresden), but his extreme conservatism was harder for us to bear and understand than his Australian accent.

When we finally reached Budapest, a strikingly beautiful city awaited us (those of you who have been there will surely confirm this), as was evident right away at the station with a beautiful stone building from the late 19th century and a light-filled glass hall.

The old town was spared from bombs in the Second World War and is completely free of architectural sins. No one thought to chisel off stuccos, and there are really only two things to criticize: Firstly, the city is designed to be very car-friendly and much less bike-friendly, and secondly – and this is the crux – this beautiful cosmopolitan and liberal city is in the grips of a reactionary and pseudo-democratic regime. During those days, we only saw a single rainbow flag. We had long avoided Orbán’s Hungary, but the residents of Budapest clearly reject the homophobic pseudodictator. And we wanted to visit these people. We were also pleased to see posters of the party of the Two-tailed Dog (Hungary's version of the party DIE PARTEI), because the two-tailed dog wants to bite Orbán. Just as we were in Budapest, state visits were occurring by the war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, who was wanted by the International Court of Justice, and was honored so that all the bridges were adorned with Israeli flags while international law was disregarded. The criticism in the anti-democratic Hungary was correspondingly ineffectual. When we came to a grand boulevard lined with police, over which a procession of state cars and Israeli cars drove, a man raised both middle fingers towards the motorcade and was undeterred by the admonishing words of a police officer – in the end, the democratic middle finger remains, a protest for one’s own mental hygiene.

But back to the beautiful aspects of Budapest: The highlight is the facades throughout the city center in their immense abundance and the backdrop along the Danube with the old magnificent buildings on the western side (Buda). Margaret Island in the middle is pretty, but it was too chaotic for us, so we would not recommend the island if you have very little time.

Architectural highlights include, among many others, the Fishermen's Bastion and St. Istvan Basilica, the great synagogue, the parliament on the banks of the Danube, the great market hall, the main train station, and above all the extraordinarily beautiful opera, into which Frau Waas fell completely in love. The Austrian king and financier Franz Josef said at that time it should not be larger than the Vienna Opera. Later he regretted that he had not also mentioned that it should not be more beautiful. (See pictures at the end)

Culinarily, Budapest offers a wide range of traditional Hungarian restaurants, Italian eateries, pubs, other national cuisines, and vegan restaurants, chimney-cake stalls, and especially beautiful cafés that often reflect the style of the Golden 20s and hint at the proximity to Vienna. Overall, the entire city gave us the impression of a mix of Vienna and Paris with a touch of Prague and Berlin, full of style and Savoir Vivre.

We leave Budapest filled with beautiful impressions. We hope to return soon to a free, open-minded Budapest where one can display rainbow flags, Palestinian flags like Israeli flags, and Ukrainian flags without fear of repression. In that case, nothing would hold us back, and we would immediately fall in love with this free Budapest.