One Man in Europe

I was fortunate to turn left and exit the building on the riverside rather than returning to the Parliament Square. As you saw in my last post I looked right and left taking in the views but a boat opposite intrigued me. I decided to cross the road and take a couple of photos of this unusual structure. A girl I crossed with carried on down the gangway as I walked to each end to photograph the structure. A group of girls lounging on deckchairs implied that this was a bar or nightclub of sorts there being no visible signage at my level. I decided to venture down and enquire as this was, indeed, an unusual boat. I was very pleased that I did. This discovery ended a topping day! The boat is, in fact, the only remaining Monitor class warship, the original river "Monitor" S.M.S Leitha, her sister ship, the Maros, did not survive. The vessel has been fully restored and is now a  museum-ship permanently moored in front of the Hungarian Parliament building. A fitting location in...

Standing outside the Hungarian Parliament building or Palace here in Budapest the Gothic Revival structure is a far cry from Ceaușescu's "Palace" or "People's House". Once inside the same was true, no depression here, warm and inviting, sumptuous and stylish this is a place to inspire. Polished wooden surfaces, deep carpets, intricate carvings, well padded seats and all that glitters is gold. To me it summed up the total difference in ideologies. As I mentioned before, I pre-booked because a friend could not get a ticket, I wish that they had, this is one of the highlights of my trip. Those sitting in the parliament are constantly reminded of the diverse population which they have served for hundreds of years. Statues abound depicting trades, nobility, farming, soldiery, musicians and scholars. As you walk down the corridors of power the eye is drawn to the gilded arches and scroll work of the high walls and ceilings. The carpets absorb the sound gi...

As I mentioned yesterday I pre-booked tours in Budapest to guarantee a visit to the Parliament building. Searching the internet I found "City-Discovery.com" (the link is on the left of the home page) who provided the staples for the rest of my trip across Europe. With temperatures consistently in the high 30s (96°F) during the whole of July and August; I didn't do much exploring by foot. My day started with "Turkish" breakfast at a cafe around the corner before returning to the hotel as my pickup was at 10:30 hours prompt. A taxi whisked me away across the river to our starting point. No open top bus this time but a luxury, air conditioned coach.

One advantage of staying in the Oktagon district is the choice of breakfast, easyHotels do not cater other than from a vending machine. Thoroughly replete I am, once again, standing opposite the Opera House waiting for a bus. Now this should have been a simple matter as I had the printout in my hand ready to exchange for my ticket however the first big red bus which I approached wasn't the "City Tours" hop on-hop off at all. This one had a giraffe on the front and is a different company. It transpires that there are four different bus operators in Budapest, unfortunately two of them paint their buses red. In several instances the routes and stops for all four companies coincide, they also operate more than one route each. I feel quite sorry for the locals as this does cause some congestion on the already busy streets. I came to pre-book due to a conversation with a friend of mine who was unable to get a ticket to see the Parliament building, I shall explain tomorrow...

It is 06:00 hours on Wednesday 5th July 2017, the sun is shining and I have a couple of photos of military vehicles. I remember being woken up for a passport check by the Hungarian border guards. Had I been dreaming about tanks earlier or is military hardware amassed on both sides of the border? I have tried to locate my position on Google maps without success so I cannot tell you where we crossed the border all I know is that the next station I saw was at Mezobereny some 2.5 hours later. I took some photos of the Hungarian countryside and the stations we passed so that we can follow the route across Hungary to our destination, Budapest situated to the west of the country.

Emerging from the palace I walked across the pleasantly laid out car park. It would appear that members of parliament have plenty of large limousines to drive around in. Leaving the entrance gate I discovered that it is an advantage if you have a taxi number or are familiar with with the bus routes. A number of taxis pulled into the entrance but all seem to have been booked by other visitors leaving the palace. Eventually I 'phoned my hotel reception and they managed to book a taxi for me.

I have an idea, to achieve it I will demolish most of the city's historic districts, including 19 Orthodox Christian churches, 6 synagogues and Jewish temples, 3 Protestant churches (plus eight relocated churches), and 30,000 homes in two neighbourhoods alone. Imagine the uproar in England should our Parliament attempt such a thing. But we are not and Ceausescu is in charge so, in total, one-fifth of central Bucharest was razed for the project. Only the district of Lipscani is left to tell the tale. A popular joke of the time was that the 'Victory of Socialism' Ceausescu had engendered was over the city itself.

Just when I thought that I would start to get the blog moving along nicely.... .... I slipped on a greasy floor an dislocated my shoulder. Normal service will be resumed as soon as I get back on track lol  - this was published on 11th August 2017. With the help of Google docs, a microphone and one arm, hopefully we progress...

Finally departing the railway station after a good look around the model railway displays and reading the history of this royal station itself I departed by taxi for a winding trip through Sinaia up the mountain side to visit the castle. The Carpathian mountains were shrouded in cloud but the views were still dramatic. The whole of the town reflects the royal influence from hotels to spas, mansions and gardens. A very pleasant week could be spent here. My taxi driver points out various landmarks as we pass.

It is 15:45 as I arrive at Ruse Railway Station. It wouldn't do to miss the first train of this epic journey across Europe. I said a long time ago that I would try to spend a year in every country in Europe but fate decrees otherwise so here we go, a one month "Interail Global" ticket in my hand and a reservation on the first train out of town. It's the daily train to Bucharest actually. The temperature is 42 degrees C (locally reported at 44), Plamen helps me with my case to platform 3 where the train awaits. We work out where my seat is and load the cases. "It's cooler outside" recommends the guard as he informs us that there will be an hour delay. You see, at the end of my train there isn't an engine. Nothing to do but wait as I say goodbye to Plamen and, ultimately, Bulgaria. A Romanian engine arrives, couples up, and we are on our way.