Happy New Year from Budapest!

I cannot believe that our vacation is coming to an end! The time has just flown by, but in a very good way. Alex and I accomplished so many things in such a short amount of time.

In every city we were in we utilized, and came to know pretty well, the public transportation systems. We were able to explore all parts of each city, the center and surrounding areas, and really get a feel for each city.

Also I did so many firsts: going to Europe, going to a ballet, having mulled red wine, dancing with a native Hungarian, doing karaoke, getting a professional massage, and going to a club. Ok so one of them hasn’t happened yet, but it will tonight! To celebrate New Years we are having a nice dinner then we are going to a dance club down the street from our hotel. It should be some night!

As for our stay in Budapest thus far, we have gone to a couple very interesting museums and eaten a lot of good food. First we checked into our room at the Radisson, by far the best hotel we have stayed at on our trip. And just a really nice hotel in general. Then we took a stroll in the city center and ate dinner at a family-run restaurant by the British Embassy. Its name was the Golden Lamb, but in Hungarian. The service and food was amazing, but the live traditional music and dancing was even better. While we were waiting for our food the main man and woman dancing made Alex and I dance…it was quite entertaining.

For the most part we took it easy. We visited a couple of museums including the Ethnographic museum and the Museum of Terror. They were both nice changes of pace because they weren’t the same old stuff, they were actually really interesting and very explicit.


The Ethnographic museum started off with a display of Jeans. It was a fun exhibit illustrating how the jeans culture came to be, and how it has played out in Hungary. Also it touched on the theory of uniform, or people wearing certain outfits, etc, when they belong to a social, sports, education or work group. The rest of the Museum showcased a history of Hungary.

We just happened to stumble on the House of Terror. It was a preserved building that the Soviet Hungarian Secret Police and the Nazi Arrowcross both occupied. They used the building, and later building on the whole street, to hold prisoners and bring them to trial. It may be one of the best museums we have been to. It showed the extent to which Nazi policies effected Hungary, and what happened to the groups of people – either because of religious or ethnic affiliation or oppositionists – during the Soviet and Nazi occupations. It was just as chilling as the National Holocaust Museum in DC. If you ever visit, it’s a must.

Fast forward to about 11 pm. Alex and I decided to go to a bar that was having karaoke night. It was mixture of people singing English and Hungarian songs. Everyone was really good and just having fun. Alex got up the nerve to sing Ain’t Nothing but a G-Thang. He was a big hit. THEN he convinced me to sing with him. Not just any song, but probably the most difficult karaoke song – Bohemian Rhapsody. I’m just going to skip the story and say it was a disaster. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to try it again. Alex even told me later that night that I turned him off with my lack of karaoke skills! It was horrifying.

Hopefully I’ll redeem myself tonight. We are going out to a nightclub for New Years, called Bank Club. Alex picked out my clubbing outfit, which is not at all conducive to the weather haha. So hopefully we will be counting down on the dance floor with a glass in our hand and dancing Hungarians surrounding us. I will give you the morning after report soon…hopefully the headache isn’t too bad.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!