Budapest native

Vegetarian places in Budapest

2009-06-09T14:44:00.004+02:00

not always easy to be a vegetarian, especially when you travel in some eastern european countries. actually you are really lucky with budapest, it's not that eastern in the vegetarian line (:

my favourite place is the "Lébár" (juicebar), they offer very cheap and good vegan food and fresh juices here (Múzeum körút). good option for those who can't eat sugar or flour, too, they have very clever cakes and pastries. often you can find the vegetarian version of some hungarian dish like paprikás krumpli (paprika potatoes), gulyásleves (goulash soup) or jókai bableves (bean soup).
they are open every weekday between 10 and 18. it's very small place. next to it you can find the best organic shop in the country (in my opinion), with fresh fruits and vegetables also.

my second favourite place is the hummus bar, they serve delicious israelian veggie food like hummus and falafel. you can buy falafel everywhere in the city, but this is the only place where it's actually good. they have more restaurants. the nicest one is at the Kertész utca 39, here.
the other location serves the same food, but the place is not that lovely (Alkotmány u. 20.).

a nice option can be the belgian fries: the place is called Pár Perc Krumpli (some minutes of potato), they offer nice fries, many kinds of sauces and some vegetarian burgers. they also have more shops:
Ráday u. 1-3
Móricz Zs. körút 2.

at these places you can get filled by 2-3 euros, i don't really go to more expensive restaurants. you can always find something vegetarian at the turkish buffets (we have many). a good one is near the Nyugati train station, called Szeráj. their aubergine and spinach in joghurt is great.

I never tried, but looks nice the biodarshan vegetarian shop and restaurant.

there are some other options as well, but i should test them first. if you want to try something hungarian but veggie, there's the főzelék (made of any kind of vegetable, can't really explain, so check out the pictures). if you want to try the higher class version, the stand bistro is told to be good and cheap (4 eur) at lucnhtime. then there's lecsó (it can contain meat, ask about it before ordering), it's similar to the ratatouille, perfect summer food. and you can try some typical hungarian pastas, like túrós csusza (with cottage cheese, ask without bacon), mákos tészta (with poppy seed, it's sweet), káposztás tészta (with cabbage - it can be sweet and salty as well), etc. you will love túrógombóc, if it's made in a good way. in the restaurants they usually serve it as dessert, but at home you would eat it as a main dish. i prefer with sugar and tejföl (sour creme). and you can't miss lángos of course, but be prepared to something very heavy and oily (or greasy). best with tejföl and cheese, or just simply with some garlic. you can find it quite cheap at the central market. ok, i'll come up with more ideas later. ask anything in the comments.

rent a bike

2008-07-19T20:03:00.004+02:00

because it's the most trendy way to go from A to B in these day in budapest. although, there aren't many bicycle path and also the cars drivers not very ... hm, like the germans, you know. let's say they are like the italians without a smile. BUT! dare to hop one a bike, the layout of the city is perfectly designed for two wheels. ok, expect the castle hill.

so, i collected, what i found about the rental companies.

budapestbike (budapestbike.hu)
address: VII. Wesselényi u. 18.
prices:

six hours: 2000 huf,
one day: 3000 huf
two days: 5000 huf

they have tandems, and the prices include the helmet, chain and lock.

bikebase (bikebase.hu)
address: VI. Podmaniczky utca 19.
prices:

24 hours: 2000 huf
48 hours: 3500 huf

need to present (not as deposit) an ID or passport. provide panniers and tool kit.

Lowe Alpine (lowealpine.hu)
address: VI. Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út 17.
prices:

5 hours: 1500 huf
24 hours: 3500 huf
36 hours: 4500 huf
48 hours: 5500 huf

it includes padlock, carrier and helmet. 15000 huf or 50 eur deposit needed.

bajnok (champion) (hercehurca.hu/node/382)
address: VI. Bajnok utca 29.
prices:

24 hours: 2500 huf
48 hours: 4000 huf
a week: 10000 huf

actually, they are a messenger company and a service, so probably they have the best bikes.

yellow zebra (yellowzebrabikes.com)
address: V. Sütõ utca 2. and VI. Lázár utca 16.
prices:

a day: 2000 huf
24 hours: 3000 huf
36 hours: 4000 huf
48 hours: 5000 huf

basket, lock and helmet included. you can rent lots of other equipments. deposit needed (50 or 100 eur).

festivals in hungary: cozy ones

2008-06-25T14:37:00.006+02:00

just after the bigger ones, there are three quite similar happening in the three corners of the country. if you are around hop in. they are more familiar, people are more opened for new connections, beer is much cheeper, ticket prices are lower (a daily is around 20 euros). in the north-east corner, the capital of the famous wine region, Tokaj has the hegyalja festival. the main attractions are Katatonia, Juliette & The Licks, Adam Freeland and N.O.H.A.. four days, 9th-13th of July.
on the west side has another on the coast of the big lake Balaton, but it's on the north side in the youth camp of Zánka. the balatone advertises itself with RZA from the wu tang clan, beatsteaks and the real mckenzies. 24th-27th of July.
the third is in Szeged, next to the serbian-romanian border. szin - youth days of szeged - is the oldest music festival in hungary held since the '60s. this year, you can have joy with Morcheeba and several hungarians. at the end of the summer, 27th-30th of August.

and one more, a unique one. it's more an open air goa party, but for four days, 6th-10th of August. the ozora located in the middle of the country, in a hilly region, just in the nature.

not too late for festivals

2008-06-24T00:26:00.005+02:00

although, there's one within a week. yeek, that means it's really summertime. you don't need to stuck in 36 celsius in the city. i mean, you have to come here to see the pool above the Gödör club and drink some bottles of beer in the park or just to see the panorama from the fishermen's bastion. but, maybe, in the summertime you would prefer the festivals. let me introduce some.
the big ones.
first of all, the sziget at the beginning of august (12-18). the biggest name from hungary in this scene. it's really a huge happening on an island, not very far from the downtown of budapest. so you can even stay in a tent or in a hostel in the city. on last.fm, you can see a quite long list with the performing artists. but the festival last for six (plus two pre) days.

if you buy the tickets (online) a daily one is 32 euros, the weekly ones are for 120 (without camping) and 150 euros. cheaper than roskilde, hm?

second is volt (2-5 july !). right next to austria, and not very far from bratislava. so you can use those airports and probably it's way easier to get an international ticket to those capitals. and the lineup: manu chao, the offspring, cypress hill, exploited. four days for 60 euros if you buy it in advance (70 at place). daily ticket is 24 (28) euros.

the electronic one is the balaton sound (10-13 july) with massive attack, fatboy slim, goldfrapp and many hungarians, of course. the place is just next to the lake balaton, you can swim in it. best for the hot summertime with bit of hangover. tickets for 28 (36) euros and passes for 70 (85) euros.

there'll be a next post with the cozy, smaller fests. i just need some sleep now. cheers.

special events on 21st of June

2008-06-16T10:55:00.002+02:00

as it was like last year this day also celebrates the night of museums. there still isn't an english official page. as i know, the ticket is 1200 huf (5 euros) and it's valid to all the museums. the shows start during the afternoon and end late night after midnight, but it depends on the institutions. you can grab a free program list from cinemas or cafes, there's a big EXIT sign on the front page. whatever.

there are two more events, more self-organized. the bicycle messengers do the traditional yearly war in the downtown. you know, that game where everybody has a number on his/her forehead and has to hide it from the opposite team. protect your flag, read as much enemy number as you can and run. or ride, because you have the bike. according to their weblog, the meeting is at 3 pm on the birthplace of the hungarian cycling sport.
probably you don't have a bike. you can find some rent a bike on the bottom of this page, under the kerékpárkölcsönzés title.

and the other is also a battle. like in the medieval times, one team has the castle and the other's attacking. a bit like hide and seek and the other catch game we all played in elementary. the attackers have to take their flags to some determinated places without catching them by the others. you have red or blue ribbon and have to give it to the other, if you get catched - and they've got a point. the meeting is at 7 pm, here (Vérmező park, Moszkva tér side). and a link.

Wanna see a true Hungarian demonstration?

2008-02-14T00:14:00.002+01:00

Then go to the Astoria this Sunday at 2 pm. Preferably on your feet. Cause it will be a demonstration for the fresh air, against the pollution of the air. We want the politicians to make some changes. We have the examples from abroad that it's possible.
And you can see all the underground faces of the city there, maybe getting some party-tips as well, or just be there for our beautiful city. Help us to change! Please. It's in the touristic area, anyway.

When? 17th of February, Sunday, 14:00
Where? Astoria

The gluttony thursday

2008-02-06T21:34:00.000+01:00

tomorrow, (06. february) is the day for going to restaurant. before the easter fast you can fill your stomach with delicious dishes for half price. there are 1068 restaurant giving 50% discount from the meals all over hungary. this promotion is valid for the 'a la carte' meals or the special menus composed for this occasion.
here's the list with the places participating. there's also a hompage, but it's only in hungarian.
egészségedre!

central market strikes back

2008-01-25T17:57:00.000+01:00

once, there was a post about the central market on the fővám tér. don't want to replicate myself or something like that, just to add some fresh photos. i won't describe them, come and discover it (sure, i'll tell you more about it, just ask me in e-mail).
it's lovely, believe your eyes.

skating in the city park

2008-01-21T23:10:00.000+01:00

january is the coldest month in hungary. but in the past few years the weather doesn't know anything about this, so it was 17 celsius yesterday in Szentgotthárd. in my opinion it's the best time for skating: you can do it in a sweater without a jacket and any risk of colds. so let's skate on central europe's biggest outdoor skate-rink in the city park of budapest. just behind the heroes square, next to the castle of vajdahunyad facing with the attendant hall built in 1894. yeah, it's really budapestic, should try it. but be careful, the ice can be wet in these hot days, so don't fall.

there's a shop right next to the entrance, where you can buy or rent skates. the rental fee is 600 huf (2,4 euros) per hour. if you rent, during your fun times you have to leave your id card or 15 000 huf at the shop as a deposit.

it's open two times a day: 9 am-1 pm and 4 pm-8 pm.
the entrance fee depends on when you go, but it's either 700 huf (2,7 euros) or 970 huf (3,8 euros)
there's a website (www.mujegpalya.hu), with more information.
address: 1046, Olof Palme sétány 5. you can get there buy the #1 metro line, bus #30, #4 and some of the trolley bus lines. heroes square is a big junction, you can't miss it. (but of course, here's the map)

the picture is from anundrum.

A La Galette crèperie

2008-01-18T20:40:00.000+01:00

If you are fed up with all these yammy but greasy Hungarian specialities, you might have some French ones. All right, at A La Galette you can't get anything for 130 huf like at the Fakanál, but it's still affordable. Close to the Nyugati trainstation you can find a sweet Breton restaurant mostly with fabulous galettes and crèpes. A very nice French couple runs the place, the husband cooks, the wife serves the food. The most simple courses start at around 600 huf (2,4 eur) and the most complicated ones end up at around 2.500 huf (10 eur). And you can drink cidre, what you rarely find in Hungary.

The colours are blue and white, some kind of marine-style, all this and the perfect lights make a very pleasant atmosphere. We as university students are so used to the fast food restaurants, that for the first moment it was a surprising gesture to get water in nice glasses without asking. You know, everything is different at the Chinese (:

The address: Szondi utca 11, 6th district (map)
Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 11pm; Sunday 11am to 3pm
You can get here by: tram #4,6 (stop: Oktogon or Nyugati tér), metro 1 (Oktogon) or metro 3 (Nyugati tér)

For the photo thanks to roboppy on flickr.

eat out: cheap, dirty but typical

2008-01-16T13:34:00.000+01:00

i work in a hostel as a recepcionist, and lots of guests ask me about the typical local meals. usually they want to get it from a restaurant and usually (because it's a hostel not a boscolo hotel) they want it for a reasonable price. the answer is fakanál ételbár (the wooden spoon foodbar). i don't want to make false dreams to you, it's a real chop-house. i never saw anybody, who's not a student or a phisical labor as a customer. or sometimes some brave turists with cameras in the corner. plastik chocked covers on the metal tables, almost rusty plates for the soups and a collection of more than a hundred differtent plates for the meals. it's in a cellar and there's semidarkness, steam and hot.
there's a menu on the wall, i hasn't changed i guess since it was opened. also the mom of the canteen is the same with that rusty voice on which she shouts the order to the kitchen.
i'm not a gastroblogger typed, so don't ask me about it. i just can tell, it's one of the only places, where you can eat a meal like they do it at home.
found some prices:
clear soup (130HUF ~ 0,50 euro)
gulyás soup with beans (300HUF ~ 1,20 euro) - yee, the GOULASH!
macaroni (320HUF ~ 1,25 euro )

address: Fakanál ételbár, 1081, Baross utca 15. (map)
opening hours (i think): from 11:00 or 12:00 to 15:00 on every weekday.

i'll try to get some photos, promise.

Esclin Syndo in Kultiplex

2008-01-15T01:16:00.000+01:00

yeeey, we are back. for a bit. i hope.

i'm here to recommend you a concert and of course, the place where it'll be.
the band is Esclin Syndo. not the most famous one, not in the whole world, and also not in hungary. so they are quite friendly, maybe you can play csocsó (table soccer) with them after the gig. the style according to their hompage is quality music, '80s electronics, metal riffs, hip-hop drums, a charing voice, experiment. probably they won't get a bigger audience than hundred people, but it's going to be one and a half hour stomp. i choosed them, because they are a kind of unique thing from hungary: great music.
yep, and a place is also great, alternative snug. like the well known szimpla. also the base of an art cinema and the headquarter of the first and most known (ex-)pirate radiostation, the tilos. and it's a sad story, because it has to be closed in february due to immovable estate things about the local government. but till that it's the time for loads of free concerts. like the one i told you. remember: kultiplex.

and the date is: 15th of february.
adress: kultiplex, 1092, Kinizsi utca 28. (map)
esclin syndo: web, myspace
kultiplex: myspace

2nd BalkanFest

2007-09-21T18:38:00.000+02:00

in the west balkan. that's a pub/concert place which has also a garden area. quite nice, and underground with lots of different colours, trust me.
and about the festival. on the next weekend for two days this place becomes literatully part of the balkans. there'll be cookings for the afternoon, tables with traditional serbian and turkish dishes (lamb, pjeskavitza, chevapchicha - mmm, yumm). the event starts with a film from slovenia (Cheese and Jam/Kajmak in marmelada) followed by concerts by Kobra brass-band, Ajde Braco, Tűzkő Csaba (saxophone) and DJ 300 Karú Cigányzenekar (DJ 300 handed gipsy band).

Cinema:

September 29., (Saturday)
	20:00	Cheese and Jam

Concerts:

September 29., (Saturday)
	22:00	Kobra Rezes Fúvós Zenekar
	0:30	DJ Macsity
September 30., (Sunday)
	21:00	Ajde Braco concert with Tűzkő Csaba
	22:30	DJ 300 Karú Cigányzenekar

the ticket for Saturday costs 1500 HUF (6 eur), for Sunday 800 HUF (3,2 eur) and for both days 2000 HUF (8 eur). the adress is VIII. district, Futó utca 46. (map). you can get there with the 4-6 tram (Üllői út stop) or by blue metro (Ferenc körút or Klinikák station).

rain is still on - so chocolate

2007-09-08T10:08:00.000+02:00

as i promised, i will continue the tips for this bad weather. if you are already bored of the tea of the sirius, you should try noir choco bar. yes, it is what it seems to be, a place full of (belgian) chocolate. you can choose maybe from 50 different hot chocolate, i already tried some of them, and they are hell good. i can't say exact prices, but as i remember a cup of chocolate is around 400-500 forints, so around 2 euros. but totally worth it. of course you can find also tea, coffee, milk shakes, hot cocoa and even alcoholic drinks. and chocolate fondue (!) for 1800 forints.
you can also buy many tipes of special chocolate products.
the place has beautiful warm colours, funny paintings on the wall, cozy pillows.
you can find it on the corner of the hegedű street and the paulay ede street. it's close to the liszt square (map). and it's also on the basement level (:

autumn tea

2007-09-04T15:40:00.000+02:00

well, this weather is awful. you are not so lucky making holidays now in budapest... i help you how to survive. first i recommend you my favourite tea-place. it is called sirius teaház, its website is just in hungarian, as always. also not very easy to find it, it's located in a small street, in the basement level, without any well-marked sign. so you have to know the exact adress: 13 Bródy Sándor street, near the national museum (map). it's open every day between 12 and 22.

the teas are between 420-450 forints (less than 2 euros) for 400 ml, and you can choose from many-many tipes. the best thing of the place is that you can drink your tea in secret corners, in the so-called wardrobe, in the top of everyone, you have to climb, you have to sit on the floor, take off your shoes. the whole place is really cozy, just take a look on every part. you will love it!

a cheap movie?

2007-09-01T19:56:00.000+02:00

yes, it's possible this weekend. i know i tell you a bit late, but until sunday you can go to cinema for 360 forints, which is about 1,40 euros. it is true for almost all of the cinemas in budapest, but hurry up, because sometimes they sell out all the tickets. the event is called celebration of the cinema (moziünnep), and it has an official site just in hungarian.

hc camp

2007-08-18T00:31:00.000+02:00

ok, we are back. to hungary, but not to the busy workdays. eg. there's a hospitalityclub/couchsurfing camp happening just right now (16th-20th of August). i've been there on the fist day, so i can tell you some words about the mood. saw friendly people from the czech rep., poland, germany, belgium, but that's not the full list (GO and find the others (; ). about the program: on monday, it's the national holiday in hungary, so there'll be a kind of festival in the village so let's rave! for those, who aren't so culturistics, there is the football match against the neighbouring guys.
ok, that's not budapest, that is Súr. the perfect place if you've been always interested in the small villages that are almost unreachables.
here's a homepage, you can find some very useful directions. see you there! (GO!)

sorry,

2007-07-23T23:58:00.000+02:00

we are on holidays for a month in portugal, that's why we don't write news. have fun, anyway!

music for every night

2007-07-10T10:11:00.000+02:00

i would like to teach you a very important word: ingyen. it means for free. the second word would be olcsó. it means cheap. now i will recommend you concerts ingyen or olcsó.

today, tuesday:

if you like folk music, but you prefer it for free and in a non-touristical way, you have to go to the pótkulcs (map), a small, but cozy and warm place, today berkó ensemble is playing, and you can count with dancing! listen to their music on their webpage.

ian siegal (A) will play also for free at gödör klub (map) from 9 pm. he seems to play blues and stuff.

i would recommend also budapest klezmer band at hilton dominican garden, but it costs 4900 huf (20 euro).

tomorrow, wednesday:

our favourite 30y will play from 8pm at zöld pardon (map). the entrance is 100 huf as usually, it really means 0,40 euro. if you wanna know something about hungarian alternative rock, you have to see them. and they are from pécs, the european cultural capital in 2010. that city is better in music than budapest.

grab the deck party at tűztate (map). i don't know anything about the music, but you have to see the place, it's in a dirty, old factory building and it's very cool. and it's also for free. if you prefer reggea, come here today, monday. love alliance special.

bryan adams for free

2007-06-29T19:46:00.000+02:00

every year, on the 30th of june, there is a big concert with an international star on the stage - for free, organised by t-mobile. the date is because their phone numbers begin with 06-30. (and hungarians write the dates like this: 2007. 06. 30. we mix up everything, like the names: surname first!)
this year that star will be bryan adams, the canadian singer, but i think that who will be the main reason of the crowd is rúzsa magdolna, last year's 'megastar' singer contest's winner. she participated this year in eurovision with this song. i like the most her performance with lajkó félix, a genious musician from last summer. this one was also amazing, a song from the serbian movie 'time of the gypsies'. she sings in hungarian and in serbian in this song, too, because she's from serbia's hungarian part.

the technical parts now:
the concert begins at 6 pm, and bryan adams probably will be on stage at 8.30.
the place is '56-osok tere (square of the 56-ers; map), you can get here by the yellow (#1) metro. just follow everybody. there will be some changes in the public transport, for example the yellow metro and the trams #1 and #6 will circulate until 00.30. and the crowd will be huge!

party people - zöld pardon

2007-06-25T04:20:00.000+02:00

where to party on monday? well, i would recommend you zöld pardon (map and details) again. the concert is a lot of fun - if you speak hungarian. cause the sarcastic hip-hop band, the "belga" will be on scene from 8pm. but it's too early to party anyway, so you can catch the disco-part from 10pm. two stages, young boys and girl, what else do you want?
at this place tuesday is for rock, i'm not good in it, but the performer will be "guilty parties", a rage against the machine tribute band. enjoy, if you love this.
buuuut! on wednesday! the one and only "neo" will give the music under your feet. 8 pm again, don't miss it! an old but forever green song from them is "ranbo 13". they are in the electronic industry, as you can hear it.
thursday is also good, "heaven street seven", alternative soft indie or something like that, i'm really bad in these style-things, but whatever. i would recommend you the song "south america". you can come here if don't like kasabian. but if you do... man... then you should definitely go to the kasabian concert that time. but this deserves a new post. and i will tell you how to enjoy it if you don't have the money for the entrance ticket. stay tuned.

the market again

2007-06-22T16:35:00.001+02:00

maybe you already noticed that i'm in love with our central market. i found a great post about it in english from my favourite gastro-blogger, chili and vanilia. she's an expert, beleive her.

tiszacipő

2007-06-22T07:29:00.000+02:00

love to bring things back home? love to shop clothes, shoes, etc.? you must buy the traditional tisza shoes. or a tisza shirt, vest, bag, purse or socks or...
it means much more for the hungarians than just a brand. tisza (second largest river in hungary) story begins somewhere in the first half of the 20th century. later, in the communist era it became a great succes. we got the order to produce shoes in the comecon, so we did. it was known all over the eastern side of the world. but you can read it on the homepage.
in the retro craze of late 90's it was renewed. now, it's a kind of alter's wear. say it: tea-sa-tzee-poe! you can be sure that these shoes wil be unique in your country.
the central shop is on the Astoria (map). there are two others in the pólus and westend malls and five in the countryside. their hompage is here: www.tiszacipo.hu.

indian dance night

2007-06-17T12:19:00.000+02:00

this will be the 12th indian dance night where you can party to the greatest indian top hits, known or unknown in europe. the entrance is free! the date is 21st of june, this thursday, from 9pm. the place is szilvuplé, 6th district, ó utca 33 (map).

night of museums

2007-06-15T17:31:00.000+02:00

actully we don't have any live and traditional event or festival around summer solstice. yes, it's the day of St. John, but nothing extraordinary like in the mediterranean or scandinavian area.
some years back a great feast is organized every 23th of June. most of the museums open its gates at 6 pm and hold special performances, guidances, concertes, screenings till dawn. the official page is only in hungarian, so let me help you a bit.
you can reach some english program on the homepage of the museum. eg the national museum.
price of the ticket is 1 200 HUF (4,8 euros) . can be bought in the museums and also in BKV (transport co.) ticket offices. it is valid for all the museums and also for the bus connection (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th) between them. they go in every 10 mins.

hungarian facts 1.

2007-06-11T09:15:00.000+02:00

i'm sure you know the prize-winner music video "karma police" from radiohead. but did you know, that the man running in front of the car is a hungarian actor, kovács lajos? i'm very proud of it (:

calendar

2007-06-09T21:57:00.001+02:00

blog-news: we put to the right side a calendar to make easier for you to find a programme for an exact date. just click to the link above the day, and you will see the details in a new window with a link to the post which is about this programme. use it!

alternative market

2007-06-09T21:38:00.000+02:00

every second sunday of the month a special market is organised at szimpla kert (or mozi), which is a very cool bar - i can recommend it also for the nights. i think i will write a post about szimpla, too, but now just about the market.
you can bring here anything to sell, self-made clothes, bags and accessories, old books or bakelites, and beautiful bulgarian icons. and you can come here also to buy them.
all the stuff is very creative, cool and "alternatively trendy", if you know what i mean. and you can sit down, drink a cold beer or a hot cocoa from a traditional red-spotted cup. and use free wi-fi...

so the place: 7th district, kazinczy street 14 (map).
the time: 10th of june, sunday, 13:00-19:00

colors budapest hostel

2007-06-09T08:58:00.000+02:00

good news if you come to budapest in june: colors budapest hostel has better prices than ever: only 12 euros with breakfast. i think this is the best price what you can find in the city in such a good location. see our post below about the details. you can reserve even for a big group, as it has 30 beds.

Balkan Fanatik concert

2007-06-07T11:43:00.000+02:00

the longest summer festival - this is the slogan of zöld pardon (green pardon), a nice open-air place next to the danube. there are live concerts every day from 20:00, and the entry fee is just 100 ft (0,4 eur)! after the concerts you can dance on two different dancefloors.
you already missed the best concert of the week, which was pál utcai fiúk (PUF), but maybe it's not very interesting for foreigners - they are already history, you know.
but i can recommend friday's balkan fanatik. they mix balkan and hungarian folk music with electronic styles, well it's quite interesting.

so, 8th of june, 20:00, zöld pardon, balkan fanatik (map).
you can get there by tram #4, 6, the stop is called "petőfi híd, budai hídfő", it's in the bank of the river, so you can sit down staring the water while you drink your cheap wine or beer before the concert.

Tunisian touristical days

2007-06-04T14:45:00.000+02:00

life is always busy in the central market. this weekend tunisia will be the guest.
you can taste traditional food and drink, like fig-spirit, dates, olives, pastry and specialities of the arabic kitchen. you can learn a lot about their traditions, history, folklore. you can enjoy tunisian music and dance while you know more about water-pipes or henna-painting.

7th-9th of june
opening hours:
thursday and friday: 9.00-18.00
saturday: 9.00-14.00

Athe Sam!

2007-06-02T22:50:00.000+02:00

here we are! this is the meaning of the title, and this is the title of next week's gypsy art festival (4th-10th of june). the place is gödör klub (club 'hole') in the very center, erzsébet tér (just next to deák tér, where all the metro lines meet; map).

there will be many concerts, exhibitions, some cinema and theater during the week. the aim of the festival is not just entertaining, but to show everyone how talented they are.
my personal tip is váradi roma café (tuesday) with a special fusion of pop, jazz, funky and - of course - gypsy music; the number one szakcsi új magyar gypsy jazz (wednesday) with the world-famous szakcsi lakatos béla, and parno graszt (friday). i don't know them, but i'm really excited about their concert: brasilia essenthia from brasil! they play on saturday. these are just some names from the programme (unfortunately it's in hungarian, but just go to gödör klub any time during the week after 6 pm), but i'm sure that all of them will be an excellent show - from jazz to hip-hop.
the entry is free, the location is very nice in my favourite square with a lot of green and fountains, and if the weather is good, the concerts will be open-air until 10 pm.

indian film festival

2007-06-02T22:47:00.000+02:00

tired in travelling? go in to the cinema. you can just catch the 4th indian film festival (June 1st-June 13th) in the weeny Örökmozgó (perpetual-motion machine) cinema just under the trees of the ringroad. they have pretty good at filmfests. this one is organized by the Indian Embassy and the Hungarian National Film Archive in the occasion of the 60th anniversary of India's independence. you can see movies made from 1946 to 2003 (many of them with english dialogue or subtitles).
what we found with english subtitles:
Pather Panchali (Song of the Road) (1955), 3rd of june, sunday, 18:30
Konikar Ramdhenu (Ride on the Rainbow) (2003), 3rd of june, sunday, 20:30Antareen (The Confined) (1993), 5th of june, tuesday, 20:30
Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) (1959), 6th of june, wednesday, 18:30
Pyaasa (Eternal Thirst) (1957), 8th of june, friday, 19:00
1942: A Love Story (1994), 9th of june, saturday, 16:30
Komal Gandhar (A Soft Note on a Sharp Scale) (1961), 9th of june, saturday, 20:00
Kannathil muthamittal (A Peck on the Cheek) (2002), 10th of june, sunday, 20:00
Ganashatru (An Enemy of the People) (1989), 13th of june, wednesday, 20:30

and two with french subtitles:
Amma Ariyan (Report to Mother) (1986), 6th of june, wednesday, 20:30
Mukha Mukham (Face to Face) (1984), 12th of june, tuesday, 20:30

the tickets cost 500-800 Ft (2-3 eur). the address is Erzsébet krt. 39 (map).

maps

2007-05-30T13:12:00.000+02:00

i'm really hooked on maps. while travelling and arriving to a city, my first thing is to find an information and get some (we already mentioned, you can take free ones at the airport).

there are pretty good online ones about budapest. check out google maps (or yahoo maps), it's quite detailed and has all the streets. you can search for adresses, places and so on.
if you want to get from A to B by public transport use this. it's a shame, it's only hungarian but let me help you. kerület is district, just leave it unfilled. you should write the street adress to the utca, házszám field. indulás means departure, érkezés is arrive. if you click on the mutasd, the map checks, if you gave a right adress. finally click on mehet (ok). and take a look at the underground network here (green one is under construction).
coming by bike? plan your route here. type the departure and destination (indulás and érkezés) than click on útvonaltervezés biciklivel link below.
at the end, i have a photo and a video map.

polish touristical days

2007-05-28T18:59:00.000+02:00

this week is for the polish. from thursday till saturday (31st of may - 2nd of june) they will be the guests of the central market (about this see the post below).
they will offer polish drinks and food, including cheese, and you can buy different polish handicraft products. the craftmen will also show you how they make them.
the band named "goral" from zakopane will play music during the three days.

the central market

2007-05-26T10:17:00.000+02:00

there's a place where i always do the daily shopping: the central market on fővám tér.

it's big and beautiful.

i'm sure that your guide will recommend it, and yes, it's quite touristical, but i swear you, the hungarians do go there. like i do. and it's cheaper than other markets! i mean the food, not the souvenirs - i don't know a lot about them.
you have to choose the right stall, because some vendors are a bit rude and they usually don't speak languages - but they know the numbers (: you have to know that many times you can't choose which piece you want.
i don't want to say more bad things about it, because it really is a good place. for the cheaper fruits and vegetables of the season go to the left wing. on the right wing you can find a bigger variety, but it's more expensive. meat is also cheaper and fresher in the market.
when you step in, on the right hand you can find a stall full of cheese and some other stuff, they are always on sale.
in the basement you can find a normal supermarket, some smaller shops, and a special store full with quality food. it is called asia, but they offer everything from the world what you can't find in normal shops. it's not as weird as the chinese shops for example in london, it's more for the hungarian stomach.

opening hours (from the very morning, when you'll be sleeping)
monday: until 17:00
tuesday-friday: until 18:00
saturday: until 14:00
it's better to arrive not in the last minute, because in the last half hour they begin to close.

you can get here by tram #2, #49 or by foot from kálvin tér, blue metro stop (map).

and we have wonderful pictures.

from the airport

2007-05-22T14:06:00.000+02:00

if you arrive to budapest by plane, you can easily get to the center, the terminal 1 is quite close to the city, but the terminal 2 is still ok, they are not as far as hahn from frankfurt or luton from london, haha. it takes about 10-20 minutes by bus to reach the blue (3) metro line (map), from where you can get anywhere - for example to go to colors hostel mentioned above, get off at "ferenciek tere". you just have to take the bus #200 from both airports. unfortunately the public transport is very expensive in budapest compared with other capitals in the region, but it's still cheaper than by taxi. a single ticket costs 230 forints, a bit less than 1 eur. but you can't change with it, you have to use a new ticket every times you change.
the controllers aren't very common on this bus. you can afraid of them especially on the metro, so it's better to have a ticket there. (so the full fare is 460, but if you blitz on the bus, just 230 forints)
if you prefer taxi, choose the official of the airport: http://zonataxi.eu. they have fix prices from 14 euros (depend on how far you go) for one way.
an extra tip: you can have your free map of budapest already in the airport, just take it from the shelters until your baggage arrives.

colors hostel

2007-05-22T13:47:00.000+02:00

we prefer to use the couchsurfing or the hospitalityclub project to find accommodation, but still there are many people, who prefer a hostel, especially if they travel in a bigger group.
for this case the best place what i can recommend is colors budapest hostel. the price is 14 eur/person/night, but breakfast, linen and towel are included, and it has the best location ever. Right in the very center of the city (Veres Pálné utca 14.; map), with perfect public transport even at night, two minutes walk from the danube or from the váci street, which is the only one real shopping street here.
there are 4x8 beds (2x8 until july i think). free internet, clean bathrooms and toilets, nice staff, who usually can help you to find a good place to go out - where the real budapest natives go.

first

2007-05-21T07:53:00.000+02:00

there should be some introduction... this will be (honestly a restart) or want to be a guide for tourists who're coming to budapest, hungary. the special thing, we want to give you the knwoledge of the locals. we live here, study and work here and most importantly, eat, go out, have fun and rest here. we will try to write posts which help you save money and gain extra experience.
enjoy your stay!