Have you heard the amazing choir at St. Stephen ' s Basilica ?

Well here it is . Recorded while attending mass in May this year , be forewarned that it's quite shaky. 

Just click on this link below.

Mass in Hungary

Procession before Mass at St . Stephen ' s Basilica

Had always wanted to attend an indoor mass in Europe , yes everybody loves Europe , but I never expected my first attendance would be in St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest , Hungary.

That's what free and easy travel can accord oneself. But it takes a bit of planning as well as knowledge which nowadays can be so easily gleaned off your smartphone.

Gelarto Rosa - Svent István Tér 3

Don't ever leave Budapest without trying this beautiful gelato .

It's not just hype although it does look like a gimmick what with everybody holding a cold but colourful rose in their hands while posing for selfies with the end product . Both flavour and consistency is really good.

Two Hungarian brides in a day

Because of the current state of affairs the country is going through , I dug through the old memory card for more happy pics to remind me of lovely Hungary.

In this one I was just sitting on the steps outside St. Stephen's Basilica , when a newly wedded couple quickly walked from the right hand side of the church, down towards the Danube.

Hope you can spot the radiant bride in white. 

As well as the female cyclist looking wistfully in their direction. 

Postcard from Hungary

The stamped date shows that it was processed on the 20th of May. Today is the 5th of September. Yeah , this postcard took like forever to reach us , which was yesterday actually.

If you think that's a long time , well , the one I posted from Istanbul , on my 1st ever visit , never arrived. ( Still hoping it does though )

Rainbath at Széchenyi

Széchenyi thermal baths..... no matter how touristy they tell you it is , I tell you , this is an absolute must do.

There are 2 entrances and at first I went to the smaller one by the side nearest to the underground exit.

Kacau-ing the guards at Sándor Palace

Though the name Viktor Orbán lies on the tip of every ladies tongue , ( he's so hot till even this alien from the Malaysia knows who he is ) , he does not live here . 

For that , ladies, you'll have to go camp somewhere else . 

And while Sándor Palace is also known as the Hungarian Presidential Palace...this is also a place where there are guards for you to look at. Guards whom seem to be very kacak and kacau-able. Or so I seem to think. 

You can pitch your tent back in now girls. 

Misadventures in the rain

So , I read on one forum , that the rain in Budapest does not last very long. Just sit it out and it will pass . 

Can't believe I took that at face value . And that is why this dragon seemed to be snickering at me.

Panorámia Café & Bar - Halászbástya

It's been a cold day today and in a way it so reminded me 

of the wet weather I encountered at the Fisherman's Bastion. 

Fresh off the no.16 minibus , the weather up in hilly Buda

was so much more colder and windier than flat Pest.

Taking a minibus to Fisherman ' s Bastion

Hope this shot shows you how even in the cloudiest weather I can still find a reason to grin it out. As well as find something cute, funny, a little bit nutty and naughty to think about.

150 ml Coca - Cola can from Hungary

Coke sold in Hungary IS good.

Here's what a small can looks like.

I had a small can once onboard a Middle Eastern airliner and my goodness that was so flat and tasteless .

Enjoy the pics all you Coca - Cola fans out there.

The can is so cute btw. 

Mammut and Mammut II

As a regular mall rat , Mammut and Mammut II were next on my hitlist . 

Prima Falatok - CBA

This is basically a working class eatery. Sort of like a public canteen where workmen and office ladies go to. Since Hungarian food is reputed to be good , plus there seems to be such a wide range of interesting authentic selections , let's go and get something to eat !

Tailed from Nyugati Pályaudvar into West End Mall

 Wood Green , Leylelaan , Termini and now Nyugati Pályaudvar.

These are all the names of all the train stations , I've been tailed heading towards or out from . 

The scariest is a close fight between Wood Green and Leylelaan.

On the other hand , what occured here is just a bit annoying as there were still plenty of people around. The person who followed me again had some white hair and walked with a limp somewhat similar to the old guy at Vajdahunyad.

 What's up with this group of seniors ? Geez.

The immigrant protest

Hungary is not like other EU countries .

 It's gloves off, when it comes to asylum seekers and immigrants entering Hungary unhindered. 

Words like terrorism and Christianity merge into a single socket to justify the detention and deportation of these people.

After having been overrun so many times , you can't blame them for having a deep rooted fear of foreigners invading the country and taking over their jobs eventually. 

Established immigrants and Hungarian sympathisers , decided to protest in Deák Ferenc ter , as I munched on a danish liver puff from Princess Pékség 

From Váci utca to Vörösmarty Square

One day it was sunny , then the next, it was cloudy even though it was supposed to be summer but it was at times, so cold it could have passed off for autumn. 

Trust your travel agent when they tell you it is still cold and make sure you bring a waterproof hoodie you can use in the rain. 

That's Liberty Bridge behind and it will soon be dusk so let's get a move on. 

How'd I get this tanned ?

Vajdahunyad Castle - the Scribe with the Golden Pen

The Vajdahunyad Castle is said to be an exact replica of Corvin Castle aka Hunyad Castle in Hunedoara, Translyvannia , where Vlad the Impaler was said to have been imprisoned . The original badazz Vlad ok, not Luke Evans .

The person who designed it, also cleverly incorporated  different buildings from four magnificent eras into one  . Because it is essentially rojak , some of you might start insisting that this looks Germanic, French, Gothic, Dracula-ic , Harry Potter and very Twilight-ish ....you know what ? everybody is right because it is a bit of everything put together. 

  

  

    

Coming in from Heroes Square, you will have to cross this bridge. Another 3 bridges can be found in this area because it is actually an island called  Széchenyi island . 

Keep right, you can't possibly miss the castle .

Heroes Square , Millenium Monument and Michael Jackson

Once upon a time, a gigantic polysterene 

statue of Michael Jackson stood here, engulfing this column, as film prop for the History video.

But even though he's not Hungarian, the fact that he picked Budapest as the venue for his extravagant vid , and so soon too after the Iron Curtain fell, earned himself a place as a hero in their hearts. 

The Slovak and his Turkish coffee

Here I was in Eastern Europe.

Where I least expected to see a young man fuss over the gas stove just to make a good cuppa of Turecká Káva or Turkish coffee.

Yeah that long handled copper pot they call džezva or cezve . He brought this precious cargo with him all the way to Budapest. 

Hope it is very obvious to you up to this point , that I did not read up on Balkan history. 

Hungarian ghost lady caught on my phone camera !

Right, first of all, lemme start by saying that I totally, totally did not expect this shot to pop up.

I'm heading underground because the sun is burning and there's practically no wind . Want to hop onto M1 line on the a Földalatti at Vörösmarty utca.