On my bike

Do you know the best way to discover Budapest? It is not by boat on the Danube, it is not flying over the city, it is certainly not by joining a group following the lady with a red flag in front.. it is simply by riding a bicycle.

I did this today. Cycling around Margaret Island, along the embankment of Buda (see video at the end of this post) or going up the hills overlooking the city is fantastic. Margaret Island is a heaven of peace. Lie down in the grass, watch the Danube flow by, check out the very-London looking Parliament or the Castle opposite... Going up Castle hill is a bit of a challenge on a bicycle as the road is really steep but when you get up there, what a view (see pix below).


I also got lost in some kind of dodgy areas where people were looking into bins and were checking me out in a weird way. To understand a city you cannot stick to the tourists parts, can you?

Anyway, Budapest is beautiful for those of you who haven't been. Great crazy architecture, large avenues Vienna-style, a castle on a hill like Prague, a little Montmartre-like area which reminded me of the original one, baths (which I tried yesterday) everywhere and a great thing: very few tourists. And this makes a big difference to the experience. Ah, I should not forget the kindness of the people and the quality of the ladies...