Trip to Budapest

TRIP TO BUDAPEST

1) Departure from Brno:

Friday, January27, 7.00 am from the residence (please be at the lobby at 6:55 am at latest)

2) Meeting point for the departure from Budapest:

Sunday, January 29, 2.45 pm (TBC, we should be reaching Brno around7-8 pm)

3) Accommodation: We will stay in the Medosz Hotel***, where towels, soaps and two breakfasts will be provided. The available rooms are as follows:

4) Money: Coach to and from Budapest, hotel and 2 breakfasts are paid for you, but you will need some money for entrance fees to museums, meals and traveling around Budapest. Please note than Budapest is more expensive than Brno. The Hungarian currency is “Forint“ (HUF) and the current exchange rates are as follows:

1 CZK = 11,93HUF

1 AUD = 246 HUF

1 EUR =303 HUF

We will exchange money (or withdraw from ATM) once we arrive to the city. You are looking at spending something between 10,000-30,000 HUF, depending on your living standard. You can get a meal for 1,000-3,000 HUF, beer for 350-600 HUF, if you are not afraid of walking, you will be fine with buying only couple of tram tickets, etc. Visit to learn how to safe some forints…

5) Weather:

6) We might end up going to some of Budapest spas on Sunday and to another one on Friday night, so don’t forget to pack the swimming suite! You might consider taking also a towel, as we’ll go to the spa after we check out from the hotel.

7) Passport: Please, take your passport! Bring also you international student card (if you have one), as you can apply for significant discounts when buying tickets to museums, galleries…

BUDAPEST TRIP (27-29 January, 2012)

Contact and emergency number for the trip:+420777128 339Martin

Friday

6.55 meeting at the lobby of Residence

7.00 departure to Budapest (by a coach)

approx. 11.30 arrival to Budapest, MedoszHotel(Jókai tér 9.,

12:00 Meeting in the Hotel lobby: exchange and withdrawing local money and lunch (There are many restaurants/pubs/cafes/fast food places around the hotel– just go through the surrounding streets – mainly Jokai Ter, Andrassy Ut, Oktogon, Terez Körút – and make a pick).

13:30Site visit to the European Roma Rights Centre

15:00Site visit to the Human Rights section of Open Society Institute– meeting with Anna Fischer and Marguerite Angelari (approx. 2 hours)

Suggestion for the evening(s):

Climbing up the Gellert Hill (great view of the city)
Going to the Opera (see their program bellow)
Skating at the City park (Varosliget) by the Vaydahunyad Castle, opened every afternoon 4-8 pm – Admission: 1.300 HUF, Skate rental: 600 HUF per hour
Going to the Széchényi Bath (opened till 10 pm, 3,100-3,500 HUF)
Going to a “kert” (e.g. Szimplakert), club, spa…
Night bathing at the Rudas Bath – on Fridays and Saturdays between 10 pm and 4 am(tickets approx. 3,500 HUF) you can relax and have fun in the oldest Budapest bath, which was built by the Ottomans. During the ordinary opening hours only man are allowed to visit the bath (with the exception of Tuesdays, when bath is reserved strictly for woman), but the weekend nights are open for both genders. Great experience!

Saturday

Tour of Budapest9.30 – meeting at the lobby for the sightseeing tour (tour starts at 10 am at the Buda Castleand will last for approx. 3-4 hours – depending on how interested and freezproof you are!) by tram to Moszkva tér (Széna tér) – Buda castle – Fisherman's Bastion, Matyás Templom, Royal Palace – Chain Bridge (Lánchíd) – St. István (Stephen) Basilika

15:00 Visit to the Holocaust Memorial Centre of Budapest(39 Páva utca – blue metro [M3] stop Ferenc korut).

Other places you can visit in the afternoon or on Sunday:

Dohány Synagogue – the 2ndlargest synagogue after NY, closed on Saturdays

NationalMuseum

Museum of Terror –(Andrassy út 60 – 200 meters north of Oktogon)– place to commemorate Nazi and Communist atrocities in Hungary

Evening: the same as on Friday

Sunday

9:00

9:30 Visit to the Hungarian Parliament

Walk from Oktogon via Andrassy Road and Varosligeti Fasor to the Hosok tere (Hero’s square) –Városliget (City Park) – with famous sights such as the Statue of Anonymous andVajdahunyad Castle–

Budapest must do:

1) Go to baths (Rudas is scheduled for Friday night, but there are many others, such as Széchényi Bath– nice neo-Baroque palace with several indoor/outdoor pools, steam/dry sauna, massage, etc. – and Gellért, Lukács, Király– for more info on Budapest baths click here)

DON’T FORGET THE SWIMSUIT!

2) Enjoy the night sight from the Gellert Hill

3) Walkthrough the Jewish quarter of the city

4) Have a cake at Gerbeaud at Vorosmarty ter.

5) Go to see mummified right hand of St. Istvan – Stephen(the founder of the Hungarian state) in the back of St.Istvan basilika

6) Buy a bottle of Tokai Wine(Hungarian speciality)

7) Try Hungarian Goulash

8) Visit a Central Market Hall (closes on Saturday at noon)

9) Look for art noveau architecture (GreshamPalace, ZOO entrance, Hotel Gellert, …)

10) Have a beer in one of Budapest’s “kerts” (E.g. Szimpla kert at Kazinczy utca 14 or Mumus at Dob utca 18)

Budapest could do:

1) Try Unicum

2) Go to see the iron statue of Karl Marx in the Budapest school of Economics

3) Visit the Buda Castle Labyrinth

4) If you are Roman history obsessed, visit Aquincum

5) Visit the Buda hills and climb up János hegy

6) If you liked the Moravian Kars caves (the first trip), visit also the Buda caves

7) Visit a ZOO – the architecture is particularly interesting

8) Go to Vidampark – perhaps the best amusement park across the iron curtain

9) Visit a Statue Park – warehouse of old communist statues, which were removed after 1989

10) Have a rest in the biggest park – Margarit's Island

Suggestions for the evening:

Chachacha Terasz Budapest

Fészek Klub:VII, Kertész utca 36.

Kiskacsa: VII, Dob utca 26. (Deák tér, M1/2/3)

SzimplaDupla: VII, Kertész utca

Kuplung: VI. Király utca 46,

Liszt Ferenc tér(bars & clubs: Cafe Mediterán, Fortuna Bistro),

Asztoria, the main ring (korut), or Váci utca you can’t go wrong.

Martinez: VII, Dohány utca 1, across from the Dohány synagogue.

Old Man’s pub: VII, Akácfa utca 13.

SzimplaKert: Kazinczy utca 13 (outdoor courtyard bar and club)

Paris, Texas: IX Ráday utca 22

Budapest Jazz Club, Múzeum utca 7

For more check this:

Restaurants:

Frici Papa Kifozdeje, Kiraly utca 55 (near Oktogon) – cheap and good Hungarian cuisine

Ristorante Krizia, Mozsar utca 12 (behind the hotel) – more expensive, but one of the best valued restaurants in town (Italian style)

Opera: – there are still few remaining tickets available for the opera Mefistofele on Friday (7 pm)and more tickets for the ballet La fille mal gardée on Saturday (7pm). You can get ticket for so little as 500 HUF.

Palace of Arts:

10-DAY Calendar with useful information:

Shopping: Thereare many better things to do in Budapest than shopping, but if you can’t do without it, than visit West End City Center by the Nyugati pályaudvar (West train station) or Mammut at Moszkva tér.

Public transport info:

Single non-transferable 320 HUF

Transfer ticket 490 HUF

10-rides 2800 HUF (can be shared by more people who have to however travel together)

24-hour-pass 1550 HUF
72-hour-pass 3850 HUF

You will need only few tickets, as most of the things will be within a walking distance.

Basic vocabulary:

Hi!...... Szia!

Bye………....Viszlát!

No…………Nem

Yes…………Igen.

Thank you….Köszönöm

Thanks……..Köszi

Sorry……….Bocsánat

Don’t speak Hungarian….Nem beszélek magyurul.

I want a beer!……………Kérek egy sört!

Cheers…………………...Egészségedre

Another one!…………….Még egyet!

I’m drunk………………..Részeg vagyok.

Where is the toilet?...... Hol van a WC?

Kiss me!...... Csókolj meg!

I love you………………...Szeret