[Sept. 2010] After taking a break at a nice hotel in Budapest, Hungary, we took the metro train to the Danube River, which runs through the town.
Or rather, when we were about to go, we were already lost at the metro station.
When we were in trouble because we couldn’t understand the language, a general passenger sent out a rescue boat.
However, when we followed her advice, I felt something wrong and stared at the map.
After all the direction was the opposite.
Taking the train again to the centre and we got off at the metro station named Deak Ter.
This station name was familiar for me.
This was the fourth time I’ve been to this town.
It was my job to guide my husband who came here for the first time.
Before we went out to walk around town, we bought a ticket at the hotel, “Unlimited rides on the metro for 2 days, with one Danube pleasure boat”, so I did not feel guilty taking the wrong metro.
We decided to get on the pleasure boat, so we looked for the wharf by asking people.
The wharf was right in front of the Marriott Hotel, where I had stayed once before.
The cruise was quite comfortable with a drink and a 1-hour tour of Margaret Island.
The weather was nice too.
This was my first time on this pleasure boat, and it was a good experience to see the city from the river.
The iconic building of Budapest, the Parliament Building, was also clearly visible from the boat.
By the way, when I first visited this town, there was a red star on the top of the Parliament building.
Certainly, in 1989, it was still a socialist country.
The only disappointing thing about this pleasure boat was the recorded audio guide that can be heard in each language.
The idea of ​​personalizing the origins of Budapest and telling the history through interaction between Buda and Pest was wonderful, but the actors were amateurs and they read their lines in a monotonous tone.
It was almost embarrassing to hear.
My husband, who was listening in Italian, said the same thing.
Upon arriving at Margaret Island, one of the crew took us around the island.
This was optional and you could stay on board and go back.
When we were about to get off, we heard a voice in Italian saying, “Eh? You’re getting off again? We went there yesterday too.”
They were on this pleasure boat for two days in a row…
According to the guide, there were no inhabitants on this island, and it was a place of relaxation for the citizens of Budapest.
There were hotels, parks, swimming pools, open-air theatres, etc, but no residential houses.
The reason why it is “Margaret” dates back to the 13th century invasion of Mongolia.
King Bella IV at that time vowed that “when Mongolia leaves, I will dedicate my newborn child to God.”, so Margaret, the daughter who was born after the vow of her birth, was admitted to the island’s nun at the age of nine.
And she couldn’t leave here until she died at the age of 29.
Poor Margaret!
It is said that this island also prospered by hunting rabbits, and it is also called Rabbit Island.
After listening to such explanations for about 30 minutes, we had free time.
We went up to a tower called Water Tower and looked around.
The scenery was good, but the structure of the tower itself was very retro and cute.
