Regensburg to Budapest

(Distance 840kms’s Cycling 38 hours)

We are in Budapest, Hungary for our rest day. We are now over half way having cycled 2071km’s and sat in the saddle for an incredible 104 hours! I am not sure how this has happened but my bum is holding out and my legs feel strong. The saddle feels strangely comfortable these days – perhaps it’s a permanently numb bum or the pleasant scenery makes this all worthwhile.

Our cycling days have been fairly laid back as we have moved at a leisurely pace down the cycle way along the Danube heading East. The campsites in Germany were very pleasant, particularly the final one in Passau. St Stephens’s cathedral in Passau boasts the biggest organ in the world with 18000 organ pipes from 6mm diameter to colossal monsters. We stayed on a little later the next day to listen to an organ recital at noon -well worth the stay. Leaving Germany and entering Austria was a non event. We did not even know that we had left Germany!

Vienna was abuzz with Euro soccer mania. The quarter final between Holland and Russia was played in Basel and screened at various points on big screens around Vienna. Fans with painted faces and draped with their country’s flag showed their support in anticipation of the game between Russia and Holland. If yours was not one of those countries then you chose one for the moment. Russia won. This was on Saturday night. Sunday was the next big match which was played in Vienna. Spain and Italy were the countries who were going to battle it out. We began our Sunday morning by going along to St Stephens in the centre of Vienna to the 10h15 mass. A group of us went along to hear the organ and the choir. The soccer supporters meanwhile began their revelling from about midday in the pedestrian malls of downtown Vienna. The fun and frivolity built up gradually with Spain certainly making the loudest noise and showing the greatest support. Numbers swelled and the singing and joyous anticipation grew in volume. The temperature in Vienna that day was also high – 38°C. While all this celebration went on Carl went off to visit 2 Art museums and I went off to the Clock Museum. I almost overheated getting there. I saw a mantle clock dating back to about 1761 that was still ticking away merrily and even chimed on time!

By the way Spain beat Italy that night after extra time and a penalty shootout.

With our crossing into Slovakia, Carl and I moved into unchartered territory. Bratislava, the capital was so different to what we have been used to. Carl and the other fellows on the tour had eyes on stalks watching the tall beautiful Eastern European girls walking around the cobbled streets and sidewalks with elegant heels and sun dresses - beautifully groomed and invariably sexy. I am amazed at the stylish shoes these women wear. Where do they find them?

The currency here is also something to get used to. So many zeros! Our accommodation in Budapest was on a Boat in the Danube. Very special and very comfortable. There are many “Botels’s” along the Danube.

We went from the sublime to the ridiculous. The campsite in Gyor was reasonable but the ablution facilities were dismal! Cracked tiles and holes in the floor are acceptable if the place is kept clean. I wondered if I was any cleaner when I left there but I guess I must have been because hot and cold water came out of the pipe when the taps were turned on, but were the taps clean? Thankfully that was only one night. We left Gyor for our next stop which was Esztergom. A beautifully campsite beside the Danube with Slovakia the other side of the river. This campsite had a pool which was the first stop for us once we had pitched our tent and unpacked. The town on the Slovakian side of the river has a Hungarian community living there. They are now Slovaks by default when the borders were redefined. This does cause some tension and unhappiness which remains unresolved.

Finally we headed off to Budapest – a short ride away.

Our hotel is in the middle of downtown Pest. Buda is on the “other” side of the Danube and known as the old city. We arrived hot and tired and did the usual chores to start with like laundry. After carrying the heavy bag of laundry to the subway to purchase a ticket for the travel services, we caught the tram to the “X” marked on the map by the kind reception lassie and walked to the next “X” she marked on the map. Clearly she has a bit of a dyslexia problem. We walked up and down the street which she marked, asked numerous people about a clothes washing facility and few speak or understand English or German or French. We run out of language options after those 3! Carl and I have decided that Laundromats are no longer on our agenda. We went back to the hotel, filled the bath with water, strung up our line in the room and did our laundry! We’re now off to experience a small bit of Hungarian life in Budapest. Justice cannot be done to this amazing city in such a short time but we’ll try!