Our first attempt at summiting Sas-hegy was, in the words of the great ancient philosopher Clarksonius, BC 4, a terrible disappointment. Sometime in spring it had come to our attention that this particular hill, lying in the cosy proximity of the BAH interchange and the MOM park shopping mall, had eluded our attention in the…
Tag: nature
What We Do in the Lockdown
It’s been a year now of this liminal state, when walking in the bright sunshine of the deserted city feels like the odyssey of a vampire sneaking in the dark, alone with ghosts and shadows. The dark itself doesn’t even seem to exist anymore; we’re locked out of it by the night curfew. We’re locked…
No Forest for Old Wolves- A Visit to Farkaserdő
Farkas-erdő (Wolf Forest) is not really a forest and obviously does not have wolves. Its most canine touch are the distant barks occasionally to be heard from the Rex Animal Shelter (actually called Rex Animal Island, though it’s not an island), situated at the Ócéanárok street end of Farkaserdő. Óceánárok means ocean ditch, but it’s…
A Story of Chalk and Crystal: Day Trip to Fox Mountain
Just when we thought we had finally run out of Budapest hills (or mountains, as per the local parlance) to summit, we were made aware of the existence of the poetically named Róka-hegy (Fox Mountain), situated very close to the city’s administrative border with Üröm. This seemingly extreme location is actually fairly easily reachable by…
If It’s Sunday, It’s More Cats
I am fully aware that I very recently posted another similar cat frenzy, and I felt moderately uneasy about flooding the blog with felines again, but then I said oh well, it’s my blog, I might as well have fun with it and post whatever I feel like. The initial intention was to document the…
Blues for a Black& a Tabby Cat
I always felt a tremendous sympathy for black cats. Just imagine how all that bad press gets to you, trying to peacefully cross a road, minding your own convoluted cat business, and some crazy person looks, well, as if they’ve seen a black cat crossing a road, running away, moving backwards, willing you to cross…
To Be Or Not To Be A (Wash)Bear: A Visit to the Budakeszi Wildlife Park
One of my favourite books as a child was a beautiful shiny orange hardcover by the Hungarian name of Mosó Masa Mosodája– its alliterative beauty will obviously be lost in a direct English translation, which would be Masha the Raccoon’s Laundrette, but one might alternatively undertake some linguistic acrobatics along the lines of Washy Wooshy’s…
Considerations on an Evening Walk on Margaret Island
Last summer was a traumatic experience for Margaret Island’s tribe of runners: after having heroically made it through the reconditioning of the track, which at least held the promise of a great reward at the end of the suffering, persecution began again in the build up to and during the swimming&other splashy sports world championships….
Farewell to the Winter Olympics on the Normafa Trail
It was completely and totally obvious that given the warm winter we’ve been having a cold snap would arrive, and it would arrive late, right about the time you consider checking out the state of your spring wardrobe, just in case. Well, at least it’s not here for Easter, and we hope it won’t return…
Rust, Gold and an Angry Poet: Autumn on Gellért Hill
Let’s say you woke up one day and suddenly had no idea what season it was, perhaps a strange sort of weather amnesia, but figured you’re in Budapest, and in such cases your go to solution should definitely be Gellért hill: firstly, it’s rather easy to spot from many central areas, particularly the Danube promenade, and secondly,…
Pocket Diary Budapest 