Although it is flipping cold here in Budapest today (5 degrees Celsius), I was dressed like an Eskimo to go on a three hour walkabout through the city. Starting at the historic site which was a workers bus station during the Socialist era, the tour offered really interesting insights about what life was like when Hungary was a socialist state. Filled with compelling narratives about families torn apart, sinister smuggling plots and political conspiracies, the tour stopped at several sites of social conscience or historical / political relevance. Finding a bronze statue of Ronald Reagan on Liberty Square was a bit of a surprise but against the background of the narratives of the tour why Reagans statue is there and why it faces a particular direction became so much more clearer. It also became more clearer why only two of the public sculptures from the socialist era were not removed when all the others have been taken down. One of the more interesting public artworks that was installed post the Socialist era is the martyr on the bridge. Once again, our guide gave us clearer details about why the statue had a specific posture, why the bridge has a shaky effect when walking on it and why politicized locals walk on the bridge from left to right and never right to left. The Red Tour is a really worthwhile tour when visiting the city. Again, it is one one of the free (tip as you can afford) trips available. Tonight, Im exploring the Buda part of the city. Tomorrow, Im going to visit the Torture House Museum (the political horrors are more gruesome than Vlakplaas) and after that I am going to attend the ballet, The Nutcracker (Shut up! It is Christmas)
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 17:08:40 +0000
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