Here are some great photos from the Hungarian Grand Prix this year.

Thanks to Stephanie & Paul Gerken who supplied the photos and wrote the Grand Prix page.

Here is an excerpt from the Grand Prix page:

The race attracts visitors from all over Europe which makes for a great cosmopolitan atmosphere. There are fans and flags from many nations – Poland and Finland seemed the best represented. Although the track is tight and twisty it has a reputation for seeing the most first time winners. That was the case this year when Heikki Kovalainen took his first win.

One of the other great things about the Hungarian Grand Prix is that it also offers opportunities for “driver spotting” and autographs. The circuit holds a pit lane walk about on the Thursday before the Grand Prix weekend. This is usually held from 4PM-7PM and is open to hodlers of 3 day tickets. It is also possible to see drivers leaving and arriving at their hotels in the city centre.

Anyone who has been to Budapest will know exactly what makes it one of Europe’s best-loved city break destinations; you are really getting two cities for the price of one. Bisected by the mighty Danube the city has something of a split personality. On the west side of the river is historic Buda; the ancient heart of the capital. On the east side is industrious Pest; defined by handsome boulevards and the familiar sights and sounds of European commerce.
Each side of the Danube has its own temptations: To the west hilly Buda corrals together some of the city’s finest monuments with the Roman ruins at buda providing the obvious historical starting point. For a lesson in medieval architecture wander the cat’s cradle of narrow streets that surround the picturesque castle district. Keep an eye open for the Fisherman’s Bastion; a group of seven towers that symbolise each of the seven Magyar tribes that founded the nation.

On the east bank of the Danube is low-lying Pest; the capital’s business and administrative centre and the country’s economic powerhouse. Besides the impressive neo-Gothic Parliament building you will find an impressive collection of department stores, boutiques and markets selling everything from antiquarian books to lace tablecloths. However, it is after dark that Pest really comes into its own; when the myriad of bars and all-night clubs begin to wake up.
Budapest is a pedestrian-friendly city and most of the sights can be easily reached on foot. However, if you fancy something different then head for Margaret Island and hire a bringo; the Hungarian interpretation of a tandem bicycle.
After an afternoon in the saddle there is no better way to unwind than in one of the city’s fabled public baths. There are more than thirty thermal springs scattered throughout the city, but they don’t come any grander than the stunning art nouveau spa in the Gellért Hotel. Admittedly admission is pricey, but the experience is unforgettable. Anyone traveling on a tight budget should head to the Széchenyi Thermal Baths on the Pest side of the river.
Budapest is the richest capital for hot water springs in the world. That is why it is often described as a city of baths. The underground waters and springs of Budapest have very important role in the life of the city. The mineral and medicinal waters contain various minerals. The water temperature varies between 14 °C and 96 °C. These springs are used both to replenish the waters of medicinal baths and open air pools and also for drinking therapies. These springs come from 600-1000m deep along an 80km long geological break line.
These hot waters have been known since the Romans era (2nd – 3rd century), and were often used for threat for rheumatic disease from the 13th century. Under the Turkish occupation (16th – 17th centuries) a lot of baths were built and were used for essential washing. Evilia Chelebi, a Turkish traveler, mentioned these baths among others. The next growth in Budapest’s bath culture is connected to the Hungarian Millennium at the end of 19th century
The Kiraly (King) Bath is one of the most important Turkish buildings of the town. Arslan Pasha began to build it in 1566 and Pasha Mustapha of Sokol finished it in 1570. The original Turkish baths were covered with one larger and three smaller cupolas. The Fo street wing of the baths was built in classicist style in 1826. The Kiraly Bath has been operating continuously for more than 400 years.
The Rudas Bath. The Turkish repaired the first medieval building in 1566 by Mustapha of Sokol, Pasha of Buda. The octagonal basin of the bath is surrounded by octagonal arcades and topped by hemispherical cupola. In the 19th century a steam bath and a new building was added. This was the first covered swimming pool in Budapest. The oldest Turkish part of the bath is unique in this part of Europe.
The Grand Hotel Gellert and the Gellert Bath, a natural mud pit, once occupied the site of the present bath and was well known for its healing properties even in the Middle Ages. Buildings of the hotel and baths date back to the 1910s but have been modernised several times. The medicinal baths, where a hydro-therapeutical institute operates under medical supervision, adjoins the hotel building. The covered swimming pool and the open-air swimming pool with artificial waves are also popular features of the Gellert.
Nowadays the hot waters play an important role in health and tourism as well.
For more information about city break to budapest please visit: http://www.mybudapest.co.uk/

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The Budapest Zoo and Botanic gardens (Fõvárosi Állat – és Növénykert) *****

The Budapest Zoo started out as a spectacular collection and exhibition of animals, one of the few in Europe at the late 19th century. Donations of money and animals were received from all over Europe, making the Zoo a famous and popular place in Hungary as well as on the whole continent. Barely avoiding bankruptcy during the early part of the 20th, the Zoo slowly recovered, and aims to become the very institute it founded on. Nowadays, the Zoo has a more animal-centered policy than ever before. Most of the income is spent on improving the conditions for the animals and the experience of the visitors. Lately, the Budapest Zoo managed to renovate and re-open the Palm House along with the Aquarium in the basement, and the Elephant House, attractions that no family should miss.

Designed by the Hungarian architects du jour circa in 1865, one of the more striking features at the zoo is the Art Nouveau buildings that is home to a few of the animals. Amongst the attractions includes the Palm House (a rain-forest habitat for tropical animals), and the blue domed elephants’ house. To help fund the breeding program for endangered species, you can adopt an animal.

To help entertain the kids there is the added attraction of a soft-play next door to the zoo, just in case the weather is less than clement.

Budapest Circus *****

Opened in 1891 the Budapest Circus was the first and only permanent circus in Europe. Even through many changes in ownership and years of turmoil, it managed to maintain its popularity. Although the splendor of the Budapest Circus is faded as entertainment technology improves, it still offers enjoyable, unique live shows of acrobatics and performances of foreign troupes. The Circus also tries to maintain the traditions of the Hungarian Circus. Many artists trained in the Budapest Circus are now famous all over the world as performers as well as inventors of new attractions.

This can be a great place to spend an evening, pop-corn, fizzy drinks, entertainment, it’s not bad for adults either!

A Walk in Margit Sziget (Margaret island) *****

Arguably the city’s most beautiful park is an island. If you are not looking at anything in particular, unquestionably, this is one of the best things to do in Budapest. It is always quiet and, oddly, there are not too many people around. (Or perhaps the Park is too big.) The air is refreshing here, unlike in most places in the city.

Access to the island is via the seven-buttress Margaret Bridge. Opened in 1876 and built to a French design this became Budapest’s second permanent crossing over the Danube. After the Mongol invasion it became home for several monastic orders; it was at that time known as the Island of Hares, and only later assumed its current name in honour of the daughter of King Béla IV. His Margaret joined the Dominican nuns in their new convent in 1252, and remained there until her death.

Amongst its imperial trees and grounds you can find the capital’s largest open-air leisure pool, an outdoor theatre, and two spa hotels and a mini zoo. A very popular way of getting around it is by hiring a “bringóhintó” family cycle car. Circling the island is a running track, a favourite place to go for a jog if you’re in search of clean-air. The north end of the island is connected by Árpád Bridge to both Buda and Pest.

Definitely a place to relax, take in some fresh air and burn off a few of those cream cake calories.

Széchenyi baths *****

Surrounded by statues of dolphins and aquatic gods, the main three grand outdoor pools include one where jet propelled water swirls you around in a circle. There is a central, cooler swimming pool and the hottest one where regulars (season ticket holders) play chess around the sides of the pool. The naturally heated water makes this a venue for all seasons. Imagine being jet propelled around an outdoor whirlpool in the middle of winter, surrounded by a snow covered Neo Baroque palace. It’s different alright.

Located in the middle of the City Park, across from the zoo, Széchenyi Bath house is one of the largest and most well-known baths in Budapest. Although built in 1913, the vast domed bathhouse looks like some kind of aquatic palace, housing numerous pools as well as saunas and steam-baths. If you come to Budapest and want to enjoy the famous baths of the city, the Széchenyi Thermal Bath would be one of your choices. The other must see spa baths would be the Gellért Bath and the Rudas Bath.

The bath house is always full of people. In recent years, as the cost of the experience keeps escalating, there percentage of foreigners is also increasing. There is a complicated system where you buy a ticket and then receive back some of it, depending on how much time you spent in the baths. This makes tickets seem more costly than they actually are.

Skating (Korcsolya) or Boating in City Park (Városliget) *****

All year round the man made lake expanding from the Budapest Zoo right across to the Vajdahunyad castle is in use. In the summer you can row around with friends in a rented boat enjoying the sunshine. In the winter, part of the lake is turned into an ice rink where hundreds of Budapest locals go to skate, circling the night away. Especially popular at night, the biggest crowds amass here at the rink.

Maybe because of its size and age the ice rink in Városliget is the most famous for skating . For the past few years, however, they have been a few others popping up in other areas of the city. Now for example, there is one right in front of the Parliament – I’m sure there is a politician slip-up gag there somewhere! Another one is on a roof top by the Westend Shopping center.

The whole area around the city park is especially kid friendly. Surrounding the many small playgrounds are many temping stalls to buy treats and souvenirs. If you want to mix in a little education with the trip try the Museum of Agriculture found within the Castle Vajdahunyad. Covering many fields of history and development of Hungarian agriculture the exhibition includes plants, animals, forestry, fishing, the history of wine, amongst others.

My Budapest flat.com

Heroes Square is one of the most famous sights of Budapest. It is located on the end of Andrássy street, near the City Park. In the center of the Square is the statue of Archangel Gabriel, surrounded by the seven leaders of the settling Hungarians. There are statues of other significant ungarian statesmen as well, including St. Stephen, King Matthias, and Louis Kossuth. The famous monument was built for the 1000th anniversary of the founding of Hungary, in 1896. The Heroes Square is surrounded by the National Art Gallery on one side, and the Museum of Fine Art on the other, both offering various regular exhibitions as well as those of foreign museums.

The traditional fuel of urban Central Europe. It’s late afternoon, to fill the gaping hole between lunch and huge dinner, you could dive into one of the grand old confectioneries of Pest, such as Gerbaud, Mûvész or Astoria, for a cup of coffee topped by a Matterhorn of whipped cream, accompanied by a slab of some incredibly rich Hungarian cake, similarly slathered.

Looking for something less grand? There are many good places to have a coffee near the flat. Budapest has many small coffee shops and tearooms, which have plenty of charm and character. If you take a walk down Muzeum Korut, towards Raday Utca you’ll find plenty of great places to eat and drink. At the top of Raday Utca I can recommend this tearoom, Voros Oroszlanhoz Teahaz.

Deak Ter.