Was a busy day in Budapeessshhht today.

But first it was time to leave our boat and say our goodbyes. We were all a little sad to end this part of our journey but not sad to at least try and get back to more normal eating patterns. And we will, now that we have to pay for our own food. 😜

No more six courses for every meal. You may have wondered why we continued to enjoy all those courses. Dani told us that he put on 14kg for his first cruise and Petra put on 5kg.

Like us I guess they thought it would have been rude not too appreciate the chef’s endeavours. Of course it would have been. 😜 Plus our waiting staff would bring courses to us we didn’t even order. Particularly once they worked out our likes and dislikes. At our very first meal in the ‘River Cruise Ragers Room’ we all had our name tags on. That’s our FB chat group, River Cruise Ragers. We named the room after us because we always made sure we got that room, given it could fit 10 comfortably and we usually bought in some new besties…..Anyway, I digress as usual….. We never needed the name tags again, our waiters always remembered every single name. And what we liked to eat. Or drink. It was extraordinary really given the number of people they would see each day and on each cruise.

Back to today…..we said so long, farewell, adieu, adieu, adieu…..

Starting the day with a dump of suitcases at the Mercure and then a walk towards my perpetual favourite, Starbucks, for the morning caffeine fix. Took a few photos.

We headed down to the Shoes on the Danube Bank. Our guide had told us that 600,000 Jewish citizens were removed from their homes by the Hungarian Nazis. 8600 children and women were taken down to the Danube during the Second World War. They were forced to remove their shoes and coats, were shot and thrown into the river. The shoes were left on the side of the Danube because they were valuable. The people of Hungary decided to create a memorial and in April 2005 this beautiful memorial opened. The memorial represents the shoes left behind on the bank.

We must never forget.

After that somber experience we headed back for a high sights tour of Budapest. Via the Budapest Eye.

Apparently it was built in Plymouth and when it first arrived here, inside the carriages you were able to listen to a very accurate audio tour. Of Plymouth, UK. Took some time to change.

The engineering techs of the group took a look at the structure, particularly the bolts, declaring it safe. Although they were still uneasy.

They went. Afterwards it was deemed some refreshments were earned. And not of the alcoholic variety. Chimney Cake. A Budapest tradition.

We thought it would be too sweet but seriously it was amazing. Going to have another one tomorrow. It’s like a donut cone with ice cream and assorted toppings. Like snickers and syrup. Or bounties and syrup. Or full of Nutella. The reduction of the calories and fat feet will have to wait.

But all was ok, turns out we all did about 22,500 steps today.

Post our Hungarian delicacy we headed across the bridge to visit Buda Castle and make our way to the Hospital in the Rock. We had tickets for the 3pm English speaking tour.

No one lives in the Castle. It is a museum and library and is currently being restored. During World War II it was an actually the headquarters of the Nazi’s who between them and the Communists, stripped out all the valuables. They had guards who stood completely still for about ten minutes. Only moving to change sides with each other. Conscious meditation I’m thinking.

Then it was off to The Hospital in the Rock Nuclear Bunker Museum. Sally and Rob joined us for the tour.

Quite an interesting tour although there were at least ten too many people, it was too quick and we couldn’t understand our guide unless we stood very close to her. Which we couldn’t, due to all the people in a cramped space. So I’m not going to tell you too much of what I may have learned ‘off the grid’, away from Mrs. Google. Which is what I have been doing in my previous posts. What I will say is that it is worth a visit.

Then it was time for our evening meal. One of our group is gluten free and having a little trouble finding it we settled on the Hard Rock Cafe, which clearly stated GF on their menu. I booked a table online. We arrived only to find I booked a table. 48 hours later than we wanted it. Not the first time I have done that my friends.

We ended up at a little cafe just near our hotel, had our meal and then headed back for a few drinks and sad farewells in Julie and Adam’s room. We did have some Lebkuchen biscuits and a bottle of caramel vodka to consume after all. Thanks Ann.

I don’t have a photo of that occasion suitable for sharing but I do have photos of us all pre-dinner enjoying complimentary welcome drinks at the Accor. True Aussie BBQ style. Boys on one table, girls on the other.

The rest of our group are leaving tomorrow. Four to Dublin and two to Malta. We have one more day in Budapest and then head to London to visit MoD’s daughter for two days. Then back to my favourite city, Melbourne. The time has gone fast.

Goodbye River Cruise Ragers. It’s been the ABSOLUTE BEST ❤️

It truly has.