We intentionally stayed in town April 6-7 for the annual Budapest 100 Exhibition of 100 year-old houses in Budapest. Like last year, it was hit or miss, with some highlights, surprises and disappointments. The best thing about the event is that you never know what you are going to get when you decide to head for one of the buildings marked on the map, the worst is when the map marks something that is not open. The webpage listed quite a few building open for the exhibition that were not on the map (which of course got sent to the printers long ago), but most of these extra listings were not in fact open to the public. It is up to each individual group of residents to put in as much or as little energy as they would like. Some conduct guided tours, some decorate, some make photo exhibitions about the history of the building, and others just leave the front door open. But that is part of the fun. By looking at the map, or the webpage, you never know what you will discover hidden behind the facade.

This year, as we were both temporarily without bikes and my BKV pass had run out, we concentrated on the V, VI. and VII Districts within walking distance. But we still did A LOT of walking.
 
There were lots of interesting public buildings on the list this year, such as the Szechenyi Baths (had to reserve), the Ministry of Justice (too late), Ministry of Finance, ANTSZ and the Meridian Hotel which used to be police headquarters (they did not know about being listed). We really wanted learn more about the Obuda Gas Works Residential Estate  http://www.treehugger.hu/node/992  and http://www.treehugger.hu/node/1000 but could not easily get out there without a bike. The building at Deak Ferenc u. 17 with the metal facade was one I have always wanted to learn more about, but that was closed. Even so, we had a very good time and saw quite a few interesting places. We had a late start, so we concentrated on priority buildings. One of my top choices was Csengery u. 61, which I pass almost every day and affectionately call the "Jungle Building" with its crazy but "African" planters outside.

The Kossuth Museum Boat was a surprise, since we did not even know of its existence. While the exhibition was mostly old photographs of sailing history on Lake Balaton, and the guide read monotonously from a paper, the steam boat itself was in very good condition. The view of the Danube could not be beat, and the staff were very friendly. Surprisingly, the restaurant was very reasonably priced, and it might be someplace to visit this summer for a romantic dinner.

Sziv u. 42 and Secessionist Varosligeti Fasor 38 didn't know about it. Hernad u. 36-38 was closed, but Hernad u. 40/Istvan u. 20 was a massive complex with very interesting ceramic pictures by the entrances. A film was going to be shown in the evening in the attic. An exhibition in one of the flats was listed in the programme. We thought it would be about the building, but it was a man in a bathrobe with two old dolls. Still not sure what all that was about. We ran into Andrea here who used to run the English theatre programmes at Merlin Theatre and is not at Muszi.

The highlight of the weekend was the reformed church at Varosligeti fasor 5-7. This church has got to be one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever been in. The outside is adorned with odd brown tiles, and the metal doors are reminiscent of Dr. Doom's mask. This alone was reason enough to check out the inside. A fusion of Finnish and Hungarian folk traditions, the lamps alone were worth the visit. But then there was the live music, stained glass windows, organ, and the fact everywhere from the crypt to the balconies was open to the public as well. Photographs cannot do it justice.

Chazar Andras u. 7, 18 where I think I lived for a couple years in the early 1990s, and 19 were all closed. The last place we visited was Balassi Balint u. 19 where the residents had decorated the courtyard with balloons. Just before we reached this building however, we came across an interesting facade not on the list with metal doors and cross-eyed Susu dragons staring down at us. With any luck, it will turn 100 next year.