I have been living in Budapest for over 20 years now, and it takes a day like last Sunday to make me realise how lazy I have become in exploring the place. Mookie took me on a great bike ride this weekend from the VIII District down the Danube, across Csepel Island and back up through Budafok to Budapest. For the first part of the trip we followed European Bike Road 6 through dilapidated industrial areas steadily being reclaimed by nature. The first stop was the Barka Szinház, which I have heard puts on great productions.I was surprised to see that besides their main building, they also have a big sunken outdoor theater nestled into the side of Orczy Kert. I am curious if they will have any productions there this summer. Around Pesterzsébet and Gubacsi Bridge (onto Csepel Island) we explored a nice little area like a dead-end village within the city that used to host a brick factory (téglagyár). Here, on the bank of the Danube is also the aparently abondoned Pestszenterzsébeti Jódos-Sós Gyógy-és Strandfürdő 1203- Budapest (Vízisport út 2). Built in the 1920's, it is (was) Budapest's only iodine-bromide thermal bath. Crossing over to Molnar Island, we followed the path down to one of the few surving cable ferries that runs every hour on the hour between Molnár Sziget and Csepel Sziget. However, we bypassed this and continud down the Pest bank of the Danube. On the way, we passed the Zöld Béka (green frog ) restaurant that Mookie recommends for its frog legs, seriously. The roads had very little foot, bike or motorised traffic, but this could have been just because of the high winds. The weather did not disturb all the fishermen we saw. We eventually crossed over to Csepel on the M0 bridge and headed across the island battling the wind every step of the way. Even so, we enjoyed seeing all the horses, goats, and ven an abandoned car in a field with the words "ass pest bonk tour" painted on its side. Tired of the wind, we sought shelter by turning into Ezüst Tó utca (silver lake). I was thinking that there have probably been many an unsuspecting cyclist lured down this street by false hope, but it was a day of surprises. In fact, Kavicsos Tó (Pebble Lake), a quarry lake, gleamed with dappled sunshine and whitecaps. Its shores are very built up, but the view is beautiful. There is an article here about the urbanisation of the area and its impact on the environment. We finally made it across Csepel and stopped for a well-earned beer. The return trip along the Danube on the Buda side brought us through Budafok past the Törley champagne factory. A parked double-decker British bus (Dunaparty) was parked down the embankment playing some groovey tunes next to several tables in the sunshine and a langos-palacsinta stand. We pulled in for some food and accidentally met friends Merrill and Libora. After stuffing ourselves with a good cheese-sour cream-garlic lángos and some good conversation, we saddled up again and entered the beautifully renovated area of Kopaszi gát along Lágymányosi Bay. It's a great landscaped 15-hectare green area along the dike this summer for hanging out and picniking. There is some beautiful modern architecture to see here, even the police station. We crossed back into Pest on Lágymányosi Bridge. It was a 40km great ride, much of it in green areas near the water, and easily accessible. I think I will be spending a lot of time in this area over the summer.
route map