The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1985 (12. évfolyam, 1-11. szám)
1985-06-01 / 6. szám
WEEKEND IN HUNGARY —by— Dr. Victor IV. Molnár PART 5 — Sightseeing in Budapest It is Saturday May 26, 1984 and the beginning of our second day here. Our group is at the fashionable Royal Hotel on Lenin Boulevard. Even though the hotel has been renovated twice since World War II, the charm of a European Deluxe Hotel still manifests itself the moment one enters its small lobby; I only say small, as a comparison to other hotels this size. A buffet breakfast is included in the rental of a room, as is the case in most hotels in Europe, except those that are operated or managed by American concerns. We have a very generous buffet that even includes a chunky, thick gulyás, along with several types of bread, rolls, cheese plus milk, tea or coffee. A young lad, pushing a small cart, comes around selling orange juice for 30 forints (approximately 66C). The juice tastes like a fruit drink and is much weaker than the juice we had in Czechoslovakia, which the people in our group said was Tang, or a very good imitation of it. A sightseeing tour is the first major activity of the day. we are using the bus that brought us from Czechoslovakia. Zsuzsi Lévai, our IBUSZ guide in Hungary, welcomes us and asks us to please be on time as much as possible because there is a heavy schedule, or rather a full schedule of activities and sightseeing today. Zsuzsi informs us that we have a trainee guide with us today who will do the morning tour and that if Erika, the new girl, overlooks something of interest, she will fill in. Erika’s enthusiasm and knowledge is above average, but her command of the English is very limited. This, plus her heavy Hungarian accent means that if you are interested in knowing as much about Budapest as can be acquired on a sightseeing bus tour, you strain your ears and eventually your patience. Some people in the back of the bus near me are clearly bored because just the facts and the history that Erika tells us is very hard to absorb. After we were finished with the nearly 1 Vi hour city tour, I privately told Zsuzsi that Erika’s English is heavily accented and at times it was close to being incomprehensible and that Erika needs another course in English. What did we see on this 1 lA hour city tour? Well, without trying to be a guide book, I’ll just mention some of the highlights. We drove out to the City Park to Heroes Square, where we had a 25 minute stop while the two guides explained the nearby buildings and the spacious, attractively laid out square. In the center was a collonaded monument erected in 1896 to commemorate the millenium of Hungary. A tall column has a figure of St. Michael the Archangel on the top. He holds the ancient emblems of Hungary. At the base of this column is the bronze statue of the main Hungarian chief-Arpad, and the six other leaders who led the traditional seven tribes, that eventually made up the Hungarian nation, into the Danubian Basin. The semi-circular collonade has 14 statues of important kings and national leaders of Hungary, between the pillars. The first statue on the left is St. Stephen, the first King of Hungary and on the extreme right is Louis Kossuth. As we went from statue to statue the guides gave a nutshell explanation of the Kings and leaders and their importance in Hungarian history. continued Page 8 For a carefree, unforgettable pilgrimage to the fascinating land of your Hungarian heritage, come with us on our........... HISTORICAL TOUR OF HUNGARY (July 18 - August 10, 1985) All Expenses Included • First Class Accommodations Superb Meals • Fully Escorted • A/C Motorcoach Leisurely Itinerary Sponsored by: EIGHTH HUNGARIAN TRIBE MAGAZINE in cooperation with Fugazy International Travel, Ibusz, and Pan American World Airways For further information and a FULL COLOR brochure write: Frank Chrinka FUGAZY INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL 770 U.S. Highway *1 — North Brunswick, N.J. 08902 1-800-828-4488 (Out of State) • 201-828-4488 (New Jersey) HERITAGE TOURS to HUNGARY 1985 New York Departures • AIRFARE • 1st CLASS HOTELS • 34 MEALS • ENGLISH SPEAKING GUIDE - SIGHTSEEING IN 15 CITIES A tour which received high praise by all past participants! I June 13th “Springtime becomes Summer” DEPARTURE II July 11th “A Hungarian Summer” III August 15th “Late Summertime” DATES IV Sept. 12th “Wine Harvest Season” Call or write today for FULL COLOR brochure FUGAZY INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL 770 U.S. Highway *1 North Brusnwick N.J. 08902 Call o'- Write 1-800-828-4488 (Out of State) 201-828-4488 (New Jersey) Page 6 Eighth Hungarian Tribe
