Dent, Bob: Budapest for Children - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1992)
6. Parks and Open Spaces
40 PARKS AND OPEN SPACES length along the main road. The bus leaves the island at the northern end, then goes along Árpád Bridge to the “Árpád hid” metro station, from where it returns along the same route. Another, fun way of reaching the island in the summer is to take a boat. On the eastern side of the island there are two boat stops, one at the southern end, one at the northern. These can be reached by ferry boat from Jászai Mari tér at the Pest end of Margaret Bridge, and, for a longer ride, from a number of ferry-boat stops farther south on the river (see boat rides in section 3). At the bottom of the link road connecting Margaret Bridge to the island is a roundabout. The bronze monument standing here was erected in 1973 to mark the centenary of the unification of Buda, Pest and Óbuda. Inside the monument the sculptor placed various items and mementoes of the city’s previous 100 years. See what you can spot! From the roundabout here in the summer you can take various rides along the length of the island —open microbus carriages, open-top double decker, horse and carriage, etc. To the left of the roundabout is a place where bicycles can be hired (open late-March to late-October). Children’s bikes are available, as are tandems and some four-wheel, three- seaters. The bikes can be taken off the island, but the island itself is particularly suitable for cycling. Beyond the roundabout in the centre is a restaurant and beer-garden (summer only), while along the left, west side of the island there are two swimming pools (7), the Hajós and the large Palatínus. Just before the first there is a large playground with 12 swings, lots of different climbing frames, table-tennis tables, two plastic slides and three small concrete slides, plus a large sand-pit and some new “kiddies corner” equipment. Between the two (nearer the Hajós) there is another, smaller playground with two slides and some swings and parallel bars. Also here, on the island’s west side, there is the Vörösmarty Open-Air Cinema which screens films in the summer evenings. Depending on the film, this could be curious for children from colder climates who have never seen such a cinema. Beyond the Palatínus Baths, still on the west side, there
