Buza Péter: Bridges of the Danube - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1999)

pennies were charged for the crossing on the “ice bridge”.

Besides allowing traffic to flow from Pest to Buda and back, the ice served as a staging place for large-scale balls and even fairs. Such promenading on the frozen Danube came to an abrupt and tragic end in 1883. in front of the Greek church, near today’s Petőfi tér, the traditional ball on ice was under way when all at once the seemingly solid ice shield broke apart and the dance floor collapsed, engulfing hundreds of the guests at the party. Some forty people drowned in the ice-cold water.

In wintertime the Danube is always treacherous. The ice can start to drift at any moment, rendering any crossing impossible whether on foot or by boat. That is what happened on a festive day in 1800, when Palatine József held his nuptials with Alexandra Pavlovna, the ill-fated daughter of the czar. Every nobleman and celebrity of Pest was invited to the ceremony. Everybody was having a good time when word came that the ice of the Danube had started to drift. The whole party was stranded in Buda, far from the worrying family, the nightcap and the comfortable couch, in a “strange” town. Fortunately, the Palatine opened every room of the Parliament and the guests were able to continue the party for two days and nights.

There were always people with urgent business, who could not postpone the crossing and wait until the river cleared from the drifting ice. Ferrymen or one of the daring boatmen charged a small fortune for putting his life at risk. In the wintertime, in the middle of the small ferryboat, there was a cylindrical iron stove with a small, flickering fire to keep passengers from freezing. Sometimes they needed to help to get the boat moving again when it got stuck, encircled by plates of ice. On the riverside the hurried passers-by were chilled by the dull cries of “lullll-lei! lullll-lei!” cutting through the thick fog as the crew and the passengers of the ferry tried to wrench the boat free of the bonds of ice.

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