Budapest, Hungary + Vidampark: My Obnoxious ACE Central Europe Trip Report - Part II

Welcome back. :}

Last time we met, the boys and I were just leaving The Largest Funfair on the Rhein. Not even six hours later, we're on an airplane to Budapest, Hungary for the official start of the ACE Central Europe Trip!

Our day starts with a well-rounded airline breakfast. :}

The flight attendant hands me this little spaceship-looking thing of yogurt!

Plain yogurt with chocolate granola! I don't even like yogurt, but it was free and I was starving. Down the hatch!

Once we landed in the tiny Budapest airport, I partook in breakfast - Part II

I got a pastry and a can of Hell.

Before our flight, we ran into Randy and Terry! They were in Dusseldorf, too! Terry's the biggest Schwarzkopf fan I know, so it was no surprise that they hit up Olympia and Alpina.

After navigating the flock of sleazy taxi vultures (strange foreign men who hound travelers outside of the airport to drum up taxi business (which is illegal)), we boarded the shuttle to the airport train station. 

Whoa. This looks safe.

Our theory is that the bridge is covered like this so that people won't try to jump.

Our train!

This is the ticket counter. Yes, that man is on a step ladder speaking to the ticket salesman. 

The culture shock quickly set in. We were not in Kansas anymore.

In fact, I was a little scared.

"What have I gotten myself into?" I thought. 

Evidence of previous Soviet control was everywhere. Pretty much the whole 20 minute train ride looked like this.

Well, here's the main train station. Slightly less bleak!

Oh WOW! Okay, now we're talking. 

LOOK AT THIS MCDONALDS.

We walked around the corner and found a mall. :}

Next to the mall is the hotel!

There was nothing more comforting after traversing an alien landscape than walking into the lobby and seeing familiar ACE faces! 

The hotel was very nice.

After check-in, we met up with Steve & eagerly set out to explore the city! Outside our hotel, we ran into the trip coordinators: Ray, Lace, and Kevin!

Down to the Underground!

The men all discussed the best routes to take for sightseeing.

Dive! Dive! DIVE!

When we popped out of the subway, we found a large ferris wheel in the middle of the tourist district. 

And where there is a Ferris Wheel, there are ACErs!!

Soon we were headed in the direction of the Danube River to cross the Chain Bridge over to Buda Castle!

Here we are, close to the river's edge!

This building is important for some reason, but I forget why.

Buda Castle and Chain Bridge!

Michael got roped in to doing good-samaritan things. 

There's the Matthias Church and the Fisherman's Bastion. We'll be over there later.

All of this is the "Buda" side of the city.

Everything over here is the "Pest" side of the city.

And since 1873, they have been one unified city!

On the other side of the bridge, we headed towards the castle.

Coat of arms.

Budapest has a funicular that can take you up Buda Castle & other things.

We decided to skip it and take the scenic route.

"We put the FUN in funicular!"

Ahh, Buda Castle. This is where Katy Perry filmed the award-winning Firework music video!

The vantage points & views are bountiful.

Over on the left is the Parliament building, which is arguably the most famous building in Pest.

Buda Castle's courtyards are, of course, stunning.

Lovely fountains. 

SHOPPING! Excuse me for a second.

*Commits shameless acts of tourist capitalism*

We continued north towards the Matthias Church.

I SWEAR there will be roller coasters at some point on this update. 

Matthias is getting a little TLC.

Fisherman's Bastion!

Blah blah blah Matthias Church blah blah.

By this point we were getting pretty hungry. After a few million more shots, we headed back in the general direction of the tourist district for dinner.

We walked down from the Fisherman's Bastion and headed towards the Underground.

Across the river shot of Parliament!

Michael looks so angst-y in this shot! It's like he's posing for an album cover or something.

See?

Dinner time! (Yes, we are those kind of people)

I had to get my Hard Rock Cafe Budapest shirt so that I could passive-agressively brag to people that I've been to Budapest. :}

The streets around town are beautiful.

After returning to the hotel, I found out that Jeff, my roommate, had arrived! According to Lace, he and Ray went shopping at the mall, which happens to be conveniently attached to the hotel! Michael, Steve, and Ron had no interest in shopping, so I sent them back into town & I headed into the mall.

See? The Hilton is part of the mall!

The mall is gorgeous!

IT'S MAT AND JOHN! AND AN H&M!! YAAAYYYY!!!!!!!

We looked everywhere for Jeff and Kevin. Eventually, they found us. :}

That evening, I decided (on a whim), that I would go out to Budapest's "Ruined Bar" scene with fellow ACErs Bill Harrison and Daniel Tardy. I figured this might be my once-in-a-lifetime shot to go party in Budapest, so I went for it!

Our first stop was this beautiful courtyard bar.

Here are the party animals, Bill and Daniel!

We made new friends. :}

And walked by some interesting places of business.

Then we went to a large bar composed of several reclaimed buildings and DANCED!

It was absolutely wild! Friendly people everywhere, shoulder-to-shoulder sweaty bodies movin' & groovin' as one!

Made a few more friends. ;}

Some of the bar was even underground!

By the time we were ready to leave, the sun was coming up.

It was broad daylight by the time we got outside!

It was about 6am when we got back to the hotel.

Since I was going to get up at 7 anyways, I decided to just skip the sleeping part & start my day!

Day 3! Time for coasters!

Silly Homos: ASSEMBLE! 

Our first official park of the trip is the quaint, dark-ride laden, and historically significant Vidampark!

All of the ACErs lining up for ERT on Hullàmvasùt (Rollercoaster) & answering questions for Vidampark's press person. 

A car full of ACErs ready to ride! Charles is all about it!

Hullàmvasùt is one of the oldest coasters in the world, dating back to 1922! It's a miracle it survived.

There's my party boys sleep-deprived zombies!

A large freeway sits immediately behind Hullàmvasùt.

Weee! First drop! Like most Scenic Railways, Hullàmvasùt is a very mild and family-friendly ride. 

On our first ride, we got a particularly nice view of the brakeman. :}

Bill, you so crazy!

Hooray! That's credit #60 of my Year of 100 New Coasters! 

I see you, Ron!

This mild ride is made quite entertaining with spring-loaded seats that bounce along the track!

Woo! Big drop!

We were treated to a walk-back tour of the coaster, where better shots of it were to be had!

Leaning up against the freeway is the park's boneyard.

Look at the way these cars separate from the undercarriage! I've never seen anything like it!

The brakeman watches over his happy train of riders!

Seems legit. 

Dark ride #1!

Whoa. This is one of the scariest things I've seen in a dark ride.

We were on our way to our next credit, but something more interesting caught our attention.

I give you: the Flying Circus!

This ride is all sorts of wrong. And yet, it's so right! 

It really gives a sensational ride. 

Okay, back to our regularly scheduled credit.

Take a basic mouse, add outside spinning cars, and you have the best little mouse ever! So much more fun than the typical Dizzy Mouse-Style spinning mouse.

The Michaels and Mat are ready for a spin!

Swift little ride with some nice face-choppers! Spinning Coaster is credit #61

Uh-oh! Jeff broke the ride!! The cute ride operator had to come rescue him. :)

Ahh yes! We are in the land of the Top Spin. I didn't ride any until the very end of the trip, though. Be patient. 

Then there's this evil contraption. T-Rex is a classic, effed-up European flat ride. It was nauseating. 

Ferris Wheel time!

Wow. This looks almost as safe as that train station outside the airport. 

The ferris wheel gives a nice view of Kukomotív, the park's Wacky Worm, and not much else!

(That's credit #62!)

Glamourous photo shoot from high above Budapest!

So yeah, this thing was spooky. You only go around once. It moves really slowly & doesn't stop. It's really quiet. And, of course, you're sitting in a plastic kiddie chair.

Back on terra firma!

*kisses ground*

Let's explore the park some more.

Dark ride #2! (Vidampark's dark rides BOOK IT. They're all really fast for some reason.)

Every European amusement park with an Africa/Jungle/Adventure-themed area or ride usually has a depiction of indigenous peoples eating foreigners.

Surprise of the park! A 1920s American classic! It looks and runs great, too!

The cars are Great Britain themed.

Tim and Jeffrey are ready for a ride! Dave looks like he's reading a newspaper. 

Dark ride #3! Fantasy train ride! And also, ever-camera-ready Evan! 

Another rare gem: A vintage "Parlor Carousel"! Parlor Carousels rotate with their horses facing out at a 45 degree angle, and unlike traditional carousels, these horses are actually heavy-duty rocking horses!

Steve, Evan, and Bill are ready to rock! 

This carousel also has tea cups!

Super-legit gift shop!

Dark ride #4! Crazy-ass funhouse!! The wacky living room part was the best! On the left is a barstool that spins at an alarming rate when you sit on it! That thing threw me off mechanical-bull style!

The rest of the funhouse was cool, but the wacky living room was the best part. At the very end is an outdoor barrel of fun, just before which I got my VERY FIRST BEE STING! 

At first I thought I stepped on a thorn, but I took off my sandal and saw a very sad-looking bee sitting there, partially squashed. I plucked the stinger out & proceeded to hop through the barrel of fun on one foot.

Dark ride #5! The Old Mill!

Vidampark's Old Mill, like the one at Rye Playland, is built underneath the old wooden coaster.

The Old Mill's station is very high-tech.

The ride op pulls the unloaded boats over to the loading area.

And to dispatch, he gives it a little nudge with his foot!

Just LOOK at this adorable table & chair set! Thank you, Richard, for modeling it for me!

Last ride of the day! A Huss classic! 

Ikarus has a really nice long ride cycle! Nice way to end our time at Vidampark! 

Our time in Hungary has come to an end, but the day is not over. Time for a nap on the coach as we're whisked away to beautiful Vienna, Austria!! :D