One of the reasons why I really like Budapest is because one can go sightseeing any time. Even as a local you can find new spots you have never been to, there are more and more new restaurants, cafes and bars all over the downtown area, so you can really feel like a tourist sometimes. However, today I’d like to talk about something else.
Today was the first real winter day. Yesterday it was snowing all day long, without stopping. And as the weather is cold enough the snow remained. This morning arrived with stunning sunshine, so I couldn’t wait to get out of the house after being locked up in an office 8 hours a day during the week. My favourite green spot in town is the Margaret island, in Hungarian Margitsziget, which now is a white spot 😊 A lot of tourist would like to visit it and they can’t imagine what it is like. Well, the island is situated between Margaret and Árpád bridge, right in the heart of the city. Actually, it is a 15 minutes’ walk from the Parliament from the Pest side and about 30 minutes from the Castle hill from the Buda side. Even the trams 4-6 have a stop next to the entrance of the island. It is a very popular place among the people, but why, and what makes it so special?
Its area is 96, 5 acres which compared to the Retiro Park in Madrid (350 acres) or the Hyde Park in London (140 acres) is rather small. Still it is the home of two four-star hotels, 2 swimming pools, an athletic centre and several little parks and bars. It is beautiful with its flowers, squirrels and birds in spring and summer, in autumn you are amazed by the lively colours and in winter it is still full of life. I really enjoyed my walk today on it. There weren’t so many people as everyone is busy doing their X-mas shopping still there were families with children and dogs, tourists, groups of teenagers and elderly people doing their daily work too. It was calm and silent thanks to the fact that it is in the middle of the Danube and the noise from the two sides of the city are carried away by the river. In summer I really like coming here to swim in the Hajós Alfréd Swimming pool which has 4 outdoor swimming pools and from where I could hear the noise of cheering even today as one of these outdoor pools is covered with a huge tent so that water polo matches can be organized all year round. You may know that Hungarian swimmers and the water polo team have won several Olympics.
Today was the first real winter day. Yesterday it was snowing all day long, without stopping. And as the weather is cold enough the snow remained. This morning arrived with stunning sunshine, so I couldn’t wait to get out of the house after being locked up in an office 8 hours a day during the week. My favourite green spot in town is the Margaret island, in Hungarian Margitsziget, which now is a white spot 😊 A lot of tourist would like to visit it and they can’t imagine what it is like. Well, the island is situated between Margaret and Árpád bridge, right in the heart of the city. Actually, it is a 15 minutes’ walk from the Parliament from the Pest side and about 30 minutes from the Castle hill from the Buda side. Even the trams 4-6 have a stop next to the entrance of the island. It is a very popular place among the people, but why, and what makes it so special?
Its area is 96, 5 acres which compared to the Retiro Park in Madrid (350 acres) or the Hyde Park in London (140 acres) is rather small. Still it is the home of two four-star hotels, 2 swimming pools, an athletic centre and several little parks and bars. It is beautiful with its flowers, squirrels and birds in spring and summer, in autumn you are amazed by the lively colours and in winter it is still full of life. I really enjoyed my walk today on it. There weren’t so many people as everyone is busy doing their X-mas shopping still there were families with children and dogs, tourists, groups of teenagers and elderly people doing their daily work too. It was calm and silent thanks to the fact that it is in the middle of the Danube and the noise from the two sides of the city are carried away by the river. In summer I really like coming here to swim in the Hajós Alfréd Swimming pool which has 4 outdoor swimming pools and from where I could hear the noise of cheering even today as one of these outdoor pools is covered with a huge tent so that water polo matches can be organized all year round. You may know that Hungarian swimmers and the water polo team have won several Olympics.
I got off the bus number 26 right after it entered the island from Árpád bridge. The same bus runs from the Margaret bridge as well. Apart from this bus only cars with special permission can enter the island. You either come on foot or by bike. There are several stands where you can rent so-called “bringóhintó”s which will remind you of the vehicles seen in the Flinstones 😊 In the recent years electric cars/golf cars are also popular. Honestly, in summer it is rather dangerous to walk in the island as these vehicles are barely noisy, so you need to jump off their way in the last minute.
All around the island there is a running lane which is more or less 5300 meters long. I saw people running on it even today. Not even winter can stop a real jogger. Honestly, although I am not good at this sport, nor like it, whenever I am on the island I feel like following those enthusiastic people. Actually, I managed to go around the island once half running half walking this spring, just because the person running in front of me had a good rhythm that was easy for me to follow.
To the culture junkies some words about the name and the history of the island. As you may have heard about it the river Danube was the eastern border of the Roman Empire. Therefore you can find roman remains in today’s Óboda about which I am going to speak at a different post. Scientist doubt that the Romans wouldn’t occupy the island but there is no evidence for that. It had several different names among others the Island of the rabbits. It got its current name after Princess Margit, the Hungarian equivalent of Margaret. She was the daughter of King Béla IV who ruled the country during the Mongolian invasion in 1241-42 and made an oath he would offer his daughter to the service of God if he saves the country. The Mongolians left the country in 1242, the same year when Margaret was born. She was sent to the convent at the age of 4 to Veszprém, and was moved to this island with eighteen other nuns in 1452 to a newly built cloister, the remains of which you can still see on the island. As a teacher of Hungarian Literature and Grammar her life was a mandatory reading for me at the university. I remember, I was shocked by it. She accepted the most disgusting tasks in the monastery such as cleaning the latrine to serve God and although his father offered him twice to leave the convent and get married, she refused to do so. She very often predicted the future, so she did with her own death according to the other nuns. She was only 28, but considering the fact that we are speaking about the 13th century, that was not such an early age. She was canonized in 1943.
Next to the remains of the cloister you can see the water tower with the open air theatre which hosts concerts and theatre plays in summer. There is some magic in the air those nights 😊 I remember seeing here the Buena Vista Social Club in 2013 on a hot summer night. I will never forget that concert. You can enter the water tower, according to its webpage it is open from June to September in good weather and there are nice views to the city.
Close to them there is a little church built, actually rebuilt in roman style. The original was built in the 12th century but was completely destroyed by the Turks in 1541. It was reconstructed in 1930-31 and the bell of it is the original one, one of the oldest of the country which was discovered in 1914 after a storm uprooted a walnut tree.
It is also worth visiting the Japanese garden close to the Árpád bridge where I could see ducks swimming even today, and on the other entrance of the island, at the Margaret bridge, which is considered to be the main entrance of the island by many, in summer you can see the music fountain.
So it doesn’t matter if you are a tourist or an expat, maybe a Hungarian living in the city, it is always a good idea to go for a walk in the island. Today I walked along it taking photos in an hour just so that you have an idea of its size. Enjoy!
All around the island there is a running lane which is more or less 5300 meters long. I saw people running on it even today. Not even winter can stop a real jogger. Honestly, although I am not good at this sport, nor like it, whenever I am on the island I feel like following those enthusiastic people. Actually, I managed to go around the island once half running half walking this spring, just because the person running in front of me had a good rhythm that was easy for me to follow.
To the culture junkies some words about the name and the history of the island. As you may have heard about it the river Danube was the eastern border of the Roman Empire. Therefore you can find roman remains in today’s Óboda about which I am going to speak at a different post. Scientist doubt that the Romans wouldn’t occupy the island but there is no evidence for that. It had several different names among others the Island of the rabbits. It got its current name after Princess Margit, the Hungarian equivalent of Margaret. She was the daughter of King Béla IV who ruled the country during the Mongolian invasion in 1241-42 and made an oath he would offer his daughter to the service of God if he saves the country. The Mongolians left the country in 1242, the same year when Margaret was born. She was sent to the convent at the age of 4 to Veszprém, and was moved to this island with eighteen other nuns in 1452 to a newly built cloister, the remains of which you can still see on the island. As a teacher of Hungarian Literature and Grammar her life was a mandatory reading for me at the university. I remember, I was shocked by it. She accepted the most disgusting tasks in the monastery such as cleaning the latrine to serve God and although his father offered him twice to leave the convent and get married, she refused to do so. She very often predicted the future, so she did with her own death according to the other nuns. She was only 28, but considering the fact that we are speaking about the 13th century, that was not such an early age. She was canonized in 1943.
Next to the remains of the cloister you can see the water tower with the open air theatre which hosts concerts and theatre plays in summer. There is some magic in the air those nights 😊 I remember seeing here the Buena Vista Social Club in 2013 on a hot summer night. I will never forget that concert. You can enter the water tower, according to its webpage it is open from June to September in good weather and there are nice views to the city.
Close to them there is a little church built, actually rebuilt in roman style. The original was built in the 12th century but was completely destroyed by the Turks in 1541. It was reconstructed in 1930-31 and the bell of it is the original one, one of the oldest of the country which was discovered in 1914 after a storm uprooted a walnut tree.
It is also worth visiting the Japanese garden close to the Árpád bridge where I could see ducks swimming even today, and on the other entrance of the island, at the Margaret bridge, which is considered to be the main entrance of the island by many, in summer you can see the music fountain.
So it doesn’t matter if you are a tourist or an expat, maybe a Hungarian living in the city, it is always a good idea to go for a walk in the island. Today I walked along it taking photos in an hour just so that you have an idea of its size. Enjoy!
