A Day out of Town

We started our day off early today at 7am with a good sized breakfast in the hotel. You've got to love those buffets! We made our way down to the Danube in Budapest to catch a boat to Szentendre an hour and half ride up the Danube. The boat was loaded with school kids who must be going on a field trip. We stayed as far away from the group as we could because they seemed pretty loud and excited. At one point Nancy saw one of the teachers hit one of the kids. It must no be illegal here. Anyway we enjoyed the ride up. It was raining a little but still enjoyable. We passed our hotel along the way.

Bill took a few zzzzzzzzzs along the way.

Szentrendre is one of those beautiful scenic little towns that is a perfect place to spend a day. There were loads of quaint little shops and restaurants on cobblestoned streets. Of course all the vendors were anxious to make a sale to you. The weather ended up nice and sunny.

The only one really looking to buy was Ken. He forgot his sandals at home and his shoes have been bothering him with all the walking we've been doing. The problem is that he wears size 15! We went in at least 5 shoestores with him trying on multiple pairs of shoes all to no avail. Bill quickly grew weary of the task and wouldn't even go in the store. He felt sorry for the workers. We'll have to look tomorrow in Budapest and see if we have any better luck.

We enjoyed a nice lunch in an outside cafe. The food was good but the service not quite so. The tips are included in the bills in Hungary so there probably isn't much need to over extend yourself. We took the train back to our hotel and enjoyed the countryside along the way.

This is the first time (other than on a cruise ship) where we've stayed in one place for a few days. We will be here a total of 4 nights. It has actually been very nice. The staff have been wonderful to us. We have taken a real liking to the dining room manager. We had a leisurely supper on the outside patio tonite and he came and sat down and talked for probably an hour and a half. He had spent 5 years working on a cruise ship in the Carribbean. He is super friendly and customer service oriented. He had juice sent up to our rooms on the first night. This afternoon when he saw we had come back he sent us up some donuts. Tonight he brought out two different desserts for us to try. All of this of course was on the house. Anyway it was interesting to hear his cruise ship stories and his perspective on communism in this country. He was 16 when communism fell.

Tommorrow we will spend the day again in Budapest, go to the airport to pick up our car rentals and then go back nearly at midnight to pick up Rick and Eric. I'm sure the trip will take on a different flavor then.