Budapest in night and day

I was at the market after I wrote the last time. I arrived late partly because I forgot my camera and returned to the hostel to get it. The market was open but the majority of the shop were on their way to close or already had start with it. So I did't see the market as it suppose to be, but part of it.

After that I eat a ice-cream and took it easy, great way :) I walked thought the Váci utca and wondering which bars that is scams (girls approaches tourist men and make them go their with the result in a huge bill). A pizza later I was on my way to the Turkish bath but it was already evening. I founded the bath on a dark road but in there it was only men... "hmm.. can I help you?" followed by the explanation its open for men only today. The girl in the reception sad it was mixed today so I was very surprised.The tram back to the hostel and then the tram further... I ended up in Széchenyi Baths, a historical bath or something like that. Thermal Bath any way so the temperature was 29-39˚. It was tree different bath outside, one swimming-pool that I think was around 29˚, one pool that was 34˚ and one that was between 38-39˚. I would have preferred it warmer! But sure, it was warm. The steam in front of the stone building was a amazing view. I didn't bring my camera so check this out instead:
http://www.spasbudapest.com/furdo.php?idx=14&menu=8

Now Im back at the hostel and thinking about my plans for tomorrow.. or today actually. My train leave in 5 hours... If I take the one after I get to Warsaw to late for my bus to Riga and I need to spend one day in Warsaw.  I wasn't up for that. Not at all. Update soon ;)

Today I have a lot of plans! I go and get my camera so you maybe get to see some of it tonight. Now its time for the market first of all and some thing to eat on the way. The pictures I'll talked about last night, forget it. I have other things to do but maybe tomorrow I have the possibility to fix them.

Can't avoid it

I can't avoid share this text whit you, just because I find it so funny. Do not worry about me, my point is actually the opposite!

By night

Mostly there's no reason to have concerns about Budapest by night. In practice, the whole city, including all the touristy areas, Pest within the inner ring road (the line of Szent István körút–Teréz körút–Erzsébet körút–József körút–Ferenc körút, popularly known as Nagykörút), and Buda are safe even before dawn. Most locals avoid walking alone by night in outer zones of districts 8th and 9th in Pest, as these are shady, though not particularly dangerous areas. Areas in 8th district behind Népszinház utca - József körút can be a bit risky, although the district is CCTV monitored by the police. If you don't have special thing to do there, try not to have a walk at night at Lujza, Dankó, Magdolna Streets and their surroundings: also, it's not a very attractive area. Népszinház utca itself is not a very nice place after dark but usually not risky.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Budapest

the place in bold are quite close to my hostel and the café I had plan to go to tonight but never did. I will get there tomorrow instead :) Just funny if you ask me. But if you read the whole text you can find this:

Keep a low profile or avoid the public transportation system on weekend nights. 

So I just think they exaggerates everything! But something they need to do. But sure, I don't feel safe in Budapest of some reason I don't know about... 

I am here!

You are here the big dot on the flow indicate and "Here are you!" are the text under it... So here am I!
Here is in Budapest in Hungary in a hostel called Casa de la Musica Hostel. Heres some picture and info from it:
http://www.hostels.com/hostels/budapest/casa-de-la-musica-hostel/35474
I like it, but I have only been here for a few hours. People here seems to be nice but not so social, but its maybe me, II am not so social in this moment... Well yes whit internet people I already know but not with new contacts here. I want to sit here, take it easy and just.. take it easy :)
Chris showed me this hostel after a visit at the castle in Budapest and at the museum there. I like it. But I was angry as a bee before that... I was at the Good Morning Hostel before and hostels.com writes a dorm cost 7Euro, a normal price around here, little cheap but not expectationally. It's the same price as the hostel I am at now... Any way, when I got there and left the backpack at the right place I remember to ask them about the price, just to be sure. And she say "14 Euro" what? I tried to discuss whit here but she was not so friendly so I gave up and we walked away. I don't like when people try to do scams and this was one. I don't believe it just was a mistake on their site (and I could have get online and booked the hostel from there and then they wouldn't have any other choice then let me stay there for that price I guess, even if I am sure they would try to take out more...). After that I was angry and my horn grove out again. We went to an internet café and I become calmer but I planed to leave Budapest the same evening or early the morning after. Chris made me come with him to the Castle and that was great :) A beautiful view over Budapest in the dark! I did't took any pictures, I may get up there or to another high place tomorrow to do it. I will look around for some places maybe worth a visit after finished this writing. That's indicate I will be staying tomorrow to and that is my plan to do so. I will go in the morning the 14th. I need to go the 14th because my InterRail card expiring the 14h so I need to be in Warza that evening at the latest. From there I can get to Riga or Tallinn where I will get a boat home. But first I will be there (Riga/Tallinn) a little time too. Any way I liked this hostel a lot so I stay here one more day, so I can sleep tomorrow and read a lot and maybe one project or a little more.
But something more I should do tomorrow... What? Well we see that later on :) Now I going to do some searches, go through some pictures from the train-trip to Budapest and read a little. And fell in a deep and nice sleep... or a nice dream maybe more positive :)

Skopje in black and white

It's time fore some pictures in black and white. I don't know if there are any new ones but I will put them in the order of my walking path (around)... and they are b/w :)

Heading for Hungary

Heading  for Hungary

11 november

I am writing this on my way to Budapest. As you may have notice I haven’t wrote so much the past days. Well I haven’t been traveling around, I have been walking around and I had not the same time to write.

The past days I spent in Skopje, a wonderful city.  A regular city in many ways but on the other hand it wasn’t. It was calm, but alive. People were very friendly and they tried to help when they could. Even thru the most people didn’t speak so much English, if any at all, gestures and trying took me a long way. The food was lovely, mostly because there were a lot of different vegetarian dishes and mostly very cheap to. 

In the bazaar it was crowd, a thin path to walk on between all fruit and vegetable stands. Cheap and fresh fruit in big amounts, I actually never bought something there so I don’t know the taste of them but it was a cozy place to walk in. Outside the narrow streets of the old town was lying, waiting for someone to pass. And people did, all the time. There you found restaurant’s shops but most of all, small cafés. You could buy something to drink or something easy to eat for a small amount of money, and waste a lot of time here.  A walk down from the old town took you to the stone bridge and let you pass over the Vadar River.  It’s a mastodon bridge from the 15^th century that leads you to the main street. Lots of statues, mostly of different war heroes or helgon from Christianity stand beside the roads as you pass by. Moder Theresa are said been bore here and a little church are built to her honor. In the main streets there are still a lot of cafés but the big restaurant and regular shops are more familiar here. If you don’t want to go inside you can buy some roosted hazelnuts on your way instead.

The fortress is worth a visit, as a lot of mosques in the neighborhood. The fortresses are to be found in the west of the old town. Mosques are to be found everywhere. There are also hammams to visit but they are all rebuild to museum.

I could write for hours about this little town, in the size of Uppsala but I prefer to stop here for this time, otherwise I will just be sad. I really liked this town and I now on my way so it feels mostly sad. I can’t remember why on earth I would take that decision, but I had already made it. I look forward to see Budapest again but I can’t get over the feeling of what I leaving. There are so much I want to so the Ohird Lake in the southwest of Macedonia. Just a walk thru a bigger part of Skopje would be great. And another day at the mountains beside the Matka Lake and explore the area and go to the monastery’s there was actually planed but I never got the time, or I never took it. There is no question; I need to get back here again, soon.  

What negative are there to say about Skopje? I don’t know actually. People don’t speak so much English, but they are friendly and the most people try to understand anyway. For a long visit here I would learn some Macedonian, I think that will help a lot. It doesn’t even the taxi drivers try to screw you on your money, I was very surprised about that. Ok, a little of course but they not charging 200 instead if 1,5 Euros. They charge 2,5 Euros instead of 1,5-2 Euros.  Ohh, I have found something! There are a lot of beggars out on the street. A lot of women with their young child at one arm the other one free to take some gifts. It feels terrible because they seems marginalized from the society, like it was the only thing they ever could do. The most people I have speak to say that they all are gypsies  that are begging and that you should stay away from them. I know they mean well when they warn you, but I can’t just look away and think it’s there choice. The warning was mostly about groups of young children that begging for money because and said that they will rob you if you give them anything. Not because the one that gets the money will rob you, but because they all want to have something. I never saw this kids but I heard a lot of warnings about them. I can’t believe I could resist giving them something just because of that, but as I wrote, I never meet them. But the beggars in the street were a common view. I don’t know what the best way is to help them and that’s still bothers me. Maybe it’s not so much I can do as a tourist there just for a few days but... I can’t feed all of them and that’s maybe my problem. The fact that people are poor I think is hard and something we need to solve together, the whole world. But this, I’m not so sure. There are not just poor people, they are a few really poor people in country who aren´t rich but I not poor enough to leave this people to their own destiny.

I look forward to see Budapest and I guess I will post this later tonight.  Some pictures from Skopje will be uploaded too.  But I still just want to go back. And the fact I had Kosovo 2 hours away from me irritate me a lot. Just a bus tour and I would have been there…  And Albania just some more hours away…  and Bosnia… But Kosovo way just 5Euros and 2 hours (maybe 3) away. Well nothing to do about now I think… I don’t miss Sweden at all. If I had the possible to decide I would not go there for a long time. I would like to travel around and see things. Not be in could Sweden. Have I mention the weather here? Around 10-20°C most of the time.

What a surprise, in the middle of nowhere “wireless network found”.  But it´s not so open as it at the first look like so I don´t get out any way.  My battery on my computer is almost empty, my phones battery is ok but long way from full. It’s the bad thing when traveling around in Balkan, to charge something on the train will just be a dream far far away… 

Breakfast at the fortress for this man

A mosque I visited