Following the Tauck Guide

We stayed at the Meridien Hotel in the middle of the city and took some time to wander around the central city on our own.

We had had a chance to try the local wine in each stop, most of these countries have a well developed wine industries. We found a place for lunch on Andrássy Avenue, which is a major avenue with casual restaurants sprinkled in among designer boutiques. John and I shared a bottle of Tokay and some local salami and cheese. All good.

Locals at the Budapest Farm Market

We arrive in Budapest, which is easily the most sophisticated place we have visited on this trip.

Highlight of the Budapest stop came this morning when the group toured the Hungarian State Opera –the Opera House is a product of the Hapsburg era.

A Tauck special, we had a drop in visit and 3 or 4 short numbers from what must have been two of the established stars who showed up at 10AM on Sunday.

Everything else had to be anticlimactic – but we still had a good rest of the day. We visited the indoor market – a local version of Philly’s Reading Terminal Farmers Market – but bigger. Everyone got a chance to get in line behind the locals and taste some of the famous local pastry.

Hungarian Rider

We stop at a tiny port (Solt) in Hungary for some of the local culture. This is farm country with two traditional products – peppers that become paprika and spectacular horses and equestrian skills. The equestrian show included all of the local products – white and red wine, Pálinka, a dangerous local schnapps and flatbread baked in a big outdoor oven. It made for a nice preamble for the horses and riders, who were “big top” quality. The finale was a rider standing on one of a team of five horses – no saddles, just five sets of reins. He did a couple of laps around the “ring” without a hiccup. The five white horses were striking – the rider was amazing.