Miscellaneous
Tips on Living
in Budapest
Contents
Travel
If you need to make travel arrangements, Vista
Travel is the place to go. They have a brand new office at the
corner of Bajcsy-Zsilinszky u't and Paulay Ede u. Mu''ve'szinas
restaurant is just across Paulay Ede. For train trips talk to Ti'mea; for
air reservations, talk to Katalin; to hear a wicked New Zealand accent,
talk to Dylan Cooper.
Maps
It is wise to buy a good map BEFORE you go to Budapest. My
personal favorite is the City Flash
brand, made jointly by Rand McNally and Hallwag AG. It is easy to read,
and marks all the streets and even footpaths such as those near Gelle'rt
hill. The names of some minor streets are not marked, which is sometimes
a nuisance, but more often an advantage because it keeps the map uncluttered
and hence easier to read. The map's major disadvantage is that it marks
only the metro and HE'V routes, not the bus, tram and trolleybus routes
(but again this makes it more readable). So you should buy a Budapest transportation
map to complement it. These are available for 185 Ft at any major metro
stop (such as Keleti Pu., Blaha Lujza te'r, Astoria, Dea’k te'r, Moszkva
te'r, De'li Pu., or Nyugati Pu.). This map shows all transportation lines
(including the oh-so-important night busses such as the 6E') and gives
starting and ending times for each.
Ultimate Frisbee
There is a group of Ultimate players who play every Saturday
at the rose garden of Margit-sziget, across from Palatinus strandfu:rdo''
(three stops from the south end of the island on bus 26). This is a great
way to have fun, get some exercise, and meet both English-speaking Hungarians
and expatriate Americans. Many of them are quite good players, but still
patient and glad to help teach inexperienced players.
Music
Lots of American big names come through Budapest for concerts,
and the tickets are cheap compared to what you would pay in the U.S. or
western Europe. Just watch the streets for the myriad posters advertising
big concerts. Check Pestiest for info on
the local music scene.
Telephone Cards
I recommend buying a phone card (telefonka'rtya) from the
post office. You get two choices -- a kis (750 Ft) or a nagy (1500 Ft)
card. The cheaper one give you 50 units, which was more than enough to
last me a semester. Each pay phone is either card or coin operated, but
not both, and the card phones are more common.
Thermal Baths
Make a point to go to one of the many thermal baths around
town. The ones at the Gelle'rt Hotel are nice. Combined admission
to the pool and baths costs 800 FT, but you get half-price after 5 pm (since
they close at 7 and start rushing you out prior to 6:45). A dressing room/locker
costs another 200 Ft, but you can split it several ways with your friends.
Bring your own towel.
Hardware Store
There is a good hardware store at Bajcsy-Zsilinszky u't 63,
near Nyugati Pu.
Computer Services
The Vista Bistro and Travel
Cafe offers internet access. I've used it (May 1999) and the
equipment was good, with a pleasant atmosphere. Jon Moore reports
(June 2000) that the rate is 660 Ft per hour.
[contributed by Dominic Mazzoni]
If you need a good, fast connection to the Internet while
in Budapest, or just access to some pretty good PC's for some reason, there's
one place to go: Elender Computer.
The best location if you want to use PC's is on Ferenc Ko:ru:t, about two
blocks east of Peto:fi hid. Say hi to Sanyi and Robi, and then use their
computers for about 150 Ft per half-hour. Alternatively, subscribe to a
dial-up account for 2500 Ft per month, which also comes with unlimited
telnet access to your account from any other computer, and free use of
the computers in the store most of the time. Unfortunately, they are only
open from 9-5, Monday through Friday. Their web site is at http://www.elender.hu;
information is available there in Hungarian and in English.
If you need a computer after-hours, try the store at the
Duna Plaza - it's open until 10:00pm most nights, including weekends. The
Duna Plaza is an American-style shopping mall in Ujpest: take the blue
metro line waaaay north to Gyo:ngyo:si utca, go up to the street level,
and you can't miss it.
5000 and 10,000 Forint Bills
Don't be surprised if a cashier protests when you try to
spend a 5000 Ft (or worse yet, a 10,000 Ft) note for a purchase of less
than 1000 Ft. It's best to break these "large" bills at places like the
post office, the grocery store, the transportation ticket window when you
buy your monthly pass, or a restaurant when you have a large group. A commonly-heard
phrase among BSM students dining together: "I call 5000."
Entertainment Information
The Budapest Week
and Budapest Sun (the two
English language weeklies) come out every Thursday and are both good sources
for listings of movies, concerts, and other cultural events. The restaurant
reviews are also sometimes useful. I prefer the movie section of the Week,
since it lists showtimes by film rather than by theater, as the Sun does.
Once you've acquired some proficiency with Hungarian, the free weekly magazinePestiest
is another good source for entertainment information. It is available for
free at any movie theater.
Changing Money
In Budapest it is easy to find places to exchange dollars
for forints without commission. Some banks (such as OTP) have a
slightly better rate for traveler's checks than for cash, although I heard
some branches stopped accepting traveler's checks at all. One safe bet
is to use your ATM card to make withdrawals directly from your checking
account back home. You can find ATM's on the Plus and Cirrus systems everywhere.
You will get an excellent exchange rate, but your bank will probably charge
a flat fee on the order of $1 to $3 per withdrawal, so you might want to
check that out before you leave home.
Discount Movie Tickets
If you are a student, for 200 Ft you can buy a book of 30
coupons which allow you half-price admission at three theaters: Taba'n
(on Krisztina krt.), Mu''ve'sz (Tere'z krt.), and Szinbad
(Szt. Istva'n krt., halfway from Nyugati Pu. to the Danube, on the right
side of the street.
Shaking off Unwanted Attention
Some of the panhandlers just won't take "no" for an answer.
One guy tried to bum money off me in Hungarian, English, German, French,
Spanish, and Italian. One effective way to deal with such people is to
say "Csak japanul beszelek." That is, "I speak only Japanese." You might
get some strange looks if you don't appear to be Asian, but it never fails
to end the conversation.
Last modified 1 July 2000.
Copyright Aaron Archer, 2000.