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  • HI, I'M RICK STEVES, BACK WITH

  • MORE OF THE BEST OF EUROPE.

  • THIS TIME, WE'RE SOAKING IN THE CULTURAL WONDERS OF HUNGARY,

  • IN BUDAPEST.

  • YOUR MOVE.

  • IT'S COSMOPOLITAN, COMPLICATED AND A BIT CHALLENGING AT FIRST.

  • SEASONED TRAVELERS LIKE IT MORE WITH EACH VISIT.

  • FOR MANY, BUDAPEST IS EASTERN EUROPE'S

  • MOST FASCINATING AND REWARDING DESTINATION.

  • WE'LL SOAK IN ELEGANCE AT THERMAL BATHS,

  • STOMP AND SLAP WITH TRADITIONAL DANCERS,

  • VISIT THE COMMUNIST ALL-STARS, NOW IN A STATUE PARK,

  • REMEMBER HUNGARY'S SECRET POLICE,

  • SAMPLE SOME PAPRIKA...

  • MMM, SWEET.

  • ...AND CRUISE UNDER FLOODLIT MONUMENTS.

  • HUNGARY, LANDLOCKED DEEP IN CENTRAL EUROPE

  • AND FORMERLY PART OF THE WARSAW PACT,

  • IS NOW PART OF THE EUROPEAN UNION.

  • THE SEPARATE CITIES OF BUDA AND PEST

  • ONCE STRADDLED THE DANUBE RIVER.

  • NOW THEY'VE GROWN TOGETHER TO MAKE BUDAPEST.

  • THIS MYTHIC BIRD, THE TURUL,

  • WAS THE BIRD OF THE ORIGINAL HUNGARIANS, OR MAGYARS,

  • WHO MIGRATED OUT OF THE PLAINS OF CENTRAL ASIA.

  • IN 896, THE BIRD DROPPED HIS SWORD HERE,

  • INDICATING THIS WAS TO BE THEIR HOMELAND.

  • THE MAGYARS SETTLED HERE, SETTING INTO MOTION

  • A TUMULTUOUS AND FASCINATING THOUSAND-YEAR STORY

  • WHICH ULTIMATELY GAVE US THE MODERN NATION OF HUNGARY

  • AND THIS GREAT CAPITAL.

  • SITUATED ON A CROSSROADS BETWEEN EUROPE AND ASIA,

  • THOSE ORIGINAL MAGYARS ABSORBED WAVES

  • OF MIGRATING ETHNIC GROUPS.

  • WHO ARE THE PEOPLE OF BUDAPEST?

  • START WITH THOSE FIRST MAGYAR SETTLERS,

  • MIX IN GERMANS, SLAVS, JEWS, GYPSIES,

  • SPICE WITH A DASH OF TURKISH PAPRIKA

  • AND SIMMER FOR A FEW CENTURIES IN ITS FAMOUS THERMAL BATHS.

  • EACH GROUP HAD AN IMPACT.

  • ALL THIS ETHNIC PILING ON CREATED A CULTURAL GOULASH

  • THAT IS DISTINCTLY BUDAPEST.

  • STARTING IN THE 16th CENTURY,

  • THE OTTOMAN TURKS RULED HERE FOR ABOUT 150 YEARS.

  • LATER, AS PART OF THE HAPSBURG EMPIRE, RULED FROM VIENNA

  • AND ENERGIZED BY AN INFLUX OF GERMAN SPEAKERS,

  • THE CITY BECAME MORE EUROPEAN.

  • THE LAST HALF OF THE 1800s WAS BOOM TIME FOR BUDAPEST.

  • ITS CAFES WERE PACKED, AS WAS ITS OPERA HOUSE.

  • THE HABSBURGS AGREED TO A TREATY,

  • MAKING HUNGARY A JUNIOR PARTNER IN A VAST REALM

  • IT NOW CALLED THE AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN EMPIRE.

  • AS VIENNA'S SECOND FIDDLE,

  • BUDAPEST GOVERNED A HUGE CHUNK OF EASTERN EUROPE.

  • THE BOOM PEAKED WITH A FLURRY OF CONSTRUCTION

  • WORKING UP TO A GRAND PARTY IN 1896.

  • IT WAS HUNGARY'S 1,000th BIRTHDAY.

  • LIKE SO MUCH OF BUDAPEST,

  • HUNGARY'S PARLIAMENT WAS BUILT FOR THE BIG 1896 PARTY.

  • ITS ELEGANT, NEO-GOTHIC DESIGN AND RIVERSIDE LOCATION

  • WERE INSPIRED BY ITS COUNTERPART IN LONDON.

  • IT'S ENORMOUS, WITH LITERALLY MILES OF GRAND HALLS

  • DESIGNED TO HELP ADMINISTER

  • THAT SPRAWLING, MULTINATIONAL HABSBURG EMPIRE.

  • BY THE END OF WORLD WAR I, THE HABSBURGS WERE GONE

  • AND HUNGARY, WHILE MUCH SMALLER,

  • WAS FULLY INDEPENDENT.

  • BUT THEN CAME THE NAZIS, FOLLOWED BY THE COMMUNISTS.

  • THAT ELUSIVE FREEDOM WAS FINALLY WON

  • AFTER THE FALL OF THE SOVIET UNION IN 1989.

  • AND SINCE THEN THE CITY HAS BLOSSOMED.

  • [ upbeat classical music playing ]

  • TODAY, HUNGARY RULES ONLY HUNGARY,

  • AND IT'S RULED NOT BY AN EMPEROR,

  • BUT BY DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES,

  • WHO LEGISLATE FROM WHAT'S NOW A PALACE OF DEMOCRACY.

  • LIKE VIENNA, BUDAPEST FEELS MORE GRANDIOSE

  • THAN THE CAPITAL OF A RELATIVELY SMALL COUNTRY.

  • BUT THE CITY REMAINS

  • THE CULTURAL CAPITAL OF EASTERN EUROPE

  • WITH A KEENLY DEVELOPED KNACK FOR GOOD LIVING.

  • YOU CAN ENJOY THAT HUNGARIAN JOY OF LIFE

  • AT THE SZECHENYI BATH.

  • SOAK WITH THE LOCALS.

  • OF THE CITY'S TWO DOZEN OR SO TRADITIONAL MINERAL BATHS,

  • THIS IS THE MOST ACCESSIBLE AND FUN.

  • BUDAPEST IS HOT, LITERALLY.

  • IT SITS ON A THIN CRUST OVER THERMAL SPRINGS,

  • WHICH POWER ALL THESE BATHS.

  • BOTH THE ANCIENT ROMANS AND OTTOMAN TURKS

  • ENJOYED THESE SAME MINERAL SPRINGS.

  • THEY STILL SAY, "POKE A HOLE IN THE GROUND ANYWHERE IN HUNGARY,

  • AND YOU'LL FIND HOT WATER."

  • MAGYARS OF ALL SHAPES AND SIZES SQUEEZE THEMSELVES

  • INTO TINY SWIMSUITS AND STRUT THEIR STUFF.

  • BABUSHKAS FLOAT BLISSFULLY IN THE WARM WATER.

  • THE SPEEDO-CLAD OLD BOYS CLUB

  • GATHERS PENSIVELY AROUND SOGGY CHESSBOARDS.

  • AND THE CIRCLE OF RAPIDS BRINGS OUT THE KID

  • IN PEOPLE OF ALL AGES.

  • AFTER 2,000 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AND INNOVATION,

  • LOCALS HAVE HONED THE ART

  • OF ENJOYING THEIR THERMAL HOT SPRINGS.

  • BUDAPEST STRADDLES THE DANUBE RIVER.

  • ON THE WEST SIDE IS HILLY BUDA, DOMINATED BY CASTLE HILL.

  • THE ROYAL PALACE MARKS THE PLACE

  • WHERE ONE OF EUROPE'S MIGHTIEST CASTLES ONCE STOOD.

  • SINCE THE 14th CENTURY, HUNGARY HAS BEEN RULED FROM THIS SPOT.

  • AS WORLD WAR II DREW TO A CLOSE, BUDA BECAME THE FRONTLINE

  • BETWEEN THE NAZIS AND THE APPROACHING SOVIETS,

  • WHO SIEGED THIS HILL FOR SEVERAL MONTHS.

  • TODAY'S PALACE, REBUILT FROM THE RUBBLE OF WORLD WAR II,

  • MAY NOT BE WORTH TOURING,

  • BUT IT SITS ON SOIL DRENCHED IN HUNGARIAN HISTORY

  • AND IT'S CLOSE TO THE SOUL OF THIS NATION.

  • ANOTHER CASTLE HILL LANDMARK,

  • THE 800-YEAR-OLD MATTHIAS CHURCH,

  • HAS ALSO BEEN DESTROYED AND REBUILT SEVERAL TIMES.

  • ITS FLAMBOYANT STEEPLE AND OTHER FRILLY ELEMENTS

  • WERE ADDED FOR THE 1896 CELEBRATIONS.

  • THE OPULENT AND GILDED INTERIOR

  • TELLS A THOUSAND YEARS OF LOCAL HISTORY:

  • CRUSADER HEROICS...

  • BEATING BACK THE TURKS...

  • ALL PAINTED IN A FANCIFUL, NEO-GOTHIC WAY.

  • THE CHURCH'S PRIZE POSSESSION HIDES IN A CHAPEL IN THE BACK.

  • PEER THROUGH THE BLACK IRON GRILL

  • TO SEE THE 500-YEAR-OLD STATUE OF MARY AND JESUS,

  • WHICH COMES WITH A STORY.

  • IN THE 16th CENTURY, THE TURKS WERE ABOUT TO OVERRUN BUDA.

  • LOCALS, ANTICIPATING A TERRIBLE RANSACKING,

  • HID THEIR MOST PRECIOUS STATUE IN A NICHE

  • AND PLASTERED IT OVER.

  • THE MUSLIMS TOOK BUDA AND USED THIS BUILDING AS A MOSQUE

  • FOR OVER A CENTURY.

  • THEY WHITEWASHED EVERYTHING, HUNG CARPETS ON THE WALLS.

  • THEN, DURING A LATER SIEGE,

  • A NEARBY EXPLOSION RATTLED THE BUILDING.

  • THE PLASTER FELL AWAY FROM THE STATUE

  • AND THERE WAS MARY, LOOKING OUT OVER THE MOSQUE.

  • THIS SPOOKED THE MUSLIMS.

  • ACCORDING TO LEGEND, THE TURKS FLED,

  • MAKING THIS THE ONLY PART OF TOWN RETAKEN WITHOUT A FIGHT.

  • JUST OUTSIDE STANDS THE FISHERMAN'S BASTION,

  • AN ICON OF BUDAPEST.

  • IT OFFERS SWEEPING VIEWS OVER THE DANUBE TO PEST.

  • IN THE MIDDLE AGES, THE FISH MARKET WAS JUST BELOW HERE,

  • SO THIS PART OF THE RAMPART

  • ACTUALLY WAS GUARDED BY FISHERMEN.

  • THE CURRENT STRUCTURE, THOUGH, IS A FANCIFUL REBUILD,

  • CONSTRUCTED FOR THE BIG BASH OF 1896.

  • ITS SEVEN TOWERS SYMBOLIZE THE TENTS THE NOMADIC MAGYARS,

  • THOSE ORIGINAL HUNGARIANS, CALLED HOME

  • BEFORE THEY MOVED WEST TO EUROPE.

  • HUNGARY'S FIRST CHRISTIAN KING, ST. STEPHEN,

  • TAMED THE PAGAN MAGYARS.

  • HE ESTABLISHED STRICT LAWS, INTRODUCED THE CONCEPT

  • OF PRIVATE PROPERTY AND MADE HIS PEOPLE,

  • WHETHER THEY LIKED IT OR NOT, CHRISTIAN.

  • THE POPE CROWNED ST. STEPHEN IN THE YEAR 1000,

  • MAKING HUNGARY PART OF CHRISTENDOM.

  • THIS WAS A PIVOTAL POINT IN HUNGARY'S HISTORY.

  • WHILE STEPHEN COULD HAVE ACCEPTED HIS CROWN

  • FROM THE LEADER OF THE EASTERN, OR BYZANTINE, CHURCH,

  • HE CHOSE TO HAVE HIS RULE LEGITIMIZED

  • BY ACCEPTING HIS CROWN FROM THE LEADER OF THE ROMAN CHURCH,

  • AND THIS GAVE HUNGARY MORE OF A WESTERN ORIENTATION.

  • THE BUDA FUNICULAR IS A POPULAR LANDMARK.

  • BUILT IN 1870 TO PROVIDE CHEAP TRANSPORTATION

  • TO CASTLE HILL WORKERS, TODAY IT'S A FUN LITTLE TOURIST TRIP.

  • IT SHUTTLES VISITORS EVERY FEW MINUTES UP AND DOWN

  • BETWEEN THE TOP OF CASTLE HILL AND THE MIGHTY CHAIN BRIDGE.

  • GUARDED BY LIONS, WHICH SYMBOLIZE POWER,

  • THE CHAIN BRIDGE, THE CITY'S FIRST GREAT BRIDGE,

  • OFFERS A PEDESTRIAN-FRIENDLY WAY TO CONNECT BUDA AND PEST.

  • BEFORE THIS BRIDGE WAS BUILT,

  • PEOPLE NEEDED BOATS OR A GOOD FREEZE TO CROSS THE RIVER.

  • SOMETIMES PEOPLE WOULD WALK ACROSS THE FROZEN DANUBE

  • ONLY TO GET STRANDED ON THE OTHER SIDE DURING A THAW.

  • ONCE, A CITY BIG SHOT WAS STUCK ON THE OTHER SIDE FOR A WEEK

  • TRYING TO GET TO HIS DAD'S FUNERAL.

  • HE MISSED THE FUNERAL.

  • HE WAS SO FRUSTRATED, HE COMMISSIONED THE BUILDING

  • OF BUDAPEST'S FIRST PERMANENT BRIDGE.

  • THE CHAIN BRIDGE, FINISHED IN 1849,

  • IMMEDIATELY BECAME AN IMPORTANT SYMBOL OF BUDAPEST.

  • WHILE THIS AND ALL OTHER GREAT BRIDGES OF BUDAPEST

  • WERE DESTROYED IN WORLD WAR II, THEY WERE QUICKLY REBUILT.

  • PEST IS THE FLAT AND URBAN COMMERCIAL HALF OF BUDAPEST.

  • THE MAIN SQUARE OF ITS INVITING PEDESTRIAN ZONE

  • IS VOROSMARTY TER.

  • THE LANDMARK GERBEAUD CAFE IS A FIXTURE.

  • BETWEEN THE WORLD WARS,

  • THE WELL-TO-DO LADIES OF BUDAPEST

  • MET HERE AFTER SHOPPING.

  • IT REMAINS THE MEETING POINT IN BUDAPEST.

  • IT'S CLASSY AND CENTRAL, PERFECT FOR PEOPLE WATCHING

  • AND A LITTLE HIGH-CALORIE 19th-CENTURY ELEGANCE.

  • THE NEARBY HUNGARIAN STATE OPERA HOUSE

  • OFFERS MORE OF THAT 19th-CENTURY SPLENDOR.

  • THE OPULENCE RIVALS PARIS AND VIENNA,

  • FROM ITS PLUSH HALLS AND STAIRCASES,

  • DESIGNED FOR SOCIALITES MAKING THE SCENE,

  • TO ITS RANKS OF GILDED BOX SEATS IN THE VELVETY THEATER.

  • WHETHER YOU ACTUALLY TAKE IN A PERFORMANCE

  • OR JUST ENJOY AN OPERA HOUSE TOUR,

  • IT'S CLEAR THAT THE PEOPLE OF BUDAPEST

  • HAVE THAT HABSBURG APPRECIATION FOR FINE MUSIC IN THEIR BLOOD.

  • YOU'LL FIND MUSICAL EVENTS ALL OVER TOWN.

  • TONIGHT, WE'RE OPTING

  • FOR A GYPSY AND HUNGARIAN FOLK CONCERT.

  • LIKE MOST EASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES,

  • HUNGARY HAS FINE FOLK MUSIC AND DANCE.

  • HUNGARY'S LARGE ROMA, OR GYPSY, POPULATION,

  • HAS HELPED KEEP THIS FAST-FIDDLIN' TRADITION ALIVE.

  • WHILE MANY VISITORS LIMIT THEIR GYPSY MUSIC EXPERIENCE

  • TO GUYS DRESSED IN RED VESTS

  • OUT FOR BIG TIPS IN TOURISTY RESTAURANTS,

  • I GET MY TRADITIONAL MUSIC FIX IN CONCERT HALLS LIKE THIS.

  • NIGHTLY SHOWS ARE INEXPENSIVE AND HIGH-POWERED,

  • MIXING TEUTONIC-STYLE SLAP DANCING

  • AND SLAVIC COSSACK-STYLE FOOTWORK.

  • [ lively fiddle music playing ]

  • [ applause ]

  • WE'RE SLEEPING AT THE ART'OTEL.

  • EVERY DETAIL HERE, FROM THE STYLISH LOBBY

  • TO THE BREAKFAST BUFFET, IS DESIGNED WITH FLAIR.

  • THIS BIG MOD HOTEL IS A CLASSY SPLURGE,

  • OR A BARGAIN IF YOU BOOK DURING SLOW TIMES.

  • IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THE IMPRESSIVE BUILDING

  • THAT'S BEEN GOING ON HERE SINCE THE FALL OF COMMUNISM.

  • AND IT ALL COMES WITH A DANUBE VIEW.

  • WHILE THE CITY IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY MODERN,

  • MANY BUILDINGS SURVIVE FROM THE COMMUNIST AGE.

  • THESE ARE REMINDERS OF WHAT HAPPENS

  • WHEN YOU LOCK OUT YOUR ARTISTS

  • AND LET PARTY LOYALISTS DESIGN YOUR BUILDINGS.

  • ONE POSITIVE LEGACY OF COMMUNISM

  • IS BUDAPEST'S COLORFUL, SUBSIDIZED AND VERY PRACTICAL

  • NETWORK OF TROLLEYS, BUSES AND SUBWAYS.

  • LOCALS GET AROUND CHEAPLY AND EFFORTLESSLY.

  • I'M JOINING A HUNGARIAN TOUR GUIDE FRIEND OF MINE,

  • PETER POLCZMAN, FOR THE DAY.

  • GUIDES LIKE PETER HELP ME RESEARCH MY GUIDEBOOKS,

  • AND WHEN I FIND A GOOD ONE,

  • THAT'S A PERSON I LOVE TO RECOMMEND.

  • HUNGARIAN IS A UNIQUE LANGUAGE.

  • WE ARE ONLY RELATED TO FINNISH AND ESTONIAN,

  • BUT IT'S EASY, LIKE Azelet habos oldala.

  • CAN YOU SAY THAT?

  • [ Rick tries to speak Hungarian ]

  • NOT TOO BAD.

  • EUROPE, ESPECIALLY EASTERN EUROPE,

  • HAS MANY EXCELLENT YOUNG GUIDES WHO SPEAK FINE ENGLISH

  • AND ENJOY SHOWING OFF THEIR HOMETOWNS.

  • CONSIDERING THEIR REASONABLE FEES

  • AND HOW MEANINGFUL THEY MAKE YOUR VISIT,

  • HIRING YOUR OWN PERSONAL EXPERT CAN BE AN EXCELLENT VALUE,

  • AND YOU'LL KNOW JUST WHERE TO GET THE BEST STRUDEL.

  • HEY, THANK YOU.

  • Koszonom.

  • PUBLIC TRANSIT ALLOWS LOCALS A WAY TO GET AROUND THE CITY

  • FAR EASIER AND CHEAPER THAN MESSING WITH A CAR.

  • MANY UNDERGROUND STATIONS TUNNEL DEEP BENEATH THE CITY.

  • THIS IS DEEP.

  • OH, IT'S AS DEEP AS A TEN-STORY BUILDING.

  • IN FACT, IT WAS MEANT TO BE USED AS A BOMB SHELTER

  • DURING THE COLD WAR.

  • WE EMERGE NEAR BUDAPEST'S GREAT INDOOR MARKET HALL,

  • ANOTHER SOUVENIR FROM THE PARTY OF 1896.

  • THE GROUND FLOOR IS A COMMOTION OF PRODUCE STANDS...

  • BUTCHER STALLS...

  • PEPPERS AND SPICES.

  • Rick: AH, THERE'S PAPRIKA EVERYWHERE.

  • Peter: AH, THE WHOLE MARKET HAS IT.

  • IN FACT, IT'S A DOMINANT SPICE IN OUR CUISINE.

  • YOU TAKE THE DRIED PEPPER, AND THEN YOU GRIND IT

  • AND THEN YOU WOULD GET THE POWDER.

  • THERE'S DIFFERENT TYPES.

  • THERE'S HOT, AND SWEET.

  • THAT'S SWEET.

  • MMM, SWEET.

  • AS IN MARKETS ALL OVER EUROPE,

  • THE FRAGRANT STALLS ARE KEPT DOWNSTAIRS.

  • TANKS OF CARP, CATFISH AND PERCH,

  • AND PILES OF PICKLES.

  • Peter: YOU WANNA TRY SOME?

  • Rick: YEAH.

  • OH, THAT'S MY FAVORITE.

  • SO HERE'S A PLATE OF PICKLED PEPPERS HERE.

  • LOOK AT THIS.

  • NOW, THIS IS A PICKLED PEPPER FILLED WITH KRAUT.

  • YEAH.

  • NOW HOW'S THAT?

  • MMM.

  • THAT IS...STRONG.

  • HOW DO YOU SAY STRONG?

  • [ speaking Hungarian ]

  • [ Rick speaking Hungarian ]

  • OH.

  • UPSTAIRS ARE HUNGARIAN HANDICRAFTS...

  • AND INEXPENSIVE, STAND-UP,

  • HUNGARIAN-STYLE FAST-FOOD JOINTS.

  • SO THIS IS HUNGARIAN GOULASH?

  • SOUP.

  • SO THIS IS NOT A THICK STEW,

  • BECAUSE MANY AMERICANS WOULD THINK

  • THAT THIS IS A THICK STEW.

  • IN FACT, THIS IS LIKE A CLEAR BROTH WITH POTATO

  • AND CUBES OF MEAT, PORK OR BEEF IN IT.

  • AND AS YOU CAN SEE, EVERYTHING SEASONED WITH PAPRIKA.

  • OKAY, SO THIS IS THE ACTUAL HUNGARIAN GOULASH.

  • MAN, THAT IS AUTHENTIC HUNGARIAN GOULASH SOUP.

  • BUT I REMEMBER THAT, BUT BON APPETIT?

  • [ speaking Hungarian ]

  • [ speaking Hungarian ]

  • AS YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED,

  • VISITORS TO BUDAPEST NEED REMEMBER ONLY ONE DATE:

  • 1896.

  • THAT WAS THE 1000th ANNIVERSARY OF THE YEAR THE HUNGARIANS

  • FIRST SETTLED IN EUROPE.

  • IN THAT THOUSAND YEARS,

  • THE MAGYARS WENT FROM BEING A NOMADIC CENTRAL ASIAN TRIBE,

  • RAMPAGING THROUGH THE CONTINENT,

  • TO A LEGITIMATE POWER, HELPING THE HAPSBURGS

  • RULE ONE OF THE MIGHTIEST EMPIRES EUROPE HAD EVER SEEN.

  • THE PEOPLE OF BUDAPEST USED THEIR MILLENNIAL CELEBRATION

  • AS AN EXCUSE TO BUILD MONUMENTS AND BUILDINGS

  • APPROPRIATE FOR RULING A HUGE EMPIRE.

  • NINETY-SIX IS THE KEY NUMBER.

  • IMPORTANT STAIRWAYS HAVE 96 STEPS.

  • HOW TALL ARE THE DOMES?

  • NINETY-SIX METERS.

  • BUDAPEST'S MAIN DRAG, ANDRASSY BOULEVARD,

  • CONNECTS CENTRAL PEST TO THE BIRTHDAY PARTY FAIRGROUNDS.

  • LOCALS CLAIM IT'S LIKE THE CHAMPS-ELYSSES AND BROADWAY

  • ROLLED INTO ONE.

  • WHILE THAT'S A STRETCH,

  • IT IS A FINE PLACE TO GET A FEEL FOR TODAY'S URBAN PEST.

  • AND RUNNING JUST 15 FEET UNDER ANDRASSY BOULEVARD

  • IS THE MILLENNIUM UNDERGROUND.

  • ALSO BUILT IN 1896, IT WAS THE FIRST

  • UNDERGROUND PUBLIC TRANSIT ON THE CONTINENT,

  • AND THE SHALLOWEST.

  • IT'S JUST A FEW STEPS BELOW STREET LEVEL.

  • TRAINS WERE ORIGINALLY HORSE-DRAWN.

  • WHILE HANDY TODAY FOR STOPS ALONG ANDRASSY BOULEVARD --

  • TRAINS COME EVERY COUPLE OF MINUTES --

  • IT WAS ORIGINALLY DESIGNED TO GET THE MASSES OF VISITORS

  • CONVENIENTLY OUT TO THE FESTIVAL GROUNDS,

  • AND THAT'S WHERE WE'RE HEADING.

  • HEROES' SQUARE, AT THE END OF ANDRASSY BOULEVARD,

  • WAS THE CENTERPIECE OF THE 1896 CELEBRATION.

  • IT'S A HUGE SQUARE, BOOKENDED BY TWO IMPOSING MUSEUMS.

  • AT THE MILLENNIUM MONUMENT,

  • YOU'LL MEET THE WORLD'S MOST HISTORIC HUNGARIANS.

  • THE GRANDDADDY OF ALL MAGYARS WAS ARPAD.

  • ATOP THE PILLAR,

  • THE ARCHANGEL GABRIEL OFFERS THE CROWN TO ST. STEPHEN,

  • THE KING WHO CHRISTIANIZED THE MAGYARS.

  • BUT FOR KIDS, THIS IS JUST THE HOTTEST PLACE IN TOWN

  • FOR STUNT BIKING AND SKATEBOARDING,

  • AS WELL AS THE GATEWAY TO THE CITY PARK.

  • BUDAPEST'S CITY PARK IS A VAST PLAYGROUND

  • BUILT TO HOST HUNGARY'S BIG BIRTHDAY BASH.

  • IT'S STILL PACKED WITH HUGE PARTY DECORATIONS:

  • A ZOO WITH QUIRKY ART NOUVEAU BUILDINGS,

  • A REPLICA OF A TRANSYLVANIAN CASTLE --

  • TRANSYLVANIA WAS PART OF HUNGARY BACK THEN --

  • THE PALATIAL SZECHENI BATHS,

  • AN OLD-TIME CIRCUS,

  • AND PATHS FOR STROLLING.

  • IF THE SIGHTSEEING GRIND'S GOT YA DOWN,

  • HANG OUT HERE WATCHING LOCALS PLAY SPEEDY CHESS.

  • BUDAPEST'S WONDERFULLY RESTORED SYNAGOGUE IS HUGE,

  • THE BIGGEST IN EUROPE.

  • IT'S A REMINDER THAT IN THE 19th CENTURY,

  • A QUARTER OF THE CITY WAS JEWISH.

  • THE GREAT SYNAGOGUE LOOKS LIKE A CHURCH.

  • WITH ITS PIPE ORGAN

  • FLANKING THE HIGH ALTAR, LONG NAVE AND PULPIT,

  • IT FEELS LIKE A CHURCH WITH THE SYMBOLS SWITCHED.

  • IT WAS BUILT IN THE 1850s,

  • WHEN HUNGARY'S JEWS WANTED TO FEEL MORE INTEGRATED

  • INTO THE COMMUNITY.

  • THE EASTERN-FLAVORED DECOR IS TYPICAL

  • OF 19th-CENTURY SYNAGOGUES IN EUROPE,

  • PERHAPS DESIGNED TO RECALL THE JEWS'

  • MIDDLE EASTERN AND MOORISH HERITAGE.

  • HUNGARY'S JEWISH COMMUNITY WAS DECIMATED BY THE NAZIS.

  • THE SYNAGOGUE'S TREE OF LIFE, BUILT ON THE SITE

  • OF MASS GRAVES OF THOSE KILLED BY THE NAZIS,

  • IS A POWERFUL MEMORIAL.

  • HUNGARY LOST OVER HALF A MILLION JEWS TO THE HOLOCAUST.

  • THE WILLOW MAKES AN UPSIDE-DOWN MENORA.

  • EACH INDIVIDUAL LEAF LISTS THE NAME OF A VICTIM.

  • PEBBLES REPRESENT PRAYERS.

  • SADLY, BAD TIMES UNDER THE GERMANS

  • WERE REPLACED WITH BAD TIMES UNDER THE RUSSIANS.

  • WHILE SOVIET RULE WAS HARSH, HUNGARY MANAGED TO FASHION ITS

  • MILDER, YET STILL ACCEPTABLE TO MOSCOW, GOULASH COMMUNISM,

  • WHICH ALLOWED FOR A LITTLE PRIVATE ENTERPRISE,

  • EASIER TRAVEL AND LESS CENSORSHIP.

  • BECAUSE OF THIS, HUNGARY WAS THE ENVY

  • OF ITS MORE STRICTLY CONTROLLED NEIGHBORS.

  • THIS PEDESTRIAN BOULEVARD, VACI UTCA,

  • IS THE MAIN SHOPPING AND TOURISM ARTERY.

  • BEFORE THE FALL OF COMMUNISM,

  • WANNABE SHOPPERS FROM ALL OVER EASTERN EUROPE

  • CAME TO THIS STREET.

  • THEY'D DROOL OVER NIKES, REEBOKS

  • AND THE FINE CAPITALIST CUISINE

  • BEFORE ANY OF THESE WESTERN EVILS WERE AVAILABLE ELSEWHERE

  • IN THE WARSAW PACT REGION.

  • IN THE 1980s, A STROLL DOWN THIS STREET

  • WAS THE CLOSEST EAST GERMANS, CZECHS AND POLES COULD GET

  • TO A DAY PASS TO THE WEST.

  • BUDAPEST WAS ALWAYS A BIT MORE REBELLIOUS,

  • A BIT MORE INDEPENDENT IN SOME SENSE,

  • AND OUR NEIGHBORS JUST LOVED THIS PLACE.

  • CZECHS AND POLES WOULD COME HERE FOR AN AMERICAN CIGARETTE

  • OR TO JUST POP IN AND OUT OF SHOPS, SIMPLY TO TASTE THE WEST.

  • THIS WAS WESTERN LIFE.

  • WHEN SOME HUNGARIANS ARE NOSTALGIC

  • FOR WHAT THEY CONSIDER THE GOOD OLD DAYS OF COMMUNISM,

  • THEY DROP BY THE JEGBUFE.

  • LITTLE SEEMS TO HAVE CHANGED HERE AT THE JEGBUFE.

  • FIRST, YOU CHOOSE WHAT YOU WANT AT THE COUNTER.

  • THEN YOU TRY TO EXPLAIN THAT TO THE CASHIER, AND PAY.

  • NOW, I'LL TAKE THIS OVER HERE?

  • TRADE YOUR RECEIPT BACK AT THE COUNTER FOR YOUR GOODIES,

  • AND FINALLY, ENJOY IT ALL, STANDING UP, COMMUNIST STYLE.

  • THE DARK UNDERSIDE OF HUNGARY'S 20th-CENTURY STORY

  • IS ON DISPLAY AT THE HOUSE OF TERROR,

  • HOUSED IN THE FORMER HEADQUARTERS OF BOTH THE NAZIS

  • AND LATER THE COMMUNIST SECRET POLICE.

  • IT WELCOMES YOU WITH A SOVIET TANK AND A TOWERING WALL

  • COVERED WITH PORTRAITS OF THE VICTIMS OF THIS BUILDING.

  • THIS MUSEUM MAKES IT CLEAR

  • THAT WHILE THE UNIFORMS CHANGED IN 1945,

  • THE TERROR DID NOT.

  • IT OFFERS A DISTURBING LOOK AT THE GRIM TERROR

  • OF BOTH THE FAR RIGHT AND THE FAR LEFT

  • INFLICTED ON THE PEOPLE OF BUDAPEST.

  • TO KEEP DISSENT TO A MINIMUM, THE SECRET POLICE

  • OF BOTH THE NAZIS AND THE COMMUNISTS

  • IMPRISONED, DEPORTED OR EXECUTED ANYONE

  • SUSPECTED OF BEING AN ENEMY OF THE STATE.

  • ROOMS FEATURE THE MANY BLEAK DIMENSIONS OF LIFE IN HUNGARY

  • BEFORE FREEDOM.

  • GULAG LIFE: COUNTLESS WRITERS, ARTISTS, AND DISSIDENTS

  • SPENT THEIR BEST YEARS BREAKING ROCKS IN QUARRIES.

  • PROPAGANDA PREACHED: WAVE THE FLAG, TRUST YOUR LEADERS

  • AND YOU'LL ENJOY THE MATERIAL FRUITS OF YOUR OBEDIENCE.

  • BOTH NAZISM AND COMMUNISM CELEBRATED A SHAM JUSTICE

  • AND A SHAM DEMOCRACY.

  • BEHIND THE BANNERS WERE ALL THE DOMESTIC SPY TOOLS

  • GOVERNMENTS USED TO KEEP A PEOPLE IN LINE.

  • JOINING THE CHURCH WAS A WAY TO EXPRESS DISSENT,

  • AND A PEOPLE'S FAITH WAS ONE THING

  • THE TOTALITARIAN GOVERNMENTS COULD NOT CONTROL.

  • THE BASEMENT WAS THE GRIM SCENE OF TORTURE AND EXECUTIONS.

  • WHILE THERE IS A HAPPY ENDING --

  • VIDEO CLIPS SHOW THE FESTIVE AND EXHILARATING DAYS IN 1991

  • WHEN THE LAST SOVIETS DEPARTED --

  • THE WALL OF THE VICTIMIZERS IS AN EVOCATIVE SEND-OFF.

  • IT REMINDS VISITORS THAT MOST LOCAL MEMBERS

  • AND SUPPORTERS OF THE SECRET POLICE,

  • MANY OF WHOM ARE STILL LIVING,

  • WERE NEVER BROUGHT TO JUSTICE.

  • [ patriotic band music playing ]

  • STATUE PARK WELCOMES THE CURIOUS AT THE EDGE OF TOWN.

  • WHEN REGIMES FALL, SO DO THEIR MONUMENTS.

  • BUDAPEST SAVED ITS SOUVENIRS OF TOTALITARIANISM

  • AND SHOWS THEM OFF HERE.

  • JUST THINK OF ALL THESE STATUES OF LENIN AND COMPANY

  • CRASHING TO THE GROUND TO THE CHEERS OF THE MASSES.

  • AT STATUE PARK YOU'LL SEE THE COMMUNIST ALL-STARS:

  • MARX, LOCAL WANNABE STALINS,

  • AND LENIN, IN HIS FAVORITE HAILING-A-CAB POSE.

  • IN A KIND OF DEMAGOGUE'S HELL,

  • THEY'RE LEFT WITH NO ONE TO PREACH TO BUT EACH OTHER

  • AND STONY SOCIALIST SYMBOLS:

  • THE HEROIC SOLDIER...

  • THE OBEDIENT WORKER...

  • THE TIRELESS MOTHER.

  • UNDER SOVIET COMMUNISM,

  • CENSORSHIP WAS TAKEN TO EXTREMES.

  • ART WAS ONLY ACCEPTABLE IF IT PROMOTED THE IDEOLOGY.

  • THE ONLY SANCTIONED ART FORM IN THE EASTERN BLOCK

  • WAS SOCIAL REALISM.

  • THIS IS SOCIAL REALISM.

  • LEADERS WERE PORTRAYED WITH UNQUESTIONED AUTHORITY.

  • INDIVIDUALS WERE IDEALIZED AS COGS IN THE MACHINE,

  • STRONG, STOIC, DOING THEIR JOB WELL AND PROUDLY

  • FOR THE GOOD OF THE NATION.

  • DISTINGUISHING FEATURES WERE UNIMPORTANT.

  • PEOPLE ALL LOOKED THE SAME: UNQUESTIONING PATRIOTS,

  • TRUSTING AND SERVING THEIR NATION.

  • THESE DAYS, WITH HALF THE LOCAL CITIZENRY

  • HAVING NO LIVING MEMORY OF COMMUNISM,

  • THERE'S JUST NOT MUCH RESPECT.

  • THE GIFT SHOP OFFERS A TEMPTING PARADE OF COMMUNIST KITSCH.

  • CONSIDER PICKING UP A RED STAR LAPEL PIN,

  • A WORKER'S POCKET WATCH,

  • OR EVEN A COMMUNIST PARTY VODKA FLASK.

  • Koszonom.

  • THIS IS A FUN SOUVENIR, THE GREATEST HITS OF COMMUNISM.

  • NOBODY CAN ARGUE THAT THE REPLACEMENT OF COMMUNISM

  • BY CAPITALISM HASN'T PUMPED UP THE ENERGY IN THIS GREAT CITY.

  • CAFES ARE THRIVING, PEOPLE ARE ENJOYING LIFE,

  • AND THE CITY'S BREEZY RIVERFRONT PROMENADE

  • IS LINED WITH DIVERSIONS.

  • A ROMANTIC WAY TO CAP YOUR DAY, AND OUR VISIT,

  • IS AN EVENING CRUISE ON THE BLUE DANUBE.

  • AS THE SUN GOES DOWN,

  • AN ENSEMBLE OF ICONS GRABS YOUR ATTENTION:

  • MIGHTY BRIDGES LINKING BUDA AND PEST,

  • THE STUBBORN CITADEL STILL STANDING TALL,

  • AND MONUMENTS HONORING A HARD-EARNED FREEDOM.

  • BUDAPEST HAS SURVIVED

  • ITS THOUSAND YEARS OF TUMULTUOUS HISTORY BEAUTIFULLY,

  • AND TODAY IT WELCOMES VISITORS AS AN EMBLEM OF THE NEW EUROPE.

  • THANKS FOR JOINING US.

  • I'M RICK STEVES.

  • UNTIL NEXT TIME, KEEP ON TRAVELIN'.

HI, I'M RICK STEVES, BACK WITH

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