10/10 Last Day in Budapest

Today is our last day in this city. I kind of like Budapest, it seems as though there is a lot to do, it is not too expensive, the food is decent, transportation is relatively easy to comprehend and the people are friendly and most of them speak at least some English. The only real problem is the language without a little bit of knowledge you have no idea what is going happening especially with regard to signage and menus.

We take the tram to the subway go a couple of stops and meet Mike and Kay at a kosher pastrami restaurant directly across the street from the synagogue. The synagogue is either the first or second largest in the world depending on if you are measuring the square footage (1500 square meters)or the size of the congregation (100,000 at one time). To say it is ornate would be an understatement.

It is on the site of the Jewish ghetto from World War II and took five years to construct in the mid to late 1800s. It has a cemetery in the courtyard holding the mass graves of over 3000 people who perished, some of whom were never identified. In the courtyard, Tony Curtis, the American actor, donated a sculpted stainless steel willow tree on which names of Jews lost in the war can be engraved on the leaves for a "modest fee". It is a nice experience, although I did think

our guide talked a bit too much, I would have liked to see more of the interior of the synagogue proper. Mike did not take the tour as he had been on it a couple of times previously and it is not cheap, almost the same cost as our lunch on a per person basis.

Mike and Kay are going to stop by the hotel for a farewell. We are almost all packed except for a few last minute items. Mike and Kay show up at the hotel and we have our last happy hour together. The resturant next door is beckoning so we head over there for supper. Shirley, Kay and Carroll all have fish and chips, I have a half kilo of mussels and Mike has a pork knuckle. We enjoy our dinner reminiscing about the sights and experiences we have had in

Budapest.

We part with our new friends, head back to the hotel and hit the hay.