Sensation Yellow

Who in their right mind would fly 2 hours and 10 minutes to a completely foreign country with absolutely no intention to sightsee or experience the local offerings? In total 16 expatriates plus 1 local would make the arduous journey to Budapest. Including transit time we spent close to 8 hours on buses, taxis, trains only to party for 5 hours. The draw card? 28 degree heat, thermal baths and Sensation. I write this blog completely exhausted, drained and sick of weekend trips. Not looking forward to doing it all over again next weekend.


After countless weekend trips I have developed a pretty standard routine. Head home after work. Grab something to eat, pack my luggage, gym, laundry and then be in bed by 12. Wake up 3-4 hours later, have breakfast, catch a bus from Dean Street bus stop towards Victoria Station then find my way to the airport (Gatwick, Luton or Stansted).


Arrived in Budapest Ferihegy International Airport just after 10 pm local time. Caught the metro out to our apartment, dropped our luggage off and immediately headed to our lunch reservation at Cafe Kor. The cab ended up costing 200 Forint per person (£1) and we were convinced that the taxi would be our primary mode of transport.


Some were feeling the consequences of the early flight and headed back to their lodgings for some shuteye. The others (I included) pushed on for some light sightseeing.

Széchenyi Chain Bridge


Buda Castle


5 minutes later we were in a cab heading for the shopping District in Nyugati. Strolled around West End City Centre for an hour and decided we were all too tired to function. Tried to negotiate prices for a cab ride home (essentially 1 km down the road). The shady looking cab drivers offered 5000 Forints (approx. £15). Deciding this was daylight robbery we walked home and crashed.

Waking a couple of hours later we decked ourselves our in our White Gear and headed to Budapest Arena. 17 of us (majority of us Oriental looking) managed to turn heads as the group wandered around the streets of Budapest.


After 5 hours of partying we ended up with kebabs, strawberries and bananas and succumbed to sleep.

The following day, we checked our of the apartment and headed back towards West End City Centre to meet up with the rest of our travel compatriots. Unfortunately we headed in the wrong direction and ended up having KFC for lunch. Next stop would be Gellért Bath. The 9 of us jumped into two cabs paid 5000 Forint only to realise that we had been dropped off in the middle of nowhere in the opposite direction!


Another Cab ride and we eventually arrived at the destination and spent the afternoon lazying in the baths. Top way to unwind after a intense weekend. This trip marks two significant events: an entire year of being in the UK and the last time I'll be traveling around the EU with some close friends. Sigh. Good times...