Glory be, I did not open my eyes until 10:00. Dan had been up since 8:30 but did not want to bother me, so he was sitting quietly in the corner working on his phone. Breakfast ended at 10:30 so we literally threw our clothes on and headed downstairs to grab a bite. We ran into Robin and her husband, Rich, who were eating late also.

Dan joined Rich and Robin for a tour of the 1956 Museum and I stayed behind (a rarity) to catch up on the blog. Dan reports that the small Museum was very well done and tells the sad story of the Hungarian uprising and the brutal response of the Russians who had occupied the country since the end of WWII.

On a bit of a whim, we four decided to see if we could arrange transportation to the Danube Bend, an hour north of the city where the Danube heads to the west. In this bend are small picturesque towns. Three are worth a visit we had read but getting such a late start we had to settle on visiting just one…Szentendre. We joined a 2:00 p.m. van tour that was made up of one other couple (in town for a river cruise). The one hour drive was really pleasant and reminded the four of us so much of Germany. For good reason it seems since the guide explained that thousands of Germans immigrated years ago during a period of drought. They built boats out of wood from the Black Forest, came down the Danube, disassembled the boats and built houses with the wood, and stayed. We drove passed yellow rapeseed fields, lots of small islands, outdoor thermal swimming pools, playgrounds, and Roman ruins. In the middle of one small town, right along the main road, a stork had built her nest on the top of a telephone pole which she was happily guarding as we drove passed. Except for getting out of Budapest, traffic was light.

Szentendre was the highlight of the afternoon even if we were short on time to explore it. The low, well maintained buildings, small churches, souvenir shops, art galleries, and cute restaurants made us wish we had planned better. Huge lampshades we hung in the town square, presumably as street lights. Dan and I headed straight for the Serbian Orthodox Church where we lit a candle for Aunt Jerry. Then we spotted a street vendor selling a sweet pastry treat we had lusted for in Budapest. Dough is flattened; wrapped around a long, wooden, rolling pin looking rod; smothered in what looks like butter; rolled in sugar; and then rotated over an open coal fire until is is brown and crispy. This hollow tube of delight is then covered in a topping of your choice (we chose cinnamon and walnuts), pried off the wooden rod, placed in a clear plastic sheet and presented for devouring. It did not disappoint!

Our time came to and end just as the rain arrived. Lucky us. Four of the six in our small group arrived at the meeting point to take a boat back to town. No Rich or Robin. Five minutes passed, ten minutes passed and still no Rich or Robin. Come to find out they had wandered further afield than the rest of us and got turned around in the small alleys and streets. Rich called Dan to say they were slowly making their way, which they did … completely soaked, but just in time to hop on the boat. Phew.

The rain prevented us from seeing much on the boat ride back but it was easy to tell that on a sunny day it would be a beautiful ride. We got back to dry, overcast skies.

Needing to organize for tomorrow, we said our goodbyes and headed upstairs for a room service dinner and packing.