Only locals know
The charming hidden garden of the Museum of Literature
The Károlyi Palace, home to the Museum of Literature is an important relic of the capital’s neoclassical architecture, only the outside walls of the present Palace originate from the 17th and 18th centuries. Its architectural emphases and decorations were, almost without exception, built in the reform period between 1832–1841, during the extensive reconstruction work associated with the Károlyi family name. The building is the most important of the 19th-century aristocratic palaces in Pest, and its architecture is in keeping with its cultural and historical significance and the historic moments that it witnessed.
Web: http://www.pim.hu
Puskin cinema café – its romantic atmosphere preserved
Puskin was the only Communist-era cinema whose name was retained after the democratic realignment of 1990. It has been converted into an art cinema complex, where films are shown in their original language with Hungarian subtitles. Its café is a great melting-pot and dating spot for students and cinephiles. (Kossuth Lajos utca 18, District V)
Ráth György Museum – a villa with oriental treasures
One of the most charming and smallest museums in the rich supply on the Budapest scene, very near the City Park, in an area of romantic villas. György Ráth (1828-1905) was the original owner of the villa and the one-time director of the Museum of Applied Arts, and in his will he left this villa to the public, together with his collection of Oriental antiquities. After a sightseeing tour visit this quiet, welcoming and exotic villa to feel the intimacy of its domestic museum. (Városligeti fasor 12, District VI)
Web: http://www.hoppmuzeum.hu/rath.php
Burger King, second floor – Budapest live
A busy place, but mainly on the ground floor. Only a few visitors go to the second floor, which makes it a perfect spot to view the Grand Ring Boulevard and the lovers waiting for their dates outside on Oktogon Square. If you sit at the right table you can spot a familiar building – that’s right, an exact copy of the Palazzo Strozzi in Florence. (Oktogon tér 3)
Budapest Public Library – between six and eight in the evening
Escape to the tranquillity of this library, close to the National Museum. It is quite an adventure to look around the café (once a stable block): students packing their things together getting ready to go, every conceivable newspaper and periodical from all around the world, hundreds of computers, dozens of clever faces, beautiful Hungarian girls. (Szabó Ervin tér 1, District VIII, closes at 4 p.m. on Sat., closed on Sun.)
On the Funicular Railway (‘Sikló’) – for marriage proposals
This charmingly eccentric vehicle ascends the ninety-five metres from the Buda embankment to the top of Castle Hill. The two carriages are linked by a massive steel cable, and they operate as if on a pulley: when one goes up the other goes down. You have about one minute to make your proposal, during which your partner will also be overwhelmed by the view… Do it when going UP, hinting at the future rise in the quality of his/ her life! (By the Buda end of The Chain Bridge.)
The ‘Golden Salon’ of Budapest Public Library – the big question
Since 1931 the Central Library has been operating in a romantic palazzo, formerly home to the barons Weinckheim. Recent years have seen it extended with a modern wing. Pretend you just want to discover the place, and ask for the ‘Golden Salon’. There are some comfortable armchairs here, and the windows overlook a small square. Then you can make your proposal, with the implicit suggestion: ‘What about me gilding your life in the long term?’ (Szabó Ervin tér 1, District VIII)
Web: http://www.fszek.hu
‘In the jungle’s open book’ – only for the most courageous
The above is how Budapest Zoo advertises its beautiful Palm House, inaugurated in 1912. It has been reconstructed four times, and on the last occasion the former crocodile pool was converted into a fine Art Nouveau café. This is a fitting venue – after all, marriage can be dangerous, can’t it? (Állatkerti körút 6-12, District XIV)
Web: http://www.zoobudapest.comJust now, Just for you, Just in Budapest...
