Not sorry to leave...

So, today's plan was to use yesterday's bus ticket to get the 10am boat trip down the river and back - it was to be a hot day, so I thought the river breeze would be lovely - followed by a leisurely lunch at the chocolate place and the underground back to the train station.

Here's what actually happened. It's ok, you can laugh, but please understand that I can't, not just yet.
- Early breakfast in a little cafe, then walk down to the dock for the boat. Dock fenced off, and no boat in sight.
- Hop on/hop off people arrive - it's a national holiday, so no boat trip til 12. Too late for me, and I'm not the only one pissed off that no-one thought to mentioned this when we bought our tickets yesterday. However, the river is closed for a flotilla, so I sit on the wall waiting for it.
- After about half an hour, a plane flies over. Five minutes later, another one. Carries on for about 40 minutes. Not a boat in sight, much less a whole flotilla.
- The end. I go for an iced coffee and a cheese and ham toastie using the smallest slices of bread known to man, then sit in the hotel reading.
- Hotel clerk advises getting the bus back to the train station. After wrong directions to the bus stop (which I find by myself), the ticket machine won't accept my 200 Forint coins and I don't have enough money otherwise. Get on the bus fully intending to ask the driver, but he ignores me and sets off, so I think sod it then and ride for free.
- Arrive at the train station, where there are two 15:10 trains and, according to the board, neither of them go to Salzburg. And of course there's no-one around to ask. Eventually find a very nice man - he seems apologetic that he can't speak English, and I'm apologetic that I can't speak Hungarian, but we manage to establish the right train between us. I thank him profusely, hoping he gets my drift, and dash off determined not to miss it.

He was the nicest person I've dealt with in the past 3 days. I'm glad I've been to Budapest, but I won't be back willingly.

*Note: the above was written earlier, when I'd just got on the train, hot, sweaty and pissed off. Again! I am now (two and a half hours later) much calmer, after a lovely sandwich, a cup of green tea and a good portion of chick lit!

So now I'm going backwards, both literally (I am in a rear facing train seat) and figuratively to Salzburg, before going on again early tomorrow to Ljubljana in Slovenia. I plan to go to Lake Bled on Wednesday - Google it, it's beautiful.

x