Well, I tried. I begged the coach office to put me on the coach to Paris..."look, I'll put on a big coat and sit in the baggage hold if I have to"...but it didn't work. I Googled flights, but the cheapest I could find was over 100€. I then went to the train station, only to find that there *were* trains I could get...but it would cost me almost 200€. So, I slunk back to the coach office, with my tail between my legs, and booked the coach to Budapest. Which is where I am now, in fact.
Once I'd done that, I had the task of finding somewhere to stay. My guidebook had plenty of budget accommodations...unfortunately I was unable to call any of them. I rushed off to an internet cafe and got searching. I eventually found this place. It's in the Pest part of the city, just off a delightful street of cafes and bars that looked really exciting when I was trudging towards here last night at 10:30ish pm. I was anxious about what I'd get, as after my last hostel experience in Amsterdam (where I paid 25€ for a night in a dorm full of men, sleeping on a top bunk with no ladder so I had to use the lockers to climb up, and once I was on my bed found I had no bedding or pillows so had to kip in my clothes with my bag as a pillow) I was put off a little to say the least. However, I was most pleasantly surprised. The hostel is LOVELY. The internet ad says that it's like staying in a friend's apartement, and that is exactly right. The staff members are lovely, the other guests are great, the decor is fabulous and the bed I chose (yes, I could actually choose one!) is comfortable. Last night I had a really fabulous sleep and this morning I was so delighted to be having a hot shower that I managed to monopolise the bathroom for somewhere in the region of half an hour. Ahh, bliss. There's tea and coffee available, there's a fridge to keep my salami and cream cheese in (cheapskate here has stopped restauranting, though I think I may just *have* to get some goulash while I'm here). There's breakfast rolls and stuff to have with them, and it's all good. Plus there's free internet, so I don't need to roam the streets hunting for an internet cafe.
Just to recap the rest of yesterday...
After finally getting everyting sorted out, I decided to finally see what Vienna was actually like. I wasn't disappointed. It was beautiful. Lovely buildings, pretty Christmas lights, lots of sculptures and all that sort of thing. I had another Glühwein (well, had to really) and roamed. I took many, many pictures and had a great time before heading off for my coach to Budapest.
The coach journey was only scheduled to be a couple of hours long and I was determined to stay awake for the duration. Of course, I failed, and I woke up in time to see people getting ready for our arrival. Handy, that.
I got off the coach and easily found the metro. Waited for the train, and was delighted and slightly amused to see that the trains are *exactly* like the ones on the Moscow metro...but with better decor ;o) Found the hostel easily, and then after a little faff around with packing and stuff went to sleep. For a good, long time.
Now I have two missions: 1) Get tomorrow's departure sorted out, 2) Mooch around this amazing looking city!
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