Budapest Danube Quotes

O Danúbio, pensei, era o Danúbio mas não era azul, era amarelo, a cidade toda era amarela, os telhados, o asfalto, os parques, engraçado isso, uma cidade amarela, eu pensava que Budapeste fosse cinzenta, mas Budapeste era amarela.

He said he liked the way Budapest was beautiful and elegant and crumbling, decaying, plucky and sad, but when he spent too long there, everything started to depress him. And he said he had meetings, lunches, dinners, and he began to feel crumbling, decaying, and sad. He told us he sat in a warm hot spring that exploded from the ground, the way he had as a young man, surrounded by art nouveau architecture, it was like bathing in a cathedral. The sky was pink. The scent of lilacs filled the air. Fat Russian gangsters in tiny bathing suits played chess while their bleached blond wives hung scowling from their necks and arms festooned with gold and silver. Barbarians! Claudio spoke English well, only a faint trace of his Italian accent. Those Russians are the descendants of the guys who slaughtered the Mennonites, I thought. Now they wear bikini trunks. Then he told us he had been standing on one of the bridges over the Danube and looking down he saw a guy sitting on the riverbank. Is it blue? I said. No, it’s filthy I’m afraid, and not at all blue. Is it beautiful? I asked. Well, yes, it could be described as beautiful.

love visiting the Christmas markets up north. Mia would too. Vienna, Prague, Budapest. When it’s snowing outside and there’s ice-skating and Christmas trees everywhere. Desserts everywhere. Mulled wine, hot cider. Everyone is so happy, running around in their thick jackets and wool hats. It’s a fairy tale.” “Wait, Budapest. Is that part of Europe?” “Sí, it’s part of the EU, but it’s less expensive there. A different currency. You can stay in these, emm, great historic apartments for very little. Last time, my friends and I stayed in a place overlooking the Danube with a piano in the living room. We hired a pianist and violinist to play for us . . . for barely anything.