Outside Budapest, Hungary

 The Danube and the parliament building in Budapest.

 Szentendre, a village just outside of Budapest

We arrived on this little train in this beautiful bucolic village called Szentendre which is just outside Budapest. This was 2 years ago. It was a very lovely Autumn day and the locals were all out enjoying their environs and the day. All along the railway tracks were cute little houses with gardens full of fruits, vegetables and flowers. It was so delightful. Outside the train station old local ladies were selling home grown flowers. That must be the only thing they have to sell to raise some hard cash. We, in the Western world, don't realise how hard cash is to come by. They may have enough to eat because they raise their own food but to have a few florints in their pocket is a different thing. It's one of the reasons why I work so hard at work, I don't want to be without hard cash. It's such a blessing to be able to stick my ATM card into the wall and be assured that cash will be dispensed. I don't even need to check my balances. We take so many things for granted. We need to stop and think about the rest of the world. Why are they rioting? Money or the lack of! It's wonderful to see Hungary thriving after they left communism behind. We had a great time in Budapest. The main train station at Keleti was a different story. It looked dismal because it was a relic of the communist era. I saw trains leaving for Kiev and other such places further East and the patrons looked really sad. I would be sad if I had to live in these places. It'll be interesting to visit and come away with fascinating stories and another thing to live there as a permanent resident.