My final morning at the Erzsebet and I totally stocked up on the breakfast. The staff kept laughing at how many times I went back, I am not sure they know that I am on a cycle trip.
Last night I was looking at the upcoming route and checking out various videos on YouTube. I had already watched a few montyandkemodo videos when getting ready for the trip (seems a life time ago, now) and looking back again, I now realise that I have already been to many of the same places they had been too, at least recently anyway. Not only that, but they had made a list of all the places they stayed and I figured, why make life difficult for myself - I may just as well follow their suggestions as it is the route that I will be taking, at least in the short-term.
I have still not made up my mind whether I will take the EV13 for my final stretch but I have my paper map which will be useful if I do so. I also suspect that I will stay at more hotels and B&B's from now on as they seem pretty cheap.
At one point, I did think about Michael's suggestion of getting a train through Hungary to avoid the poor quality roads, but I am pleased that I didn't do this in the end as I will be missing out on so much. And you know what, the roads are not that bad. I just got spoilt after Germany and Austria, but they are OK.
I totally loved Budapest and will be coming back for sure. However my hotel was very much a 'business' hotel and lacked any vibe or energy, although it had been great for these past 3 nights. I won't be staying here again though, now that I have seen the other areas of town, I will be more selective.
One thing I don't understand are the toilets. They have this weird shelf inside so when you take a dump, your poo just sits there until you flush it down. Likewise, when you want to pee, you need to be very careful with your aim, otherwise the splashback is intense. I mean, WTF? I have tried to find out why, but there doesn't seem to be any reason for this. Sure, it may be easier to take poo samples for the doctor, but I reckon I have only ever done that on about 10 occasions maximum in my entire life. Completely insane and utterly daft.
But much as I have enjoyed this mini break, I can't wait to get back on the road again. My bike was in absolutely perfect condition after its overhaul and the new brake pads are a dream. If that wasn't enough, the road was actually pretty good; smooth, traffic free and easy. Thanks to montyandkemodo, I had planned to go to a campsite only 50K away in the village of Domsod, which weirdly translates as 'you are chubby'.
A very short route, I got there in no time at all although there was a moment around Soroksár when I couldn't quite work out where I was. As I was looking at the map, an elderly guy who was out for a Sunday morning cycle took me under his wing and showed me the way through the slightly complicated street network. I felt so comfortable cycling along with him for 20 minutes or so, neither of us talking but perfectly in tune with each other. A beautiful moment.
The campsite itself is situated on the banks of the a significant tributary to the Danube called Ráckeve-Danube and I was the only person there. Peaceful and tranquil, I pitched up the tent and sat at the restaurant with my kindle.
I get the impression it is very much a place that locals come to escape the city for sailing and watersports weekends and indeed, the father or grandfather of a large group came up to introduce himself as he was leaving. I think he had noticed my rowing club gilet and was a rower himself, which broke the ice.
I am really taking so much more notice of my diet now, pictures of me are not great and I look quite thin and drawn. Luckily the campsite had a small restaurant, but I had stopped by a Tesco on the way and stocked up on loads of fruit; they didn't take my clubcard so no additional points.
I sat on a bench and watched the sun set, watching all life around the water slowly close down for the night and I went to bed, very content. Magical.
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