A Walk About the Old Jewish Quarter

Even though the buildings in this city have taken a beating from two world wars, and the soviet occupation, there are still many beautiful places to be seen in a stroll through town. There are many art deco treasures such as the one above to be found.

From District 7 to District 8

In this part of town, there is lots of reminders that you are in the place where the 1956 revolution occured. One of these reminders is the reproduction of the Time magazine cover from 1957 declaring the Hungarian Freedom Fighter to be Man of the Year. You will notice that the flag has a hole cut in the middle. The Russians had added a red star to the middle of the Hungarian flag to indicate that it was a colony of theirs. The revolutionaries cut out this star.

Back Out on the Street

There is also a tradition here of posting stickers to express opinions and make protests. This has the advantage that you can prepare the statement in private and then post it quickly, unobserved.

Above there are two observations on the world. the one at the top is simply making fun of Andy Warhol's famous can of Campbell's Soup (In case you can't quite read it, it says " Warhol's Overrated F*king Art"). the lower one is more complicated.

More Remnants of the Holocaust.

As we pass through this hallway in the old, worn building, we come to a courtyard that is completed on the other three size by refurbished buildings (or sections of this one block-sized building. In this courtyard is a wall. "The" wall.

Street Art and Interiors

This is an unusual work of street art. Mostly, we are used to see murals or the occasional statue, standing free in a square. This one celebrates a rare human being, Carl Lutz. Wikipedia tells the story...

Walking Tour of the Old Jewish Quarter

I hired myself a private walking tour about Districts 7 (the Jewish Quarter) and 8 to see some street art and learn a few things. My guide, Attila Hofle, was a great companion and guide. I can highly recommend him (visit Budapestflow.com). One of the first places we walked to was Rumbach Sebestyén utca where we find this grand synagogue. Designed by Otto Wagner in a moorish style, the interior is octagonal.

A Walk About the Old Jewish Quarter

We learned that there is a market on Sundays in the old Jewish quarter in downtown Budapest, so we headed out to investigate. This part of town is now no longer especially jewish, rather it is a trendy place filled with young people, tourists, and the sorts of stores and restaurants that appeal to them. And there are a few bright spots of street art fun bits to see.