Keszthely

As we mentioned before, our train ride from Ljubljana to Keszthely was very enjoyable. For the Slovenia segment we enjoyed mountain views while travelling along a river in a deep valley. Larissa fell in love with many of the small mountain towns we passed. Then we passed through the Croatian town of Zagreb, which looked larger than we had expected. It had many unique looking buildings, and we decided that we'll need to pay it a visit someday. As we entered Hungary the landscape became less mountainous. The fields and forrests here remind me of Michigan. Spring has arrived arrived here, as things look to be ready to bloom and blossom any day now.

It was almost dark when our train pulled into the Keszthely station. We didn't have any money in the right currency, and there wasn't an exchange or ATM at the train station. We did not know how to get to where we were to stay either, but we knew it was supposed to be close to the center of town. Since we didn't really have a choice, we just started walking towards town in hopes of finding something useful. Fortunately we came across a large sign showing a labeled map of the city. Eventually, just after dark, we found what we were looking for.

Keszthely is a resort town, situated on southwestern shores of Lake Balaton, which is Central Europe's largest lake. The lake is a popular summer vacation spot for all sorts of water activities, and Keszthely sees much of the action as it is the lake's biggest town. We are not here in summer, so the place is rather devoid of tourists. It is nonetheless a nice place to be.

There are hot springs all over Hungary. Many people believe the waters to possess healing characteristics. This among other factors have made thermal baths popular all over the country. Some of the most popular baths are located in the town of Heviz, which is a close neighbor of Keszthely. Thermal bath tourism is year-round, so many of the few tourists who are in Keszthely right now are likely here for the baths. Larissa and I have yet to explore Heviz, but we may get over there today.

We are staying in another timeshare, very generously provided by my Grandma. We are very happy with the place. The two windows on the middle-right belong to us.

We have a nice courtyard view.

We have a kitchen and a tv, which we really appreciate. We are indeed centrally located, within 100meters of the town's center walking streets. On the other side of us is a nice park which has some beautiful trails leading down to the lake.

We also have grocery stores and many restaurants within short walking distance. I got a large pizza yesterday for less than three dollars. From what we have read Hungary is around 30% cheaper for travellers than Slovenia. Our experience so far has led us to believe that this is the case.

We have already explored most of the town. The main place to visit here is the city's castle. We toured the castle grounds yesterday, while opting out of visiting its' several museums, one of which is the caste's wine cellar offering a taste of around 50 wines. Maybe if we could taste 50 kinds of salsa instead.

We are within few hours train ride of Vienna and Budapest. We are hoping to get to Budapest tomorrow, and perhaps Vienna on Thursday if our budget permits.

Larissa picked up a small Slovenian cookbook the other day. Last night she made some mushroom potato soup that turned out very good. I was impressed with her ability to make something so good with so few ingredients. There are many foods around here that we would like to try, but we are frustrated at not being able to read the ingredients first. Some things are in German, so Larissa can help us there, but otherwise we are in the dark. One way or another we will survive though. I am comforted at the fact that there are numerous pizza places around.

Hopefully we will be able to give you a trip report for Budapest and Heviz soon. Until then, thanks for reading and posting your comments.