Along the Danube day 6
Cafe ratings table
It was time for the final ride of the week as we finally went round the bend and on to our celebratory procession into Budapest.
First we would need to catch the 9:45 ferry back across the river to the cycle path where pedals down would be. It was heaving with other cyclists with their own bright red hire bikes, we were not alone.
 |
| Waiting for the ferry to this mornings start point |
All the cabins had been taken so we had to spend the whole crossing on deck.
 |
| On deck for the whole 5 minute crossing |
Once over we had an hour to get to the final ferry. However the paths were very busy with other cyclists but fortunately Cathy was in no mood for dithering and happily pushed a small child into the bushes to help clear the way.
 |
| Cathy was on a mission and no one would get in her way |
The path was again cut off from the river by houses and trees but without the distraction of views we sped towards the port. The bad news was that as we rounded the final corner the boat was pulling away.
 |
| We missed the ferry we wanted |
The good news was that with an hour to wait for the next one we would be compensated by visiting cafe Eszterhazy which had an excellent cake selection.
 |
| Waiting at cafe for next ferry |
The hot chocolate was disappointing but the coffee and cake were excellent so with views of the river available from the outdoor seating area it was another top cafe stop.
 |
| Good cakes and cafe but a poor hot chocolate |
As we were about to board the ferry the family from whom Cathy had pushed over the small child pulled up, awkward. We were keen to avoid another international incident so ignored them as they stood behind us on deck while we had our photo taken by a local.
 |
| Ignoring the family Cathy had pushed |
The ferry had again concertinaed up the cycling tourists so when we were confronted with the busiest road of the week a long peloton quickly formed. It was every man for themselves as I found myself up the road in a breakaway of husbands and boyfriends. The father of the family group that Cathy had attacked was furthest forward and as we turned off he was preparing himself for a serious domestic from mother with small children.
 |
| The rest of our group finally caught up as I had left them on a busy road |
To compensate us for that stretch we now had some pleasant riding through parks by the side of the river.
 |
| Very nice river path section |
Due to the ferry based delay our original plan of lunch in Budapest had been abandoned so instead we stopped at the pretty tourist village of Szentendre for a typical overpriced and very average tourist lunch special.
 |
| Enjoying our average tourist lunch special |
It also turned out to be the tat shop capital of Europe which my cycling guests surprisingly went to explore while I stayed by the river. This was clearly a mistake as without my tour leadership they managed to turn what should have been a 2 minute excursion, max, into a substantial wait of nearly 20 minutes! Budapest was starting to feel a long way away.
 |
| Tat capital of Europe |
On their return I was relieved to see they were tat free but they did report that, in case you are ever out this way, there were better cafes in a lovely square. I got the picture church, statute, coffee shop etc.
There was a final push along the river as the landscape became more built up until we reached the outskirts of Budapest.
 |
| Outskirts of Budapest |
And then we rounded a final bend and the sites of Budapest stretched out before us as we reached our final destination.
 |
| Famous Budapest building |
There was still the matter of the best cafe with cake along the Danube and Budapest needed a chance. I chose JM6 bakery which was near the river and had an authentic feel.
 |
| Final cafe to check out |
As it was late in the day the cake selection was light but the cakes they did have looked good and tiramisu cake was selected.
 |
| Excellent looking cakes and drinks |
The coffee and hot chocolate were possibly the best all week which put JM6 to top of the list as the best cafe with cake on the Danube. As seems to nearly always be the case the first or last cafe on my trips was the best so again rendering the need to do the actual trip superfluous.
As our final treat we headed for the local spa to chill out and revive our aching limbs, as a bonus it was super authentic.
 |
| Super authentic spa |
Once inside we sunk into the big 36 centigrade pool. Mrs Crusader is not a fan of a warm bath at the best of times let alone a communal one and she was freaked out by the whole experience. When we left she wanted to head back to the hotel for a shower of disinfectant and a calm down. That’s another idea off the Christmas list.
We all agreed that it had been an excellent trip but what have we learnt.
1. Riding by the Danube is very flat. You can climb more metres on a baby Col in the Alps than all week here.
2. You can nearly always get good cake anywhere on the route.
3. Virtually every town or village along the river Danube has been capital of Hungary at some point.
4. There is plenty of black and white action for fans of deserted border crossings.
5. All the sites, museums, big churchy things etc in any town or city along the Danube can easily be covered in a leisurely 10-20 minutes.
6. The majority of the cycle route is on excellent tarmac track but the couple of sections that aren’t, are as bad as anything my old friend National Cycle route 1 has ever offered up, which is a shame.
7. There are only 7 songs that anyone can remember from the sound of music.
8. Cafes are surprised when you ask for a hot chocolate in the middle of summer with some insisting you wait until winter before you can have one.
9. The best cake based cafe shop between Vienna and Budapest is in Budapest.
10. I would recommend this as an experience to anyone who likes cycling and cake or preferably both.
Route
Cafe
|
Drinks
|
Cake
|
Atmosphere and Ambiance
|
Rating
|
Uferhaus, Orth
|
7.5
|
8
|
8.5
|
8
|
Stadt, Helmut
|
6
|
7.6
|
7.1
|
6.9
|
Monarchia, Mosonmagyaróvár
|
8
|
8.8
|
7.35
|
8.05
|
Kuglof, Gyor
|
8.47
|
8.46
|
7.4
|
8.11
|
Piskota, Acs
|
7.9
|
8.2
|
6.65
|
7.58
|
Cafe de Luxxe, Komárno
|
7
|
8.6
|
6.45
|
7.35
|
Eszterhazy, Vac
|
6.9
|
8.65
|
8.3
|
7.95
|
JM6 bakery, Budapest
|
8.63
|
8.72
|
7.6
|
8.32
|
Cycle stats
Route
|
Miles
|
Average Mph
|
Time on Bike
|
Metres climbed
|
Vienna to Bratislava
|
49.13
|
11.1
|
4:24
|
159
|
Bratislava to Mosonmagyarovar
|
24.07
|
11.1
|
2:10
|
43
|
Mosonmagyarovar to Gyor
|
27.2
|
10.48
|
2:35
|
38
|
Gyor to Komarom
|
35.4
|
10.14
|
3:29
|
174
|
Komarom to Visegrad
|
49.6
|
10.86
|
4:33
|
183
|
Visegrad to Budapest
|
34.26
|
9.9
|
3:26
|
175
|
Totals
|
219.66
|
10.5
|
20:37
|
772
|
No comments:
Post a Comment