Budapest, Fast and Slow
You can race through Budapest at a gallop, but you’ll notice more at a gentle pace.
© Joyce McGreevy
Hungarian Travel Tips in Two Tempos
I’m lingering at a bisztro in Budapest’s Jewish Quarter, savoring every bite of cholent. It’s an Ashkenazi slow-and-low cooked casserole. Guests keep arriving in waves. So, when the waiter approaches, I assume it’s to drop the bill and hasten me on my way.
Instead, he recommends flodni, a 20-ingredient stuffed wonder he airily summarizes as a “light pastry.” Or perhaps another glass of rozé?
“Jaj! Most kell dolgoznum,” I sigh. “Alas, I must work now.” Back in Chicago, the workday’s in high gear. As a digital nomad, I’ve got a manuscript to deliver.
A neighborly chat at Spinoza Café.
© Joyce McGreevy
Meanwhile, the piano man asks, “Szeretsz énekelni?” “Would you like to sing?” As a...
