Budapest

2023 Grateful 48: El Greco

I’m still kicking myself that I missed the Hieronymus Bosch exhibition in Budapest last year. Not because I’m a fan of the man’s work (I

Silver-haired bearded bartender with a big smile wearing a white shirt with sleeves rolled up underneath a grey vest, squeezing what might be a lemon into a cocktail glass.

A Christmas tipple

It’s Christmas. The season of goodwill. And giving. Lots of giving. Mostly giving stuff that people don’t want or won’t use or have no need

lake in the foreground with reeds to the left and weeping willow hanging from the top. In the distance is an island, its reflection clear in the water

2022 Grateful 21: Hurry Sickness

Hurry sickness. It was a new one on me, something I could relate to but hadn’t ever heard named. Hurry sickness.

Save this man

In 2013, when the Hungarian government first criminalised homelessness, the BBC reported figures from The civic group, the City Belongs to Everyone, estimating that 10,000

Hungary happened

I’m not a great one for making plans. Most of my major life decisions were taken on the spur of the moment. I’m definitely a

Other people’s lives

There is a growing discontent in the air in Budapest. Something that goes beyond the normal level of human complaint. What I’m hearing now is

Small halls and potholes

It was an intimate affair. About thirty discerning souls in the back room of Beckett’s Bar in Budapest on a cold, rainy, rather miserable Thursday

2016 Grateful 17

Last week, I gathered some of my miscellaneous currency – you know the bits you have left over after a trip and are too lazy

2015 Grateful 8

My life is bursting with good intentions. I am forever making notes to myself to see, do, go, call, write, ask… and a good 7 times

2015 Grateful 9

What’s this? I asked the waiter, pointing to what looked suspiciously like a piece of a chilli. It’s a chilli, he confirmed. But it was