We took our third and final trip out of Budapest this week. Kuah drove us to Lake Heviz. Why Lake Heviz? Well, it is a thermal lake. And it’s not just any thermal lake but the largest swimable thermal lake in the world. The largest thermal lake is Frying Pan Lake in New Zealand but it’s too hot for swimming. Not really sure I’d want to swim in a place called frying pan.
We got to the town we were staying in but it was too early to check in. So we headed out to lunch. We walked a short bit to Grillkert Hazias Etterem. There was no one there but it had good reviews so we decided to give it a try. I had some simple grilled chicken and pickles, which is exactly what I was in the mood for. Kuah ordered rabbit with bread dumplings. He was kind enough to give me a dumpling and it was delicious!
We shared a Somloi Galuska for dessert. We’d been seeing this on menus around Budapest but hadn’t tried it yet. It is a walnut sponge cake with chocolate, vanilla dressing and whipped cream. We really picked the perfect time for it. It was a hot day and this dessert was served really cold which made it perfectly refreshing.
After that we walked around a bit more but found it to be too hot to be enjoyable to so we went to see if our room was ready at the Bonvital Wellness & Gastro Hotel. Once it was we were able to check in and get 2 discount tickets to the thermal lake. We were also able to borrow 2 noodles so it would be easy to float in the lake.
We had previously walked to the lake and discovered several things. First the median age of this crowd was probably 75. Second, there were 2 types of people. First, the ones who wore clothes and carried a bag with their swimming gear along with their noodle. And second, people who were just wearing robes over their swimsuits and carrying their noodle. Everyone was carrying a noodle.
We decided that we were definitely robe people. I mean really, who can be bothered with all this changing stuff just to walk from the hotel to the lake. So we put on our bathing suits and robes, grabbed our noodles and headed out.
I have to admit I complained the whole walk down to the lake. I was wearing new flip flops and they hurt my toe. I’m really whiney when I’m in pain. Thankfully for Kuah it was a short walk. Once there we put our robes in lockers and headed to the lake.
The lake was a very pleasant temperature. There was the very slightest smell of sulfur but not strong enough to really be noticeable. It was pretty crowded but not so much you couldn’t find a comfortable place to float. Kuah and I floated with our noodles for a bit over an hour. Having all the green trees around us made it really relaxing. The only thing I didn’t like was that there was lots of black stuff floating in the water. Kuah thought it was some kind of seaweed. Nobody seemed bothered by it but it did gross me out a bit.
Then I had to get out of the lake to use the bathroom. It was at this point I decided my next bathing suit would be a tankini. It’s too tough to go to the bathroom in a one piece when it’s all wet.
Since we had already gotten out of the outdoor section we decided to try the part that is in the building. While the scenery here wasn’t as beautiful it was less crowded which made it very calm. Much of the time Kuah and I were the only ones in that area. After another half hour I started to get cold so I got out. Kuah stayed in a while longer just relaxing while floating in his noodle.
We didn’t bring our phones to the lake so I don’t have many pics. Here is one Kuah took when we walked by the lake the next day. This is just a small corner of it. If you want to see more pics you can do so at https://www.heviz.hu/en/lake-heviz.
The hotel we were staying at included breakfast and dinner with our room. We had read a lot of wonderful reviews about the dinner so were really looking forward to it. It was served buffet style and I can say they have a great pastry chef. I enjoyed the strawberry cake the first night and the chocolate coconut cake the second night. Dinner can just be cake, right? In the mornings they had these lovely chocolate pastries. You could tell they were handmade as they were not all the same size or filled identically.
The second day we walked to Festetics Castle in Keszthely. It was about a 3 and a half mile walk each way. Looking it up on google maps we had no idea what a wonderful walk it would be. It was mostly on a path through the woods. The trees were so lush and green and provided lots of shade. The birds provided the background music.
Once there we took a tour of the palace. The library was the coolest part. I’d love to live in a house with a huge library! We also went to the top of the tower. We had to climb up a black circular iron staircase. I really hate stairs but I did it anyway. We got to the top and took a selfie. You aren’t supposed to take any pictures unless you pay more but we figured since it cost extra to climb the tower we could sneak 1 selfie in.
Once we finished our tour we walked from the town to shore of Lake Balaton. This lake is the largest in Hungary having a area of 231 square miles. It is a freshwater lake and very beautiful. Here Kuah finally tried one of Hungary’s iconic dishes, langos.
Langos is a deep fried bread. One of the most popular toppings is sour cream and cheese. Kuah got his with ham, bacon and cheese. It was made more like a langos pocket. As you can see in the pictures they did not skimp on the cheese. What made his langos delicious was the garlic on top.
We found a nice shady bench to enjoy the langos. It was one of those lovely moments when everything seems to be just wonderful. If you’re reading this now I wish you many such moments.
After this we walked back to the hotel to enjoy their hot tub and pool. It was relaxing and quiet in the pool area. I said we went swimming but Kuah said we went sitting as we spent the majority of the time sitting in the pool. I had gotten a bit of sun rash the day before so couldn’t go swimming in the lake again. I was thankful for the pool option. One funny thing about the pool were there all these different areas that would turn on and off automatically. There were 2 hot tub areas, spots that would splash down on you, and several other areas where the water would massage you. There was even a water bike. We also tried an infrared sauna. I believe I would’ve stayed in it a long time but the heat started to bother my rash and I had to get out early.
Our final day we checked out of the hotel and drove to Tihany. We waffled back and forth on whether we wanted to go or not. It ended up being a cute town. We took a tour of the Abby. It is one that is know for providing a place for eastern and western christianity to talk together.
Here I also read about how Saint Nicholas threw a bag of gold coins into 3 different women’s rooms so they would have a dowry and be able to get married. It is supposed to be where the idea of Santa Claus came from. I couldn’t help thinking that it would’ve been much nicer if he had fought against the dowry system or allowed women to work so they could support themselves. That would’ve been much more useful. However, it was still nice for him to provide dowries to help 3 women get married. Sometimes I think I’m really becoming a curmudgeon.
Tihany is also famous for lavender. I bought some lavender bath salts and am looking forward to trying them out. Our airbnb has a great bathtub that I’ve been taking advantage of most nights. It helps my legs relax in preparation for another day of walking.
From Tihany we drove back to Budapest. We stopped for lunch at Nancsi Neni, which is on the outskirts of Buda, a bit too far to walk to from our apartment. We started off sharing Pancake Hortobagyi Style. This is a traditional Hungarian specialty. It is a pancake filled with ground chicken with a paprikas sauce. I really enjoyed it but Kuah thought is was just OK.
Kuah pointed out a great dish for me on the menu, Honey Flavored Breast of Turkey. It was a turkey breast coated in honey seasoned croute and fried until crispy. It was served with fresh strawberry caramellisee and home made potato balls. The potato balls were almost like a fluffy fried bread. The whole dish was a sweet and savory combination different from anything I’ve eaten before. I really enjoyed it.
Kuah chose the Oven Baked Roasts of Lamb Trotters Parfumed With Spices. The piece of lamb was marinated in spicy oil for a few days then braised for a long time to be soft and tender. Finally baked in the oven with honey and beer until auburn. It came with saffron flavoured mashed potato, garlic confit and spicy sauce. While Kuah enjoyed his dish it didn’t have the same wow factor mine did. I’ve taken the names and descriptions directly from the restaurant’s menu so some things may be spelled or worded differently than you are used to.
From the restaurant we drove back to the car rental agency and returned the car. Then we had a half our walk back to our apartment. I was able to carry my backpack the whole way without pain. I still have a lot of work before I could do a whole day of backpacking but this is an improvement.
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