Sorry I disappeared for a while (worrying a few people, I know), but I've just been caught up in the adventure! All right. I think my last journal entry was a little on the boring side because I was just tackling the "must-sees" in Budapest. Today is different - it's time to relax. The sights have been seen, and the museums have been visited. Today I'm headed to the Turkish baths at Gellert hotel. I wake up at a later time than usual and take a nice walk over. On my way, I take a stop at Grand Market Hall. I've been to a lot of markets in my lifetime, but this huge indoor market takes the cake. It's two floors of vendors in a cavernous building, with many windows lighting up the floor, and an open-concept design. The stalls on the second floor mostly go around the perimeter and across the middle, with the remaining areas opening up to the stalls on the first floor. It's really quite a sight to see, and I spend some time buying fresh fruits for breakfast. In addition, I stumble on the paprika vendors and buy "The Secret Ingredient": some delicious paste I add to my vegetable soups giving it the spicy goulash flavour. Leaving the market, I cross a lovely bridge over the Danube river to reach Gellert hotel in Pest. It's pretty old in appearance, but nonetheless, grande and famous. I head to the bath entrance and purchase my ticket for quite a reasonable price (note to all: with the new ticket system in place, make sure you keep your receipt so you get refunds if you leave within 4 hours). I can't remember the price, but I'm sure it's under $10 CDN. I have to pass up on the mud bath though, because it's a bit pricier. I make my way through a lovely lobby and into the men's change rooms. I'm directed to a second floor, where an attendee shows me to a private cabin (cloth cubicle), complete with a locker and a comfortable bed. I change and head towards the swimming pool, passing the baths on my way. It's hard not to notice the fact that most of the men are wearing the "aprons". Essentially, they're loin cloths that look like dinner napkins with two strings. They look hilarious, because everyone's butts are totally exposed, aka the sumo wrestler look. At the entrances to swimming pools, washrooms, baths, etc., there are small shallow pools of warm water in the floor to clean one's feet. The swimming pool area is an exquisite area. The pool itself is not too large, but is lit with natural light, and surrounded by beautiful statue fountains. I swim for half an hour, but am drawn to the hot pool. Here I sit under a large fountain and let the water beat on my back for a water massage. After relaxing here, I head to the baths. The baths are beautiful, with colourful Turkish-designed ceilings and fountains. They are essentially large public hot tubs, but you have the luxury of wearing only the "napkin". There are two pools, one 38 degrees Celcius, the other 36 degrees. I try them both, but avoid the fountains, as the water pouring from them is a little too hot for me. I wade around, noticing that Budapest's gay community lounges here. Next, I decide to try the steam baths. On my way, I pass a pool of frigid water, not knowing why anyone would want to wade in there. The steam baths are intense, to say the least. I open the door, and the heat of the steam emenating from the room drives me away from even setting foot in the room. After a few moments of hesitation, I force myself into the room. I can barely see anything, but find my way to a bench. The temperature in there is at least 60 degrees. I stick it out for a few minutes, but my skin soon starts to feel like its searing and I leave. I swear that anyone staying in there for longer than 10 minutes risks certain death. I feel hot, really hot. Suddenly, the cold water pool makes sense. I jump in, and although really cold, it has a strangely satisfying feeling as it cools off my burning skin. At this point, my muscles have relaxed to the point of being jello, and I return to my cabin where I take a short nap on my bed whilst air drying. I leave the baths feeling completely invigorated, and can see why some travellers spend every day at the baths. Leaving the baths, I spot a cave on a nearby hill. Out of curiosity, I enter it, and discover a wonderful church built in the cave. It's quite interesting as the church is built around the structure of the cave. The seating is oriented awkwardly towards a stage, with many seats having a blocked view from cave walls. All remaining nooks and crannies are fitted with confession rooms or statues. I continue up the hill, breaking a sweat and wondering why I didn't do this before the baths. Eventually, I make it to the top, where the Citadel fortress is built. Here lies the highest point in Budapest. The view is all right (but too high - Split was better), the fortress is lame, so I would have to say it wasn't worth the hike. The only thing of interest is a store selling Communist junk in the Citadel. I make the trek over to Castle Hill again, but pass the palace and museums I saw the days before and head towards Buda Castle. As I reach Buda Castle, I am surprised to see a lovely old town built around it, complete with plazas and statues. Of course, lots of people know this too, and tourists abound in this area. I take a quick tour of the church in the castle, which has an interesting museum that snakes around the top of it, giving great views of the church interior. I skip the castle and follow my map to find the Castle labyrinths. The Budvar Labyrinths are really interesting. It's a series of subterranean tunnels, a couple of kilometres in length, that are located under the castle. There are no tourists here, as the entrance is pretty hard to find - you enter through a typical buildling on an uninteresting side street away from the castle. The contents of the labyrinths are not genuine, but are designed to make it more like a fun house. It's fake, but it's great. The caverns are dark enough in some areas that you have to feel your way around (they rent out flashlights). There are creepy statues, candles, and chains all over the place. Same with the music. One room, is pretty satanic in appearance, complete with heartbeat. The highlight for me was a set of fountains pouring out wine. Hunger strikes and I cross back into Buda to a popular Indian vegetarian restaurant, complete with meditation room. I dine with a Russian local there, who tells me some interesing stories of her past. Again, I get huge Hungarian portions - I can't finish it all, so I pack up half of the food in a Ziploc bag for the night train to Poland. Next: Cheap Thrills in Poland