The Palinkafesztival (Palinka Festival) in Budapest opened yesterday (May 16th) and it will be open until Sunday evening (May 19th). The weather forecasts do not promise beautiful weather, but if you are in town, make sure to check out what’s going on. I was there yesterday at the Erzsebet square and I liked what I saw!
Often the biggest and most popular festivals in Budapest are arranged in the Castle area. However this time the Palinka festival is arranged in the middle of Budapest, at the Erzsebet square, in front of the five star hotels Le Meridien and Kempinski, and next to the popular club Akvarium. My first comment is that I really liked the venue and the fact that it is in central Budapest. At such a location it is hard to miss out on the festival, and it is really easy to get to and from the festival at any time. Much easier than when it is located in the Castle area.
Another bonus with the location is that the festival feels much more intimate and the visitors are gathered at the same place, without giving you the feeling that it is overcrowded. Of course the wine festival could never be arranged here, because the area is to small, but for a Palinka festival this square is ideal.
Pictures from the Palinka festival 2013
These pictures where made on the opening day of the festival in 2013, quite early, meaning that the festival area was quite empty without to many people, but the pictures will still give you a feeling what the festival area looks like.
Some more thoughts on the Palinka festival 2013
Inside the area there are lots of stands where you can buy all sorts of Palinka, the Hungarian fruit spirit. If you are a big fan this is an ideal place to taste new brands and get new favorites, and if you have not clue what Palinka is about, then this is a great place to get some basic knowledge.
As you buy your entrance ticket you will get the chance to enter into the festival area. Inside the festival area all payments are made with this electronic card you buy. The price is 500 HUF for the card and then you need to fill this with money. Money is withdrawn from the card whenever you make a purchase, and whatever is left on the card will be returned to you as you give back your card and leave the festival area (you will also get the 500 HUF that you paid for the card itself back). This system is quite easy to use (they used it at the Beer festival in 2012 as well), it only gets complicated if it is crowded and hundreds of people want to fill up or return their cards at the same time. However there are 4 such stands in the area, so it shouldn’t really cause any problems, I think!
The price for the different Palinkas on the inside starts from about 300 HUF, but you will of course find much more expensive Palinkas as well. If you are not a big fan of Palinka you find a DiVino bar on the inside where you can taste and drink wine, you can buy soft drinks in the Moszkva ter stands and hot and cold food at other stands.
Every evening there will be concerts, and some of the artists performing are really great, so worth to take a look and listen when in the concert area. A great plus in the festival area is that they have lots of benches and chairs, making it very easy to sit down and enjoy good company, some food and of course, something to drink.
Conclusion: If you have the chance, visit the Erzsebet square in Budapest before Sunday evening and check out the Palinka festival… even if you don’t like Palinka!







Allee is a quite large shopping center so to write down the names of all stores inside the center would take to much time. However you might be pleased to know that quite a lot of famous fashion brands can be found here, for example H&M, C&A, Zara, New Yorker, Stradivarius, Bershka, Marks&Spencer, Mayo Chix, Orsay and Van Graaf If you are of those who believe that you can never buy to many pair of shoes, you might want to visit Ecco, Humanic, Players Room, Salamander, Tamaris and/or Office Shoes. In Allee you can find quite a wide specter of fast food chains and restaurants, a pharmacy, a large grocery store (InterSpar) and a cinema (Cinema City) where you can watch the newest Hollywood films.
Busulo Juhasz claims to have one of the best views in Budapest and indeed it has. The problem is only that the view shows you buildings and areas with no beautiful buildings and not listed on the list of top attractions in Budapest. However, the most important when visiting a restaurant is the food, so keep on reading our Busulo Juhasz review and find out how Budablogger and his family liked it!
Some days ago I wrote that it is
Start with placing some oil and butter in the pot. Add the onion which should be cut to small pieces. Keep stirring to make sure that the onion does not get burned. After a while add the asparagus which has been cut into small pieces and let them stir together for 1-2 minutes. If there are parts of the asparagus that are very hard, almost like cutting tree, leave them and throw them in the garbage instead.


If someone would ask me which shopping center in Budapest is the most children friendly I would say Corvin shopping center. On the frist floor they have a little area with toys were children can play together. On the top floor by the restaurants they have a nice outdoor playground where children can play. By the information in the basement you can borrow cool children cars which gives children the chance to enjoy shopping a bit more than they would without such an option. I have met fathers in Corvin who bring their children here on rainy days, because they say it is the best free place to bring children (1-3 years) who need to move their body a bit.



