Since I can't check into my luxurious airbnb apartment until the evening I have stopped at Momento park, collection of soviet statues removed from their original places, not quite living up to that scene in GoldenEye, but spiced up as there seems to be an airshow in progress nearby as loads of old planes keep flying over

So much for three days relaxing? Three days pounding the streets trying to see a whole city under a relentless sun....

On the face of it Budapest is vibrant, full of cafes, burger bars, wine festivals, music events, parks, spas, kebab shops, etc, so many nice buildings I don't know which ones are the famously significant and end up just wandering around randomly taking photos.
Their parliament is impressive, built to imitate the British one only marginally grander, and also suffering from slowly sinking under it's own weight.
Empty (of people) railway museum was nice.
Went to another pinball arcade, which was fun. The Addams family machine is my favourite.
Got a new watch battery fitted.

Met Astrid for a drink (comrade from Africa tour) who has been living in the city for the last couple of years and fills me in on the state of things, with surreptious glances around -
Hungary now politically is effectively a one party state, the far right having passed laws strangling opposition, taking control of or closing newspapers, tv, radio, running city wide smear adverts about opposition, rewriting history textbooks... So the younger generation unsurprisingly moving abroad to live and work, labour shortage here, laws passed that employers can demand 200 hours a year extra work with payment "within three years". Er what.
And allegedly the health service is still somewhat medieval, and recommends amputation for the slightest ailment. So I'm being extra careful until I cross the next border!