I wonder how they managed to accommodate the six children in the "lovely five star hotel". Did they get an extra large family room. I remember somebody on this forum asking if it was possible to smuggle children into their parents' room.
No doubt they could feed them all by filling their ziplock bags at breakfast.

As their children still are pretty young, I suppose they laid them across the width of the bed. You can easily accomodate 3 to 4 smallish children per queen-size bed that way.

Only 3 to 4?
Nonsense. If you had them head to feet like sardines, you could get at least 12 in.

good for all you guys who think it is great fun to make fun of people who have very distressing experiences on the Metro system in Budapest. God help your children cause you also seem to make fun of ugly people !

I have in fact written to the Irish Ambassador in Budapest to see if they can do something about changing the system where you are just unable to travel or gain access at least to the train until you first put the ticket in a machine to validate it. I have asked him to help the people of Budapest to help tourists, and that might actually help get rid of the very obvious xenophobia that exists as a result of this.

The reply ………”As I am sure you will appreciate, foreign Embassies based in Hungary have no real influence on the manner in which public infrastructure operates in Budapest. However, I have asked a member of the Embassy’s staff to raise the issues that you set out, and in particular the behaviour of metro personnel, at the next meeting of EU Consuls in Budapest. The EU Consuls’ network has in the past proven to be a useful forum through which Embassies can communicate their concerns to the Hungarian authorities.”…..

It seems that the travel system is set up by the government for the ticket collectors to abuse tourists. There are just too many similar stories of not validating the ticket and getting a fine. It seems to be a fantastic way of making a real good living for the BKV or whatever it is called ...

It was probably THE most distressing event of my life – some forum readers will laugh that poor me I have lived a sheltered little life in Ireland !

Oh dear. What have I let myself in for. I should stop right now, yet I can’t resist. I’ll have to go to a Posters Anon meeting and declare “My name is Peter, and I haven’t posted a dumb response for two weeks”.

But I’m about to get off the posting wagon.

I’m about to sin.

Your typical transit cop won’t hold an advanced degree in European languages. In Australia, they speak a decent, if monosyllabic, kind of English.
Show me ticket.
You got no ticket?
You in trouble.
You in deep trouble.
Show me ID.
You gotta pay fine.
First offence?
Tourist?
(Laughs)

I imagine that your average Budapest inspector is similar, in both language skills and tact. Ditto for Boston, Birmingham, Brisbane.

However, inspectors do hold advanced qualifications in Commuter Profiling, so they specialise in checking the tickets, or non-existent tickets, of people who do not hold said tickets. So the tradesman on the Venetian ferry with his trolley of tools, the man in the suit on the bus with copy of the Times, the regular commuters, the priest, the cop, the nun, they don’t get checked because they probably have tickets. The indigents, the students, the tourists, they get checked because they are less likely to have tickets. No point wasting time on checking on people that do have tickets – better to target the ones who don’t.

Most people who visit a country think that it’s a really really good idea to know how things work, and most people travel to experience things that are a bit different from home. Ticket systems are different in many places, languages vary from country to country, and even money is different. You can’t buy a ticket in Melbourne using euro, even though it’s lovely money. A bag of trade beads, some plug tobacco and a tomahawk will get you places in the New Guinea highlands, but sadly will not cut it in New York. Amex may be fine in Amsterdam, but in the Amazon it is not widely accepted. In Budapest, even if you are there for only a day, a handful of the local coconuts or cash is a good idea.

Ways of dealing with fare evasion are one of the delightful differences when travelling. In Melbourne, you will be escorted off the public conveyance, undergo the above detailed inquisition, and a little physical violence may be offered, gratis. Your fine will come in the mail.

Some places just do it on the spot. In Italy, travel by train sans ticket, and you will be held on the train while the matter is addressed. This may allow the miscreant to view some hundreds of kilometres of countryside that they had no intention of travelling to, and the fine will be paid on the spot. Ferries in Venice – no ticket or not validated - about 50 euro on the spot.


Budapest? Well, we all know now what happens in Budapest, and claiming residence in a five star hostel seems not to be of great assistance.

Peter whatever - best thing you have said - and while your at it sign up for idiots anon too please.

<It seems that the travel system is set up by the government for the ticket collectors to abuse tourists.>

I kind of doubt that.

I bet the Irish ambassador to the Hungarian republic is still rolling on the floor dominated by uncontrollable mirth.

"Naive" must be an invaluable relief for this excellent official of the destitute emerald republic, as there isn't much to laugh about in other ways....

verynaiveirishgirl:

After you bought the ticket ,how did you have to validate the ticket.?

I have been to Europe many time but have never rode the subway or Tram (Oh yes I did in London).

I am thinking you just buy a ticket and hop on the Tram.

What else is required.?

I bet the Irish ambassador to the Hungarian republic ist still roling on the floor shaken by spasm of uncontrollable mirth.

"Naive" must be an immense source of glee and relief to that worthy official of the destitute emerald republic, as he can't have too many subjects to laugh about...

Trolladonna returns.

"I have asked him to help the people of Budapest to help tourists, and that might actually help get rid of the very obvious xenophobia that exists as a result of this."

My goodness! What is the poor guy to do? Drive you to your shrink's office. Your xenophobia is yours. Good luck with that. Btw, America is a horrible place, rife with thieves, bad taxi drivers and other underlings who don't respond to requests from imperious customers.

I'm just saying, stick to France.

Good for you for providing such entertainment. Where's that ugly people thread?

Percy: After we bought the ticket we went straight to the platform and the train was there in front of us. I could not see any machine to put the ticket into to validate it. In fact we returned to the ticket agent before boarding the train to ask her what platform we needed to be on for the Szechenyi Bath (we were in Deak Ferenc Ter).

Like I said, if there was some barrier there in front of us that was clearly marked with a place for the ticket then we would have figured that out most likely (no laughs please!). We were just able to board the train and in fact when on the train I wondered what I was supposed to do with the ticket and thought that a ticket checker would come round to collect our tickets.

You know what verynaiveirishgirl, I would have probaly done the same thing you did.

I would have bought a ticket ,boared the train(Tram) ,sat down and still had my ticket.

That is the way it is here in my city, you buy a ticket and get on.... if a ticket agent comes to ask you to show the ticket ,you show your ticket and the agent leaves.

I would have done the same thing in Budapest.

Thanks for your explanation.

Percy: just out of curiosity and I don't want details but which country are you in?

Loving this post!

I dont think this sort of thing is country specific - I think its transit system specific. In London most tube stops (if not all) have barriers, but many overground trains, and most of the DLR dont, you have to tap in and tap out to validate your ticket.

Good rule of thumb - if your ticket is time/date stamped (i.e. it is for a specific train and /or seat) you dont have to validate it. If it is the type where you can buy a bunch of tickets and ride whenever you like on whatever train you want in whatever seat then you have to validate to prevent the ticket from being used for more than 1 journey. This 2nd type usually is the local transit (including buses) process if there are no barriers to cross to get in.

Oh meant to add - putting in barriers is not as simple as just putting them in at the request of a tourist or even mass tourists. It's a major infrastructure change costing millions for technology and equipment - not even including the labour issues (i.e. how do you appease the likely unionized ticket checkers for losing their jobs) so its a HUGE undertaking!

Hungary is really so sad, almost tragic. Since the decline of the Hapsburg rule, and the separation of the Empire into its two parts, Austria and Hungary, things have never been the same.

The horse drawn trams in Budapest were so picturesque, providing in addition valuable fertilizer for vegetable gardens. Capsicums have never been the same.

Sad, so sad.

>The horse drawn trams in Budapest were so picturesque, providing in addition valuable fertilizer for vegetable gardens.<

Even those trams had validation. They used small orphans who'd nibble the ticket in the precise coded pattern for that day. Efficient and kept the orphans fed. Damn clever those Magyars.

>The horse drawn trams in Budapest were so picturesque, providing in addition valuable fertilizer for vegetable gardens.<

Even those trams had validation. They used small orphans who'd nibble the ticket in the precise coded pattern for that day. Efficient and kept the orphans fed. Damn clever those Magyars.