We had to leave Sulina once again in Esztergom after preparing her in May for this season's journey. Johannes was taken ill unexpectedly and we made the difficult decision to return to Germany for medical attention. It proved to be the right decision though as he needed an operation. After his recuperation, doubly vaccinated against Covid and with a new document of permission to enter the country in hand, we boarded the train on the 11th of July.
Changing only twice, at Stuttgart and again at Munich, the train delivered us
reliably and punctually to the Hungarian border at Hegyeshalom, whereat all the passengers whipped off their facemasks in the same moment, and the laughter and friendly banter began. After all, Covid ended in Hungary this year in May...we were there when all the folk of Esztergom turned out in their thousands to celebrate it! Truly, they have had a very admirable vaccination program and everything is open here again.
Locals celebrating end of Covid on the shores of the Danube in Esztergom
A heavy storm had damaged electrical cables and put out the train system throughout much of Hungary. This meant for us that we got to Budapest two hours late, but eventually found another train to Balatonakarattya on the eastern end of Lake Balaton, where our friend Tamas met us at 10pm and led us to his home. His wife Luca and also a delicious hot meal served with the best Hungarian Tokai wine were waiting for us there. Their two little boys were sleeping and we saw them early the next day, but their two daughters were off in the mountains on a weeklong school outing.
Balaton, the beautiful opal blue Balaton lake awaited us next morning. We explored it rather lazily from the southern shore resort town of Siofok, a once very graceful spa town with many villas, now rather neglected, but others either restored or in the process. It also boasts an extensive promenade lined with restaurants, bars, cafes, hotels, fun fair and souvenir shops, with access to the beach possible only through locked gates where you must pay for admission. Or, as we did , walk to the end of the promenade to the public park and beach where you can swim, look at the swan families and ducks and watch the many boats and ships, chartered, private and pirate, as they leave the marina, go out onto the open lake and put up the sails.
The reason we'd chosen to go to Siofok was to see the Lutheran Church designed by Imre Makovecz and it did not disappoint!
On the 13th of July we hopped on the bus and travelled back to Esztergom, admiring along the way the endless fields of sunflowers in full bloom, their cheerful yellow and gold faces turned towards the sun. Public transport in Hungary, incidentally, is free for all people over the age of 64, so we didn't have to pay anything, just show ID! We reached the marina but before we could get to our boat Sulina and strip off the winter tarpaulin, we were invited to sit down for a beer and some Unicum (Schnapps) by the boaters opposite Sulina. 'Egeszsegedre!' We were finally back in Hungary and the boating world!
Sulina's engine started straightaway and at 8am on the 14th we set off once more, back to Budapest with the flow of the Danube giving us a speed of around 13 to 14 kph. We travelled the Szentendre Arm once again, familiar territory and beautiful mountainous landscape. Our plan was to leave the Danube at the start of the Rackeve Arm, a natural old arm of the Danube of 57 kilometers, entered and exited by locks, and otherwise generally quiet and peaceful with much wildlife, countless fishermen and the occasional burst of sporting boat life, much more rowing, kayakking and paddling than speedboats, though a few of them around as well.
The pretty town of Rackeve seen from Sulina on the Rackeve Arm
We tied on and slept at Majoshaza, also walked through the village where we bought some food from the bakery and my halting Hungarian was gently corrected and where we watched the local teenagers play volleyball, girls against boys. We pushed on the next day to the end lock and discovered that the Tass Lock was closed for repair until the 15th of August! So, back again 57 km to the entry lock, the Kvassay Lock. Soon we'll be on the Danube again. These days have been a lovely new start to our journey.
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