By Leigh “Tammy Tonic” Godfrey
I think the description on the website for Hotel Budapest Tourism nails the city’s Fun Fair when they describe it as, “The best of its kind in Hungary, though do not expect Disney!” I might add, “Or to enjoy the latest in safety measures!”
Actually, that’s harsh – after all it has been nearly 15 years since Catsy and I visited the Fun Fair and adjacent Grand Circus, both located in Budapest’s beautiful Varosliget (City Park). I’m sure since then, especially now that Hungary is part of the European Union, great strides have been made in the upgrade of the park’s rides. Then again, maybe not.
But let me tell you how it was not long after the Berlin Wall fell . . .
It was 1991 and about month into our European travels, Catsy and I found ourselves in Budapest. We loved “the Paris of the East,” and despite numerous warnings from many xenophobic American tourists who told us to “watch out for the thieving gypsies,” we spent many a happy day exploring the city, investigating every potential tourist trap this decidedly untouristy city held for us. Our ridiculously insufficient guide book “Let’s Go” Europe (subsequently christened “Let’s Get Lame” Europe) devoted three paltry pages to the delights of Budapest, but among them was a mention of the local Circus and Fun Fair.
As Catsy and I have always been rabid amusement park goers, we were instantly hip to the idea of a Fun Fair. Not so winning was the Circus, but as Hungary apparently has a proud tradition of circus folk, we overcame our overwhelming fear of clowns and traveled to the City Park to welcome the wonderful delights that awaited us there. And this is our story . . .
As we walked into the park to find the Circus, we were accosted by some gypsy children, who followed us all the way to the ticket window and were hovering around us constantly. Were these finally the gypsies we were warned to “watch out for” while in Budapest? They were just kids, albeit annoying ones, clamoring for money and grabbing on to our clothes. In normal circumstances we would have just ignored them, but all of a sudden we started feeling paranoid about pulling out our money in front of them. But we had made our decision and nothing was going to stop us from visiting the circus, not even a pack of gypsy children who may or may not be trying to steal from us.
As the circus didn’t start for a while, we headed over to the Fun Fair, which cost a whopping 10 forints to get into – but the minute we walked in and saw the cheesy carnival atmosphere we knew it was worth our 15 cents. You had to pay for each ride separately, and as we didn’t have much time we had to choose carefully. We opted for the roller coaster, 30 forints and worth every penny. Definitely the most frightening ride I have ever been on. Not because of loops or high hills, no – it was the decrepit nature of the cars and track and the fact the there was nothing, and yes I mean no bar, or seat belt, nothing — holding you into the car. I was sitting on the side where one enters, and it was completely open. Actually, I exaggerate, the attendant did pull a small chain across the opening which I’m sure could have born the weight of a Chihuahua before breaking. “Thanks! I feel safer already!” I quipped. And did I mention that the man sitting in front had draped his arm across the bar to put it around his (hopefully) daughter, so we didn’t even have a bar to hold on to. Basically, we clung to each other and prayed.
Yes, a truly death-defying experience.
Next up was the Haunted House. You know the kind, a carnival staple, where you get into little cars and they shoot you through the darkness, and as you whip around corners you encounter something scary. Well, in this case the “something scary” was weird papier-mâché giants and decaying scarecrow witches and silly stuff like that. Truly uninspired. But at this point, nothing was going to beat the thrill of the roller coaster with no safety bar. Or so we thought.
We had only time for one more ride, and so we slapped down 12 forints for a trip on “L’Amour.” Basically, it was “The Himalayan” with one strange addition – a vinyl canopy that flipped up over your head periodically so you were covered from the onlookers, at which point I guess you could then indulge in any sort of activities that “l’amour” might make happen. The best part (or worst, depending on who you are in this story) was that our canopy was broken, and it kept bashing Catsy upside the head, or her hair would get caught in it as it whipped up to cover us. Our hysterical laughter, the blaring German rock music and the hyped up announcer shouting something in Hungarian over the loud speaker (which you know translated to, “Do you want to go faster??!!”) made this an altogether hilarious and treacherous ride.
But the best was still to come. Yes, our visit to the Circus. Even with scary clowns apparent as we entered, we were ready to experience the Budapest Circus Extravaganza.
And what can I say, but it was worth the dollar. Psycho animal acts, energetic acrobats and, of course, intermittent clowning, made even more exciting by the fact that it was emceed entirely in Hungarian, so we could only guess at the next gem were would be lucky enough to view. Among my favorites: the bird woman with a slew of pigeons she directed to alight on a strange ‘70s centerpiece; the schnauzers in glitter outfits dancing on their hind legs, and the man who hypnotized alligators. Wow.
After the circus was over we walked through the park and I bought a cotton candy (a typical circus-type thing) and Jessie bought some corn from an entrepreneurial fellow who had a folding table and a big pot stationed at a bend in the path. At the time I maintained this is not a very typical thing to be sold anywhere, let alone a circus, but of course, I was young and naïve and had not yet moved to Los Angeles, where corn is purveyed daily on the streets of my neighborhood. So I was mistaken about the popularity and availability of corn, but I still found it to be a strange post-circus snack item. But as you will notice from her Minnesota article, Catsy is a child of the corn.
And thus endeth our trip to the Budapest Circus and Fun Fair. It is most likely never to be repeated. But thank goodness we’ll always have Disney.