Today was a less exasperating day, here in Budapest. I decided not to walk many miles, because I didn’t want my ankle to hurt again. Instead of power walking all over Budapest, today I decided to visit the Retro Museum. I had been wanting to go to that museum, because I grew up in the 1970s and 80s, and I used to live in the former Soviet Union. So I am very interested in museums about life behind what was the Iron Curtain.

The Retro Museum was fun to visit. It’s very interactive, with lots of cool looking exhibits set in what appear to be mock ups of block style apartment buildings so prevalent in former communist countries. I lived in one of those buildings myself, among other types of housing in Armenia. Naturally, those types of buildings are in Hungary, just as they are found in every other country that was once controlled by Moscow in any way.

The people who created the museum put memorabilia in the “buildings”. You can open a door on the building and look at each treasure. When I write my Budapest series, I’ll share pictures of what I mean by this. One thing I did learn at this museum is that it seems like Hungary was more pro-Russia than Lithuania was. But of course, I could be wrong about that. I need to read more about the history.

After I visited the museum, I spent some time hanging out in the big plaza near the shopping district. I was amazed by how bold and brave the pigeons are. One got close enough to me that I could have pet it. And when I got back to the hotel, my room was already prepared, so I wrote a post for my main blog and took a short nap. Now, I’m waiting for Bill to get back here, so I can get something to eat. I skipped lunch again. 😉

I’m glad I went to the museum, even if it was kind of interrupted by a couple of women who were singing all of the folk songs. I couldn’t tell if they were in Russian or Hungarian– I would imagine Hungarian, but I’m not yet familiar enough with what it sounds like. Everybody here has been speaking perfect English! There was also a woman with a couple of kids who were hogging all of the interactive exhibits and shrieking a lot… but, I guess since they were kids, they kind of get a pass. I don’t know how much of the museum they understood, since that time is now well in the past. I remember it well, though.

One more full day in Budapest awaits, and then on Saturday, we go home. I look forward to it, although Lufthansa changed my seat. I guess it was because there was an empty seat next to me, and they wanted to allow a couple to sit together. Who knows? Too bad Bill will be in Economy again.

Featured photo is of one of the “mock ups” I wrote of. Yes, I did once live in a building that looked like that…