It all began amid the January gloom, when we bemusedly noticed a discarded Christmas tree somehow perched erect atop a tall signpost on District VII’s Wesselényi Street. We wondered how it got up there, but didn’t give this much thought; plenty of rambunctious party people wander along this bustling lane late into every night, and alcohol can fuel amazing athletic accomplishments… but a few days later, a second tree was mounted on another nearby street sign – and as a third Christmas tree appeared on yet another pole a few meters away earlier this week, the plot continues to thicken.

Undoubtedly, the inspiration for this mild vandalism was found in the profusion of jettisoned Christmas trees that inevitably floods Budapest’s streets in early January, but we remain thoroughly puzzled by how the Yuletide icons are ending up on top of these signs.

Presumably a group of rascals is teaming up to pull off this stunt, as it seems difficult enough for an average person to climb a three-meter-tall street sign, let alone to do so while lugging an impressively sized tree… but even if this is the work of some secret society, with accomplices handing the tree to the person who scales the sign, how does that culprit then position the tree on top of the pole without letting go? Or perhaps they use a ladder, but that would be rather conspicuous… not that we haven’t seen stranger happenings on Wesselényi Street.

What’s more, does this impish band measure the circumference of the trees’ trunks before launching their antics, to make sure that they will fit in the hole on top of the pole? And where are they getting the treesnowadays, considering that Christmastime is long over?

Perhaps we’ll never learn the answers to these questions, but overall we’re not displeased by this prank – the trees add a nice touch of surreal humor to the Wesselényi Street scene, and unlike similar urban mischief-making escapades (like tossing tied-together pairs of shoes over power cables), mounting an old Christmas tree on top of a sign poses little risk of damage to city infrastructure.

With that in mind, it’s not surprising that city officials aren’t hurrying to remove these towering trees – especially since the prospect of taking them down seems just as daunting as the prospect of putting them up in the first place. It will be interesting to see how long they will remain in this lofty state; if these winter decorations are still there in the summer, they will present an even more surreal scene for passersby.

Will the mystery behind the merry pranksters of Wesselényi Street ever be solved? Probably not – but actually, that’s fine with us!