Market on the shore
Despite the archive photographs being black-and-white, we can almost smell the fruits and vegetables sold at the riverside market that once stretched along the Danube. Vendors sold their merchandise – which could be millstone-sized loaves of bread, vegetables, dairy products, or myriad other foodstuffs – on small tables or right on the ground. These photos were presumably taken before World War II, since the original Elizabeth Bridge (destroyed during the Siege of Budapest) can still be seen in the background.Seaplane base at Saint Gellért Square
Between 1923 and 1926, Aeroexpress Rt. operated a seaplane base at Saint Gellért Square, offering flights to Vienna and to Lake Balaton. The opening ceremony of the base attracted massive crowds to the quay; some sightseeing flights were also offered, one of which resulted in an accident at Csepel Island. One of the seaplane pilots was György Endresz, the first Hungarian airplane pilot who flew across the ocean.
Fishermen
We’re always surprised to see people with fishing rods beside the Danube these days, since we’d think that there isn’t much that would bite the hook besides driftwood. In the past, however, many fishermen from the capital spent their time beside the river, waiting for a good catch.Floating swimming pools and beachesWhenever we find photographs of floating swimming pools on the Danube, we always stop for a moment and think of the modernized version on Berlin’s Spree River with envy. But the regular beaches along the river were great recreational spots as well, such as the Duna Strandfürdő (“Danube Lido”) on the border of districts II and III, at Sajka Street.
