The railway station on stilts
Even though there are notable differences between the two cities, the grand hall of Keleti Station rests upon thousands of stilts, just like Amsterdam's Central Station. Keleti was completed in 1884, marking the end of Rákóczi út. The building still stands on over 3,000 pine poles, each 15 metres long. This peculiar solution, reminiscent of Venice and Dutch cities, was necessary as the area was once marshy ground, and foundation issues couldn't be resolved otherwise. Red pine possesses the remarkable quality of turning to stone in wet soil. As the surrounding soil contained significant debris, fresh earth was transported by railway wagons.
The Rákosi Bunker in the metro
Although these locations were most prominent during the Cold War era, it's known that vast underground areas exist along the metro lines, serving civil defence purposes. We can also encounter a unique facility, its presence indicated by two covered shafts standing alone above ground. This is the Rákosi Bunker, situated 16 storeys deep beneath Szabadság tér. Originally planned as a luxurious bunker with suites for the communist party elite, the project was soon abandoned, and numerous plans were later devised for its use. However, it remains empty today, with only occasional maintenance carried out. We explored it in this article.
Medieval city wall
In the past, a robust city wall protected Pest from invading forces. While such defences would be less effective in today's age of bombs and nuclear weapons, we can still find traces of the former city wall during our walks, even near Budapest's busiest intersections. A museum even illustrates how this complex aided in defending against the Tatars and Turks. We previously explored the city in search of these remnants. Should we manage to glance through the door at 33 Múzeum körút, we can discover a considerable section of the former wall, and on the adjacent plots along Bástya utca, we can observe firing holes across a significant stretch.
(Cover photo: Csudai Sándor - We Love Budapest)
