Budapest reminds me a lot of Warsaw, in fact. About the same size. There are signs of the Western world alongside visible remnants of the economic devastation of communism. The same hustle-bustle of people getting on with their lives, not giving a shit about tourists*. Everyone's white. A river runs through it, one bank of which is clearly the more relevant. The "old town" is sort of relegated to a distant location no natives ever go. The air pollution is as bad if not worse (horrible, horrible, horrible; I can barely bring myself to breathe). There are pockets of awesome amidst bogs of filth and squalor. So, yeah. We're a lot alike.

Here are a few things I found different:

1. Warsaw has more green. Man. Where is the GRASS in this city!? It must all be on that Margaret Island they all rave about. Boy do I ever feel the lack of just GRASS.

2. The (solitary) vegan restaurant is not run by a religious sect (AFAI could tell).

3. The men make more eye contact. Also, the men are attractive. Hungarians are my second favourite nationals to look at (after Norwegians, selvfølgelig!).

4. Unexpected paprika!

5. The riverside is much more central to the life of the city.

6. The Parliament building is like infinity nicer.

7. Their words are all scrambled!

8. It is evident from the layout of streets how little Budapest was destroyed in the war, compared to Warsaw. Warsaw has these massive avenues that appeared in the 20th century because all the buildings that used to be standing there were rubble. Budapest doesn't have these wide open driving spaces. Funny.

9. I think they must pee a lot of the streets, because the stench is not fleeting.

10. Maybe more tomorrow!

* this might be a critical mass issue. New Yorkers, e.g., have to care about tourists.