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I had read this article in Business Week about Illycaffè and how they are opening a chain of cafes called Espressamente. I am all for the espresso, so I support this concept. I saw this Espressamente at Budapest Airport.

Labels: budapest, cafe, espressamente, hungary, italian coffee

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Every guide book will tell you to sample the national food where you visit. Hungary is renown for many of its national dishes such as goulash and paprika chicken, as well as its sausages, like the Debrecen sausage.

These are all good but I haven't truly sampled a nations food until I have tried their snack foods. In Hungary the local snack food that reigns supreme is the Túró Rudi. If Hungary was to have an official national snack, this would be it.



If you have never had one it is probably best if you eat first then ask questions later. It consists of sweetened compressed cottage cheese, covered in chocolate. It shouldn't work, but it does.

Those who have already converted to the way of the Rudi, there is a place for you at The Túró Rudi Fanlisting.

Labels: food, hungary, snack, turo rudi

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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A triple decker hotel bus, the Alfons Meilhamer Hotelbus-Reisen.

Labels: budapest, hotel bus, hungary

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Labels: budapest, espresso, hungary

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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It feels like I'm being followed by this cow parade exhibition around Europe.
Cow Parade

Labels: blue melting ice cream, budapest, cow parade, hungary

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Flying over Budapest, along the Danube river.

Labels: budapest, danube, hungary

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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I love London and I consider it my second home, so it pains me to tell you that it has a terrible cafe scene. Britain is well regarded for its cozy pubs with its polished brass and potted flowers. Probably the most endearing feature of British pubs though are their names and accompanying sign boards. This is a feature which goes back to 1393, when Richard II made it compulsory for every inn in England to display a sign. Examples of which can be found at The Inn Sign Society.

The British pub scene left no room for a cafe society like on the continent. Up until the 1990's getting a coffee in Britain usually meant instant coffee in a greasy spoon diner.

Lack of cafes in Britian meant that when coffee became fashionable in the early days of New Labour, there was no resistance to the onslaught of the American style coffee franchises. Just about every British High St now has a Starbucks, Cafe Nero, Costa or Coffee Republic. Big High Streets will have all of the franchises. Really big High Streets (like Oxford St London) will have a all of the francises two or three times over. Small independents are few and far between.

I was pondering all this while walking through Regents Park in London. In the park there is a cafe in what was probably a gatehouse. This hole in the wall sized coffee shop is called the Cow and Coffee Bean. It has a great sign out the front that Richard II would have approved of. This sign made me think of would could have been here if cafes developed along the same path as the pubs.

Labels: britain, cafe, cow and coffee bean, england, iced coffee, london, pub, regents park, richard II

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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I've noticed some buildings around New York have these Fallout Shelter signs.

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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