I woke up around 5:00am and decided to check to see where our luggage was. Using the Apple Air Tags, I could see that they were .1km away. So I went down to the lobby and lo and behold, the bags were there. Hallelujah. We were all so relieved.
After breakfast, we decided to walk over to The Great Market Hall Market along the river. It is the largest and oldest indoor market in Budapest. There are three levels to the market. The ground floor is where you will find produce, meats, pastries and spices. The second floor is where you will find souvenirs and many places to eat. The basement contains fish mongers and a few specialized butcher shops. I think everyone ended up with a few purchases.
We left the market and walked back to the hotel on Vaci Utca. We finished up our packing and left our bags in the lobby while we grabbed some lunch at La Lucina. By the time we were done, we went back to the hotel and then our shuttle ($36 CAD) arrived to take us to the ship.
The drive to the ship was interesting because we really did not have an address for where the ship was. There is no cruise terminal like if you were sailing on an ocean cruise. You do not know where your ship will be docked until the day you board. It took our driver a little bit of time to get the information but eventually we got there.
It was so cool to finally see our home for the next week, the Emerald Sun ($4200.50 CAD / person including taxes). The ship is 443 feet in length with four decks. In total there are only 180 passengers and 51 crew members. This is going to be a much different experience for us.
There was a bit of a wait to check in so the staff suggested we head up to the lounge area to relax. Horizon Bar & Lounge is on the third floor and it is where you will find comfy furniture, state-of-the-art coffee machines and a full bar. It serves as the hang out space for the ship.
We headed back downstairs to check in which honestly took about five minutes. We were then escorted to Cabin 331 by Karyna who gave us an orientation of our cabin. The rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out either in the lounge or by the indoor pool which just happens to be right outside our cabin.
Before dinner, there was a welcome aboard talk in the lounge by the cruise director. Igor explained how things work on the ship and what our itinerary would be for tomorrow. We learned that there is only one seating at dinner at therefore all 180 passengers eat together. They ask that you get to the Reflections Restaurant on time because the kitchen staff do not start on anything until all orders have been placed. This is a new concept for us. Once the talk was done, we all headed down a floor to dinner. Since it is open seating, we grabbed a table for six and enjoyed our first lovely meal on board.
After dinner, there was a Hungarian Folk Dancing show in the lounge. A local group entertained us with music and dancing. There was even some audience participation.
During dinner, the ship actually left the dock and sailed part way down the Danube. This was done so that we could see the city of Budapest at night. So after the show, some of us headed up to the Sun Deck to grab some pictures for the ship’s return back to the dock. The architecture of Budapest is stunning.
The day ended with working on the blog back in the Horizon Lounge.
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