We got to the hostel with no difficulties & were pleasantly surprised with what we found. A lovely old house that had been split up into bunk rooms to accommodate 30 people....small by our usual standards. All the rooms lead off a central TV area & best of all - a kitchen! So what was the first thing we did when we got there you might ask?? Went to the supermarket, bought fresh produce & made pasta. It was the first time we had cooked in over 3 months & I have to say it was lovely. Not just the food but the feeling of normality that comes from cooking a simple meal & eating at a dining room table....just like home! (Ok, so most of our meals at home are eaten standing up over the sink or infront of the TV but the thought was there!).
Next morning we slept late.....until lunchtime in fact.....we were feeling very at home! Then off to the track to pick up our tickets. The local government are very kind while the GP is on & provide a free shuttle bus service from the city centre to the village near the track but this didn't kick in until the next day so we had to find our own way there. No problem...we thought. Looked easy enough on the map.......hmmmmm.....
Walk from hostel to train = 25 minutes
Train from Budapest to end of train line = 25 minutes
Train from end of train line to train station near track = 60 minutes
Walk from train station near track to track = 40 minutes (& 5 kms)
Queue with 15,000 other race fans = 60 minutes
Getting to walk down pit straight & stand on pole position = PRICELESS!!!!
So it was a 2 & half hour journey but we were finally here!! The track is set in a valley surrounded by beautiful, lush farmland & tiny villages. The walk from the station near the track even included a bush bash through knee high weeds in a paddock & a climb over a fence. Unfortunately I don't think the Hungarians are reknowned for their organisational skills as the pit walk was a slight disaster. We (all 15,000 of us) were funnelled into pit lane from the far end -or as I like to call it Marky's end- where we could peruse the garages & ohh & ahh over the cars before being funnelled out the other end & onto pit straight.....no looking back! About half an hour in though, they made an announcement that there was to be an autograph session....back at the beginning of pit lane. Well, mass hysteria broke out as people started to fight their way against the flow of one-way traffic to get back to Marky's end to join the newly assembled, hysterical mob of autograph hunters. Pheew! I almost found myself crushed under an enormous Polish man who was threatening to wet himself at the prospect of getting Kubica's autograph. So we eventually made our way safely out the other side but not before the 2nd & final English announcement of the day came over the loud speaker - "The autograph session is due to start soon but we would advise that no-one else joins the line as most of you won't get to see the drivers anyway"...take that! Of course that didn't stop people joining the hoardes....I would estimate that about 5,000 people gave it a shot despite the warnings. When they made the announcement that the first drivers were coming out - Button & Hamilton - the crowd went wild.....although the elation didn't last long as the boys were only out for approximately 5 minutes before their turn was done & it was in with the next pair....& so on & so on!! I was happy though....I got to see Marky's car, stand in pole position on the track, cross the start/finish line & walk along pit straight to the first corner.....no autographs, but I was happy!
Next morning it was up at 6am & off to the track. This time on the free shuttle that the organisers were providing for race-goers......we were living in hope that the shuttle was going to be more straight forward than the train! We walked from our hostel to the tram & took a tram about 20 minutes into town. Then it was down under the road til we popped up on the other side & found ourselves at the rather innocuous looking bus stop. We knew that we had found the right place cos we were surrounded by Ferrari wearing revheads! Mind you, if it wasn't for them & a tiny sign on the inside windscreen on the bus that said 'Budapest - Mogyoród' we would probably still be wandering around Budapest looking like homeless people. Onto the bus we got & we were off...so far, so good. We arrived in the tiny town of Mogyoród, in the churchyard to be exact & after alighting the bus, we followed the masses across the road & up the hill. Again, nothing was signposted so we just hoped the people infront of us knew more than we did. Luckily the track was only about 2kms (uphill) from where the bus dropped us, a marked improvement on the 5km from the previous day. Once inside the track we found our spot for the weekend.....on the hill overlooking the straight, roughly opposite number 12 on the grid. Perfect!! The giant screen was right infront of us & we could see about 50% of the track. Here we stationed ourselves for 3 days....arriving at 8am every morning & leaving around 5pm every afternoon. We only made the mistake once of trying to buy food.....one paper plate of hot chippies (roughly 15 chips in total) for 6 Euros or $9 Aussie......geez!!
We screamed ourselves hoarse every time we saw Mark, heard his name or just thought we heard his name.....we had an absolute ball!! Then came race day. We were so pumped, but when we got to our usual spot on the hill we found ourselves completely surrounded by Sebastian Vettel fans. Ohhh dear...this wasn't going to end well! There were a couple of things we noticed about F1 fans.....Ferrari was king...but everyone (except us!) went bananas for Schumacher. The merchandise area was dominately by red except the 2 entire stands dedicated to Schuey...right down to towels & baby bibs. When it came to Red Bull, Seb was the man. We only found one Webber t-shirt & one hat & they were both mens so Andrew was happy but I sadly went home merchandise-less :( Kubica was the other big name of the weekend - being from Poland, many of the supporters had made the journey from just over the border to give him a cheer. But, back to the Seb fans.....we noticed an older guy just down from where we were, wearing a Red Bull shirt. As I said earlier, if we saw Red Bull chances were they were German...but something about him told us something else. Maybe it was the pallour of his skin, not sure, but we took the chance & set up camp just beside him. About 30 seconds later he answered his phone & sure enough.....Pommie accent!! Now we just had to hope he wasn't going for the Kraut.....luck was with us & he was Webber all the way....WOO HOO, instant allies! A short time later his wife turned up, then another English family set up camp next to us & it wasn't long before we convinced them to barrack for Webber in the event Hamilton had a shocker! Take that Germans!!
So a driver parade preceded the race which saw Jenson playing the prankster & doing naughty things to the other drivers while they were being interviewed to put them off or make them laugh. Meanwhile Vettel & Shuey had their own little private chat away from the other dirvers & only turned to acknowledge the crowd when it was time for their interviews. Maybe they were sharing the secret to the perfect Bratwurst, all I know is that they looked like total wieners!! Hahaha...sorry bad joke!
I'll skip forward to when Kubica retired with about 35 laps to go.....that saw a mass exodus of Poles...not interested now that their man was out. We had continued shouting & cheering thoughout the race.....bolstered now not only by the British couple but as Hamilton was having a shocker, the family was also jumped on team Webber! And didn't we give the Germans around us some curry......in fact we must have been so obnoxious, that with 20 laps to go they packed up their flags & Birkenstocks, tucked their tails between their legs & took off!! Well, I can't blame them...it was obvious that Webber was gonna win & we weren't gonna let them forget it. So, of course, he won & we went ballistic......even burst into spontaneous tears as he crossed the line....Andrew too!! It was an unforgettable day, such a privilege & bonus to see him win...couldn't happen to a nicer & more deserving guy.
The whole 4 days had obviously taken their toll though, as the next morning we both slept until lunchtime. We managed to drag ourselves into town to have a look at some sights, including the river & the castle but it wasn't long & we were back at the hostel eating toasted cheese sandwiches in our jarmies.
Whilst we had only come to Budapest for the race, it did provide us with the opportunity to reunite with 2 cool chicks from Canada we had met in Prague. It is really nice when travelling, especially for a long time, to see a familiar face in a strange city....even if the face is only a recent acquantence. We headed off down the street from our hostel to a restaurant we had been admiring all week. It was always busy & we found out the hard way that sometimes booking is not such a bad idea. But after about 40 minutes I think the waitress took pity on us & squeezed onto a table in the back corner with the mumbled explantion..."other people, they cancel". Here we enjoyed the most amazing meal including massive pieces of meat & VEGGIES!! None of us could remember the last time we had seen a veggie let alone eaten one so it was celebrations all round! The night ended all too soon, as we had the race the next day, but it felt so lovely & "normal" to go out for a meal with friends!
Tuesday morning saw us back at the airport looking for our "flying bus" again. Easy this time & before long we were on the road back to Vienna. Not before a quick stop off for lunch....in Bratislava, Slovakia.....as you do!
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