Budapest - a potted history

Budapest was mostly built in the mid 19th century.
Two million people live here, thats 1 in every 5 persons in Hungary live in Budapest. Most live in apartments. Many are very basic. We pass by Russian designed block apartments....block units which are stacked together to form a high-rise building. They are not insulated which makes them very hot or very cold. Gradually they are being given "skins" which improve their appearance and insulation. Most of these were built during communist period. The biggest residential building is one of these and holds 3,000 people. It's called the village.
We pass by the Roman ruins of the city and aquaduct. This was the edge of the Roman Empire. Archaeologists are working on this area.
1989 was a turning point with capitalism and privatisation coming to Hungary. The average salary is a mere €700 per month after tax. Tax is 47% - education is free, pension is available, health's mostly free, unemployment is only 3%.
The biggest industries in Hungary are - Car Manufacturing, IT, Agriculture, Tourism,
Hungary is part of the EU but currency is not euro. The local currency is the Florent and it is worth approximately 300 Florent equal €1.Leggi altro