So what’s so great about Budapest, anyhow?

Well, what isn’t? For starters you’ve got therapeutic bathhouses, cozy off-beat pubs, and the mummified hand of St. Stephen — that’s right folks, Hungary’s most famous religious icon now resides in a back room at St. Stephen’s Basilica, where a handful of forints will switch a light on above it to allow you a better view, vending machine style.

Budapest’s been a mainstay of Eastern European itineraries for at least a decade now — and it’s obvious there’s no shortage of reasons why. Between the psychologically-exhausting but brilliant House of Terror, night-tours by lantern of the labyrinths beneath Castle Hill, stunning city panoramics from Fisherman’s Bastion and dozens of other must-dos, this massive city could easily entertain you for a full week without even trying.

But as it turns out, one of the best reasons to explore Budapest isn’t even in the city itself — it’s about forty-five minutes away by bus, deep into the capital’s impoverished preamble. Statue Park, a large dusty yard surrounded by a gated brick wall, hosts a stunning collection of more than forty Soviet-era statues torn down from Budapest in the wake of the 1989 commie downfall, and it deserves at least a healthy portion of any traveler’s trip.

Look, there’s Lenin! There’s the hammer and sickle! Troops standing in formation! Soviet mantras and dedications to the cause and good state workers! Cough up the money for an English-language guidebook to put a story behind the statues — and to put your own memories of anti-communist propaganda and images of the Berlin Wall into context, provided you’re old enough to have them.

After perusing for a while, check out the small store of mementos by the entrance to see how the lion’s share of tourist junk here crosses the line of good taste — could you really buy a coffee mug that ironically declares “Work for the state!” with Hungary’s history of terror and oppression at the hands of the Soviets still so fresh in your mind?

Yeah, you probably could, and you know what? Maybe you ought to. Go ahead and stock up on those chintzy Soviet flasks and motto-laden postcards— I mean, that’s capitalism, right? Statue Park might be impressive but it’s obviously still a bare-bones operation — there wasn’t even a guard on duty when I visited. I dare say that this park will someday have human guides, organized tours and maybe even a turnstile. And if plunking down money on idiotic souvenirs is the only way to help that happen — and to maybe help Hungary out of its chilling poverty, the most enduring of Soviet legacies — well then I say go for it, comrade.

Go for it and be proud.

Want more information? Check out Statue Park’s website.

We’re coming up on the 27th anniversary of John Lennon’s assassination (December 8th, 1980)…
(aside: Isn’t it a bit weird to have an anniversary for an assassination? I mean, we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, not the day he was murdered. Same with Lincoln for Presidents Day. Emo.)

To commemorate this dark day in music history, our buddies at The Orchard are releasing the audio from John Lennon’s last official interview, which took place 12 hours before crazed fan Mark David Chapmanpulled a gun and murdered the former Beatle.

You can listen to the first part of the interview here: Testimony

During the conversation, Lennon and wife Yoko Ono talk with Bob Miles about what would be Lennon’s last album, Double Fantasy, their family, how Lennon met McCartney, and much more I’m sure.

If you would like to purchase the whole interview on mp3 you can do so here. Or here.

War is Over (if you want it).

As it’s John Lennon’s birthday and I’m not about to sit here and do what I’m supposed to be doing (editing articles so Dubs can be happy with life), I did a little more John Lennon research (read: googling off.)
For instance, most song lyric sites have the David Bowie lyric to “Life on Mars” wrong. “Now the workers have struck for fame / ‘Cause Lennon’s on sale again.” Workers? Lenin? C’MON.”

One of the articles I edited made a reference to Chuck Berry, so I started looking him up. And then serendipity struck.

It’s cool to see John Lennon jamming with Chuck Berry, but the best part is Chuck’s facial expression when Yoko Ono starts…er…singing?

1:12. Classic.

I am now looking up “Chuck Berry” and “pee pee,” because I vaguely remember stories about how he, in his personal life, has a sexual proclivity towards “waste play.” I’ll post what I find next…this is by far my most productive day at Synthesis, ever.