December 11, 2003
The Hotel Le Meridien, Budapest
The Hotel Le Meridien is very nice. Much nicer, in fact, than I would have chosen for myself. (When I'm travelling alone, all I really need is a bed, a shower, and a reading light.) But the conference got a group rate, so here I am.
I won't bore you with the details. (Well, one detail. The minibar has a sensor that knows when you've removed a drink or a snack. If you don't replace it within 30 seconds, your account is automatically charged. I'd never seen that before.) I mean, it's a nice hotel: doormen in uniforms, very expensive restaurant, crisp white sheets. The maid comes into your room in the evening, turns down the bedcover, and leaves a bottle of mineral water on the night table. Nice.
But there is one interesting fact about the Le Meridien that you won't find on their website. That is, it used to be Budapest's police headquarters. That was true until 1956, when the police gave their support to the October revolutionaries. (The normal police, that is. The secret police were something else again. Secret police headquarters is now a very unusual museum, not a hotel.)
So, for ten days, the building was the headquarters of the revolutionary forces. And then, well, the Red Army crushed the rebellion and the revolutionaries either fled or were killed or went to prison.
Today there's a small plaque and a wreath on one side of the hotel. And that's all.
I'm not sure what to make of it; but the Hungarians don't seem to give it a moment's thought, so.
Posted by douglas at December 11, 2003 10:34 PM