Old Europe

Hungary is supposed to be one of those countries in "New Europe," but it looks and feels older than anyplace in the EU we've yet visited; with its crumbling facades and frayed edges on many of its historic structures, especially here on the Buda side of the river, its streetscape overwhelms you with echoes of faded glory. What "new" you do see - rehabs, street improvements, fresh construction - comes off as haphazard and small in comparison. It reminds me more of several of the South American cities we've visited than anything in the West, as if Communism here ended yesterday rather than twenty years ago.