RECORD 04 BUDAPEST · HUNGARY

ONE CITY.
TWO WORLDS.

Budapest above the surface. Molnár János below it.

THERMAL CAVE · CAVE DIVING

01 / ABOVE THE SURFACE

Budapest is a vibrant Central European capital. A city of lights, cafés, baths and life reflected on the Danube from morning until night.

Only a few metres from the busy streets, another world begins. Without traffic, noise or daylight. Limestone passages replace the streets, and warm water flows below the city.

Above us is a city that never becomes completely silent. Below it is a cave where the silence is broken only by our breathing.

Buda Castle — BUDA · THE CITY ABOVE THE RIVER

Buda at night across the Danube — TWO BANKS · ONE CITY

02 / THREE NAMES

BUDA · ÓBUDA · PEST

A city joined by a river.

Modern Budapest was created in 1873 by the union of Buda, Óbuda and Pest. Hilly Buda on the western bank and flat Pest on the eastern bank still keep their different characters.

An old legend connects the name Buda with Buda, brother of the Hun ruler Attila. The origin of Pest is sometimes linked to a Slavic word for an oven, furnace or cave. It may be only a trace in language. For our story, however, it is almost symbolic: warmth and an underground world are hidden inside the rocks of Buda.

A monument in Budapest at night — LAYERS OF THE CITY · STORIES ABOVE GROUND

The Danube with a boat and Parliament behind it — THE DANUBE · A RIVER THAT DIVIDES AND CONNECTS THE CITY

03 / THE DANUBE

A border
and a connection.

The Danube crosses Europe from west to east and shapes the rhythm and appearance of Budapest. It separates Buda from Pest, but the bridges turn both banks into one city.

Here the river is part of everyday life and a witness to history. Some of its stories shine in the city lights. Others remain heavy and silent.

04 / MEMORY

SHOES ON THE DANUBE BANK

Some places must not simply be passed by.

Rows of iron shoes stand on the Pest embankment. They remember the Jewish victims murdered here in the winter of 1944–1945 by members of the fascist Arrow Cross.

It is a simple image before which the city becomes silent for a moment. The shoes remained on the bank. The people disappeared into the river. This story belongs to our journey because places are not made only by what we see in them today. They are also made by what we must remember.

Shoes on the Danube Bank memorial — A MEMORIAL TO THE VICTIMS · PEST

Iron shoes on the embankment with Buda behind them — A MEMORY THE RIVER DID NOT CARRY AWAY

The snowy area around the entrance to Molnár János Cave — MOLNÁR JÁNOS · THE BUDA SIDE OF THE CITY

05 / THE GATE

“Cross the Danube. Then cross the boundary between two worlds.”

06 / MOLNÁR JÁNOS

BELOW THE BATHS · BELOW THE STREETS

Warm water hidden below Buda.

Molnár János Cave lies on the Buda side, close to the Lukács Baths. The medicinal water used by the baths comes from this mixed thermal system.

The cave was already described in 1858. Its first researcher was the physician and chemist János Molnár, whose name it carries today. Divers continued the exploration from the 1960s and gradually revealed more parts of this extensive system.

Today, entering it does not feel like the beginning of a large expedition. That is part of its charm. A moment ago, we were standing in the centre of a European capital. Now a passage disappears into the rock in front of us.

07 / PREPARATION

No long journey to the water.

We enjoy Molnár János as a winter reward. When the days outside are cold, the warm cave water offers a welcome change — and an opportunity to meet again.

The diving base is in the city centre and the equipment logistics are simple. This does not mean that preparation can be underestimated. Every dive begins with equipment checks, a team briefing, a route plan and a reminder of the procedures for a situation that does not follow the ideal plan.

Cylinders and a cave map during dive preparation — ROUTE PLAN · TEAM PREPARATION

Diving cylinders prepared near the water — EQUIPMENT READY AT THE ENTRANCE

Warm water in a natural rock chamber of the cave — WARM WATER · LIMESTONE · SILENCE

08 / THE DIVE

A MAZE OF PASSAGES BELOW THE CITY

The streets end.
The guideline continues.

After descending, the city remains behind us. We move through passages, chambers and narrow restrictions shaped by thermal water. We see only what our lights reveal at that moment.

Dives here usually last around sixty minutes. We are not chasing maximum distance. We choose the route according to the team’s experience and the conditions, while watching the guideline, gas, time and each other. In a labyrinth, the way forward is not the only thing that matters. Above all, we always know the way back.

The warm water changes the character of the dive, but not the rules of cave diving. Rock remains above our heads, and safety depends on preparation, calm decisions and teamwork.

09 / BACK IN THE CITY

BACK ABOVE GROUND IN A MOMENT

From the cave straight to good coffee.

After the dive, we put down our equipment and the second world closes again. A few moments later, we walk through Budapest among trams, people and cafés.

The day can end with good coffee and cake. We talk about the dive, but also about everything else. This contrast makes Molnár János special: in the morning we descend below the city, and in the evening we are sitting in the middle of its life again.

A historic fountain in Budapest — RETURN TO THE STREETS OF BUDAPEST

10 / DIVE FILMS

The second world
in motion.

FILM 01 MOLNÁR JÁNOS · BELOW BUDAPEST

FILM 02 THERMAL CAVE · CAVE DIVING

11 / TWO WORLDS

“Above us, the city is alive. Below it, a story continues that most of its people will never see.”

For us, Budapest is more than a weekend destination. It is a place where friends, history, warm water and one of the most remarkable cave systems hidden below a European capital come together.

Tomáš at the entrance to Molnár János Cave — TOMÁŠ · AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE SECOND WORLD

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SOURCES

Historical information is based on public materials from the City of Budapest, the operator of the Lukács Baths, the Molnár János Cave centre and memorial institutions. The dive descriptions are based on our own visits to the site.

Molnár János Cave · official information ↗Lukács Baths · cave and medicinal water ↗ELTE · biological research of the cave ecosystem ↗Budapestinfo · history of the city ↗Yad Vashem · Shoes on the Danube Bank ↗