Moving to a Tiny House

I decided to stay for another month in Budapest. As a European resident, I’m allowed to stay for three months without needing a visa. That’s perfect because I want to stay longer in each city I’m visiting. 

One month is the best economic trade-off between mobility and stability, but it’s often too short to make friends. Three months is a bit better: it’s the ideal length to stroll throughout the city and find your place in it.

I spent last month in the Western part of the city: Buda. The Danube cuts the city in half, and without going into the details, that’s how you know in which part of the city you’re in. This month, I moved to Pest’s side, near Oktogon’s crossroads. For tourists, it’s the most dynamic part of Budapest, where you find the Hungarian Parliament and the ruin bars. My life was getting dull and a change was needed.

My new home has been designed by its owner, following the Tiny-House Movement. I found it on Airbnb and instantly grew curious. I heard about this architectural trend by browsing Youtube, and the minimalist in me wanted to have a go at it. 

Ironically, my host called his place the “Grand Budapest Hotel”, in reference to Wim Wender’s movie. A picture of Ralph Fiennes sits on the shelf above the couch, next to the door. The studio plays with its high ceiling to look big inside, which is about 5 or 6 meters tall. It’s tiny, but it doesn’t feel like it. There are no windows but the tall entrance door is partially made of glass and lets the light come through. There is a queen size bed upstairs, accessible with wooden stairs. Downstairs, a kitchen space, a laundry machine, a table to work and have a meal from, and a shower.

So far, I love it. It’s clean and minimalist, but with enough space to cook. I’m on the ground floor. The door opens to a court room, closed from the busy street. The neighborhood is lively and everything is within a walk’s reach.

The rent is quite expensive for this time of the year: I’m paying $610 for this month. But since I paid $350 last month and the food is inexpensive, it all evens out. 

The beautiful Budapest University Library is 2km away. My plan is to go there in two days to get some writings done for my book.