A unique feature of the Buda castle district is its underground cave system. These have been used for centuries to hide or to store food and other items. They can be explored in several places.

The Royal Palace has its own system and further in the castle district is the labyrinth which is a more extensive system. I explored the labyrinth in 2007 and it was also in one of the seasons of The Amazing Race.

Nearby I saw signs to another use for the cave system. Remarkably an underground hospital has also been built into the caves.

Entrance was a hefty 3600Ft ($18) but I was able to get a teacher/student rate of $2400Ft ($12). No photography is allowed and you have to go thru an hourly guided tour. Also they have winter coats provided as the temperature drops to about 16 degrees.

The short film explained the story. The caves were explored and mapped in the 1930s. Then it was decided to join the different caverns into one larger system and a hospital was built inside

Budapest had the third longest siege in WWII for 100 days. Hitler said Budapest must be held till the last man or the Soviets will reach Vienna and then Berlin. The hospital was designed for 20 patients but quickly rose to 200. It was the last remaining hospital as the rest of the city fell.

The Mayor of Budapest was going to ally with the Soviets so the Germans kidnapped his son by bundling him in a rug after arranging a false meeting with the Russians

During the Hungarian uprising of 1956 the hospital was pressed into use again. Young girls were recruited from nursing schools as they didn't have time to get qualified persons. Patients grew to as many as 700.

The heat would get to the mid 30s due to body heat and people smoking. Several babies were born in the hospital and there was a picture of a lady born here that had come back to visit.

In the 1960s it was decided to convert it to a nuclear bunker due to the number of government ministries above. It has its own air filtration system whose exhaust is hidden in a house in the castle district.

Later a family lived on as caretakers. The husband checked the machinery while the wife changed the linen every two weeks. The two boys used the tunnels to ride their bikes

The tour lasts an hour and was very interesting. Its unfortunate they don't allow pictures which is odd as the are only plastic dummies. My pics were taken from the video screens or display boards.