Over the course of several cold nights I trudged to the market to find presents for people back home. There is an amazing variety of things to buy, including handmade books, stained glass, handcrafted toys, chessboards, tablecloths, and the like. The food and drink stalls offer an array of Hungarian specialties: hot mulled wine, sausage, and a pastry called a kürtöskalács, resembling an elephant-ear, but rolled around a stick, baked, and flavored with vanilla or cinnamon.
At one end of the square stands the immortal Gerbaud pastry house, and each night a kind of makeshift Advent calendar window is opened, displaying a new picture in the upper windows of Gerbaud. Musicians play traditional Hungarian tunes, and dancers dressed in traditional costume welcome bystanders into their ranks!