The Danube

I went for a walk in Pest yesterday - I really wanted to get a glimpse of the Danube in full flood.

Years ago I learnt about bank full discharge and over bank full discharge - the 'idea' is a little different when you see something like the Danube only just being contained within the raised banking running along the side of the river, with the Hungarian Parliament building just waiting to be flooded and with a suddenly stretched view of the now distant Buda above which the old fortress manages to tower.

Restaurant boats in a fixed mooring are in danger of unfixing - the only thing holding them seems to be the gangplanks now perversely pushing into the sky, the boats floating way above the invisible entrance gates.

A Ticket Office roof intreguingly pokes through the grey speeding water.

Small groups of people wander along, inspecting and wondering - almost awed at the sheer dominating power flowing relentlessly beside them.

The sky threatens more rain.

Strange, no reports on the BBC. The media don't think this is important enough to give it air time. Politics of the Middle East and football are far more significant, the editors decide.

Not for those of us who have seen the ancient Danube flexing a little of its powerful muscle and giving a sign that it is quite capable of washing away the petty political institutions we are obsessed with.