Budapest - Fisherman's Bastion in the evening

We also visited Fisherman's Bastion earlier in the trip. But we found ourselves here again in the evening (by the way - one thing not truly captured in these photos is how COLD it was). The arches and city were so beautiful when they were all lit up so we couldn't resist pulling out the cameras again.

inside Matyas Church

I posted photos of the outside of this church (I think I called it Mathias Church - which I guess is also acceptable) after we saw it on our tour. When we revisited the Castle District, we decided to go inside. Here are a few photos.

and more Budapest

Dick looking cool at the Palace grounds - behind him is the Buda side of Budapest

Monica created the table linen that I brought back for Mom
Dick ducks under a tunnel in the Buda Castle Labyrinth.  These caves were naturally created by the springs, but then have been modified over the years.  They've got quite a history - now connected to many of the homes and other buildings.  Some of the past uses for this place include hospital, cellars, shelters - now it's a tourist attraction.
Some of the rooms in the labyrinth were used as wine cellars.  Here's a fun example of how this might have looked.

Budapest - the Royal Palace

entrance to the courtyard

"bookends"
panoramic view from the Palace - Mike took this one of us
Palace fountain
Palace (museum)

more Budapest photos

That same walkway I shot the first day we arrived - turns out we walked through here quite a bit on this trip.  Both of these were taken from the same spot.  First to my right - where the walls have been cleaned of all graffiti.  Then to my left.

We've been back for several days now.  Before I move on to other topics on this blog, I just want to quickly reflect on the trip and share some final photos. 

What an amazing trip!  This was my first trip to Europe, so I really wasn't sure what to expect.  I had been told that Budapest is much like many western cities and I have to agree with that.  With the exception of some cultural differences (i.e. don't leave the tip on the table but hand it to them - and don't think you're being ignored by the wait staff; the process is to ask them if you need something rather than waiting for them to come to you) the interaction with the people was really not much different than what it would be in any city in North America.

The food was outstanding.  The company was even better (no disputes with our fellow travelers) And the surroundings were unique and beautiful.

  

Tuesday in Budapest

Yesterday we took the Metro from our hotel, under Andrassi St, to City Park.   City Park was developed during Budapest's "Millennium Celebrations" in 1896, 1000 years after the Magyars (Hungarians) took over the area.  So while a lot of the architecture here looks older, even medieval, it was actually built in the early 20th century.  It reminds us of Balboa Park, which is not as old as it looks - built around that same time for the Worlds Fair. 

Here's a replica of a 1214 Benedictine chapel, built closer to 1905.

a close-up of some of the detail - apparently this is a replica of an actual chapel near Austria
Dick's smirk at the park
the locals ice skating
The Museum of Fine Arts - we were in this same square (Heroes Square) earlier in the week, but we were on the tour and weren't able to take any time to visit the museum.  Now we were actually able to go inside.  The Picasso, Klee and Kandinskij exhibit was fantastic.  I had not been to an exhibit like this since taking art classes last year - so it was cool to be able to recognize some of the techniques and mediums that we had studied.

Here's another shot of the Millenium Monument in Heroes Square.  We had some patches of blue sky which made for a more interesting photograph this time.
 

During the uprising in October 1956, protestors cut the Communist insignia out of the flag.  When Communism finally fell 33 years later, the flag with the hole became a symbol of national pride.  This flag stands near Heroes Square, memorializing the 1956 event.
After visiting City Park and Heroes Square, we walked back toward the hotel and river, then got back on the Metro to return to Market Hall in order to pick up an afternoon snack and some souvenirs.  The lower floor of Market Hall is filled with fresh vegetables, salted meats, pastries, loaves of bread and spices.  If you lived in Budapest, I can't imagine why you'd go anywhere else to get your groceries.  The building is lined with a large balcony, where vendors sell hot lunches and beer (like the meal we had on Sunday).  This level is also filled with booths of people selling table linens, ornaments, and other little goodies.  The rule here is that you're supposed to barter.  I was able to get a deal, reducing the cost of my purchase by 900 Ft, but I still think I could have done better with a little more confidence and a little less language barrier.  
After a long day we returned to our home base.

Of course we went out again later last night for dinner.  We took the metro again to Heroes Square and then took a 10 minute walk to Paprika Vendeglo, which is where we had what was quite possibly our favorite meal so far. We were so full that we thought it best to walk the 1.5 miles back to the hotel (30 degree weather or not) instead of taking the metro.  Halfway home we remembered that because the metro stops running at 11:30 pm, we would have had to walk anyway.  The walk brisk down the upscale Andrassi St was a great way to end the day.

Monday in Budapest

evening in Budapest

St. Stephen's Basilica at night

statue in the rain - not sure who this is... will have to look into that and update you later - i just thought it looked cool

the famous chain bridge - with urban art in the foreground

tunnel

today's sights

Mike and Christina in front of the Fine Arts Museum

Dick at Matthias Church

Looking down the street at St Stephens

A closer view of St Stephens

one of many old buildings being renovated - we're guessing this one pre-dates WWII

We're here!

This morning (last night?) we flew from Toronto, through Prague, to Budapest. The flight was pretty painless - the longest leg being 7.5 hours. It wasn't quite as luxurious as the Air Canada flight, as the movies just showed on the main screen. But the movies were pretty good and the time went by fairly quickly. Customs was completely painless and efficient.

Unfortunately, Christina's and Dick's bags didn't arrive when Mike's and mine did. After checking with the front desk all day long, we finally just now (less than 15 minutes ago) got the bags (whew!) so Christina and Dick are both freshening up before we go out again tonight. We're not sure what the problem was, but I just noticed that Dick's suitcase does have a security sticker on it - maybe the bags got lost in that process.

So when we got here we hung out for a little while in the hotel bar/lobby looking at a map, then went out for a nice long walk. I'd tell you exactly where, but I'm not sure - I may be able to fill you in better when I get my bearings. Here are a few photos from today:

making plans...

outside the opera house (next door to the hotel)

Christina's new friend
outside the marketplace
a delicious lunch

the marketplace

Our Budapest Adventure - Day 1 (Toronto)

... and we're off.
Yesterday we embarked on our first leg of the trip to Budapest, taking an Air Canada flight into Toronto.  First off, what a great travel experience!  Dick and I were fortunate enough to have an empty seat between us so we could spread out.  And each of us had our own video displays with on-demand video content.  I saw the movie 'Once' and wow!  I'm completely in love with this movie.  When the movie ended I tried watching a light romantic comedy starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, but it just wasn't as entertaining. So instead I re-played some of my favorite scenes from Once.  (a must-see for Mom, by the way)


We got through customs pretty quickly and arrived at our airport hotel by around 9 pm. The hotel is located in the middle of a business district - so there's really not much to see here. We expect to have a more interesting Toronto visit on our way back home, as we'll be staying downtown.

We didn't discover the high-speed internet connection until this morning (you have to purchase the cable from the front desk) so I only have another 10 minutes before I need to shut down and we need to check out. Therefore, no photos today (not that we took many interesting ones anyway).

Can't believe we'll be in Eastern Europe tomorrow. So excited I can hardly contain myself!

Dick's photos of the girl

"this is a test..."

I wanted to make sure that before we go on our trip (next Thursday) I understand the process and have everything I will need to import and publish photos using the Apple applications that came on this new macbook.  I'm a little spoiled by Photoshop, but I think these tools will work to at least keep you posted while we're away.

I don't have any new photos of my own that I'm real excited about publishing at the moment, but I did find these shots that Dick took of Fumichan.  So good...