The Queen of the Danube -- Budapest!!

We woke up this morning with the boat sailing in to Budapest harbour. After breakfast we had a short briefing of the day’s activities and then were all invited up on the sundeck for a Hungarian Buffet. This consisted of a delicious goulash soup with bread and a spicy paprika relish. What a view of Budapest as we approached the city! The city is separated by the Danube and the two sides are joined by a series of beautiful bridges. The Buda side is the hilly side and the Pest side is where the Old Town is as well as the Parliament Buildings. The boat docked on the Buda side near the Lion’s Head Bridge. We signed up for a bike tour of the Old City and this began at 11:30 a.m. We crossed the Lions’ Head Bridge - an old chain bridge with imposing Lion’s Heads on either end. We were then lead through an amazing labyrinth of streets to spectacular sights within the Old City. It was at times a bit scary cycling through these very busy streets. When you are not used to the traffic flows and rules of the road, or how vehicular traffic will respond to cyclists, it is a bit unnerving. There were only 8 cyclists in our small group and we managed to complete the tour without any casualties. And now we can say we have cycled on the streets of Budapest!!! What can one say about this city! What a jewel in Europe. Often referred to as the “Paris of the East” it is now a UNESCO World Heritage city. The architecture is simply amazing although many of the buildings have suffered such damage which is still apparent from WWII. There is such a shortage of money in Hungary that many of these beautiful historic buildings are not maintained. But we saw the State Opera House (one of the most beautiful in the world), the museums and galleries which house thousands of Renaissance paintings -- some of the best collections of art in all of Europe (but with limited time we only saw them from the outside). We saw the Heroes Square with its imposing sculptures and columns of the Millenium Monument and the statues of Hungarian Kings. It would be easy to run out of superlatives in describing this incredible city -- the National Parliament Buildings, the St. Stephen’s Basilica with its neoclassical architecture (where the mummified hand of Hungary’s first King St. Stephen is kept in the chapel), the House of Terror housed in the secret police headquarters of the Communist era which documents the terror of both the Nazi and Communist regimes. And then, the last vestige of Turkish culture in Budapest, the thermal baths. We saw the Szechenyi Spa. This is the largest spa in Europe and the nicest in Budapest with 3 outdoor pools, 3 sauna rooms and many indoor pools at different temperatures. Near the Spa is a 10,000 sq. m. manmade ice skating ring which is open all winter. After the tour we set off on foot to find the famous Market Hall, known as the “stomach of Budapest”. This is in an enormous old building at the end of a long pedestrian walkway--Vaci Ulica. The building is filled with stalls marketing fresh produce, baking, the Hungarian sausages and the notable paprikas which are central to the Hungarian cuisine. What a delightful experience! We found paprika! We found the best baking! Louisa found a cookie that she can only describe as a large jam-jam dipped in chocolate! We had to hurry back to the boat afterward for an early dinner as we had also signed up for a night bus tour of Budapest -- to view it in all its beauty when all of the incredible buildings and bridges are illuminated. This tour culminated on Gellert Hill on the Buda side of the river with the most impressive view over the river -- the parliament buildings and all the bridges illuminated. It was absolutely breathtaking. We were treated to a glass of champagne by our tour guides as we gazed out over the magnificent city of Budapest! The Queen of the Danube!