Touring Budapest

This was our first full day in Budapest and we started it out with business meetings. One thing they did in the meeting that included spouses was go over the schedule for the week. While there was lots of free time during the week, things started off with a three hour city bus tour Tuesday afternoon for all of us with Jones. We were loaded on very nice Mercedes-Benz buses (plush seats and great air conditioning!) Our guide gave a lot of cultural and historical information as we drove by and also visited many city landmarks.

Here are some of the highlights from the Pest side of the River Danube:

A couple of miles from our hotel was Hero's Square with the Millennial Monument. Angel Gabriel was the statue at the top of the central tower with the royal crown of Stephen 1 (the first Hungarian king) and the cross of Christianity in his hands. At the base were statues of the most important Hungarian kings throughout history which were seated on horses. On either side of the central tower were two semicircular structures with other important historical figures depicted. (The picture shows the structure on the right.)









On either side of the street across from Hero's Square were two museums. They were beautiful and ornate buildings but in very different ways. The scenes on the first museum, which was on the right hand side, were done with mosaic tiles that seemed to depict religious scenes and were very colorful. The second museum, which was on the left hand side, had sculpted reliefs on its front, possibly depicting scenes from mythology.






Stephen 1 brought Christianity to the country of Hungary. Because of his achievements he was officially made a "Saint" and Saint Stephen's Cathedral was built to honor him. There were a few things that honored Christ (I took pictures of them) but most of the mosaics, paintings, statues, etc. were of Saint Stephen and his achievements. It was dark and musty inside but had some ornate artwork












Here are some highlights from the Buda side of the River Danube:

This is a Bronze statue of Stephen 1 on the grounds of the Fisherman's Bastian. The Fisherman's Bastian was built between 1895 and 1902 on the shores overlooking the Danube and the Pest side.



Mathias Church was also on the grounds and had a colorfully tiled roof. It was currently undergoing renovation so we did not get to see the inside.



This is Allyn and I from the Fisherman's Bastian overlooking the Pest shore. There was a young couple from the Czech Republic, and we took a picture of them and they took a picture of us! The Marriott Hotel is the last building you can partially see on the right hand side along the river.



This is us in front of one of the many turrets. Because the Bastian was at such a high point on the Buda side we had a spectacular view of the city which you can see in the background. It was a beautiful day with blue skies and occasional fluffy white clouds, but very hot and humid!



Tuesday evening we walked along the Danube and ate on the front patio at Restaurant DuBarry. We each had salads and then shared some paprika chicken. I did not realize it but Hungary is known for their paprika and it is used in many dishes. We both thought it was delicious! We lingered over the meal as the sun set and watched the many people who walked along the rivers edge.



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