The Hills of Buda

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The Buda side of Budapest is, as I've already noted, hilly. But the two main hills are the one with the castle district and Géllert Hill. You can't miss either of them if you are anywhere near the Danube in Budapest - and both give you amazing views of the city if you get to their summits.

Buda Castle looms over the city. It is an obvious place to put a seat of power in the area, so it's not too suprising that all the successive governments that Budapest has seen over the centuries would have left their stamp here. Yes, even the Ottomans used it! Although all that remains of their presence is an almost hidden gravemarker for the last Pasha of Buda, tucked behind the Museum of Military History on the north side of the complex. The main church, St. Matthias, was also apparently used as a mosque during that period, but you'd never know that now. Today, the Office of the President is right next to the original castle (which houses a series of musuems and the national library).

Géllert Hill, although it has the Citadella, built by the Habsburgs to assert their authority after the 1848 Revolution, is more of a park. Pathways and stairs criss-cross through the shady trees, allowing peeks at the Danube as it falls away from you. At the top, you get perhaps the best panorama of Budapest, as it encompasses the castle (obviously, when you are at the castle, you cannot see the castle!).

Anyway, I just thought I'd share some photos of my excursions to these two hills. Nothing too profound to say this time around!

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