Budapest...one of my top cities

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I’m loving Budapest. So far it’s up there with Paris and Barcelona. The wine and food are amazing, but the stars of the show are the architecture and views of the city. Today I took a bus tour of the city…one of the hop on, hop off type. I know it sounds a little cheesy, but you can learn quite a lot from it and then get a feel for where things are. I went all the way around, then decided to start on the Buda side of the river. The Danube River divides the city in two. Buda is on the hilly side and the city of Pest is on the other. The Buda side contains the Buda Castle, the largest in Europe, I think. It also has St Mathias Church and the Fisherman’s Bastion. I will include photos. They are all at the top of the Buda Hills and from there, you can see the Danube and the whole city of Pest and the amazing Parliament building. The architecture of the Parliament building is stunning and very intricate.



Also on the hill is the Hospital in the Rock Museum. The hospital was originally built into the caves in the late 1930’s. it was built to hold about 60 patients and to be a secret bunker in the mountain. It was used in WWII, the Siege on Budapest and again in the 50s. During the war, as many as 650 patients were there at a time. During the Cuban missile crisis, they it was meant to be a bomb shelter to protect people from nuclear attack. Now it is used as a museum of the past and it is very realistic as there are wax figures representing the soldiers, patients, nurses and doctors. All the rooms are set up exactly as they had been while the hospital was in use. You can see the operating rooms, patient’s wards, electrical system and air filtration systems that were used. It is quite amazing.



I am definitely returning again. There is so much I didn’t get to see. Unfortunately, I caught a bad cold while I was there, so it knocked me down a bit. Yesterday I took the boat ride on the Danube and got some more great pictures. I will have to let the pictures do the talking. The architecture in that city is amazing. You just travel around with your mouth open, it’s so great and different at every turn. Also good to note is the food and wine is spectacular. The service, however is not. That goes for all of the places I have been. Waiters aren’t relying on tips, so the service is very spotty. Despite the service issue, there definitely is a thriving café culture over here. All the outdoor cafes were packed with locals and tourists, watching football (soccer) on tv. Even chilly weather doesn’t discourage them. It’s definitely the place to see and be seen.



Ok, since my friends think I’m here to search for the man of my dreams, I have to admit that I saw him yesterday, next to the Buda Castle. So my prince was just outside instead of waiting for me inside in the grand hallway. He smiled and said hello to me and I thought for an instant…this is him! Kinda like Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in Sleepless in Seattle when he sees her in the airport and again in the middle of the street before the truck almost runs her over. In my case he turns to get on a bus with about 25 other guys. Either he was here on a guy’s trip, or they were all gay. I hope it’s the first scenario, but with my luck, it’s not. All the good ones are married or gay. Oh well…on to Vienna!



I’m on the train to Vienna as we speak. Should I be concerned that they just took two people off the train in handcuffs? As long as I get to my destination, I’m good.

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