Budapest

---

Today Joyce, Sylvia, and I took a trip to Budapest with Sylvia's dad. It is about a 4 hour drive from Roznava to Budapest, although Roznava is in southern Slovakia and very close to the Hungarian border. Many times throughout history this region of Slovakia has belonged to Hungary and so culturally, there is a great deal of overlap between Hungarian and Slovak. As an example, Sylvia's father is Hungarian and is very knowledgeable about Hungarian history, particularly about Budapest. He was a very nice tour guide and driver for the day (he was also once a race car driver).
We spent time at the Square of Heroes, which is the location of statues of many famous Hungarian statesmen and is a well-known location in Budapest. We traveled to several scenic overview points that provide a very nice view of the entire city and make it possible to see the division of the city into its two orignal parts, the once-separate cities of Buda and Pest. The four of us walked through the Buda castle complex and saw the president's residence as well as Matthias Cathedral, which is a gothic cathedral over 700 years old, and the location of many famous Hungarian coronations, including that of Franz Josef and Karl I of Austria (the last of the Hapsburg Monarchy).
The trip was a very nice one and Sylvia's dad made it very enjoyable. It was our last day with Joyce, who is leaving for the airport in Poland tommorow.

---

Photos

The Square of Heroes
Joyce listens to Viktor while I take some more pictures.

Budapest
Sylvia and I at Fisherman's bastion overlooking Budapest.

The city of Budapest
Buda and Pest are separated by the Danube river.

Matthias Cathedral
The church is over 700 years old and the location as a church is nearly 1000 years old.