Budapest

Irene and I had some time off together so we decided to do a quick trip to a European city.  Neither  one of us had been to Budapest  and, seeing how the airline we worked for flew there,  it was an easy choice. We learned that it was in fact two cities, one on each side of the grand Danube river,  Buda and Pest. The major monuments and historical attractions were split between the two cities.  However, in terms of neighbourhoods, cafes and restaurants, it seemed that there was more to offer on the Pest side.  So that's where we booked an AirBnB for six nights. Very reasonable price I may add with a balcony and a great view. 

As with most European cities,  I was struck by the architecture, with the grand monuments and statues as well as the small details of regular buildings.  Budapest is an architectural gem as it has many different styles that spanned the centuries.  The oldest would be a few ancient Roman sites, followed by a gothic period.  The Italian  renaissance influenced the king of Hungary at the time and construction of important buildings appeared throughout the capital.  During the Ottoman rule, Turkish and Byzantine styles flourished with Islamic influence from mosques to bath houses built in the city.   Once the Turks were expelled, Baroque styled Catholic churches appeared, influenced from neighbouring countries but with a Hungarian twist.  Next came the neo-classical period of which many of Budapests' more prominent buildings were built.  This would include the famous chain bridge across the Danube and the Hungarian National Museum.  The turn of the century had Art Nouveau styled buildings followed by some Art Deco influence.  The second half of the Twentieth Century saw the rise of typical Communist blocks of flats. These remained, thankfully, in the outskirts of the city.   With the collapse of the Soviet Union and consequently communist Eastern Europe, the Social Realist sculptures of that time were taken down and put into one site called Memento Park on the outskirts of the city. 

Széchenyi Chain Bridge

The Hungarian Parliament (1904)

Fisherman's Bastion,  Neo-gothic style (1900)

The Great Synagogue, largest in Europe, with Moorish influence (1859)

Turn of the century Art Nouveau

Luckily, many of these 'heroic' statues were saved.  The 10m statue of Stalin in one of
Budapest's prominent squares however was destroyed.  All that remains are his boots. 

One pleasant surprise we discovered was that,  due to a network of thermal springs in the ground under the entire region, Budapest has many thermal public baths.  One of the largest and most popular is the 100+  year old Szechenyl Bath.  The weather was perfect for the outdoor pools and we went in the morning to avoid the crowds.  Another famous thermal bath house we visited is the Gellert spa, built in 1918.  Both bath complexes had a variety of pools, hot, warm and cold as well as swimming pool areas and saunas/steam rooms. It was great to soak in the medicinal water in such  grandiose settings. 

Szechenyl

Gellert

Hungary's history is long and complicated, one of ever shifting peoples and borders, often caught between the power struggles of larger neighbouring countries.  The Twentieth Century was no exception and dramatic changes occurred during both World Wars as well as  the Communist era.  We visited the House of Terror,  a museum and memorial to the victims of Hungary's Fascist and Communist past. The building is on one of Budapest's main avenues  It was here that prisoners and opponents of Hungary's fascist  pro-Nazi regime,  the Arrow Cross Party, were  tortured and liquidated.  Once the Communist regime took over,  much of the same continued within its walls and underground cellars.

Sculpture entitled 'The Iron Curtain'

'Shoes on the Danube' a powerful monument to Hungarian Jews shot and thrown
into the Danube by members of the fascist Arrow Cross Party in 1944.

The perfect autumn weather with warm clear skies made it nice to just walk around the different neighbourhoods,  along the Danube, through parks and some of their famous streets and markets.  Of course, stopping in a café here and there is one of the small joys of traveling. There were several old and famous ones (the hipster ones had better coffee though).  We  spent a couple hours in Kerepesi cemetery with its magnificent  tombstones and monuments all the more impressive being completely alone with the wind blowing the leaves  around. The final night before leaving we stumbled upon the opening night of their Christmas market.  Many twinkling lights, good food and malt wine whilst watching live musical performances.

The simple Trabant, the 'peoples car' of Communist Hungary.

One of Budapests' famous "ruin bars" a mish mash of eclectic
rooms and open area pubs in decrepit buildings.

"Chimney cakes" a large bread roll  covered with  toppings like
cinnamon and sugar.