Six years ago when I went to Glacier National Park, many people old me that I better be ready for the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen. It made me a bit nervous, as I felt that it wouldn’t be able to live up to my expectations. Fortunately, it far exceeded what I was expecting.
Coming to Budapest has been very similar…everyone had told me that it’s wonderful, so I’d braced myself to be a little unimpressed.
I’m happy to say that as I rolled into the city at dusk, my mind was blown.
This is, by far, the most beautiful city I’ve ever been too. Prague is probably second…and a fairly distant second. And that’s saying a lot, because Prague is no slouch in this department.
On the 25th, I ended up visiting 3 capitals…Left Bratislava in the morning, had lunch in Vienna, and got to Budapest in the evening.
My original plan didn’t have me visiting Budapest. I was going to go from Poland to Romania, then head south, bypassing Slovakia and Hungary, but at this point I’m fine with my decision…I’m sure either route would’ve been great.
Ok, here are a lot of pictures…hopefully your AOL connection is strong and no one picks up the phone while they’re loading.
The parliment building…I became obsessed with it almost immediately.
St. Stephen Basilica
I almost didn’t enter, thinking it would be the same as the countless other huge cathedrals in Europe…but no…this place was incredible.
The one thing that frustrated me about entering was that they were collecting what seemed to be a mandatory “donation” for €2 to get in, which helped cover the upkeep on the building. Maybe the Catholic Church wouldn’t need the cash if they weren’t spending so much on the lawyers defending child molesters. Ok, regardless of my thoughts on that, this place was something to see.
Vajdahunyad Castle
It was built in 1896 as part of a millennial exhibition, celebrating 1000 years of Hungary. It was meant to show many various architectural styles that are seen throughout Hungary…also, note the royal hockey rink
As I approached this statue, I was curious to see who the Washington-looking Hungarian was. Turns out it’s actually a statue of George Washington
Liberty Statue
Cave Church
Matthias Church
Evening
It’s been kind of hazy here, which is why a lot of these photos aren’t super clear…
a pat on a motorcycle 
Have followed your exploits off and on. Great adventure and marvelous pictures.
Australia and India ? No moss growing on you.
Have a great time! ! !
That GW statue couldn’t be more American. Also, I think you should write a letter to the Catholic Church expressing your concerns and advice on how they can save some money.
ha! hopefully they’ve managed to figure out these things on their own…that might be a bit optimistic though!
That bottom left picture…gorgeous. Who knew. I need to get my butt to Budapest.
P.S. I’ve saved a bunch of your pictures to use as my computer desktop & iPad wallpaper 🙂
just let me know how many you download…i’ll send the bill for royalties shortly