A "Holiday" walk through Castles and History
Trip Start
Apr 23, 2012
1
4
23
Trip End
May 30, 2012
Budapest, Hungary
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
I think we must have walked at least 12 hours that day. We started in the Belvaros District of Pest, where Hungary's neo-Gothic Parliament sits, along with a myriad of the most amazing churches, ministries, museums, and statutes. More details once we upload the photos (just this day, I think we had more than 700!). We then walked across the gorgeous Szechenyi Lanchid (Chain Bridge) over the Danube (Danu) and up to the Castle District. Because of holiday, the Castle District was filled with buses and tourists - and dignitaries from some unknown country(s). We were kept at more than arms length from this large congregation. From the Royal Palace to Halaszbastya (Fisherman's Bastion, which truly has a feel of Disney fairytale towers), to the Maria Magdolna Templom (Mary Magdalene Tower), the castles and churches were stunning and each more beautiful and intricate than the one previous.
We finished back across the river at the Szt. Istvan Bazilika where a Catholic service was taking place and they let us in at the back of the church to observe and take in the beauty and grandeur of this church. It took 54 years to build and construction came to a halt when the dome collapsed in 1868. It was finally finished in 1905 and a massive restoration project was completed in 2003. The gleaming marble we see today is the result of 200 kg of beeswax!
We definitely needed refreshment after our long day's walk, so we opted for two glasses of yummy regional Rose at DaVino Wine Bar. We had to pay a glass deposit of 500HUF each, but it allowed us to take our wine out to Bazilika square to sit next to the fountain and watch the world wander by. And the sweet thing is that no one was in a hurry to go any where. It was more about the coming together of old and new friends and family rather then getting quickly from point A to point B.
The wine steward at DaVino recommended a restaurant to us - Tigris - and described it as Hungarian gourmet dining. It was, in a word, superb! We were immediately treated like old friends. Chobol, our waiter, was soon showing us iPhone photos of his family, his garden, his hobbies, etc. He took much delight in sharing stories about his life and loves and we were eager listeners. Our sommelier (who brought us this beautiful regional 2007 Villany Cuvee) was the same, and throughout the evening, regardless of the bit of language barrier, there was much laughter, funny gestures and sweet conversations. Okay, I have to say a few things about the meal: We began with an amazing appetizer of kolrabi and rabbit pate; Shawn had Saddle of Rabbit accompanied by a parsnip and carrot puree inside a cabbage ravioli-like pasta. Shawn finished with an Apple/Carmel Milet Fleu - yumm! I had the Red Tuna Steak that was fresh from an Amsterdam fish market, a pea puree and fresh steamed asparagus. I finished with an assortment of chocolates from Belgium. Not what I thought it was going to be. In my mind's eye, I was thinking truffles, hard chocolates, etc. It was more like little cakes. Still, all chocolate, and all yummy!
And, since it was late and all of our senses were satiated, there was nothing left but sleep.
