Slept in a bit, then hit the street after breakfast. Today is the warmest day yet, and I boldly went out without a jacket on!! A 15 minute walk down our favorite, euro-shady streets:
then down the boulevard and we arrived at the Central Market Hall, which is open 6 am – 6 pm, 6 days/week. Held in a huge old (isn’t everything? even buildings replaced after the bombings of WWII, things were rebuilt to replicate original structures) building filled with wrought iron stairwells and balconies, stalls were stuffed with produce, freshly-smoked sausages and meats (Michael and Matt, where are you?), spices (how much paprika can you really use?) and cheese, caviar and foie gras (duck and goose liver all kinds of ways in pretty little cans).
Well, you can imagine the fun we had. Comparing prices, checking out the places with the lines of locals, and succumbing to a fat piece of apple strudel from a corner stand that was pulling freshly baked items out of the oven as fast as they could make up new trays to push back in. We bought some cheese for lunch later:
A bit of bargaining and a bit of gluttony, and I was heading back to the room with my bag stuffed with little treasures. Lance goes for a walkabout with his camera while I head back to the hotel to spend a couple of hours catching up on the blog. Here’s the little square directly in front of our hotel:
Lance gets back and we head out once again on the #2 tram. Here’s one of the few babushka women we’ve seen on the whole trip:
We hope off at Parliament and await the english tour. It’s a short one and we see the assembly hall, which is no longer used since the country transitioned from a bicameral system (House of Lords and the General Assembly) to a unicameral (no more House of Lords – more for the everyday people. does that mean it’s a good idea to abolish the Senate?) one. But the Hall is quite impressive:
as are the hallways:
and one of the sitting rooms, which filled up with members of the press waiting for some announcement or personage to arrive. There are statues on the walls of this area, linking Lords and more common folk, as well as a nod to the sciences in the corners.
Lance and I are both amused that the corners are Law, Philosophy, Math and Religion. Tells you a lot about the country’s culture that they’ve categorized Religion as a Science. I wonder what Bill Maher would have to say about that?
And finally, the grand staircase, upon which no expense was spared, because no budget was set for it!
Next stop, and the remainder of the day, is supposed to be the Castle District, which sits on the hill of Central Buda across the river. But I’m dragging ass, so we put in our second visit to Gerbeaud’s, where we sit at a table on the square and enjoy coffee and treats:
Energized with caffeine and sugar, we hit the metro and ride it under the Danube over to the Buda side of the city. We head over to the funicular:
buy tickets and climb on board for the steep ride up to the Castle District:
and the photo frenzy recommences:
We walk through town, read up on ruins and former palaces (mostly now museums) and encounter some unusual dudes riding through the street:
Wander a bit further, then I am excited to find the entrance to the labyrinth. Of course, I’m expecting something like I’ve seen/experienced before, but this is a horse of a different color. This is actually more like the dungeon area underneath the castle that has been used for storage, hiding and prisons over the past 500 years and along the way been expanded and added to. There are quite a few hokey exhibits, an area to grope through that’s completely in the dark (that was an interesting exercise) and a small, cave-like room where there is an actual small labyrinth to walk:
All done, we rise back into waning daylight, which of course, affords more opportunities to take photos of the beautiful setting. The Matyas Church, named for the most beloved King of Hungary, who ruled during its Golden Age, and who brought the Renaissance, the printing press, libraries and European artists to the country.
The tower was actually converted into a mosque during Ottoman rule. It’s rumored that while at prayer, the Turks had a vision of the Madonna, and realized that they had lost the country to the Hapsburgs and their rule of the country was over. Would that it were that simple!
More beauty:
Twilight on the river:
We wander down the street of Lords and look for someplace to eat dinner. We find a lovely spot and sit outside (yay for those blankets!). Lance has a king-sized beer:
and I enjoy the tower as the sun goes down and the street lamps come on:
and we walk back up into the church for the concert after dinner to hear the Duna string orchestra play a variety of selections from Pachelbel, Mozart, Vivaldi, Bach and a couple other musicians you may have heard of. The music and the church were both lovely:
and both were on a much smaller scale than the night before, which was nice. Each could be its own jewel of an experience.
The concert lasted about 75 minutes, then we walked out, down a myriad of steps, and ooh-ed and aah-ed at the view across the Danube. Shutter clicking away, trying to capture the scene without the buildings looking like they’re on fire. A couple:
well, i guess that’s more than a couple. then down the metro escalator into the bowels of the earth:
to enjoy our last night’s sleep at Hotel Palazzo Zichy.