Ending Eastern Europe in Budapest, Hungary (#24) (C#7)

Laura started the morning planning the next legs of our trip while we traveled to Budapest.

`We arrived to Budapest an hour late because of the current from the rains in Germany.

As soon as the boat arrived, we jumped off for the buses waiting for us to tour the city with a local guide. She gave a simple overview of the city, but couldn't compare to our amazing local guide Igor from our last stop in Croatia.

After lunch, we walked over the bridge with a guided tour of the Millenial Roofed Marketplace. We shopped a little and then walked out on the streets and bought a few local items including hungarian paprika.

We arrived back ot the boat to listen to a local guide speak about autocracy in Hungary and then Laura had another wonderful massage.

Afterwards we went out to dinner at a Greek Restaurant Dionysys Taverna near the boat and had a fabulous tasty meal. As a bonus, Laura received a beautiful flower.

A highlight of our time in Budapest was an evening tour by boat up and down the river at night allowing us to take fabulous pictures.

Parliament Building at night

We took an Optional Tour of the Jewish Synogugue in Budapest. We heard stories about what a vibrant Jewish community lived in Budapest and were given many rights. In Budapest, they kept putting off sending Jews to concentration camps. At the end of the war when Hitler was losing, he used his last efforts to send 800,000 Jews to Auchwitz.

While we were at the second synagogue, we were able to witness two rabbis preparing the Torah for the reading on the Sabbath.

On our last day, we climbed to the hilly Castle District on the Buda side near where Prime Minister Oberon lives.

We had been having regular dinners with our Texas friends, Christy & Mary from Amarillo, and Debby and Trib from Leander. Both were ending their trip in Budapest, and we were sad to see them go. But, promises were made to connect when we are back in Texas!

July 31, August 1

Budapest, Hungary

Pros: Beautiful buildings

Cons: Still some areas needing rebuilt, concerns over government by locals

4 Stars