Ok, so we're bad kids and didn't exactly finish the posts from the trip in a timely manner. In an effort to record the details but really catch back up before our next big trip that's right around the corner, the next few posts will be a bit more perfunctory.
Up and at 'em this morning to travel by train for the majority of the day (left at 930, got there at 430)-- so long Prague, hello Budapest! The train travel is actually how we were able to catch up on entries from the first part of the trip, and it really didn't feel as long as we expected (we just hung out and read the whole time).
We arrived in Budapest late afternoon and grabbed a cab from the train station to the opposite side of the river to the Castle District, where we were staying (aka from the eastern Pest side to the western Buda side, the Danube River splits the city in two).
Not a ton of time to accomplish things today, but we did walk around the top of the hill. The Hilton is literally right next door to the Mathias Church and the Fisherman's Bastion, so we started there and took in the sites overlooking the rest of the city.
Walking south on the hill, there is the big Buda Castle complex which includes the Office of the President, the Budapest History Museum, the National Gallery, National Library, as well as some kind of creepy puppet creations (temporary exhibit only, so sorry if you miss it).
Additionally we saw the Matthias Well (should be called a fountain...) and the bird statue, Turul. Fun fact that the turul is a huge mythical falcon from Hungarian mythology, who was considered to be a messenger of the god and sits on top of the tree of life. It's actually still used as an emblem on the coat of arms of the Hungarian Army too, as a symbol of strength, power, and nobility.
We didn't do a lot of meal planning before the trip, but there were a few highlights along the way, including tonight's dinner. We had heard about this restaurant, Aranyszarvas, that focuses on game and was supposed to be awesome. And it was! Definitely on the nicer end, but the restaurant decor was cool, the food was great, and so was the wine. Only hiccup was trying to find our way there-- it's on the Buda side as well, but down the hill and navigating the twists and turns of the paths and streets got us a bit mixed up. We made it though and it was well worth it. (Insert too-detailed description of food here if we had written this closer to the actual travel date!)
Up and at 'em this morning to travel by train for the majority of the day (left at 930, got there at 430)-- so long Prague, hello Budapest! The train travel is actually how we were able to catch up on entries from the first part of the trip, and it really didn't feel as long as we expected (we just hung out and read the whole time).
We arrived in Budapest late afternoon and grabbed a cab from the train station to the opposite side of the river to the Castle District, where we were staying (aka from the eastern Pest side to the western Buda side, the Danube River splits the city in two).
Not a ton of time to accomplish things today, but we did walk around the top of the hill. The Hilton is literally right next door to the Mathias Church and the Fisherman's Bastion, so we started there and took in the sites overlooking the rest of the city.
Walking south on the hill, there is the big Buda Castle complex which includes the Office of the President, the Budapest History Museum, the National Gallery, National Library, as well as some kind of creepy puppet creations (temporary exhibit only, so sorry if you miss it).
Additionally we saw the Matthias Well (should be called a fountain...) and the bird statue, Turul. Fun fact that the turul is a huge mythical falcon from Hungarian mythology, who was considered to be a messenger of the god and sits on top of the tree of life. It's actually still used as an emblem on the coat of arms of the Hungarian Army too, as a symbol of strength, power, and nobility.
We didn't do a lot of meal planning before the trip, but there were a few highlights along the way, including tonight's dinner. We had heard about this restaurant, Aranyszarvas, that focuses on game and was supposed to be awesome. And it was! Definitely on the nicer end, but the restaurant decor was cool, the food was great, and so was the wine. Only hiccup was trying to find our way there-- it's on the Buda side as well, but down the hill and navigating the twists and turns of the paths and streets got us a bit mixed up. We made it though and it was well worth it. (Insert too-detailed description of food here if we had written this closer to the actual travel date!)
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