Our friends Barb and Woody have been our friends for, it seems like, forever. Our families have camped together a number of times in the past and have always enjoyed each other’s company. Barb and Woody were members of a group of people, who took trips together up and down Europe’s rivers. It is a different and convenient way to spend time exploring. Your belongings are locked in your cabin aboard a ship and stay there during an outing when moored. These side trips are never longer than a couple of hours, after which you’re back aboard the ship.
Woody was talking about one of their trips, this one to Budapest. Both he and Barb thought the city was beautiful and were sad that they didn’t get to spend more time. I told them that we have an apartment there and after a few more discussions, plans were made, and a trip was formulated. The apartment in Budapest was sparsely furnished, especially in the kitchen area. While my Mother was alive, I didn’t want to change anything and after her death I didn’t think it was necessary. It was good enough for us for the few more times we visited Budapest. Sleeping accommodations were just adequate.
Soon we found ourselves at the airport in Philadelphia, on our way to Budapest and after several hours we landed in Budapest.
N.B. After pondering for quite a while I decided not to bring my DSLR camera on this trip but rely on my iPhone 6S solely for taking pictures. It was a difficult decision but, as you can see by the pictures, it was a correct one.
For the first week we stayed at the timeshare a few miles outside the city limits. The accommodations were a little rustic but clean. It is from here that we took a few excursions, the first of which was a cruise on the Danube at night. We were entertained by operetta singers during dinner.
The Fisherman’s Bastion got its name from its duty during war times: protect the city. The buildings were manned by the fishermen of the area.
At the top stands the statue of Hungary’s first king, just a few yards from Matyas Cathedral, in which many of Hungary’s kings were crowned.
Below are some pictures of the monuments of Heroes’ Square. Many of the nation’s notable people were remembered in bronze statues.
This square was the site of soldiers marching in formation to celebrate national events, mostly under communism.
We are in Buda enjoying some good food and great entertainment.
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We are in a nice restaurant by the Danube, north of Budapest.
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We have traveled to the Balaton.
We are in Tihany.
A leisurely stop at the Herend Museum.
A quick lunch
The Budapest Opera House
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The Parliament
Árpád’s apartment.
Gerbeaud is the confectionery my parents took me as a special treat for a good report card. This assured me good eating once a year. My favorite treat on these occasions was Napoleon.
We’re going to the Czech Republic
As a separate trip from the excursions from the timeshare, we took a wonderful bus trip to the Czech Republic. Most, if not all, passengers were Hungarian. It was interesting observing each other. They were immediately eying us, instinctively realizing that we were not. The biggest difference between the two groups was the physical advantage the Hungarians had over us. During the trip much walking was necessary and they were always ahead us. I didn’t realize that Barb had a serious heart condition severely limiting her ability to keep up. I didn’t care much, as I was also suffering a little.
We had a guide, an outgoing woman in her forties, carrying a plastic sunflower on a stick to make her visible among the hordes of people at times. There was much to see, so the tempo moved us right along.
A couple of words about our destination: The capitol city of Prague was spared from the bombings during the Second World War, and it looked much different than Budapest. The country is located directly above Hungary. The mountains depicted in Hungary’s crest (the green part in the picture to the right) are located in the Czech Republic, given to them after the severe area reduction of Hungary after WWII.
The following pictures were taken under the aforementioned difficulties. They are pictures that caught my eye and are presented in no particular order. So, enjoy Prague, Czech Republic.
Telc
Our next stop was a little town called Telc (pronounced Telch). After a short walk we came upon a 150-foot-wide walk/driveway lined on both sides by houses that looked alike, except for their color.
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Karlovy Vary (Karlsbad)
This was a very picturesque little town. It was divided by a small brook with bridges every few hundred feet with a road on both sides of the flowing water, followed by gorgeous ornate buildings on both sides. You could tell immediately that there was much money in this town. The many shops along the way had expensive items displayed. We heard that most, if not all these shops were owned by Russians.
We are back in Budapest, at last. It was a wonderful, albeit tiring trip. It was wonderful to have Barb and Woody with us and Mary and I hope that they had as much fun and made as many memories as we.
