Budapest, Hungry

On Oct 10 we left for a long weekend to Budapest. Consisting of two very different cities, Buda on the west bank of the Danube River and Pest on the east bank, Budapest offers travelers Viennese romanticism at an affordable price. However, Budapest is unique in its own right. Hungarians are proud of what this ancient capital has to offer and its contributions to European culture, especially in the field of music, a language one doesn't need to speak to appreciate. Budapest first appeared on the world map when the Romans founded the town of Aquincum around 89 AD, in what is today Óbuda. It soon became the capital of the province of Lower Pannonia, and the Romans even founded a proto-Pest known as Contra Aquincum on the other side of the river. The Romans were replaced around 900 by the Magyars, who went on to found the kingdom of Hungary. The Mongols dropped in uninvited in 1241, but the Magyars bounced back and built the Royal Castle that still today dominates Buda in 1427. In 1541, Buda and Pest fell to the Ottomans and stayed in the hands of the Turks until 1686, when the Austrian Habsburgs conquered the town. Now at peace, both sides of the river boomed, and after an abortive Hungarian revolution in 1848–49, the great Compromise of 1867 made Budapest the united capital of the Hungarian half of the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary. Budapest emerged from World War I battered, but now the capital of an independent Hungary, and its population reached one million by 1930. Air raids and a terrible three-month siege towards the end of World War II resulted in the death of over 38,000 civilians, and up to 40% of Budapest's Jewish community were murdered during the Holocaust. A total of 400 000 Jews in the area were murdered by the Nazis and their Nyilas sympathizers. One man noted in history was Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish humanitarian sent to Hungary under a diplomatic cover, who tried to make a difference by distributing Swedish passports to as many Jews as possible. After the war, the city recovered and became a showcase for the more pragmatic policies of Hungary's hard- line Communist government. It was, however, site of the 1956 Hungarian uprising against unpopular policies such as collectivisation. The revolution against communist rule only ended when the Soviets sent in the tanks as they felt Hungary slipping out of their influence and control. Today's Budapest is by far the wealthiest and most cosmopolitan city in Hungary and is increasingly popular with tourists. In 1987, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List for the cultural and architectural significance of the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue.On our first day, we checked into our hotel and then wandered around the city. Our hotel was located on the Buda side of the Danube, and we had a short bus ride into the city. We were dropped off close to the Dohany Street Synogogue, which is the second largest Synagogue in Europe (only Synagogue in Amsterdam is larger), built in the Byzantine-Moorish Style. There is a metal weaping willow tree in its rear gerden and each leaf on the tree represents an individual that was killed in the hollocaust. Sandy had a lunch recommendation from one of her colleagues at school, so we wandered around until we found it. What a great spot. It is called Hunyadi Kisvendeglo. It is in a shady part of town and lacks on the decour, but we had a feast. We had Mutton goulash, chicken cordon blue, pistazio covered pork schnitzel, and a chicken cordon blue stuffed with, beacon, spicy sausage, and smoked cheese. We ate so much that we could not eat dinner that night. After lunch, we went to the banks of the Danube near the Parliament building. There was the first Nazi mass murder in Budapest. Whole families were pushed into the river in the winter. To mark the attrocity, several sets of shoes were bronzed and placed at the edge of the boardwalk overlooking the river - a really sad sight. We had bought tickets for a hop on hop off bus and decided to use them since we were pretty tired from walking and it was a nice afternoon weatherwise to enjoy the sights of the city at dusk from the comforts of an open top bus. The first stop was a busy square close to St Stevens Basillica - this is the largest church in Budapest and built in on honor of Hungary's first king. It took 50 years to build. We rode up the Andrassy St. This is the main boulevard of town with a promenade on both sides where bicycles and joggers have their own lane. The Opera house is one of the very prominent buildings on this street. Elegant villas line both sides of the street which nowadays accomodate the various embassies. At the end of the street, we see the Heroes Square. The Milleniun Monument was built to celebrate the thousandth anniversary of the Magyar Conquest. Archangel Gabriel stands atop the huge column at the foor of which are scultures of the seven tribal chieftans. The semi-circular pantheon surrounding the ensemble has depictions of famous kings, generals, and great historical figures. The heroes stone in the middle commemeorates the heroes of the revolution of 1856. On one side of the square sits the museum of fine arts. The building on the right is the art gallery. Past the heroes square is the budapest zoo and botanical garden. Next to the zoo is an amuzement park and across the street is one of the public baths. Just in back of the heroes square is a huge skating rink. We travel back to our starting point via Kiraly St. - called by the locals as "The Avenue". There are a lot of villas and mini palaces similar to Andrassy St. Also known as the street of nobel prize winners given the number of nobel prize winners educated at the local lutheran school. By the middle of the bus tour, the kids were falling asleep, so we jumped off at the starting point and decided to save the Buda side of the tour for the next day. We took a bus back to the hotel and all layed down for bed. Our plan was to get the kids to sleep and then sneak down to the restaurant, but Sandy and I passed out right along with the kids.