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Austria

Vienna, Austria

We arrived in the centre area of the city of Vienna by train . The city which has a population of over 2 million is the capital of Austria.  

The Schmetterlinghaus, The Butterfly house, Vienna
Donnerbrunnen Fountain in the Neuer Market Square, Vienna.

We walked into the historic centre of Vienna and we were greeted by spectacular architecture and a lively atmosphere. 

Vienna State Opera
Hofburg Palace inside court view
St Micheal’s Church
Emperor Franz I, The Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the ruler of the other states of the Habsburg monarchy

We explored the centre weaving our way through the timeless streets and sites.

Vienna Art Nouveau architecture
Arches of the State Opera Building in Vienna
A caryatid on one of the Vienna buildings in the old quarter

The rich history of Vienna could be seen in the architectures of the buildings.

St Charles Church in Vienna
Hochstrahlbrunnen Fountain and monument in Vienna
Statue out front of the Albertina Museum, Vienna
St Peter’s Church, Vienna

Along the way we came to a museum called Time travel.  We decided to try something different and went into this museum. 

Time Travel Museum in Vienna Austria

Inside the museum we experienced an array of multimedia displays and 3D virtual experiences that were truly amazing.

In the Time Travel museum with 3D virtual glasses
Ray with statue of Roman in the Time Travel Museum

It brought to life the history of Vienna in a way that was truly enjoyable and memorable.  

St Stephen Cathedral in Vienna

We went to see the St Stephen’s Cathedral in the heart of the old quarter of Vienna. The Romanesque and Gothic styled Cathedral was constructed starting in 1138 and is spectacular to see.

View of the roof tile design of the church

One of the features of St. Stephen’s Cathedral is its ornately patterned, richly coloured roof which is covered by 230,000 glazed tiles.

The inside of the church is decorated in ornate Gothic and Romanesque styles. 

After a long day of exploring the city, we decided to go and have a nice meal before heading back to our room for the night. We enjoyed our first day in Vienna and look forward to tomorrow and more adventures. 

“Wir sind hin- und hergerissen zwischen der Sehnsucht nach dem Vertrauten und dem Drang nach dem Fremden und Fremden. Oft haben wir Heimweh nach den Orten, die wir noch nie gekannt haben.”

Hungary

Our last day in Budapest

Today was our final day in Budapest before heading on to Vienna Austria. We decided to take in a visit to the Hungarian National Museum. 

Scott, Janice and Shelley in front of the National Museum of Hungary

What a beautiful Museum and very detailed history of Hungary from its creation to its current time.

We walked through the museum learning all about the rich and troubled history.  The torments of the wars and their break from the soviet union.

The largest piece of the Stalin monument which was torn down during revolution and destroyed.

It was very interesting how this country has evolved from behind the Iron curtain to become the modern country of today. 

Statue of Stalin in the Museum.

It was very special to us to experience the National Hungarian Museum and learn in detail about the history of Hungary.

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Here are some of the other neat and interesting things we experienced during our time in Budapest.

There is a detailed replica of the moon’s entire surface, including its far side located in the Piarista köz passageway. The moon floats in the air on very thin wires at a height of 3.5 meters. 

Floating moon in the shopping district
Shelley “holding up” the moon.

The moon is an accurate replica and you can see the details of the moon up close.  At night it is lit up and provides a spectacular view.

We came across a transparent statue which was very unique. The photos do not give it justice. As we walked around the statue it was semi-transparent and would come into and out of view.

There was a lot of unique or interesting buildings and monuments including signs and graffiti. 

Sign outside a bubble tea shop in Budapest
One of the many anti Putin stickers in Budapest
One last cheer before heading to Vienna

We headed to the train station and took the two and a half hour train ride to Vienna. Saying good buy to Budapest and hello to Vienna Austria.

“Nem számít az úti cél, de az utazás és az, hogy ki van melletted, az számít.”

Hungary

Highlights of Budapest -Part 2

We really enjoyed taking the relaxing cruise on the Danube River. It was a nice way to relax in the heat of the day and get a feel for the city landscape.

We went to visit the Buda Castle which is located on the Buda side of the Danube river. The castle also known as Royal Palace or Royal Castle was very impressive.

View of Buda Castle from the Danube River

We walked up the castle hill through the medieval quarter that leads up to the Castle.  Once we reached the top we could see the Buda Castle from there. 

Mattias Church near the Buda Castle

In the plaza near the Buda Castle is the Church of the Assumption of the Buda Castle, more commonly known as the Matthias Church.  

Shelley in front of Saint Stephen statue near Buda Castle

 The Saint Stephen statue has been located in Buda Castle next to the Fisherman’s Bastion. Saint Stephen was the founding King of Hungary.  It is one of the focal points as we walked towards the Fisherman’s Bastion.  We went up onto the top of the Fisherman’s Bastion and were greeted with amazing views of Budapest.

View from Fisherman’s Bastion in Budapest.
View of Budapest from the Fisherman’s Bastion at Buda Castle.
Shelley, Ray, Janice and Scott on the Fisherman’s Bastion

After exploring  the Fishermans’ Bastion we went to see the Matthias Church. 

Janice and Ray with Matthias Church in the background.

The inside of the church was impressive with stained glass and ornate construction like most romanesque style churches in Europe.

The Altar area in Matthias Church

 

However what was quite unique and interesting to us was the Coat of Arms of the Hungarian Knights of Malta. They are on display within the church.

Shields of deceased members of the Hungarian Association of the Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem.

Some of the Shields of Coat of Arms of the deceased Hungarian Knights of Malta.

After visiting the church we walked along the walls and explored outside areas of the castle. 

Janice stopped to have a quick rest and get her photo with one of the locals.

Entrance gate to Buda Castle in Budapest

We came across a bronze bunny overlooking the Danube River.  

There was a Hungarian TV  show written in the 1970s by Veronika Marék and animated by Zsolt Richly. The show called the (checkered-eared rabbit) became very popular. The artist Mihály Kolodko created this bronze statue in November 2018 at the top of the Castle Hill Funicular.  This bronze floppy-eared rabbit has a bird’s-eye view of the city and some people rub his tail or ears for good luck. Of course Ray could not resist.

Shelley and Janice at one of the look out over the Danube River at Buda Castle.

 It was a very long but enjoyable day and we managed to explore a lot of Budapest.

So we decided to take a well deserved break and have a meal before heading back for the day. We ate at the Jamie Oliver Restaurant and had some very tasty Italian food. It was a full day and we saw some interesting places.  We had one more day left in Budapest before heading on to our next adventure. We headed back for the day and to rest up for tomorrows adventures.

“Az élet túl rövid ahhoz, hogy megbánással ébredjünk fel “

Hungary

Highlights of Budapest -Part 1

We arrived in Budapest and over the next four days explored this beautiful city. We took the Hop on and Hop off bus to get a feel for the city and to see the main sites.

After staying on the bus for a while we got off to check out different areas of this amazing city. We stopped near the Hungarian Parliament building which is located on Kossuth Square in the Pest side of the city.

Hungarian Parliament Building
Janice and Ray in front of the Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest

It is a large and impressive building, which was opened in 1902 . It is the largest building in Hungary and has ornate facades. We walked around the perimeter admiring the sheer size and detail of its construction. There was security so we could not get to see the inside of the parliament building. After exploring the area we stoped to relax in the shade and enjoy the view of the parliament building.

Scott. Janice and Shelley in the courtyard of the Hungarian Parliament Building.

We then walked along the Danube river exploring the bank and sites along the way. We came to a world war two memorial .

Near the Hungarian Parliament buildings there is a memorial on the bank of the Danube River and it is a monument to the Hungarian Jews. This memorial known as “Shoes on the Danube Bank” gives remembrance to the 3,500 people, 800 of them Jews, who were shot on the edge of the Danube river during the time of the Arrow Cross terror in the winter of 1944-1945.

The 60 iron pairs of shoes on the bank of the Danube River in Budapest

The victims fell into the water and drifted down the Danube River. The sculptor created sixty pairs of period-appropriate shoes out of iron.These shoes represent the Hungarian Jews and victims who were shot on the banks of the Danube River. 

This monument really moved us. The image of the shoes which included men, women and children really hit home at the cruelty of war and that period in time. 

We took a river cruise that gave us a beautiful view of some of the major landmarks of Budapest.

On the cruise boat getting set for our cruise

The city has a different look from the water and has impressive landmarks and scenery.

Buda castle view from the Danube River.

 

After our river cruise we went to explore the Heroes’ Square, which is one of the main squares in Budapest. It is known for its iconic Millennium Monument with statues featuring the Seven chieftains of the Magyars and other important Hungarian national leaders.

Photo of Heroes Square in Budapest By Paul Mannix – https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulmannix/345388204/sizes/l/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5574955

 

Statues of several of the Magyar chieftains of Hungary

The statues are very detailed and impressive in size. 

Andrew II King of Hungary, He is known as the king that leads a crusade to the Holy Land.

The Heroes Square is known for large events, rallies and sometimes protest.

Janice at the base of a section of heroes statues in Budapest.
The Millennium Monument in the centre of Heroes Square

After exploring Heroes’ Square we decided to take a well deserved rest before heading on to our next adventure. 

“Az utazás táplálja a lelket és megvilágosítja az elmét”

Hungary

A unique restaurant in Budapest

When we arrived in Budapest we settled into our AirBnB and then decided to go our to get something to eat. We saw an interesting and unique Budapest restaurant called Púder Bárszínház. It was decorated in a very colourful decor and the menu had a diverse international foods. So we decided to go and check it out. The outside of the restaurant had colourful hexagon boxes and a large bear.

We went inside and were bombarded by unique quirky decorations including antique items and large statues. One of the walls of the restaurant had a large metal frog hanging above the servers station. Everywhere we looked we found unique and interesting stuff.

We sat down at our table and ordered drinks. One of the drinks was called a “Hugo Spritz” which contains, Prosecco, elderflower, mint, lime and club soda. It was quite tasty and had a unique flavour with the elderflower in it.

We ordered our meals and enjoyed looking around the restaurant at all the different items and art. Some of the walls were peeled away to the raw bricks or plaster below while other sections had murals or other paintings on them. It made for an interesting time looking at the different things.

Janice and Scott in the Púder Bárszínház restaurant

We had a great first day in Budapest and enjoyed a relaxing and unique time at the Púder Bárszínház Restaurant. It was a great way to start our adventures in Budapest.

“Szerezz örömet minden napból”