Budapest

View of Pest and the Danube River. The bridge in the center is the famous Chain Bridge.



Budapest has been a great place to visit despite the ever-threatening weather. Yesterday we toured the Pest side, on the east side of the Danube River (see photo). Contrary to the famous song, the Danube River (called the Duna here) is not so blue, instead it runs a grayish brown. It is busy with commerce and large tour boats where you can book a dinner sightseeing and music show. The Pest side is quite different than the Buda side, being more modern and highly commercial. The waterfront zone is filled with shopping areas that cater to tourists and include many souvenir shops, clothing stores, and even a Burger King. I finally succumbed to the incredible hand embroidery and bought an outrageously beautiful centerpiece and some other smaller doilies. Rachel and I posed for a picture with the lady who made some of the smaller pieces (I'll post it). We had hoped to visit the central indoor market but since it was Sunday, it was closed. Regardless, our 3-mile walk gave us a great overview of the city, including the Rock Church, Geillert hotel and baths, and the Chain Bridge, the first suspension bridge ever built (it's the one in the photo above).

We had a very tasty dinner at a small restaurant here in the Buda district to celebrate Father's Day for Greg. We splurged on a really good bottle of Hungarian wine and ate some local specialities like perch in a lemon sauce and catfish with paprika sauce. My dish was accompanied by mashed potatoes with herbs, which was presented on the plate by two heaps of solid green potatoes. I was uncertain about eating them at first, but they ended up being delicious. We shared a dessert of honey cake with homemade raspberry ice cream, which was wonderful.

It's our last day in Budapest and we return to Milano late tonight. This morning we will visit the underground labyrinth beneath the Buda Castle before leaving to catch our flight back. After today, the next post with pictures won't be until the weekend when we visit Ravenna, the city of incredible mosaics.

Happy summer solstice to all.