Beautiful Budapest

 

Sophia's first impression of Budapest was that it looked 
"like someone forgot to put color into the painting."







But, we soon found the color and beauty in Budapest.






Budapest was originally two cities, Buda and Pest. The two grew up along side each other, separated by the Danube river.






To us, Hungarian seemed so different from Italian or any other language we have seen or heard. We learned from Hungarians that their language is similar to none, rooted only in the country of Hungary.



The beauty of the special Opera House in Budapest needed no translation,





...nor did this favorite past time for Hungarians: soaking in their thermal baths.
Healing waters, full of rich minerals, flow from underground hot springs in the center of Budapest. These waters are cooled to different temperatures for the indoor and outdoor baths, open to the public and found all over the city.





Night and day, we enjoyed the pride of Budapest,



and the architecture of it's government buildings and churches.

While in Budapest, we also learned of the city's darker past. For much of its existance, Budapest was occupied by Turkey, then the Nazis, and recently the Soviet Union. (The last Soviet soldier left Hungary in 1991.) At the city's sculpture park, monuments like this were built by the Soviets.

  Hungarians keep other landmarks to remember their suffering by those who occupied them, including this original, government building and these boots, the remains of a statue of Stalin which was toppled by the Hungarian people in 1956.

Learning the history of Budapest was important to us, even though it was heavy and made us sad for the lovely people of Hungary. We chose, however, to celebrate the new life growing in the city.

 

 Here we are, cuddled on the top deck of a boat ride down the Danube river,

..where we dined and danced below with the Gonzaga in Florence students,

...underneath the lights of beautiful Budapest,

...in a country which is finally free and beginning its new chapter for the Hungarian people.