Budapest and My Trusty iPhone

 I can't finish Budapest without including pictures from my iPhone.  After all, some of my best shots are with that thing.  Here is a rundown of the magnificent city through a different lens.

Hero's Square

Our apartment was huge.  Originally two apartments made into one, we could have taken another family with us and shared the space. And, for 390 euros for FOUR nights, you can't pass it up!

The Hungarian State Opera House

Thomas's future car. ;)

Iquana...a Mexican restaurant recommended by a couple we met at the airport.  We'll just say that Belgium has no clue how to make Mexican food, so when we find a good spot, we eat there...even if it is in Budapest, Hungary.  These crazy Americans miss their Mexican food.  What can I say?

Shoes on the Danube Promenade

Mom needs to get in some pictures once in a while.

This gorgeous buffet was in our apartment.  Too bad it exceeded the size limit for a Ryan Air carry-on. :)

We were thinking of you Douglas family.

Herend Porcelain is made in Budapest.  I had never heard of it until I chatted with another American at the car wash just a few days before our trip.  I think God made sure we met.  What do you think? :) I was able to take a piece home, and I LOVE it.  But, I purchased my plate from a second hand shop for a much more reasonable price.

KFC stop....similar to Mexican food stop.

Smooches...he asked me not to put in on Facebook.  He didn't mention the blog. ;)

A-MAZ-ING!

Pretty much what every restaurant advertises.

Ready to start a long morning walk.

The Cave Church

Instagramming (is that a verb now?)

A shot of our hike....start on the far left, cross the bridge, up the hill, down the hill, and over the white bridge.

Hard Rock Cafe....of course (similar to KFC and Mexican food.)  I swear we ate local food too.

Cute Beatles dolls for my mom to see.

Enjoying the Széchenyi Thermal Baths

A little archery practice

Would have been a beautiful view without cloud cover and fog.

Dinner at Spoon.  Loved the view of the Chain Bridge.  

The bridge is beautiful at night.

Doing the fish spa.  They have wanted to do it for months.  It was cheap, so we finally said yes.

One beer, three Cokes, four sausages, and some potatoes....40 euros.  Biggest rip off meal to date in Europe.

The next Vanna White.

Dessert at Cafe New York...pretty sure we couldn't afford to eat a whole meal there.

Breathtaking view

Blinded by the light.

5:00 A.M. at the airport.  Eating KFC.  Doesn't every family do this?

And, that concludes our visit to Budapest.  Thanks for reading!

Until next time,
Wendy

And, now the Buda Side

Before our trip to Budapest, we were told, and had read, that we wouldn't spend a whole lot of time on the Buda side.  There wasn't much there...only the castle.  But, I really enjoyed the Buda side.  The views were breathtaking.  See for yourself.

Of course, you need a picture of the Chain Bridge from the Buda side. ;)  Yes, you can have too many pictures of the Chain Bridge.

Treats for our walk, and they were so excited.  But, they turned out to be really gross!  Those suckers were probably three years old.  Yuck!

On Sunday morning, we thought it might be fun to find the Cave Church and then walk up to this cross.

Great views from the Cave Church.

Here's the entrance to the Cave Church.  The sanctuary is literally in a cave.  Very small but beautiful.  I didn't feel comfortable whipping out my big camera because mass was ready to start, but I'll be sure to post pictures when I get my iPhone pictures uploaded.

After leaving the church, we thought we would head up to that cross.  Oh look...we missed it.  Walked a little too far.  Since we were much higher than we thought, we figured we might as well keep going to the Liberty Statue.  And, let me just say, this was not a real challenging hike.  However, there was the threat of throwing up by one of my darling children and the incessant whining by the other.  Really?!?

We all made it to the top...ALIVE!  Lady Liberty commemorates those who sacrificed their lives for the independence, freedom, and prosperity of Hungary (thank you Wikipedia.)  She is even more impressive at night!

We had to get some pictures at the top.  But of course, the weather was just not cooperative.  

A little archery practice.

We started across the bridge on the left, up to Lady Liberty, and down to where this picture was taken.  That was quite a morning walk!

A view of Buda Castle Hill at night.  I think every city is better at night.

Monday was a beautiful day in Budapest.  So, up to the castle we went to see those fantastic views. We took the funicular up to the top.

Up we go!!!

The view from the funicular.

A family pic taken by a very nice tourist.

Checking out the sites at the top.

We learned on our boat cruise that Beethoven played here.  My little piano players were excited about that.

That is the view we were hoping for!

There is a man standing just behind the kids.  I told Thomas to tell him to please move so I could take a picture.  He wouldn't do it.  I don't know why?? :)

St. Matthias Church

Oh, the fun things you get to do when you are on vacation....

The Fisherman's Bastion in the Castle Hill district

I am really thankful for this picture.  It's not often we get a nice family picture on our vacations.  I'm thankful for the nice people along the way who offered to take pictures for us and didn't steal my camera.

The Hungarian Parliament Building...Isn't it just amazing!

Overall, we had a really great trip.  I'm so thankful we were able to take the kids to another magnificent city.  The blessings of this assignment continue to amaze me!

Until next time,
Wendy