Budapest

Jim at Statue Park in Budapest

Matt, Jill, and Julie outside Saint Stephen’s Basilica

The fountain of wine at Buda Castle Labyrinth

Budapest Parliament

A look at Parliament on the Pest side of the River Danube

The next stop on the trip with my parents was Budapest. We stayed for 3 nights in this up and coming city. You could see some of the effects of communism on the city, but they are trying their best to accommodate tourism. (Though it still pales in comparison to Prague...)
We started out by stopping at Statue Park on the way into town. This bit of land on the skirts of town opened in 1993 to display the old communist monuments removed from the streets of Budapest. It was a quick but interesting stop.
We also saw Budapest's Old Town and Churches. Though one of our more interesting stops was at the Buda Castle Labyrinth. The Labyrinth is a series of caves underneath Old Town that date back to Prehistoric times. By the 1930's it was used as a bomb shelter and even a hospital accommodating up to 10,000 people. It was strange to imagine a hospital operating in these caves.
We also stood in a rather long and rowdy line to get tickets for the Parliament building. Which proved worthwhile, the ornate decoration was stunning.
We had some amazing restaurant recommendations for the city, so one of my favorite things about our visit there was trying the goulashes and paprika laden dishes. Although, Matt and I agreed that our favorite of the trip was going to the thermal bath of Széchenyi. Budapest has some great thermal baths, and my only regret is that we didn't seek out more of them!