Wandering around Pest

We spent the morning in the fascinating company of our Hungarian-Canadian guide Robert, following his walking tour for about 2 1/2 hours (https://www.guruwalk.com/walks/40132-all-in-one…).

We learnt about the history and culture of the city, and a number of its key sites in the warm sunshine.

Particular highlights included:

- the controversial Memorial for Victims of the German Occupation, which suddenly appeared overnight in Szabadság tér (Liberty Square) in 2014, built by the Orban government. The memorial depicts a Germanic eagle about to seize the holy apple of Hungary from the archangel Gabriel, suggesting that the victims perished at the hands of the German occupation during WW2. The truth explained by the impromptu counter-installation just in front of the memorial is that almost all victims of the occupation were Hungarian Jews, in whose deaths the many Hungarians were complicit.

- Soviet War Memorial, also in Szabadság tér (Liberty Square) commemorating those who died in the Soviet liberation of Hungary in 1945.

- Hungarian Parliament building, the seat of the National Assembly

- views across the Danube to Buda Castle

- the Shoes on the Danube Bank, a moving memorial featuring 60 pairs of 1940s-style iron shoes commemorating victims shot into the river by Arrow Cross militiamen in 1944–1945. The victims were tied together at the ankles, and only the first was shot, causing the rest of the line of victims to also fall into the fast flowing river.

We enjoyed some Langos for lunch, a Hungarian street food - deep fried dough with different toppings.Read more