St. Stephen's Basilica

We saw a lot of Budapest yesterday, but not nearly all of it! Today we are doing some more touring. This time we are on our own. It’s actually raining lightly and we get to wear our rain jackets! First destination is the indoor market. We also hope to find a coffee bar near by. With our Map App we find our coffee place tucked in behind the market building. I also find the elusive poppy seed pastry I’ve been looking for since our arrival. I remember from my previous trip to Budapest that poppy seed pastries were everywhere. Not so much anymore. I had to settle on a slice of poppy seed lemon loaf.

Indoor market is fantastic. The basement floor has a fishmarket. We did not go down there. The main floor was mostly food, ranging from fruits and vegetables to various meats. Upstairs are souvenir items as well as clothing and glassware, and other Hungarian handicrafts.

Our next destination was the neoclassical styled, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, a short walk away. We had seen it yesterday as part of the Pest tour, but did not get a chance to go inside. We chose to buy a ticket that gives you access to three areas inside. The main church with the altar, organ, and seating for worshippers; the treasury with a collection of historical, religious artifacts and the tower where you could ascend to a viewing platform near the top. This building is one of the tallest in the city and we really wanted to get a bird’s eye view. As you can see from the photos, it is a beautiful building inside and out, and provided a spectacular 360 degree view from the top.

After a lunch break at a small cafe, we continued on touring the Pest side before deciding to head back to revisit the Palace on the Buda side. The plan was to take the funicular up the hill. It is a short ride on the oldest funicular in continental Europe. After a short wait in line we discover that for reasons unknown we would have to buy a return ticket when all we wanted was to catch a ride up. So, we declined and chose a new destination - Varosliget (City Park). It was a distance away and so we hopped on a tram.

On arrival, we were awestruck by the Heroe’s Square situated at the entrance to the park. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site finished in 1996 as part of Hungary’s millennium celebrations. The park also has one of the best thermal baths in the city. However, we didn’t bring our bathing suits and we couldn’t see the actual bath. We did, however, go inside the entrance of the building housing the bath. Very impressive architecture. Walking through the park we came across a rock band in the process of producing a video in a picturesque setting alongside a pond and across from an old castle. It was silent though with the band only pretending to be playing their music.

It was nearing dinner time and I was tired out after 20,000+ steps so we made our way to the nearest tram stop and went back to our apartment to get cleaned up and ready for dinner. We chose again to go the same restaurant, just steps away from our room. Tonight, I ordered a spicy chicken wrap with salad and fries. It was a huge meal even though I had ordered the small size of wrap. Laura had a garden salad and fries. It was enjoyable and came with a 40% discount again on both the food and the drinks!Read more