The Best of Budapest of What We Saw At Night
And it was just about everything!
We arrived in Budapest yesterday afternoon. It took quite a bit to get here from Wisconsin but that’s for another post. Our travels went as planned and we stepped on to the Viking Longship we were traveling on around 2 o’clock in the afternoon.
After drinks, dinner, and partially unpacking in our stateroom, I dragged my husband across town to walk over the famous Chain Bridge at night to get a much-wanted, even required, photograph of the Budapest Parliament Building.
It and other buildings in Budapest are beautifully illuminated at night, as are the bridges that span the Danube River in that part of Hungary.
Walking from our boat, between the Liberty Bridge and the Elizabeth Bridge, to the Parliament Building was at least a couple of miles. After traveling on a plane for most of the last day, walking was a welcome relief.
My husband and I are big walkers on vacation. We enjoy it.
Before we got to the Chain Bridge, we had beautiful views of Buda Castle high on the Budapest side of the Danube. Again, gorgeous!
The Chain Bridge itself has been reopened after a renovation. It is painted a lovely mossy green color and has a huge stone lion at each side of the entrance on both sides of the bridge.
The Chain Bridge was an easy walk and the lights of Budapest surrounding the river were reflected in the calm water. Lovely and relaxing. It helped that it was a warm night — in the upper 60s as well.
Budapest seems magical. The lights, the warm weather, the river, the boats, and the music playing all added to the magic of being with my husband in this historic city on the Danube River in Europe.
A tunnel on the far side (Buda side) of the Chain Bridge added a sense of mystery, too.
On the way back with noted the Elizabeth Bridge and the Liberty Bridge’s illumination as well.
More than just bridges and political buildings were lit at night. Churches, boats, and more were illuminated giving a warm feeling to this city of two million people.
Last night, I was grateful we had another entire day to spend in Budapest.
There is more to come about our experience in Hungary. I hope you come along for the ride. The city of Budapest is rich in history and the home to some of the most unfortunate events.
But today, it is vibrant and alive with people from all walks of life and we felt as welcome here as we would walking down our own street in Wisconsin.
The next stop on our cruise is Vienna, Austria, for which we sail tonight.
