Sun, Rain, Sun...We Give Up

After some chemically enhanced sleep, we woke to sunshine and blue skies. Now, the challenging part of the day....where to have breakfast! Luckily there was a great cafe just a few blocks away where we are able to get good coffee, breakfast stuff and figure out the rest of the day.

Once we were able to comprehend the day ahead, we decided to not head back to the apartment (where we most likely would have crawled back in bed) but walk towards the river and cross over to the Buda side of town. We are staying on the Pest side, which is much more commercialized compared to the leafy, green hills of Buda. Walking across the Danube via the Chain Bridge we could see the long river boats that are popular as a more slow cruise experience.

Once across we attempted to take the funicular, but it had decided to not open and we ended up taking a little shuttle to the top where both the Buda Castle and the Mathias Church/Fisherman's Bastion overlook the river and Pest. The Mathias Church is known for its colorful decorations, is 700 years old and the site of many coronations.

The Fisherman's Bastion has wonderful views of the entire city and is an homage to the fisherman who worked below the hills. There was a military ceremony of a new command, so we were also able to witness the pomp and circumstance of that celebration...bands, marching, equestrian parade and dignitaries all in full view.

Heading back down, we went to the Great Synagogue, which is the 2nd largest in the world behind New York. Unfortunately, it is also home to the only cemetery within a Synagogue due to the many deaths during WWII 1944-1945. The commemoration of that terrible time, is a stark remembrance of how we should never tolerate hate due to religion for any reason.

It was then time for lunch, and Paige had a great recommendation of Dobrumba, which had excellent Middle Eastern food. Hummus with lamb chops, broccoli with labneh and moharamma were awesome. While we were enjoying the food, the sky darkened and the rain arrived in full force. Ok, it is taxi time, which ended up being a quick trip back to the apartment for some much needed rest.

Paige came over after work and we walked back to her and Chris'

apartment. The rain had stopped and we enjoyed the 20 minute walk to her neighborhood. We got to meet Maurice (aka MoMo) their adorable cat, who was just wayyy to cute.

For dinner we walked to a mall (Paige only takes us to the nicest places!) where we enjoyed some great Italian food. We were going to do Indian food, but they unfortunately were closed for an event (and we didn't get invited???). After dinner we stopped past an outdoor beer garden for an after dinner beverage, before heading back to our apartment to get some sleep for another wonderful day in Budapest.