Exploring Pest of Budapest

So crossing the bridge we get back to Pest, where our journey began... but because Budapest is just an amazing city, there was still so much to explore!

The architecture is absolutely breathtaking in Europe.
I mean, just unbelievable.

P.S. There's no touching the grass. I was scolded by police officers for doing this.

This monument below is heartbreaking.
Shoes on the river Danube.
Back during WWII the Nazi's lined up all the Jews in Budapest along the river and had them take their shoe off as they opened fired and the bodies of men, women and children fell, lifeless, into the river.
This monument is in memory of all those people lost.

Walking along the river you get back to where we started, the marketplace.

Continue walking along the main street and you'll come to the Budapest Opera House, which is considered one of the best opera houses in the world.

Walk to the northern tip of the central district and you come to one of the bath houses and to Hero's Square.

One of the things I regret not doing is going to a bath house... but unfortunately reservations on the train were made and the next destination was waiting...

Budapest: First Stop of a European Train Trip

I love, love, love train trips.
And what better place to one than across Europe?!!

First stop?
Budapest, Hungary!

The only thing I have ever heard about Budapest was from the movie The Grand Budapest Hotel (awesome movie by the way).

To get to Budapest there was actually a car trip involved from Lviv to Budapest, waiting at the border for 6 hours, crossing a few more country borders (this this without any border patrol), getting the car pulled over and searched for cigarettes, and a few other things adeventures along the way.

Waking up the next morning I was as giddy as a 1st grader heading off to school for the first time.
The hotel was in an amazing location, directly across the street from the train station!

And a very short walk away from the river.
With statues, beautiful churches, architecture, and musuems lining the walk, so everywhere you look you're captivated by the sights.

Near the rivere there's a hu-mungous market that the locals do thier shopping at and the tourists go to try local fare.

Budapest is actually a city that's divided by a river.
So the city is split into two hales: Buda and Pest.

From jacquioakley.com

Want to see what lies on the other side o the river? On the Buda side?

Come back tomorrow to see more!