{"id":12265,"date":"2015-08-04T11:02:33","date_gmt":"2015-08-04T11:02:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thesojournseries.com\/bavaria\/?p=12265"},"modified":"2015-08-04T11:06:08","modified_gmt":"2015-08-04T11:06:08","slug":"budapest-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thesojournseries.com\/bavaria\/budapest-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Budapest – Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Fishermans<\/a><\/p>\n

Day two of our Budapest adventure, and we headed for the Castle District<\/a> to explore, and to enjoy the best views the city has of Budapest\u2019s iconic Parliament building.<\/p>\n

\"St<\/a>
St Matthias Church<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"parliament<\/a><\/p>\n

This area (in particular the Fisherman’s Bastion – named after the Fishermen who sold their wares in the main square once upon a time), is very firmly on the tourist map – get here early before the coach loads arrive! \u00a0 It’s well worth paying the small fee to climb the walls of the Bastion to appreciate the scenery and the views across the water and beyond.<\/p>\n

\"Fisherman's<\/a>
Fisherman’s Bastion<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Matthias<\/a>
Matthias Church Buda Castle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once you have appreciated all the beauty the main square has to offer, then wander along to say hello to the giant mythical Tural Bird<\/a> (an important beast in Hungarian folklore, you might find him firmly perched on top of the Tree of Life, or indeed here keeping a watchful eye over his majestic city!), and then beyond to the Palace for a further spot of statue admiration…<\/p>\n

\"tural<\/a>
Tural Bird statue Buda Castle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"statue<\/a>
statue of the Horse Wranger Buda Castle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"section<\/a>
section from King Matthias and his Hunters statue<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And once you’ve had your fill (or as was the case with us, the weather has the better of you – I hadn’t quite appreciated just how hot Budapest could get!), then you could either take the Castle Hill Funicular back down again, or (like we did) take the mammoth set steps down at the side of the Castle Garden Bazaar<\/a> which gives you fantastic views over perfectly manicured gardens, before spitting you back out on to street level below, perfect for transport options, both local and not so…<\/p>\n

\"shade<\/a>
shade seeking Buda Castle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Castle<\/a>
Castle Garden Bazaar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"city<\/a><\/p>\n

Flagging in the heat, we took the tourist hop on\/hop off bus option for the shade alone (but which gave us views of where we had just walked on the (now) opposite side of the river), before hopping off at the wonderfully cool and enticing Central Market (built in 1896, restored in 1994)…\u00a0Budapest (along with the rest of Hungary) is famous for its paprika, and you happen to be looking for some, you can’t go far wrong here…<\/p>\n

\"Budapest<\/a>
Budapest Central Market<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Plenty<\/a>
Plenty of Paprika<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hopping back on the bus after lunch, we headed to The Whale<\/a> for a spot of further shopping with the added luxury of air-conditioning! \u00a0 Happy with purchases from M&S, Next and Gap (quite the novelty for us temporary Muncheners) we took a taxi back to our hotel. \u00a0 \u00a0And here comes a word of warning… \u00a0 \u00a0All taxis are licensed, so it’s unlikely that you will have a bad experience, BUT – do call one in advance if possible, taking one from a stand means that you are taking a bit of a risk and may well end up paying above and beyond the standard fare (like we did!!)… If you think you have been diddled, make sure you ask for a copy of the receipt at the of the journey, and get in touch with the City Transport <\/a>Office, who should be able to help deal with any complaints…<\/p>\n

Next up, a final photo tour of the city, and a very fine Hungarian restaurant…<\/p>\n

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