A day trip to the village of Szentendre on a rickety local train. Returning I took the city boat that weaves back and forth along the Danube for that magical moment when the bridge lights are lit. Within thirty-minutes Budapest is aglow in white lights.
The Hungarian State Opera House has the third best acoustic in Europe only to be surpassed by Milan’s La Scala and Paris’ Garnier. Tonight’s performance was the season’s opening of the opera Werther.
How does one spend a drizzling day in Budapest? At the thermal Szechenyl Baths. Your choice…indoors or outdoors pools.
Buda by night. Birthday with Gypsy music and a musician from Oslo.
Bits of Budapest…
I sat at a table in the Buda’s famous coffee house, Ruszwurm Curaszda, with an older Hungarian couple who have been having cakes here since childhood. The Linzer dessert was created here.
Buda’s Matthias Church with colorful Zsolnary-tiled roof.
Basilica of St Stephen is the largest cathedral in Hungary. Construction began in 1868; however, the construction was delayed when a storm caused the dome to collapse. The building had to be demolished and rebuilt from ground up.
Explored the Erzsébetváros and Jewish Quarter of Vienna where I am staying. The day seems robbed with sunset at 4:45pm. The early darkness had its reward as I strolled Margaret Island on the Danube River under a full moon and was surprised by the twilight fountain light show choreographed to music.
Vienna to Budapest four hours by train. During dinner I began a conversation with another solo dinner who played gypsy music on the piano for me. It drew the kitchen staff from the kitchen to the dining room for the impromptu concert.
Linda Scandore 