Hungarian equation : Buda + pest = Budapest

It is definitely not an equation I made up. Budapest is the largest cities in East-Central Europe and one of the largest cities in the European Union.
The city is made of two cities - Buda and Pest and they were united in the year 1873 which then forms Hungary's capital today.

Between the two cities, Buda and Pest, lies Danube river. The longest river in the European Union.

Buda is located on a hilly landscape while Pest lies on a flatter terrain.

We were blessed with a a very good sunny weather for three days. In fact, it was too warm.

Honestly, I wasn't too impressed with Budapest after I came back from the trip and I almost forgotten that I had been there. Compared to its peer, Prague, I prefer the latter.

Nevertheless, after looking at the pictures from the 2011 trip recently, I might change my mind a little but it doesn't change the fact that I prefer Prague to Budapest.
Perhaps, it is the distance that makes the heart fonder - now that I am back in Asia.

Perhaps, it is the memory from the trip that makes the difference. We went there in a group of five and all of us now are in different parts of the world.

I recalled the first funny thing of the trip was our hotel room!
We got two rooms adjacent to each other, with both units sharing a living room. We got the bigger one since there were three of us and we let the couple to take the smaller one.
When we entered, we saw a "bed" in a very large room. There was another smaller bedroom in our unit. Immediately, we turned to the male friend (my hubby, now) and said "You are privileged to get the big room all for yourself!". It turned out the big room was the living room! Hahahaha.

That wasn't too bad, was it? And he had a private TV too!

The following morning started with the hunt for food. We went to the Central Market. It was known to sell a variety of goodies. If you would like to get some local delicacies as souvenirs, Central Market would be a good choice. It also sells all kinds of local products - cheese, meat, clothing, key chains, etc.

Central Market or Great Hall Market which is located at Fővám Tér in the 9th district. The oldest indoor market in the country. It looked like a train station to me, at first glance.

There were simply too much choices which made it difficult to just settle on one. In such cases, it is a blessing if you travel in a larger group. You can then order all the food that makes your mouth watered and share them.
Hungarian Goulash (soup or stew of meat and vegetables) is highly recommended. I didn't have it because it was made of beef.

Try to be there early. Otherwise, you will face challenge in getting a table. 
As I was searching for a table for five, I couldn't help but noticed this beautiful thing on the table.

It was a hand-made table candle! Economic and creative.

After spending some time in the Central Market, we took a canal tour along the Danube river before exploring the tourist attractions in the city. During the canal tour, the guide would point out to you what were all the buildings lying along the river. 

We had a good walk in Buda on one day and Pest in another.

The Parliament. The first, taken from the canal tour and the second, after alighted from the boat.

Next building that caught our attention while we were in the boat was the Fishermen's Bastion.

The architecture was beautiful and it is located on a hilly terrain. Next to the Bastion, is the Mathias Church. It was under maintenance when we were there but it was still opened for mass and visitors.

Fishermen's Bastion

Mathias Church

View of the Chain Bridge, Parliament, St Basilica's Church and Buda city from above the hill. The view was spectacular up there. We took a break from walking, simply staring into the clear blue sky and enjoying the breeze kissing our cheeks.

Apart from the Fishermen's Bastion and the Mathias Church, the Buda Castle was also located nearby. All within walking distance.

There was some event going on outside the Buda Castle. It was crowded and stalls selling food and beers were sighted. A pint of cold beer was ideal for such a hot weather. Especially, we had done quite some walking.

The bottom right in the picture is the Buda Castle Funicular.

We also took picture of the Chain Bridge during different time of the day - mid day, late afternoon and night. It was beautiful. Pictures taken at different angles yield varying results, especially the accompanying building varies depending where you take them from.

Next attraction in the list was the St. Basilica's church and the Heroes Square, which were located in the Pest city.

Heroes Square

St. Basilica's Church

Comparing Buda and Pest, I prefer Buda as the landscape and scenery was more beautiful.

Out of curiosity, I requested to go to the Széchenyi Thermal Bath, which was one of the highlights in the city. It was a traditional bath which was introduced during the Turkish occupation 600 years ago.

The colour of the building was absolutely striking, and it complemented the cheerful sunny weather on that day.

Széchenyi Thermal Bath

The crowd was definitely enjoying themselves in the bath. What is better than soaking in a cool weather in such a hot weather, isn't it?

Getting around Budapest was fairly convenient. There were buses, trains, and trams. Or you may do the most traditional way, walking.

This city was vibrant during summer and in terms of food, there were many varieties. Budapest would make a good place for culinary trips, though most people would choose Italy. Shopping could also be an option for the ladies, especially during summer, when sales were practically every where!

If my memory serves me correctly, most transactions in restaurant, hotels, and shops were done using the local currency - Forint. However, some places do accept Euros.

By the end of this post, all memories of the trip started to flow back into my mind. It probably wasn't the best trip I have had but it was good enough for a short getaway.

Like I said earlier, it is the company that makes a vacation worthwhile and memorable.

Don't you think so?