Enchanted by Budapest

View from Our Hotel

After leaving Bratislava, we drove for a few more hours and eventually arrived in Budapest, Hungary.  Driving into the city, we were already surrounded by incredible architecture.  As it was already getting dark, we went straight to our hotel which turned out to be Marilyn Monroe themed... a little reminder of home.  Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a kitchen for five girls... this was the greatest luxury we had seen in quite
some time after experiences of hostels over the past several months.  We settled in with a classic college

Inside St. Stephen's

student meal of bread and cheese and got ready for a night on the town...it was St. Patrick's Day after-all!  Budapest's nightlife was very exciting and we all loved the idea of paying only 2 euros to get into a club.  But we didn't stay out too late because the next day would be full of adventure.
The next morning I walked outside onto the balcony of the hotel and found an incredible view of the city... only a glimpse at what was to come that day.  Our first stop was at St. Stephen's Basilica, whose size was overwhelming enough just from the outside.  But upon entering the structure, I found that it was not the exterior that was most impressive.  It seemed that

Matthias Church

every inch of this basilica's interior was lined with gold.  This church had to rival Notre Dame for its internal beauty.  I had to remember that this was
only my first stop in Budapest and that there would be so much more beauty to see.
We slowly made our way up to the top of the city where the Matthias Church was.  Yet again I was impressed by something I had never seen before, a brightly colored roof on the church.  Colored tiles of orange, turquoise, brown, green, and red formed an elaborate pattern on the rooftop, unlike that of any church I have ever seen.  Not far from the church was an overlook of the Danube river, beyond which I could see all kinds of elaborate buildings.  As I admired the intricacy and unique shape of each building I learned that these were used for Parliament or perhaps different office buildings...nothing as elaborate as the exterior

View of the Danube River

might have suggested.  It was incredible to see such creativity put into every day buildings...something I was not used to seeing at home.

Parliament Building across the Danube

From the Danube we made our way through the city, passing the Buda Castle, Heroes Square, and a beautiful little park where the sun was shining and people were playing music.  What an incredible way to spend the day and what a beautiful community.  At the edge of the park was a building the Hungarians frequented on such beautiful days... the Turkish baths.  This was a cultural experience I was not about to pass up.  The water was incredible and after days of moving around and being on a bus, a soak in the hot water was just what I needed.  The bath was huge and
filled with all of the locals, taking their weekend to relax.  While enjoying the tranquility of the Turkish bath I could also watch the people around me and sense their culture.  These are the times that you have to take a step back and realize where you are... in the Turkish baths of Budapest, surrounded by my friends and by the locals, life couldn't get any better.
Our walk back to the hotel brought even more life to the city.  All of the incredible buildings and statues I had seen during the day were lit up at night, giving them an enchanting glow.  Wandering in the direction of home, we stumbled upon a beautiful Medieval-looking castle and walked right into the piazza created in the middle

Turkish Baths

of it.  At the end of the day, Budapest is my favorite city that I have visited so far and I hope to return someday.  As for now, I recommend to anyone who is looking for somewhere new and interesting to go (and to save some money while you're at it)... GO TO BUDAPEST.  You won't regret it.