{ rachtravel }: 1 Oct - 2 Oct | Grand City of Lights

Budapest was once a great Romantic City of Eastern Europe, and the remnants of that period in history are obvious. Unlike Vienna where it still is the cultural heartbeat of Central Europe, Budapest appears to be lost in its hey day. That is until you see Budapest light up gloriously at night.

We stayed at the elegant Le Meridien Hotel where we were served by the most welcoming staff all trip. Luckily for us the hotel had a special Friday night Hungarian folk dance performance coupled by an excellent buffet dinner meal. I really wish I had more space to stomach ALL the fantastic desserts. (Yes, greedy!)

The elegant Le Meridien Hotel Room

Hungarian quartet that entertained us all evening

I loved the chandeliers and lights at the hotel restaurant!

Family at the hotel dinner

Hungarian dance performers ready to go!

Dancers twirling

The first of my many plates

Dessert plate with all the layered cakes. YUM!

As we were only in Budapest for 2 nights, we did what the usual tourists do, try to cover all the major sights as quickly as possible. On day 1 we saw St Stephen's Basilica just metres away from the hotel and walked further along the Danube river to see Budapest Parliament, perhaps Budapest's most iconic building. Since we only started our sightseeing after lunch, we couldn't fit many more sights in! The next day we wanted to maximise our time by purchasing tix for the hop-on/hop-off bus + night cruise. It is perhaps the most efficient way to see a city, albeit you end up with a bunch of blurry photos if you don't happen to 'hop-off'. We only 'hopped off' at the Castle District to have a wonder around the old-style Buda side of town. It is rich in history and old buildings, and gives you a commanding view of the Pest side of the Danube river. Unfortunately we were not blessed with gorgeous weather and everything just looked a bit grey and dull. Sun sun...I missed the sun and blue skies dearly in Budapest!

Parliament close up (expand photo to see the detail)

Budapest Four Seasons Hotel

We decided to have a peek inside. It is stunning!
The Four Seasons group bought the Art Noveaux Gresham Palace landmark
and transformed it into a world leading hotel.
Located right in front of the chain bridge on the Pest side, I'd love to stay here one day!

Great Synagogue, Budapest

Heroes Square

St Matthias Church in the old castle district

Inside the church. Quite a contrast to all the other church interiors we saw in Austria

Fisherman's Bastion.
We enjoyed our lunch here overlooking the Danube and view of Pest

Evidence that I really was at Budapest!

Budapest Parliament from Buda side

Hungarian Souvenirs

View of Pest from the Citadel

Liberation Monument

The sun may not have shone brightly during the day, but Budapest would have to be one of the most beautiful cities I have seen in the world by night. I was captivated by the lights along the Danube River. It was almost as if all the restoration required to bring this city back to its former glory were masked away by the beauty of the night. This city has some impressive grand architectural sights such as Buda Castle and Parliament House as the main landmarks to draw in the mass of tourists. I think I had some of the best photographic fun of the holiday in Budapest :) So less words and more photos.