Beautiful Budapest

Author: Ruzow

Budapest is a lovely city bustling with activity on the banks of the Danube River. I loved all the old buildings that the city is mostly comprised of. Every building has its own unique architectural style, ranging from Gothic to Art Nuevo. Another great thing about the city, is that there are no highrises or skyscrapers. This is because there are laws in place that forbid any structure to be taller than the parliament building or the St. Stephen’s Basilica, which are both the same height. This preserves the original look and feel of the city.

The city is full of cafes, restaurants and ruin pubs (a ruin pub is a colourful and lively Hungarian pub that is located in the bottom floor or basement of an old abandoned apartment building). We also visited the beautiful parliament building, walked over the Chain Bridge, went to the City Park and saw all the other sights of the city. But my favourite, was definitely seeing all the different buildings and going for a run every morning on the lovely running track on Margarit Island.

Getting around Budapest is quite a painless exercise thanks to the amazing public transportation system featuring metros, trams and busses on every street corner.

We stayed in a few different parts of the city, which meant we got a great perspective of life there. It was interesting to sit at the apartment window and watch all the people outside going about their business. It gave me insight into the Budapest way of life.

Our second last night in Budapest, was definitely my highlight. The day before, we realised that we were coincidentally there for the National Day of Hungary. This day has been celebrated for over a millennium. It was a day full of music, huge crowds, celebrations and brilliant fireworks on the river in front of the parliament building and the Chain Bridge. I felt privileged to be part of an event so important to the Hungarians.