Around Budapest

AROUND BUDAPEST

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Nov 8, 2003 - Today we decided to wander down by Vaci Utca on the Pest side. First we crossed the Szabadság Híd (Liberty Bridge). The Liberty Bridge was the third bridge built spanning the Danube (Duna) in Budapest (The Chain Bridge was first and Margit Bridge was the second). It opened in 1896 and was originally named after the Emperor, Francis Joseph. Unfortunately it was blown up during WWII and rebuilt (all the bridges suffered the same fate).

Mackenzie is on the Buda side, we walked across the bridge. Then we stopped part way across to get the Buda side behind her (the Liberty Statue is up on the hill).

Our first stop to shop was Vásárcsarnok (Central Market). It was designed by Gustav Eiffel (yes, the same Eiffel) and there are all kinds of booths in there with anything you could want! It was fun just to walk around and look at everything and it's a beautiful building inside and out.

Since we walked down to the Lánchíd Híd (Chain Bridge and owes it's construction to Count István Széchenyi who had to wait one week before he could cross the Duna to bury his father) we decided to check on the oldest tree in the capital (we saw it in 1999). It was planted in the 1840's, is an Acadia and really looks it's age.

Then we walked across the Chain Bridge.


We headed for the terrace over the tunnel to take some pictures of the bridge and then we walked the rest of the way to the top and took the funicular back down.

We set our alarm for a little after midnight so we could get up and watch the lunar eclipse. We made it to totality and then went back to bed! This isn't a pic from our dinky digital, I took it off MSNBC.

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