Budapest, Hungary (1) – A Walk to Buda Castle ( Day 5)
In a 2.5 hour train ride from Vienna, we take a day trip to Budapest. The city is divided by the Danube River with the district of Buda on the left bank and Pest on the right bank. We venture from the Budapest-Keleti Main Station (on the Pest side) and head west on the commercial street of Rakoczi towards the river. Once we reach the Danube, we turn right and head north to the 18th century stone bridge Szechenyi Lanchid. After crossing the bridge, we climb up to Buda Castle.
In 1989, Hungary became an independent democracy. With only 30 years of this independency, you can see the slow transformation from once forgotten to its’ former beauty.
Along Rakoczi
Reaching the Danube
Once we reached the Danube, we can see the 16th-century Turkish bathhouse “Ruda Baths”. The Liberty Statue at the top of the hill is a memorial to the war dead.
Buda Castle
Vigado Concert Hall
Matthias Church looms in the the neighbourhood of Vizivaros, where we will venture through on our way back to the Main Station
Reaching Szechenyi Lanchid, the 18th Century Stone Bridge, we find a nice eatery
Crossing the Szechenyi Lanchid, we look back at the path we just walked. A number of hotels, such as the Sofitel, Intercontinental and Marriot, reside along this route.
From Buda Castle, we look back at Szechenyi Lanchid and the Pest landscape
From the back side of the Castle grounds, we view the Buda residential area
Another view of the west side of Budapest
Fai Quan 