From the restaurant, we continued with our first day city tour en route to our hotel.
The Danube River divides the city into two, the left side is Buda, the right side is Pest, where our hotel is.
We were brought to a hilly top with a panoramic view of Budapest.
This would be our 6th year to join the Federal Phoenix Insurance annual tour. The first five were arranged by them thru Bridges Travel. With all their imperfections, I appreciated the previous years’ travel preparation. We were each provided a printed leaflet with details of the tour, guide with regards to weather, clothes to wear, common phrases and some minor things to remember. The tour leaflet also listed the places we’re going to visit and mentions a little bit of information about the place. It was important to me because I would remember the places we visited. Even without the details, at least maalala ko saan kami galing.
On this Budapest tour, we didn’t have leaflets, parang we’re following blindly. I also could not remember the places, ang hirap naman na habang nagsasalita yung tour guide eh nag te-take down ako ng notes. Who does that? Hindi naman ako stenographer.
Gaya nito, sino ba itong estatwa na ito? Basta meron syang malaking dahon o feather ng manok, bibe, or ewan.
Lover’s lock. Dapat pala meron din kami nito ni husband, dapat sa paa ilagay para hindi makawala.
There were tiny flowers on the ground. I picked one. It’s so pretty.
These two tourist guys were topless. Ang init naman kasi talaga. Bakit pag lalaki nakahubad okay lang, bakit pag babae eh mahalay.
The fortress on the left is the Citadella.
The hill has a stunning view of the city.
Additional info from Budapestinfo.org
“The Gellért hill received its name after St. Gellért who came to Hungary as a missionary bishop upon the invitation of King St. Stephen I. around 1000 a.d.
His task was helping the Hungarians convert to Christianity. Some pagan leaders who did not want to convert captured St. Gellért and rolled him down from the hill in a barrel. The St. Gellért monument and its fountain representing his martyrdom can be found on the Northeastern slope of the hill facing the Elisabeth bridge
The fortress of the Citadel was built by the Habsburgs in 1851 to demonstrate their control over the Hungarians.
After the reconciliation with the Habsburgs the Hungarians wanted to demolish the buildings, but it did not happen. In the mid 20th century it was converted to a tourist center.
The statue was erected in 1947 after the second world war. The main figure is a woman, holding an olive branch, the symbol of peace in her hands. On both sides symbolic figures can be seen: the young man’s victory over the dragon represents the defeat of fascism.
