Budapest

4 days in Budapest-07/21-7/24/2018

Day 3- Buda Castle - 7-23-2018

Budapest is made of two cities: Buda, a city on a hill where you can find the Castle and Pest, the flat land across the Danube where all the modern fun takes place.

From the Great Hall market (Pest side) we are headed toward the Buda side to see the Castle.

It was a raining day but we were lucky enough that the rain stopped while we were walking.

This the view from the Pest side over looking the Buda side where you can see the hill on the right.

In order to get to the Buda side you have to cross the Chain bridge which the white bridge you see in the distance.

Large boat docking on the Danube river, These type of boats are used for commercial sightseeing tour and river cruise.

Beautiful view of the Danube river separating the Pest side on the left and Buda side on the right.

You can see how hilly the Buda side is compare to the Pest side (flat).

View of the Chain Bridge in the background.

We are now on the Chain bridge.

The Chain Bridge is a suspension bridge that was the first permanent stone-bridge connecting Pest and Buda on the whole length of the river Danube. At the time, its center span of 663 ft. was one of the largest in the world. The bridge's cast-iron structure was updated and strengthened in 1914. During World War II, the bridge was blown up on 18 January 1945 by the retreating Germans during the Siege of Budapest, with only the towers remaining.

The bridge was rebuilt and reopened in 1949 and became the first permanent bridge in the Hungarian capital.

Buda castle view in the background from the Chain bridge.

Buda castle in the background is often referred to as either the Royal Palace or the Royal Castle.

The imposing Buda Castle overlooks the city from its elevated position atop Várhegy (Castle Hill), rising forty-eight meters above the Danube. The castle has had a tumultuous history that reflects the ups and downs of Hungary's fortunes.

There is a funicular that you can take to go up to the castle but it is quite expensive. We were the cleaver tourists so we took the bus up there- cost a little over 1 euro per person.

View of the Danube river from the chain bridge

St. George square under renovation

Huge poster depicting the story of the Hungarian Hussar.

Walking toward the castle

International flags lining the road to the castle

We are now on the Buda side.

View from the top of the hill overlooking the Pest side

More view of the Pest side from the Buda side. In the center you can see the dome of St. Stephen's basilica which we visited yesterday.

This the outer courtyard before entering the castle.

Tural bird Bronze statue on top of the gate on the left. The Turul is a mythological bird of prey mostly depicted as a hawk or falcon in Hungarian tradition.

The turul is a mythical bird resembling an eagle or a falcon. According to legend a woman by the name of Emese was visited by an eagle/falcon in her dream. She became pregnant and gave birth to Álmos, who eventually led the seven Hungarian tribes to their new homeland in the Carpathian basin. The legend also says that in 896 AD, the bird dropped its sword in what is now modern day Budapest, indicating to the Magyars that the area was to be their homeland. The legend was most likely born when the Hungarians lived side by side with Turkic tribes because the word “turul” is of Turkic origin.

To this day, the Turul is used as in the design of coats of arms of the Hungarian Army, the Counter Terrorism Centre and the Office of National Security.

Entrance of the castle

Buda castle is a historical castle and palace complex of the Hungarian kings in Budapest. It was first completed in 1265, but the massive Baroque palace today occupying most of the site was built between 1749 and 1769. The castle now houses the Hungarian National Gallery and The Budapest History Museum.