Monday, May 4:
A dinner cruise! What an intro to Budapest! Insight Vacations had booked us on a boat of our own for a dinner cruise on the Danube on the night we arrived! We arrived in Budapest at 16:15, having left Vienna’s Museum Quarter at 12:40. It’s a 250 km drive East.
We checked in at the Sofitel Chain Bridge, my favourite hotel of the whole bus tour. It’s less than a 2 minutes walk from the Pest side of the bridge. The Sofitel had a very exciting central atrium – a happening place – and our room had a magnificent view of the Chain Bridge illuminated at night. We would be here for only two nights: too little time!
Before boarding our dinner cruise boat at 19:30 we had time to walk away from the river on Vaci Street looking for bottled water. While out, we treated ourselves to coffee and pastry at Gerbeaud House, famous the world over for its charm, decor and the inventive confectionery genius of Emil Gerbaud, awarded the French Légion d’Honneur in 1900. For two pastries and two coffees it was 7820 Forints – about €26.
I was excited to be here. In Budapest we have a wonderful friend who is a Budapest native. I will call her Csilla to respect her privacy. We met Csilla in April, 2013 on our Camino Santiago trip, and connected immediately. We shared email addresses and became “pen pals.” Knowing Csilla has greatly enriched our visit to Budapest. She had promised to show us around in the afternoon on Tuesday, our only full day in Budapest. More about our friend later; now to our dinner cruise…
The Danube night cruise is, hands down, more beautiful than Prague’s night cruise. Budapest is an exquisite, perfectly scaled jewel. The waterfront is uncrowded; each of its illuminated architectural treasures can be appreciated with one’s absolute attention: Continue reading “Budapest – Magical Beauty and Artistry”
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