This year, for our annual surprise-destination-birthday-trip for Roger, I selected Budapest and Prague. We only had about a week, since we had gone to Peru / Machu Picchu in March. We went a little later in the year than usual -- November instead of October -- so it was cold, but we loved it!
We were there during thw 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, so history and the fall of communism was in the forefront of everyone's minds. It made the trip even more fascinating!
The bad news is that I accidentally erased my photos -- and I am the one who takes photos of us -- so we really have no proof that we were there! Oh well, hopefully you trust me -- we were there!
We started off spending 3 days exploring Buda and Pest. Here's the Budapest photos:
VIEW OF BUDAPEST AND THE DANUBE FROM THE CITADEL:
BUDAPEST, CASTLE HILL:
PARLIAMENT:
CHAIN BRIDGE, FROM CASTLE HILL:
VIEW OF PARLIAMENT FROM CASTLE HILL / FISHERMAN'S BASTION:
FISHERMANS BASTION:
FISHERMAN'S BASTION, NEARING SUNSET:
THE TOP OF FISHERMAN'S BASTION:
FISHERMAN'S BASTION AT NIGHT:
MATYAS CHURCH, CASTLE HILL:
MATYAS CHURCH:
MORE MATYAS CHURCH:
THE OPERA HOUSE, BUDAPEST:
PARLIAMENT, FROM CASTLE HILL:
PARLIAMENT, FROM THE STREET SIDE:
ONE LAST VIEW OF PARLIAMENT, FROM ACROSS THE DANUBE:
HEROES SQUARE:
HEROES SQUARE:
MORE HEROES SQUARE:
ONE MORE!
CHAIN BRIDGE:
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT:
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT, FROM THE FUNICULAR:
MORE CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT:
ST STEPHENS BASILICA:
CASTLE HILL AT NIGHT:
BUDAPEST AND THE DANUBE AT NIGHT (BRRRRRRR!!!):
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT, FROM CASTLE HILL:
THE "HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM" -- SO NAMED BECAUSE THE SOVIETS CALLED THEIR POLICE STATION THE HOUSE OF TERROR!
HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM:
INSIDE THE HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM -- A VERY COMPELLING MUSEUM. THE PHOTOS ON THE WALL ARE ALL ALLEGED SPIES OF PEOPLE WHO WERE KILLED BY THE SOVIETS , MOST WITHOUT ANY DUE PROCESS, TRIAL, ETC. THE PHOTOS COVER WELL OVER 3 STORIES, SOLID:
That's it for our 3 days in Budapest! From there, we travelled to Prague...
PRAGUE CASTLE:
WENCESLAS SQUARE, THE HEART OF ALL EVENTS IN PRAGUE:
POWDER TOWER -- THE ANCIENT ENTRANCE TO PRAGUE CITY:
THE VIEW OF PRAGUE FROM THE TOP OF POWDER TOWER, WITH TYN CHURCH AND OLD TOWN TOWER IN THE FOREGROUND, AND PRAGUE CASTLE IN THE BACKGROUND:
THE STREETS OF PRAGUE:
OLD TOWN TOWER, AS YOU APPROACH OLD TOWN SQUARE:
ONE MORE!
CHAIN BRIDGE:
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT:
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT, FROM THE FUNICULAR:
MORE CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT:
ST STEPHENS BASILICA:
CASTLE HILL AT NIGHT:
BUDAPEST AND THE DANUBE AT NIGHT (BRRRRRRR!!!):
CHAIN BRIDGE AT NIGHT, FROM CASTLE HILL:
THE "HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM" -- SO NAMED BECAUSE THE SOVIETS CALLED THEIR POLICE STATION THE HOUSE OF TERROR!
HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM:
INSIDE THE HOUSE OF TERROR MUSEUM -- A VERY COMPELLING MUSEUM. THE PHOTOS ON THE WALL ARE ALL ALLEGED SPIES OF PEOPLE WHO WERE KILLED BY THE SOVIETS , MOST WITHOUT ANY DUE PROCESS, TRIAL, ETC. THE PHOTOS COVER WELL OVER 3 STORIES, SOLID:
That's it for our 3 days in Budapest! From there, we travelled to Prague...
PRAGUE CASTLE:
WENCESLAS SQUARE, THE HEART OF ALL EVENTS IN PRAGUE:
POWDER TOWER -- THE ANCIENT ENTRANCE TO PRAGUE CITY:
THE VIEW OF PRAGUE FROM THE TOP OF POWDER TOWER, WITH TYN CHURCH AND OLD TOWN TOWER IN THE FOREGROUND, AND PRAGUE CASTLE IN THE BACKGROUND:
THE STREETS OF PRAGUE:
OLD TOWN TOWER, AS YOU APPROACH OLD TOWN SQUARE:
TYN CHURCH AND OLD TOWN SQUARE, WITH A "PRAHA" CAR IN THE FOREGROUND:
TYN CHURCH AND OLD TOWN SQUARE:
TYN CHURCH -- ISNT IT GORGEOUS???
TYN CHURCH -- ISNT IT GORGEOUS???
SERIOUSLY -- WHAT A BEAUTIFUL GOTHIC CHURCH:
OLD TOWN TOWER, ON THE OTHER SIDE OF OLD TOWN SQUARE FROM TYN CHURCH:
LOOKING FROM THE ASTRONOMICAL CLOCK ON OLD TOWN TOWER, TO TYN CHURCH:
THE ASTRONOMICAL CLOCK -- IT DOES NOT KEEP TIME, IT KEEPS TRACK OF THE SEASONS:
MORE OF THE STREETS OF PRAGUE:
LOOKING BACK AT OLD TOWN, FROM THE CHARLES BRIDGE:
THE CHARLES BRIDGE:
STATUTES ON THE CHARLES BRIDGE:
NOW THAT'S A VIEW!!!
ANOTHER AMAZING VIEW:
AFTER YOU WALK OVER THE CHARLES BRIDGE, YOU WALK THRU "LESSER TOWN", CLIMB THE STAIRS AND ARRIVE AT THE ENTERANCE TO PRAGUE CASTLE:
RIGHT INSIDE PRAGUE CASTLE IS THE ENORMOUS ST. VITUS CATHEDRAL:
IT KEEPS GOING AND GOING...
THE CATHEDRAL IS HUGE!
IT KEEPS GOING AND GOING...
...AND GOING...
...AND GOING!!!
THE STREETS AROUND PRAGUE CASTLE:
AND HERE'S WHAT THEY LOOKED LIKE WHEN WE WERE THERE -- IN THE OFF SEASON!
VIEW FROM PRAGUE CASTLE -- CAN YOU SEE TYN CHURCH AND POWDER TOWER?
THE STEPS LEADING TO/FROM THE CASTLE:
MORE OF THE STREETS OF PRAGUE:
THE STEPS LEADING TO/FROM THE CASTLE:
MORE OF THE STREETS OF PRAGUE:
A VIEW OF THE CHARLES BRIDGE (TAKEN FROM THE NEW BRIDGE):
VIEW OF PRAGUE CASTLE FROM THE NEW BRIDGE:
VIEW OF PRAGUE CASTLE -- AND THE WIRES FOR THE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM:
ONE INTERESTING AREA OF PRAGUE IS THE JEWISH QUARTER -- A TINY FORMERLY-WALLED-IN NEIGHBROHOOD WHERE ALL JEWS WERE FORCED TO LIVE. THE AREA IS VERY WELL PRESERVED AND HAS A NUMBER OF HISTORIC SYNAGOGUES. THIS IS THE OLD SYNAGOGUE:
A VIEW OF THE JEWISH CEMETERY -- THERE ARE 12,000 HEADSTONES CRAMMED IN A TINY AREA, WITH PEOPLE BURIED 10-12 DEEP (JEWS WERE ONLY ALLOWED TO BE BURIED WITHIN THE JEWISH QUARTER):
ANOTHER VIEW OF THE JEWISH CEMETERY:
ANOTHER VIEW OF THE JEWISH CEMETERY:
THE ENTRANCE TO THE MUSEUM OF COMMUNISM -- NOTICE THAT IT IS LOCATED BETWEEN A McDONALDS AND A CASINO!
A COMPELLING PHOTO IN THE MUSEUM OF COMMUNISM -- TROOPS MARCHING ACROSS THE CHARLES BRIDGE, WITH PRAGUE CASTLE IN THE BACKGROUND:
WHEN JOHN LENNON DIED, STUDENTS RISKED THEIR LIVES TO PAINT HIS LYRICS ON A WALL IN DOWNTOWN PRAGUE. THE RUSSIANS WOULD PAINT OVER THE WALL AND THE STUDENTS WOULD SNEAK IN LATE AT NIGHT AND PAINT IT AGAIN -- IT BECAME A SYMBOL OF HOPE. A PIECE OF THE "FREEDOM WALL" IS ON DISPLAY IN THE MUSEUM OF COMMUNISM:
WHEN JOHN LENNON DIED, STUDENTS RISKED THEIR LIVES TO PAINT HIS LYRICS ON A WALL IN DOWNTOWN PRAGUE. THE RUSSIANS WOULD PAINT OVER THE WALL AND THE STUDENTS WOULD SNEAK IN LATE AT NIGHT AND PAINT IT AGAIN -- IT BECAME A SYMBOL OF HOPE. A PIECE OF THE "FREEDOM WALL" IS ON DISPLAY IN THE MUSEUM OF COMMUNISM:
PRAGUE IS KNOWN FOR ITS MARIONETTES. THIS IS THE ENTRANCE TO A MARIONETTE THEATER IN DOWNTOWN PRAGUE:
EVEN THE MAN-HOLE COVERS ARE PRETTY!
PRAGUE OLD TOWN SQUARE, AT NIGHT:
TYN CHURCH, OLD TOWN SQUARE, AT NIGHT:
POWDER TOWER AT NIGHT:
PRAGUE CASTLE, AT DUSK:
AND AT NIGHT:
Well, that's it for our trip to Budapest and Prague. We hope you had as much fun viewing our photos as we had taking them -- can you tell how much fun Roger had???
POWDER TOWER AT NIGHT:
PRAGUE CASTLE, AT DUSK:
AND AT NIGHT:
Well, that's it for our trip to Budapest and Prague. We hope you had as much fun viewing our photos as we had taking them -- can you tell how much fun Roger had???
We'll update the blog again in the summer -- after our next trip, to...
