Wandering Around Budapest

October 17^th, 2026

I lucked out with another gorgeous, sunny mid-October day so I decided to take advantage of it.  To start the day, I decided to walk to the Heroe’s Square, one of the major squares in Budapest.  It is located on the border of a large city park, and its main feature is the Millenium Monument, with statues featuring the Seven chieftains of the Magyars and other important Hungarian monarchs and national leaders.  The horse mounted chieftains were some menacing looking dudes, that’s for sure.

Walking through the streets of Budapest.

It’s a semi-circular feature with a column in the middle that normally has a 4.8 meter tall statue of the Archangel Gabriel, holding the Holy Crown of Hungary and the Apostolic Double Cross.  However, Gabe is currently missing.  It was recently deemed that he was a little precarious up there so there are working on fixing that problem, so for now, it’s just a column.

What it's supposed to look like with the Archangel.

The Seven Chieftains.

The other important guys...

I continued walking into the park which was quite busy as it was a Sunday.  I passed by a large, flat concrete area with a few buildings on the periphery, and I wondered what it was for.  I looked online, and in the winter it’s a big skating rink…cool.

The skating rink area.

Not sure what this Disney castle-like area was about, but I went for a short jaunt through it.

I just kept seeing the red and white balloon...like it was calling my name.

It was a pretty park.

Just like yesterday, I spotted another newlywed couple doing their photoshoot.

At first, I thought I’d just get a closer look at it for some photos and check out how it worked.  But then I thought, “Why not take a ride?”.  I walked up to the ticket booth, and the wait was about 40-50 minutes, but there was a spot by the entrance with a café and some tables outside.  I could enjoy a beer and do some blogging while I waited.  Perfect.

Called “Balloon Fly”, the massive sphere is filled with non-flammable, non-toxic helium gas that provides continuous, eco-friendly lifting power.  Rather than floating freely, it is securely anchored to the ground by a heavy-duty steel wire. It functions like an open-air lift, ascending straight up to a maximum altitude of 150 meters and returning along the same vertical line.  The basket below the balloon, well, it really isn’t a basket per se, but a circular, metal ring that could hold about 20 people.

Watching the balloon take off.

The balloon at its max altitude of 150 meters.

About to hop on.

Once we climbed onboard, the pilot made sure that we spaced out evenly so that the metallic donut would sit level below the balloon.  After a few minutes at altitude, the pilot told us to slowly walk around in the same direction, maintaining our distance to one another, so that everyone could soak in the views in all directions.

Houston, we have lift-off.

A happy passenger.

Check out the views!

Looking down at our takeoff spot.

Heroe's Square.

Scanning the horizon.

Budapest has many thermal pools, and this is one of the most famous ones called Széchenyi Baths.  Naomi suggested that I should visit it, but I knew I'd be bored after 10 minutes and it cost $45 CAD to enter so I decided to skip it.  She said it had a real 50s feel to it, which you can see by the building (maybe even an earlier era).  The pools range from 27°C–38°C.

Looking to the west.

That's the Biodome of the Budapest Zoo.

Yup, it was a good choice Dave!

It was definitely something different, and I knew that I didn’t need to go up the dome of the basilica as Balloon Fly took me more than twice as high.  Afterwards, I wandered through the park a bit but then found the metro station.  It was a tiny station with a tiny subway, but researching it later, this is the first subway line in Budapest.  It was actually constructed for the Millenium Celebration in 1896…no wonder it’s small.  The other three metro lines are more modern and the stations and trains are bigger.

Exiting at the St. Stephen’s Basilica stop, it was a two-minute walk to the cathedral, which was impressive, but I wasn’t bothered to pay to go inside. 

The square in front of the basilica.

Instead, a specific restaurant caught my eye, and it was already 2 pm and I hadn’t had lunch yet.  The place was called “Lángos”, which is actually a Hungarian specialty that Naomi told me I should try.  A lángos was historically made of the last bits of the bread dough and baked at the front of a brick or clay oven, to be served hot as the breakfast of the bread-baking day.  Now they are a common staple served up with a variety of toppings like sour cream and cheese, or in my case, I ordered one with Bolognese sauce and cheese.

My lángos...it was bigger than I expected.

This woman with her dog caught my eye as I was eating...

...I mean look at this poor canine.  Having to put up with a photo in front of the basilica while where his Gucci jacket and matching booties!

For the rest of the afternoon, I walked down to the Hungarian Parliament to get a closer look at its ornate exterior.

The Budapest Ferrari dealership I just happened to pass by.

That's a nice ride!

This was the Memorial for Victims of the German Occupation.

And across the park from the previous memorial is the Soviet War Memorial.

Looks like a good time to be had at the end of January!

Before I even got close to this statue, I guessed it was Ronald Reagan.  Even though he never visited Budapest, but the Hungarian people credit his administration's hardline stance against the Soviet Union, economic pressure, and Cold War diplomacy with helping end Soviet communist rule and the Iron Curtain in Central and Eastern Europe.

There's the goal, the Hungarian Parliament.

Not sure what the monument is, I just liked the look of the buildings behind it.

The backside of the parliament.

This is known as Kossuth Square, named after Lajos Kossuth who was a Hungarian nobleman, lawyer, journalist, politician, statesman, revolutionist and governor-president of the Hungarian State during the war of independence of 1848–1849.

Looking in the other direction from the parliament building.

It is an impressive building.

A 360 view of Kossuth Square.

The guy in the middle is Mr. Kossuth himself.

Some statue by the side of the parliament.

The front of the Hungarian Parliament.

There's no way to capture it all in one photo as the Danube is right beside it.

And another statue on the other end of the parliament.

Cute little car...looks like it would be fun to drive, but I'm guessing that it doesn't go very fast.

By the time I’d circumnavigated the biggest building in Hungary, it was time to head back to my place as it had been a long day.  Tomorrow morning, I hop on a train to Győr, a small city only an hour and a half northwest of Budapest.

Buda Castle, Houdini's House & Cruising the Danube

October 16^th, 2026 

I awoke to a beautiful blue sky, so it was definitely the day to walk down to the Danube and see some of the main sights of Hungary’s capital city.  However, before heading out, I spent a few hours planning my next few weeks, deciding where to go and booking accommodation and train tickets.  Then I realized that I was cutting it close with one of my plans for the day, which was to see the changing of the guards at the Royal Palace at noon.  The guards change every hour, but I’d read that there was more pomp and circumstance at midday.

 

I briskly walked down to the Danube, getting my first glimpses of Europe’s second longest river, as well as the infamous Széchenyi Chain Bridge, which is the first permanent bridge across the river in Budapest and was completed in 1849.

Buda Castle

After crossing the bridge, I climbed up about 150 steps to reach the Buda Castle, which was formerly called the Royal Palace and was first completed in 1265, but the Baroque castle that occupies the site today was constructed between 1749-1769.  It was severely damaged in WWII but was rebuilt again and it now houses the Hungarian National Gallery, the Budapest Historical Museum and the National Széchenyi Library.

I liked the look of tunnel, aptly named the "Buda Castle Tunnel".

My first views of the Danube from up on the hill where the Buda Castle is situated.

What is that interesting round balloon in the distance?  Well, I would find out tomorrow.

I arrived with about 15 minutes to spare before the changing of the guards.  I got a little duped as there were two sets of sentries, one on the side of the Sándor Palace that faced the Buda Castle, and another pair around the corner on the long side of the building.  It was hard to tell which was the main entrance, so I gambled on the second set.  They did do a little marching back and forth around 11:50, but it turns out the main show was on the short side and by the time I clued in, there was a fair-sized crowd in a semi-circle waiting for the main show.

The sentries on the long side of the building.

Their "little show" at 11:50.

Right on time at noon, a commanding office followed by a drummer and eight soldiers walking in pairs marched out and performed a short military parade before switching out the sentries and heading back to wherever they came from.

The "real" entrance.

Here they come...

A closer view of the action.

The commanding officer had a wicked, red mustache.

I loved the sunglasses that they all wore.

After the military ceremony, I wandered around the castle’s exterior, enjoying the views of the Danube and the city.

Looking down the funicular rail line towards the Chain Bridge.  I climbed the stairs instead of cheating.

Checking out the amazing view of the city.

The Hungarian Parliament.

The main dome of the Buda Castle.

I loved that at the base of the castle was a full on bar.  Hungarians do have a liberal view on the consumption of alcohol and it's fine to walk down a public street with a drink in you hand.

The "backside" of the castle.

I couldn't get enough of the view, especially on such a beautiful autumn day.

Looking the other way down the Danube.

There was a bride and groom having a photo session on the castle's grounds.  Those two dogs must be theirs as the bride came over to calm them down as they were barking.  Perhaps they thought that they should have been in the photos too!

Now it was time for lunch!  I found a restaurant with an outdoor patio and ordered a burger and beer.  There were four ladies in the 60s sitting at the table next to me and I overheard them guessing whether the bridge below the castle was the Chain Bridge.  I couldn’t help but confirm their suspicion and from their accents, it was obvious that they were from Scotland, specifically Edinburgh.  They were delighted to hear that I had visited their fine city earlier this year.  We chatted on and off as I consumed my lunch.  Very friendly ladies who were on a 3-day long weekend visit.

Cheers!  

I think this is the first time I've seen this...a Roomba for the lawn

My next place of interest was just across the street, which was the “House of Houdini”.  Born Erik Weisz (the same last name as Naomi, who knew he was Jewish but not that she shared his last name), he was born in Budapest but he spent most of his life in the US.  He became fascinated with magic thanks to the influences of French magician Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin.  He changed his first name to Harry in homage to American magician Harry Kellar and took part of Robert-Houdin’s surname and added an “i” to it.

His magic career started with card tricks, but he wasn’t the most skilled sleight-of-hand artist.  He began experimenting with escape acts, and that is what made him famous, becoming a household name.

 

The tour began with a young woman, Emily, guiding us through a small museum of many artifacts, props, posters and other memorabilia about or from Houdini.  It was just me and a couple in their 40s from South Carolina.  I found out that they had come to the House of Houdini since they had seen it on the “Amazing Race”, which supposedly influenced a number of the trips abroad.  I couldn’t help but mention that I’d been on the “Amazing Race Canada” which they thought was pretty cool, even though they didn’t know it existed.

One of the straitjackets that Houdini escaped from.

Some of the handcuffs that he used.

Next, we had a short, yet quite impressive magic show by a magician named Alex.  He performed some mesmerizing card tricks and sleight of hand with a piece of red rope which he turned into two pieces, then put them back together, made knots slide around or disappear, etc.  He was impressive.  I tried to figure out how he was doing his tricks, but to no avail.

The Magician Alex.

In case you're wondering, that's a fanned out deck of cards that he's holding.

After the House of Houdini, I walked to the “Fisherman’s Bastion”, one of Budapest’s best-known historical monuments.  It is a fortification that was once part of the Buda City Wall that now offers a unique panorama of the city.  The reason for the name is that the guild of fisherman who lived nearby were entrusted to defend that section of the city walls in time of war.  The view of the Hungarian Parliament, the Chain Bridge, the Danube and the rest of the city was gorgeous.

Some fancy fountain and building nearby.

Matthias Church, also known as "The Church of the Assumption of the Buda Castle".

I guess he was somebody important at some point.

Once again, the amazing Hungarian Parliament.

The Fisherman's Bastion.

Almost like something from a Disney movie.

Back to that awesome tunnel.

And the Chain Bridge again.

For the evening, I had booked a 75-minute boat tour with a company called Floating Lotus Cruises starting at 6 pm.  I walked down, crossed the Chain Bridge and located the boat along the river.  I still had almost an hour to kill so I found a place to sit and have a drink while looking over the Danube.

Before going for the drink, I made sure I knew where my boat was.

Cheers!

It was dusk as I boarded the boat and received my complimentary glass of white wine (of which I’m not a big fan).  It was actually a “booze cruise” with unlimited Aperol, beer and one or two other types of drinks.

All aboard!

Looking towards Buda Castle with my Aperol...one of Naomi's favorite drinks and maybe the first time I've had my own.

Once again, the lovely Chain Bridge.

Buda Castle.

Looking towards Matthias Church and the Fisherman's Bastion.

The boat cruised towards the Hungarian Parliament and by the time we reach the massive, ornate building the sky had darkened, and it was beautifully lit up by hundreds of lights.

Hey look...a different bridge!  This is Margaret Bridge, and in the darkness behind it is Margaret Island.

This is the "VIP" section at the front of the boat.  It costs about 20 extra Euros and maybe you received better drinks, had cooler lighting and fewer people...but it seemed like the regular folk where I was were having a better time.

I just can't get enough of this building!

This couple danced during the entire cruise.  At the end I spoke with them and they were from the Detroit area, she was a nurse and he was a soccer coach...so we know who was the bread winner!  They were good dancers.

Buda Castle...again.

And you guessed it...the Chain Bridge.

I'm not sure what building this was.

Budapest's version of the London Eye.

Some interesting karaoke I passed by on my way back to my place.

It was a great little cruise and a fantastic to see Budapest lit up at night from the Danube.  What a day!