Slovakia and Hungary

Day 4 - We left Prague through Moravia, where Napoleon established his headquarters during the Battle of Austerlitz and arrive in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Bratislava borders Austria and Hungary, and is the political, cultural and economic center, and also the largest city in Slovakia. We had a short city walk and after having our lunch, we're on our way to Budapest. 

After dinner that night, we joined the Illumination Drive around the city's landmarks beautifully illuminated in the night sky. Budapest used to be two separate cities with Buda on the west and Pest on the east bank of the river Danube. We drove around the places listed as UNESCO World Heritage site. The view of Danube embankments including the Chain Bridge, Gellert Hill, Citadel, and Buda Castle are all part of the World Heritage today. First stop for the night is Vajdahunyad Castle which was built in 1896 as part if the Millenial Exhibition to celebrate the 1,000 years of Hungary. It houses combination of architectural styles from gothic, baroque, renaissance, and romanesque. An exact replica of the Portal of the Church of Jak shows the characteristic church gates of the 11th and 12th century in Romanesque style. The gothic part of the castle is modeled after the Hunyad Castle in Transylvania, which was thought by many as the home of Count Dracula. The Baroque building is the main home of the Museum of Agriculture. It is the replica of Austrian palaces in the Austro-Hungarian empire. Vajdahunyad Castle is on a small island called Szechenyi Island, approached via a mock drawbridge over a shallow moat. The gate is called the Bridge Gate (Hidaskapu) flanked by stone lions holding the coat of arms of Budapest. And finally, we got to see the best view of Budapest at Gellert Hill. It's simply amazing! Specially at night with all the lights around the city and the best structures all lighted beautifully. As we walk back to our bus, we got to see the Buda Castle from a distance accross the river also illuminated at night.

Day 5 - We drove around in the morning passing by the Thermal Baths, the world's second largest Jewish synagogue, and Andrassy Avenue where Neo-renaissance mansions lined the streets then stopped at Heroes' Square. The central feature of Heroes' Square is the Millennium Memorial/Monument. The front is a large stone cenotaph and at the back are two colonnades, each with seven statues reperesenting great figures of Hungarian history. We went to Trinity Square next, which was named after the Trinity column built in 1710-1713 to celebrate the end of the plague. To the south is the Old Town Hall of Buda. And the most dominant structure is the Matthias Church which is over 700 years old. Inside the church are the sarcophaguses of King Bela III and his Queen, Agnes of Chatillon. Right behind the church is the Fisherman's Bastion where you can have a panoramic view of the city throught it's viewing terraces and walking paths. The Bastion took it's name from the guild of fishermen who defended the walls in the Middle Ages.

That afternoon, we cruised along the Danube River with snacks and drinks on board. You can clearly see the spectacular view of Margaret Island, House of Parliament, Castle Hill with Fisherman's Bastion, the Royal Palace, the Citadel fortress and the Chain Bridge, the first permanent bridge in Budapest. Back to the hotel, we ordered Japanese for dinner to finish off our remaining Hungarian Forint.