Budapest, Hungary
June 30, 2016
Budapest, here we come!
The interior of Hotel Sofitel, Chain Bridge, Budapest, Hungary
Ms. Lee's hotel window view of the city, including the famous Chain Bridge
Ms. Lee posts with a bronze sculpture on the river bank of Danube
Our lunch was how much?!
This gypsy band plays a fantastic mini concert on the street
A waterfall under the Döbrentei tér in the city of Budapest
Where are we now?
The Metro stop near Hotel Sofitel
The Franz Liszt wine
Buda Castle at night
July 1, 2016
Window workers hanging from the roof outside of the building
The view of the Chain Bridge from the Buda Castle
WWI statue on the street to the Buda Castle
The Buda Castle has a Picasso Exhibit in the summer
Picasso Exhibit
The entry to Picasso's studio exhibit
"Lament" by Gyula Donath, 1903
The Buda Castle court yard
A different view of the Buda Castle Courtyard
The Buda Castle fountain
Looking up to the Buda Castle
The Fisherman's Bastion, another 13th century castle
The water truck spreads water on the streets to keep cool
Ms. Lee at the head of the Chain Bridge
July 2, 2016
Pacific Chorale performs in the St. Stephens Basilica in the Old Town Pest
Ms. Lee going to a rehearsal
The Interior of the St. Stephens Basilica
St. Stephens main organ
Scripture on the wall of St. Stephens Basilica
Cars for rent!
The front entrance of the Budapest State Opera House, Hungary
The statue of Franz Liszt next to the entry of the Budapest Opera House
The entry Hall of the Budapest Opera House
The Opera House Grand Stairway
One of the Opera House Hallways
The Interior of Budapest State Opera House
The red velvet seats in the Budapest Opera House
Detail wood work on a column inside of the opera house
An opera box, room for seven people
Looking from the Opera Box onto the stage
Amazing stairway inside of the opera house
Ms. Lee on the Opera House balcony
One more grand staircase inside of the opera house
Ms. Lee in the opera house
Another look at the Budapest Opera House
A parade in the middle of the Old Town Budapest
On the way to performance, Ms. Lee standing with a bronze statue of a policeman
Children playing in the huge bubbles at the St. Stephens Basilica Plaza
Ms. Lee going to the first concert performance in Budapest, Hungary
Pacific Chorale performing in St. Stephens Basilica, Budapest, Hungary
A view of the St. Stephens Basilica at night
Late night view of the Buda Castle and the Chain Bridge
July 3, 2016
The entry to Magyar Castle in the northeast area of Budapest
Inside of the Magyar Castle
A garden in front of the Magyar Castle
A church on the Magyar Castle's ground
A gathering of drummers at the Hero's Square for a peace prayer
Ms. Lee in the Hero's Square
Drummers at the Hero's Square
More people came to the gathering started to pray and chant
Pickle jars in a folk fair next to the Hero's Square
Beautiful tree-lined walkway next to Andres Street, the most famous street in Budapest
Ms. Lee stands outside of the Kodaly Institute
A Zoltan Kodaly plaque on the wall in the Kodaly Institute
A plaque for Franz Liszt on the street near the Kodaly Institute
A section of the Berlin Wall displays in front of the "House of Terror" in Budapest
The plaque accompanies the section of the Berlin Wall
Part of the Iron Curtain
A closer look at the Iron Chain Links
The House of Terror shows events and vistoms of several major wars
The artifact at the entrance of the House of Terror
The plaque that explains the purpose of House of Terror
The Metro stop called "Opera"
ANother look at the Opera House in Budapest
Ms. Lee and Liszt are inside of the Budapest State Opera House
What's in the name?
Where are we going?
A panoramic view of the city of Budapest
A horseman statue right outside of the Church in the Rocks, up on the hills looking at Danube River and city
Hundreds of stone steps lead to the Liberty Monument statues
Sculptures can be seen on the way to the Liberty Monument
Bullet holes cover the Citadel wall in Citadel Park in Budapest
The Liberty Monument at the Citadel Park
"Freedom Fire", one of the statues at the Citadel Park
A sculpture found on the grounds of Citadel Park
Looking at the Danube from Citadel
The front end of the Mattias Church, Pacific Chorale's second concert hall
The back side of Mattias Church
The horseman statue between Mattias Church and Fisherman's Bastion
Parts of the Fisherman's Bastion
A statue at the Fisherman's Bastion
A walkway at the Fisherman's Bastion
A 7-inch long grass hopper found on one of the columns at Fisherman's Bastion
A view of the parliament from the Fisherman's Bastion
Ms. Lee with a stone dragon
Ms. Lee in front of a side door at Mattias Church
A working door handle on one of the doors at Mattias Church
Looking at the Parliament from across the Danube River
A stone sculpture of a crown as decoration on the Margit Bridge
A panoramic view of the City of Budapest on both sides of the Danube River, from the Margit Bridge
July 4, 2016
The statue marks the downtown Metro stop 1 in Budapest
Handmade creatures for decorating your planters
The Central Grand Market of Budapest
A busy butcher shop sells all kinds of sausages and cold cuts
Look at all the smoked goods, ham, bacon, turkey, and even cheese
A veggie stand with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables
A spice shop has all kinds of ingredients for cooking
A toy shop handles all kinds of Rubik's cubes and other puzzles
Colorful candy creatures in a candy shop
Crocodile shoes for sale
A stand selling dolls and puppets
A music store sells everything but sheet music
The interior of the Central Grand Market
Ms. Lee, wearing red, white, and blue for 4th of July, found a marble sculpture of a scooter rider
The wisemen statues on the wall at Fisherman's Bastion
Fisherman's Bastion in the sunset
Fisherman's Bastion and the Parliament in the sunset
Between 14th century stone columns, there are 20 century steal and glass buildings
This sculpture of saints was made in the year of 1235
Ms. Lee at the alter of the Mattias Church
Choral seats for church choir in the Mattias Church
Ms. Lee in the choral seat waiting for the concert to begin
The Mattias Church organ
The organ keyboards
Check out these organ pedals
These organ stops change the tone quality of the sounds of the organ
A bronze model of the Mattias Church
Audience are in a line to get into Mattias Church for the Pacific Chorale concert
The interior of the Mattias Church
The underground area used as the green room for concert inside of Mattias Church
The stone stairway inside of the Mattias Church
Beautiful under ground tunnel leads to an automatic restroom
Pacific Chorale performance at the Mattias Church
This concert includes Hungarian music written by Zoltan Kodaly
The back side of Mattias Church in the sunset
The beautiful roof top of the Mattias Church
"Marian Gate", stone arch that was placed above a doorway in the church before the 14th century
Mattias Church in the sunset
Another view of the Mattias Church in the sunset
July 5, 2016
Chain Bridge at sunrise, our last day in Budapest
Where are we going?
Fields of sunflowers on the way to Vienna, Austria, on our bus ride