It was like déjà vu. Our cruise started with a tour of Budapest…Pest in the morning and then Buda in the afternoon. As we had been in Budapest for the two prior days, there was a bit of redundancy for us, but it didn’t matter as Budapest is a beautiful place.

While waiting for our tour to begin, we walked up to the sun deck to have a look around.

The tour was intended to be a bus ride, then a little walking and then a bus ride back. While we had seen some of the sights on our own, what we gained was the story behind many of the locations. Being with a local guide also gave us a chance to really feel the pride they have for their city, history and country.

So, here are some things we learned:

Hungary was a target throughout history for invasions: Genghis Khan and the Mongols (the invading hordes, not the band), the Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Austrian Empire, the Nazi Reich and the Soviet Union.

More than 40% of Budapest was destroyed by bombing during WWII and had to be rebuilt, including its seven bridges. This lead to an eclectic mix of architecture, but it was all done very tastefully.

Budapest people love their thermal baths and they are everywhere around town. The ones that the tourists know about are always crowded.

The people are very hopeful that the new Prime Minister will make a big difference in the country going forward.

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Unfortunately for us, there was an event going on that prevented our bus from being able to visit the City Park area where the Heroes Monument is located. We re-routed and continued around Pest seeing beautiful sights, but we weren’t able to get off the bus.

After the tour, we returned to the ship and had lunch at noon before heading out for our second tour at 2:00 pm. For the afternoon, we visited the castle area on the Buda side of town. We once again climbed aboard the bus and were whisked to the top of Castle Hill.

We walked around for a bit hearing about the history of the area before reaching the main square. The entire area was beautiful and spotlessly clean.

The main sites for our visit were the Fisherman’s Bastion and the Saint Matthias Church.

The Fisherman’s Bastion is a vantage point overlooking the Danube. It is named for the fishermen’s guild who protected the former fort during the Middle Ages. Alas, today it is but a strikingly beautiful spot for taking pictures of the Danube River and the parliament building.

Departing the bastion, you walk right into the square in front of Saint Matthias Church. It is another replica church, having been bombed during WWII. For centuries, it had been used for the coronation of Hungary’s Kings.

From the church, we walked back to the bus and then made our way back to the ship. It was a very interesting afternoon, but now it was time to relax before dinner.

We made it down to the ‘Sip and Sail Happy Hour’, where we met Carlos and Nancy, who were also part of the BC Hydro group. We enjoyed a cocktail with them (Cosmopolitans were the drink of the day) and then they joined us for another delicious dinner.

At 8:00 pm it was time to set sail. We made our way up to the sun deck and found a couple of chairs facing the Pest side of the city. As the boat eased away from the mooring and began its and our journey up the Danube, we enjoyed one last view of the cityscape.

It was still light when we set sail, so we didn’t get to see the city lit up from the boat, but it was still a beautiful sight.

Our friends Donnie and Parm wandered by on their way to get a blanket for their wives and when they returned, they had brought one for Sue too. It was very thoughtful and saved me a trip.

The crew passed out glasses of a Hungarian brandy-like beverage to sip as we glided along. It was apricot flavored and had a little kick to it.

We eventually made our way back down to our cabin to relax before bedtime.

Our overall take on Budapest was that we would definitely return. There are many great places to visit, the food was excellent and the people were warm and friendly. In the tourist areas, everyone spoke English, so communicating wasn’t an issue at all.