Budapest Roadtrip!

Gorgeous colors on the Danube looking towards the French Institute
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A beautiful day for the beginning of a very memorable road trip that took us north of Zagreb to the Croatian/Hungarian border of Letenye, onto the freeway past Lake Ballaton http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Balaton and finally onto Budapest, one of the most grand and majestic cities of Europe. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budapest

Mum on the Chain Bridge enjoying the atmosphere of a lovely Summers evening in Budapest
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Mum had never been to Budapest and so we decided that it was a "must see" destination on her European "tour"!

Budapest is one of those wonderful places where you can choose to really immerse yourself into the whole social & cultural Hungarian experience or remain on the sidelines and tread upon the thin surface of tourist Budapest. My advice is, immerse yourself! Hungary is a wonderfully different and diverse place and Budapest is its proudly displayed jewel.

Downstream down the Danube
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We lived and worked here for about 10months and has some very memorable and wonderful experiences (good & bad) We made great friends, have great memories and always look forward to going back.

Bringing Mum here was going to be fun and exciting. First stop, "Bombay Express" at Oktagon!! (for a write up see http://www.caboodle.hu/nc/directories/category/subcategory/single_page/bombay_express/)

On our way to the Hungarian border from Zagreb, 110kms away.
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One of our most favourite places to eat in Budapest, this Indian "fast food" place really is a crowd pleaser. If you are (like us) very familiar with Indian cuisine, you may be a little disappointed with the level of spice level as it is very bland and not hot at all. Apparently Hungarians aren't that experienced with hot food and the owner has adjusted the spice level accordingly. Dont be fooled though, the food is still WONDERFUL and should be experienced. http://www.dublino.hu/ref_reszletes.php?refkod=bombay_express

Budapest is about 330kms away
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Here we met up with our old friend Steve Carlson and then moved onto List Ferenc Ter (trendy cafe promenade) for a long coffee and catch up.

After refreshing ourselves at the wonderful Hotel Papillon on the Buda side of Budapest, we decided to head out and take Mum up to the Castle District and introduce her to the beautiful view over Budapest. As dusk fell, we walked down from the Castle onto Lanc Hid (Chain Bridge) and strolled across the closed bridge drinking in the festival atmosphere. The bridge was closed, which is a usual occurrence in the Summer months, for a street festival. There were live bands, stalls and of course great Hungarian food & drink.

Lovely Croatian countryside filled with either corn or sunflowers
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After a quick trip to show Mum Heroes Square by moonlight, it was a short drive back to the hotel and a good nights rest.