Budapest
August, 2000
We originally tried to schedule this trip two weeks earlier, but the agent found that one of the flights we would have taken was already full. It turned out to be a good or bad time to be there, depending upon how you look at it. Hungary celebrates it birthday on the feast day of St. Stephen of Hungary, August 20. In 2000 they celebrated the 1000th birthday of the country and his kingship and of their Roman Catholicism. Many dignitaries were present, and a lot of normal tourist attractions were closed, with some of the venues used for particular celebrations. The good side was that we saw the most amazing fireworks show in person and some of the other activities on local TV. The high temperature was over 100°, so staying in the room and hoping for relief from the overstressed air conditioner made sense. Consequently, I didn’t take a lot of pictures except during our half-day guided tour. The metro system is extensive, and we had surprisingly little trouble getting around, given that all the signs were in Hungarian and the names mostly looked alike to me. It would be easier now with an iPhone.
In 1873 the towns of Óbuda, Buda, and Pest merged to become Budapest. Óbuda means “Old Buda,” and Stone Age settlements were there. Buda is to the south, also on the west side of the Danube. We visited the castle area and some museums there, including a musical instrument museum and a military museum. East of the Danube is Pest (pronounced like "Pesht" in Hungarian). It is the main commercial center and includes the parliament building and St. Stephen’s Basilica. Theodor Herzl, founder of modern political Zionism, and Harry Houdini are from Pest. Bridges joining the two sides are from modern times, and had to be rebuilt after World War II.
The parliament building across the Danube
On the tour we went to the castle hill in Buda. We were about to visit the Matthias Church, built in the late thirteenth century, but a then a group of black Mercedes limos pulled up, and we were told to explore the city walls first until the dignitaries left. That is when I took most of these pictures.
The Matthias Church
St. Stephen of Hungary’s statue
It turned out that the Patriarch of Constantinople was visiting for the ceremony recognizing St. Stephen as the first saint since the Great Schism to be recognized by both Roman Catholics and the Orthodox. Hungary is predominantly Roman Catholic, and there are very few Orthodox in the country, so it was quite unusual for the Patriarch to come there.
After a while I ran out of anything to see or do right there, so I started heading past the church to go visit some museums. Just as I got near the entrance, the Patriarch and his entourage came out. I was so stunned that I could barely grab my camera. I had no idea whether I was even allowed to take a picture, but I fumbled with the camera. When they saw me, the priests flanking him stopped and he took a step forward to pose for me it turned out. I was too stunned to say anything. Later I found out that he was fluent in English, so he would have understood me if I had had presence to mind to thank him.
The interior of the Matthias Church
The women making these beautiful items didn't like being photographed, so I went to the other side of her booth.
Heroes Square, featuring statues of the seven chieftains of the Magyars
The guide initially said that he could book us on a Danube cruise if we wished. But later he told us that we could get on a boat that had a buffet and then see the millennial fireworks display from the middle of the Danube. We chose to do that. Our Jewish companions decided not to go, since the main group there would be a bunch of Germans. They traveled all over, but would never step foot in Germany or Austria on general principles. Our boat was in the front of the line of boats in the middle of the Danube, so we had the best view possible. The river lights and the laser from the discotheque on top of the Citadel signaled the start, and then more fireworks than you can imagine were in the sky and reflected in the river. Just when we thought that the climax of the show had happened, after a few minutes it would all start up again and top what had come before.