Pest – Where The Real Life Is

Budapest is a very clean city, with a strange, almost quiescent nature to it. For the most part there is a noticeable absence of police, yet there appears to be very little crime, or at least the appearance of no crime, unlike other countries like Italy or France, where the authorities parade around with weapons and make their presence known.

The Parliament Building – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

The Pest side of Budapest has most, if not all, of the hotels and many of the restaurants. It has monuments on every corner and more history than you probably want to consume. Both sides are very active, but the Pest side is the side where all the boats dock, like Viking River Cruises and others, so it can get quite busy after ten o’clock in the morning.

Interesting building balcony – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

Count István Széchenyi Statue – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

Beautiful building – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

Looking toward the Basilica – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

Though beautiful, after a while you realize, like so many other cities in Europe, it’s all about the facade. It’s all brick underneath, mortar and stone.

Memorial 1952 – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

It’s just a facade – Pest – Budapest, Hungary

Parliament Tour

For anyone visiting Budapest, the Parliament on the Pest side is an attraction that must be seen. However, be careful when purchasing tickets! There are a few official looking websites out there that purchase them for you at double the price. Check and double check your search engine and map application to ensure you have the official website. It will be quite obvious if you do, since you will receive your tickets immediately, instead of waiting for them to „appear“ in your mailbox.

The front – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Looking at the front of the building from the land side, you enter from the right and below ground. There are also some interesting monuments before you enter worth seeing, so keep your eyes open for them.

From the river side – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

From the land side – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Monument – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Entrance – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

The tour is rather long but very thorough. We were even able to catch a glimpse of their unicameral legislature in-session! We were actually quite impressed with the thoroughness and professionalism of the tour. Though we thought they spoke at length, perhaps too long, about the crown jewels, which of course you were unable to photograph.

Layout – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Stained windows – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Stairwell – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Hallway – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Ornate ceilings – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Beautiful hallways – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Windows, close-up – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Another hallway – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Sentinel figures – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Unicameral session – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

In session – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Ceiling – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Full window – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Ornate wood framing – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Main stairwell – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Details main stairwell – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Another look, main stairwell – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

The dome – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Occupations for protection – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Receiving hall – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Occupations, close-up – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

More windows – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

The great stag – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Giant porcelain vase – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Occupation close-up – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

More occupations – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Legislature building – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Architecture – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Old heating and air-conditions controls – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Cigar holders and trays – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Anther hallway – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Ericka – Descending the stairway out – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Descending stairway out – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Ancillary hallway – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

The back areas – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Small museum – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Exhibit – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

The history of the building – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Large diorama of the building – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Electric controls for the building – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Statues – The Parliament Building – Budapest, Hungary

Restaurants

Here are a few more restaurants we visited in Budapest, one of which I wish I never went to due to social media idiots.

New York Cafe

There is a term in America and it is quite apropos here, „lipstick on a pig“. My thoughts regarding this cafe were that it was totally over-priced for the quality of food and service received, though the interior was quite impressive

Outside lamp – The New York Cafe – Budapest, Hungary

In fact, that can be considered one of the downsides to this cafe; there were so many people mulling around and taking photographs, it was actually quite annoying at times. Especially in this day of social media, where everyone has to take the so called infamous and narcissistic „selfie“ or „influencer“ pose. It makes a person like me almost puke at times.

Inside – The New York Cafe – Budapest, Hungary

Ceiling – The New York Cafe – Budapest, Hungary

Main hall – The New York Cafe – Budapest, Hungary

The food was sub-par for such a restaurant; we had the Pasta Pomodoro and thought although the pasta was done properly, the sauce tasted of nothing. The wine on the other hand was satisfactory in taste, but way over-priced at 50€/bottle. It wouldn’t have been so bad, except the service was just not so great.

Pick Bistro Deli

This little bistro, on Kossuth Lajos tér, is not far from the Parliament building and a great place to stop for lunch after your exhaustive tour.

Inside – Pick Bistro Deli – Budapest, Hungary

They have many great Hungarian lunch items to choose from and the staff and service were excellent for us. They also have plenty of open-air seating, which during a warm day makes the visit all that much more enjoyable.