Budapest is steeped in history and, despite a bit of homework, we still found ourselves having to consult our Lonely Planet guidebook to clarify which era was relevant to something we were either looking at or talking about. Most recently, it had become part of the eastern block under communist rule from after WWII, until the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communism in Hungary soon afterwards. Much of the city had been destroyed both in this and previous conflicts, but the architecture that exists today is both varied and striking, with almost no evidence of the drab designs of the communist period. Most rebuilding has been in the original styles. The people are friendly although the language is very unfamiliar, with ties to Finnish and Estonian. The Parliament building, one of the largest in the world but hardly occupied, has a commanding position on the river front.
St Stephens Basilica is also an imposing building, inside and out, and on one day the visibility was good enough to make a visit to the dome worthwhile to enjoy views across the city. The promise of seeing beyond the city wasn't quite fulfilled, but we did get an impression of what it would be like! Jean walked up, but I took the lift!
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