Had our first simple breakfast in 2 weeks and set off to see some of the sights we had seen from the river in a bit more detail. Most places except those on the Buda side are within walking distance. Nice to not have to walk on cobblestones and without having to avoid bikes.

First stop was the neo classical St. Stephens Basilica named after Stephen the first king of Hungary in the 10th century. Probably one of the most modern of the basilicas we have seen and up there with the best of them. A service was underway when we arrived but they did not mind people wandering around. Behind the sanctuary was a small chapel of which contained the right hand of St. Stephen. It was hard to see but there was lots of graphic information about it. We had to walk beyond the square and down the pedestrian mall to get a decent picture of the front. Quite impressive.

Next stop was the Shoes on the Danube Bank in honour of the Jews who were killed by the facists in WWII. They were ordered to take off their shoes, and were shot at the edge of the water so that their bodies fell into the river and were carried away. It represents their shoes left behind on the bank. The memorial consists of 60 pairs of iron shoes with a plaque inscribed with "To the memory of the victims shot into the Danube by Arrow Cross militia men in 1944-45. Erected 16 April 2005"


Heading further down the river we came to the Parliament Buildings which were inspired by Westminster in London but without Big Ben. It is the largest and tallest (along with St. Stephens basilica) building in Hungary. They are both 96m high. The number 96 refers to the nation's millennium, 1896, and the conquest of the later Kingdom of Hungary in 896. Tours of the building are possible but we did not bother. As parliament was sitting we suspected there may have been limitations on what we would see.

Off to get something to eat then wander through Fashion Street, a high end shopping mall. We then needed to head back to the apartment past a couple of Synagogues, which we will go in some other day, to get ready for our Etyek district wine tour and dinner at 4pm.

The wine tour had been recommended by some friends of ours and really an enjoyable and informative tour. There were 10 of us on the tour including Americans, a scot and an Irishman. Half of us could have spent the time talking about rugby but did not. Instead we heard about the development of the very old (Roman times) and well established wine industry which all but died out during Soviet occupation. Hungary does not export wine as it is all consumed locally. The price of a bottle of wine here is between 5 & 6 NZD however we visited boutique vineyards where the price of the bottle is about NZ$15 per bottle.

We visited 3 vineyards and tasted Sauvignon Blancs, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir and one other. At the last vineyard we were provided with dinner cooked by a chef who used to own a restaurant called "M" in Budapest. All of our visits were to the vintners houses; they are not set up with tasting houses etc as in NZ. All the wines all excellent and definitely of exportable quality - much better than we had expected. All the vineyards sell at the gate and to restaurants only. One of them developed their wine using the reduction method. No barrels are used and no air is allowed near the wine through the use of a gas. The fermentation time is also reduced significantly. The wine has a real fresh aroma and taste and was surprisingly good. We bought a few and suspect they might be consumed before leaving Budapest.

Although the day was our wettest since leaving home it was still enjoyable.