Budapest

As I said before, my sister Maria,  my brother in law, Miki, and my nephew, Tibi, waited at the Budapest train station for my arrival from Kiev. We spent four days exploring the city.
My sister Maria, her son Tibi and her husband, Miki
For me visiting Budapest was a special, and there is a story. I was born and raised Hungarian in former Yugoslavia. In my family we spoke both languages: Hungarian in the home, and Serbian outside the home. Our parents embedded in us the fact that we are Hungarians, and we should always remember that.
Hungary and Budapest are only a few hours drive from my home town in Serbia, but because of the political situation during the former "iron curtain" period, I never had the opportunity to visit Hungary. In those days (40's - 70's) the borders to Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria - all counties surrounding Serbia - were closed and tightly guarded. So, for me, visiting Budapest and Hungary was also about discovering my Hungarian roots Hungarian identity.
View of Buda from Castle Hill



Budapest is lies on both sides of the Danube River.  Buda lies on a steep hill on the west side of the river, while Pest lies on the east side of the river. It is a pretty steep walk to get to the top of Castle Hill, but one can take city buses or taxis as well. We came up here several times in the four days that we were in Budapest.

There are eight bridges connecting the two sides of the city of which the Chain bridge is the most famous.
Chain Bridge view from a boat
My sister arranged for us to visit the Parliament building.

Parliament building from the water side, picture taken at dusk

Parliament building from the street side













The grand staircase in the parliament. Mostly used during the receptions of dignitaries.
  More pictures of Budapest
View of the Parliament building and the city beyond from Castle Hill
Myself, my sister and my brother-in-law


















Matyas Church
The Matyas church has beautiful multicolored roof and the church just got a set of new bells. While we were there they were testing the bells and they sounded wonderful.

 The Heroes Square






















Budapest metro












 In the end, after visiting Budapest  I still ended up feeling like a tourist. Yes, I spoke Hungarian and I made myself remember that I was raised to think and believe Hungarian, but after spending four days there I realized, I had very little in common with the historical, political and cultural background of the country. The only common thing I had with the people of Hungary was the language.

So who am I? I was raised Hungarian in former Yugoslavia, now Serbia, I understand the historical, political and cultural background of Serbia, but now I live in the United States and I am an American.  Who am I, where do I belong?

Less musings more experiences in Budapest in my next blog.

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