From Pest To Buda

Built on a series of hills, “Buda” is the site of a grand Hapsburg palace and has a detached, imperial air of settled wealth. In contrast, populous “Pest” as flat as a prairie is busy, buzzing and bourgeois, with an assortment of bars, cafés, and gourmet restaurants. Buda offers sweeping panoramas. Most visitors are content with the view across to Pest from the Fisherman's Bastion on Castle Hill and ignore the less accessible Gellért Hill just to the south.

When night falls, Buda goes to sleep and Pest wakes up. Whether you prefer the opulence of the Opera House, one of Europe's finest, or the conviviality of the city's legendary ruin pubs, you want to be on the Pest side of the river after dark.

Budapest is overall an extraordinary city. There are only a few European cities that are so clearly divided into two parts. The Danube river splits the Hungarian capital literally in two with on the one side Buda and on the other side Pest. Originally, these were also two different towns that were merged into one big Budapest only a little over 140 years ago. And these two districts could not be more different. Hills versus plain, romance versus classical and pastel versus off-white. In this article I will take you on a stroll from Buda to Pest and take you along five highlights in this Hungarian city.

The Castle District Of Buda

We started in Buda. In my opinion, this is the most charming part of Budapest. Hilly streets, bumpy brick pavement, and pastel-colored houses: this is my kind of scene. I loved strolling along the streets moving upward the 60 meters high Buda castle hill. On top of this hill, there is the Buda Castle, a thirteenth-century palace that is built after the Mongolians devastated most parts of the Hungarian land. This must never happen again, was the though of the king Bela IV and he built this pompous castle. Around the Buda Castle, a new district rose: the castle district.

This is a the perfect area for wandering. Winding streets, dozens of cute little restaurants and – because of the high position – a perfect view over the Danube. The heart of the Castle district is the Square of Holy Trinity with the Matthias church and the Fisherman’s Bastion. Two impressive structures that at first sight have nothing to do with each other, but they actually do. This Fisherman’s bastion is built as a rampart for the Matthias church and had to give the church its glory. Well, it certainly does!

Crossing The Danube: The Chain Bridge

Via the Chain Bridge or one of the other eight bridges you walk from Buda to Pest (or the other way around). The bridge is one of the connections between Buda and Pest. The Chain Bridge is a picture-perfect sight, during the day and night. Tour guides love to tell the story that the two lions at the ends of the bridge miss one thing: their tongues. According to the legend the sculptor forgot about this one little detail and never forgave himself and jumped off the Chain Bridge to kill himself. But this is not true, because the lions do have their tongues. You just cannot see them from below.

The Hungarian Parliament Building

The Eyecatcher of Pest

We crossed the Chain bridge and we are in Pest; pronounced with a thick ‘s’ like Pesht. Did you know that Budapest was almost named Pestbuda? Yes, that sounds a bit weird, don’t you think? In my opinion Pest can be seen as dignified, classy and very plain. There are no hills here, but instead long wide promenade. From the Chain bridge you walk over the Danube promenade to the eye catcher of Budapest: the Hungarian Parliament Building. This palace is one of the most expensive buildings of all Hungary and contains more than 3500 tons of crystal and 40 kilograms of gold. It is also the highest building of Budapest, similar to Saint Stephan basilique. Both have a height of 96 meter, done with a reason so that the state and the church cannot look down upon each other.

In the distance you can see The Hungarian Parliament Building, Országház. The seat of the National Assembly of Hungary

Lookout on houses of "Buda"

The view in Citadella

If you are curious to read more about my trip to Budapest than please check out the other part of the story here

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