Best of...

As my final two Bulgarian posts, I'm going to do a best of montage.  This first post will be a collection of images from my favorite trips and places outside of Bulgaria this year.  If you're using me as a reference for future trips...this is the post for you:

Athens/Delphi:

   

This was one of the most incredible places I have ever been.  The connection to history and literature, the geography, the magic in the air...in spite of what people told me, I loved Athens, but I wouldn't have loved it nearly as much if we hadn't gone to Delphi.

Baden Baden:

Just when I needed it most, along came Baden Baden (and thanks to Geoffrey and Cora, also Strasbourg and Heidelberg).  It is the most beautiful non-island paradise I have ever experienced.  I met Geoffrey and Cora only a few months ago, and prior to that I'd never heard of Baden Baden...now I'm thrilled to have such great friends and I'm already planning my next trip to visit them there!  With so many incredible places in the world to see, a return trip speaks volumes.

Budapest:

Big, wide boulevards...great food...lovely people...Budapest was an incredible experience.  We were there for Christmas and I hope to get back someday during the spring, as I can only imagine how incredible it is then.  Don't miss St. Stephen's and the baths!

Istanbul:

Everyone wants to go to Istanbul to see the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque...and they were amazing.  What knocked my socks off however, was the Basillica Cistern.  Everyone should see Turkey, particularly Istanbul as it is a crossroads of culture.  It's a pretty phenomenal experience.

New York:

What can I say...I'm a Europhile, but New York will always be home.  Visiting my family over spring break proved to be a pivotal moment in my year.  

Prague:

I'll admit - I was skeptical.  Another Eastern European city and one that had been hyped by everyone...surely it couldn't live up to my expectations.  It really did.  Prague is as beautiful as people say.  Totally worth the trip...I'd go back.  And fyi...St. Vitus Church at Prague Castle is without a doubt, the most incredible church I've ever seen.  It has edged out Sainte Chapelle as my new favorite.

Valencia:

We spent Thanksgiving here.  I knew nothing about Valencia, but found a cheap flight and decided to give it a shot.  It turned out to be one of my favorite cities, ever.  My memories are a little bittersweet now, since it was the last trip Greg and I took together, but all in all, it was a fabulous place and fabulous trip.

Vienna:

Vienna was ok.  Honestly, of all the places I've been, it wasn't my favorite (but everyone else in the world loves it, so you may want to go see it anyway).  My time there though was one of my best trips.  The weather was perfect, the gardens were in bloom, and Jr. and I had a blast together.  We ate well, walked a lot, and bonded.  And to top it all off, this was my first trip accompanied by music that subsequently became the soundtrack of my spring and my link to my home and my future.

Budapest - Churches and Nativities

Budapest - city of food and drinks

Unfortunately, I did a terrible job documenting my food consumption in Budapest.  We ate at Iguana's Bar and Grill - a Mexican place that had great guacamole, but after our day at the baths, I was so hungry I forgot to take pictures!  I also forgot to take photos at Mamma, an amazing Italian place near the basilica.  We had bruschetta pizza, pumpkin ravioli, a gorgeous fennel salad, and tirimisu.  Below are the places that I did remember to photo:

Almond hot chocolate, french chocolate cake, and cream dessert - yum!

These amazing coal-fired and grilled treats were both breakfast and dessert on this trip.  They tasted a bit like a cross between a cinnamon-sugar pretzel and a donut.

This was dinner on Christmas Eve.  Clearly I was hungry, as I forgot to take a picture until I was almost done eating!  I had veal paprikash with cabbage and potato dumplings.

And these are the rolls that Alanna kept insisting were potatoes

Fun signs!

Things to see and do in Budapest

It seems appropriate to begin my "Things to see and do in Budapest" post with a cow.  Those of you who have been following my travel adventures know that I am frequently on a hunt for various animals of the art world.  There was Cow Parade in New York, the horses of Saratoga, and the infamous Pike's Place pig hunt in Seattle (where I proudly photgraphed 88 of the 100 pigs hidden throughout the city).  Imagine my pleasure to discover a stray cow in Pest!  Sadly, he did not have any friends.

Alanna and Roxanne after a day at the Szechenyi baths.  This was awesome!  We were in 46 degree (Celsius) water, outside on a day that was below freezing.  The steam was coming off the pools and we bathed as the sun set.  

After j-walking across a major intersection (and stopping traffic!), Alanna thought a simulated picture of our game of Frogger was in order.

Gerbeaud's cafe.  We ate breakfast here one day and watched the musical and light show another evening.

Inside the National Opera House

St. Stephen's Basilica on Christmas night

Parliament

Apparently, the sculptor of the lions, upon realizing his lions were flawed (they have no tongues) was so distraught that he drowned himself in the Danube.