The Bernard Files.: A Day in Budapest..

Hi Readers

Our first full day in Budapest and it was a great one.

I managed to be up early, or earlier than usual and had my runners on and out the door. I also had the added protection of my mittens as it was -4 degrees outside, and snow was forecast.

It was great to just get out and get my bearings as we arrived in the dark last night. My first decision was to run towards the river, as we'd heard that the Danube was full of ice at the moment.

When I got to it, it wasn't as full of ice as I'd expected, but it's the first time I've seen a river with ice floes on it, so that was a new experience.

I was just going mad with taking photos, but the worst thing was that I had to keep taking off one mitten to do so, and it was too cold to leave it off.

The other problem was trying to keep my feet on the icy ground, as thee was a constant danger of going heads up!!

Ice flowing down the Danube.

Cold, but beautiful this morning.

Lucky to see a barge come down the river.

By the time I got home, Sam and Jen were up and we were able to sit down to a great breakfast of bacon and eggs, cooked by the author, something that we rarely ever get the opportunity to do, so it was very special.

Another way we have enjoyed seeing a new place is to jump on one of those tour buses that every big city has. We were hoping to find one with an open top, but for some reason they always put us on closed ones. I suppose in the end this was the best choice as it was rather cold.

We were soon off for the next few hours and really saw some great sights of the city.

Small cars need small parking spaces!!

The streets here are mostly long and wide.

Sam and Jen in front of someone famous!!

A public ice skating rink.

The parks were covered in snow.

The best thing happened next. While walking back to our digs we found a restaurant that was totally Gluten Free!!! Well, maybe not for Sam and I, but definitely for Jen. We sat and had the most beautiful meal, then mire or less waddled home!!

We are definitely going back here for our anniversary dinner tomorrow.

At lunch with Sam, a cherished moment.

Looking towards St Stephen's Basilica.

St Stephen's Basilica.

After a bit of R&R Sam and I were off again to a sports bar where we we indulged in his passion, soccer, and watched a game between Manchester United and Liverpool.

While not being one who would choose to watch a game of soccer, this was great as I had Sam filling me in on all of the intricacies and players, and how different results would affect each team, and the team he supports, Tottenham Hotspurs.

In the end the drawn result was the best result for Sam's team.

It was just a great night out together, especially as we don't see each other much as he lives in London.

I'll definitely be cherishing these days together.