Budapest, Hungary, Aug. 2015

It's been a while since I blogged about my travels, so do not be surprised if I am blogging about a trip we took in August of 2015. I just realized it is easier for me to find pictures that I want by searching on my blog, but of course they  have to be there first. So, since I am staying home due to the Covid 19 pandemic, I know I have more time to blog. I am therefore, restarting to blog about travels, my intent is to archive my travels and travel photos so I can easily access them. They will not be in order, I hope you don't mind.

 We were so fortunate to be there during their most important and popular holiday, St. Andrew's Day, who is their patron saint. There were people everywhere, just walking around. Vehicles were blocked so we were able to walk around safely. Festivals were everywhere, food, parades, processions, music, entertainments, you name it!

  We took a Viking River Cruise on the Aegir stopping at various countries and Budapest was our last stop. where we checked into the Marriott's Hotel overlooking the Buda Castle across the Danube River, and stayed there for 2 days. The city is breathtaking, I thought I was looking at another Paris.

 John and I traveled with family and friends, particularly my sisters Fe and Tessie and nephew Jonjet and his wife, Lourdes.

Below is St. Andrew's Church where John and I posed.

We walked around leisurely with my sister, Tessie and a friend from Hawaii, Judith.

How I miss the time when John could still walk fast and we did not have to haul an electronic scooter with us, where ever we went. But we are very thankful that we are still able to travel.

 This was a place where a lot of eateries were and we had lunch almost across that big Budapest sign. Of course, we had to take pictures first.

We must be approaching the hotel since I see the Buda Castle.

 I am so in love with their famous exquisite china, Herend. Nope, not buying this time. Our 4 luggage were all already up to the weight limit that I had to leave our toiletries behind.

Beautiful view at night

 Spectacular view to wake up to every morning while having my coffee.

We toured, ate and shopped at the Marketplace, so huge and so crowded!

 The Marketplace is behind us and my sister Fe can't wait to go inside, lol. She is a shopping addict.

 Of course, we had to visit the famous Hero's Square, noted for its iconic statue complex featuring the 7 chieftains of the Magyars and other Hungarian national heroes.

 Good thing we brought our Marriott elite member card and we were able to upgrade our room to a high floor and we had access to the top floor which offered free snacks and an open view of the city. We took advantage of that during their awesome display of fireworks. We were even able to bring my sisters up there.

 Chain Bridge showing the Parliament in the background.

We enjoyed the fireworks at night

I hope you enjoyed a mini tour of Budapest. Thank you for stopping by. Stay safe always!

Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, Bataan, Philippines

I am so glad we had a chance to tour this heritage and convention center. The APEC meeting that was attended by former President Obama, was held here. What is so interesting about the place is that old houses from different locations in the Philippines were dismantled piece by piece, brought here and reassembled piece by piece back into their original grandeur.

A picture with my very gracious cousin, Gemma, who is hosting our whole stay here. We couldn't be any more spoiled than we already are. She takes us places, feeds us our favorite food and gave us our own van and chauffeur to use during our entire stay here.

a  jeepney was used to shuttle people inside the resort

John inside the jeepney

 The project is not complete yet. More houses are still being assembled but it's already all worth visiting.

Casa Ladrillo

 I like how the staff were wearing period outfits. It made us feel like we were really living in the olden times.

Casa Hagonoy

Casa Jaen I. The crowns on top signifies the prominence of the family who lives there, a status symbol

 I just love this arched entry. It was moved from Jaen, Nueva Ecija, reconstructed in 2007.

Paseo de la Escolta. The strip of commercial structures are replicas of the typical Escolta buildings in Manila during the early 1900's, Shops and stores on the ground floor and hotels on the top 2 floors. The structures were built based on old photographs found in magazines, using old and new materials.

 the pool

Casa Luna

Our tour guide showing us some antiques inside the Casa Luna, circa 1850, a house named in honor of the Luna brothers, General Antonio Luna and Juan Luna, the famous artist. The house was moved here in 2007 from Luna, La Union.

Casa Byzantina, moved from San Nicolas, Binondo, originally built in 1890. It was leased to a an elementary and HS from 1914 to 1919. After the 2nd World War, it was leased to various tenants and until 2009, it was home to 50 squatters,

 

There is pure elegance inside Casa Byzantina, now that it has been moved and restored. This 3 story house with 7 bedrooms is now available to rent for $3000 (P150,000) per night. But if you do not need the whole house, individual rooms are also rented out, the lowest costs P16,600 which is equivalent to $332 per night. You get a butler per room.

I love this!

The wall paper is hand painted.

Can you imagine how much work it must have been to finish this?

Dining room inside Casa Byzantina

The Convention Center where APEC meeting was held.

Below is what is referred to as the Island. The 3 houses on the far right can be rented collectively for P250,000 ($5000) per night. You get butlers, a heated pool free breakfast and of course 3 houses right on the water. Pretty steep price to rent but wouldn't it be ideal for a big family reunion?

Hope you enjoyed the tour. It was hot and the streets were paved with uneven stones, making it difficult to walk and it was a walking tour. We started with 14 tourists and at the end, it was just me and the tour guide left, lol, so I was like having a private tour with my own photographer. We toured a lot of houses but I did not want to upload a lot of pictures cause this is already getting long.

Thank you for stopping by!