Dec 18, Budapest Day 1

Today was our first full day in Budapest on our own.  We disembarked the ship at 9:30 am after coffee and breakfast.  Camille, the Cruise Director, ordered a taxi for us and escorted us down the gangplank and introduced us to our taxi driver.  The taxi took us to The Loft Budapest, our lodging for the next three nights.  It was an interesting boutique hotel with only eight rooms on floor 1/2 of a very old building.  We got in our room at 11:30 am.  Even though we hadn't done anything to speak of, we were tired and took a rest in our room for about three hours.

Then we walked to the biggest Christmas Market in Budapest at St. Stephen's Basilica, a short walk away.  We found a great Italian restaurant for dinner, then walked through the market.

The huge outdoor plaza around the Basilica was amazing.  Even the ground was paved in elaborate designs of tiles and cobblestone.

The main attraction was the light show projected on the face of the Basilica.

We walked back to the same Italian restaurant for after-dinner drinks.  (Once you find a restaurant with a good bar that recognizes American drinks and cocktails, you have to stick with it!)  We walked more, somehow working up an appetite again, and stopped for appetizers, wine, and beer at a bistro just across the pedestrian plaza outside our hotel.

Then back to our hotel, The Loft Budapest, seen below.