Gellert Hill

On the 28th of October, I went to Gellert Hill. For those of you that have been keeping up know that this is the large hill on the Buda side of the city which has the Liberty monument. The monument commemorates the time when the Soviet troops left Budapest. Gellert Hill has a lot of history behind it. During World War II, the fortress on top was used as a bunker and during the time of Christian expansion into Hungary it was used as part of a torture device. The Pagans who refused to convert were placed in a large barrel with spikes and rolled down the hill. One of which was named Gellert, or so I'm told. On the Hill is the Citadel which is a fortress and use to house numerous canons, many of which were pointed directly at the city to remind the citizens of the power that the ruler had. Now the Citadel and Gellert Hill are tourist attractions, a church, a natural monument to the past, and an all around beautiful escape from the smog congested Pest side of the city.

I went up there to observe foliage changing colors and to look out over the city skyline from early dusk until early evening. I know you guys will love these pictures.

The Gellert Hotel and bath house at the base of the hill.

The beginnig of the trail. Oh so pretty.

A statue of a monk and his horse outside of the church which was once part of the Citadel fortress. Liberty bridge can be seen in the background.

Another beautiful path to the top.

A look at the city below. That is Elizabeth bridge.

A backlit Liberty Monument...

followed by a gorgeous sunset.

The Chain Bridge and Parliament bathes themselves in a warm glow as night approaches.

Completely surrounded by darkness the landmarks truly shine.

The Castle District after sunset.

A close up of the Palace at night.

This motion blur photo of Liberty Bridge was taken from a stone statue I climbed. The statue hangs over the side of the hill, so I was a sitting on the shoulder of a statue nonchalantly clicking away only inches from falling to a certain undesired result. Not the smartest thing I 've done, but that's what heppens when I get bored.

A quick snapshot of a hedgehog I found in the park on the walk home. Ahh how cute!

I'm planning on having some of these and other pictures developed and framed when I get home. I have the original files which are of a better quality. If anybody wants a print made all they have to do is ask and we can work something out.

I'm off to Italy now and I'll bring everyone a present when I get back.

Charles