contains exhibits related to the fascist and communist dictatorial regimes in 20th century Hungary and is also a memorial to the victims of these regimes, including those detained, interrogated, tortured or killed in the building." I found the museum to be as affecting and powerful as the Holocaust museums in D.C. and Jerusalem. A must if you're ever in Budapest.
clearly took pride in his hometown providing us with great advice on things to see and do. The first night he directed us to a restaurant that was fantastic and also told us we had to go to the island because "everyone was going to be there." The island was in the middle of the Danube River and, yes, it seemed like the entire city was there filling the pubs and beer gardens that lined the river banks - a very cool and lively scene. If that weren't enough, we were completely convinced that Gabor knew what he was talking about when we tried the highly recommended creme cake. He was very specific saying other restaurants offered it but we had to go to place in the old city near the main cathedral. Gabor couldn't have been more spot on. The creme cake was phenomenal! It had a consistency between a cheese cake and a custard or pudding with a thin crust on the top and bottom. It was divine! We all agreed that a dessert empire could be built on this delectable delight. Bonus: Down the street from the creme cake cafe, the main cathedral was gorgeous - a feast for the eyes.
I especially love the ornately patterned tile roof. In front of the cathedral were a group of men dressed in period costume who were pushing opera tickets on passing tourists. The group in the picture below seemed to be arguing. Maybe one was encroaching on the other's territory or perhaps they were just discussing a soccer match from the night before. In any case, they and their costumes were like the Stephansdom: spectacular!
According to Dictionary.com, baroque means "extravagantly ornate, florid, and convoluted in character or style." Uh...yeah. Looks like someone threw up pink in this place. However, despite my personal criticism, our guide interestingly pointed out that during this era, the church drew people in by showing them something they did not have in their every day lives: color and ornamention. If that's the case, way to go chuch! Mission WAY accomplished! 
During the bicycle tour, we stopped in front of the statue of Empress Elisabeth von Osterreich who was quite the modern woman. Very independent, she spent most of her time outside of Austria visiting various European locales cavorting with foreign dignitaries and the like. She was renowned for her beauty and her obsession with staying fit. She was known to jog in place in order to stay thin and it's speculated that she was anorexic. "Huh?," I thought to myself, "Sounds like she was just in good shape." A few steps away stood a male nude without an ounce of fat on 'im. No mention of which eating disorder he suffered from.
On our first full day in Vienna, we took a morning tour by bicycle. It was a terrific way to get an overview of the city. Justin said it reminded him of D.C. - lots of monuments, museums, historic sites, etc. - and, as such, can be a bit overwhelming. Once we saw everything, we could go back to the things that sparked the most interest. Of particular historical interest while we were there was the funeral for one of the elder members of the former royal family. In front of the church in top photo, the prime minister and other officials were meeting with the former royal family to take part in one of several tradictional ceremonies. One somewhat grisly tradition explained during the tour is that the hearts of the royal family are removed and buried in a separate church apart from the rest of their bodies. Really?
