Budapest to Vienna...

We're having a wonderful time on the beautiful Danube! We enjoyed a city tour of Budapest (pronounced Buda-pesht) this morning with another wonderful, knowledgeable guide - a passionate Hungarian who did not sugar-coat the often tragic history of her country. A few sights from the morning:

Heroes' Square...

The selfie stick returns! (there were a few "selfie fails" along the way…)

St. Stephen -- converted Hungarians to Christianity and was the nation's first king. 

Beautiful city views from atop Fishermen's Bastion. 

Matthias Church...

Peggy and Dorothy take in the sweeping views...

June and Marlene with a gorgeous backdrop...

Pastries and coffee in a Budapest cafe...

Enjoying wonderful coffees! 

Of course, we had to try the Hungarian goulash at lunch back on board our ship!

Delicious! (June and I purchased some Hungarian paprika while shopping in town!)

Safety first! (Don't worry--it was just a briefing! We're in excellent hands with Captain Gabor...far right)

The ship (the Viking Njord) is equipped with all the latest technology -- but keeping it level? They use a level...like one you'd buy at Kiper's! See it? 

"A level?" I asked. 

"When the bubble is in the middle, the ship is level," Captain Gabor explained. 

"I know how a level works, I just can't believe you're using the same tool I use to hang pictures straight," I said. 

"It works perfectly," he said.

Hmmm.

We sailed past Hungary's largest cathedral in a town beginning with an A…or maybe an E? (Sorry - Hungarian is a really complicated language!) St. Stephen was born there and crowned there. His mummified right hand is back in the church bearing his name in Budapest. (He's a pretty big deal around here!) 

The ship is perfectly lovely. Here's a glimpse of our room...

This view shows the shower with an opaque glass wall. (There's a kind of a funny story about that -- ask me in person if you want to hear it!)

And the view from our balcony...

We had a welcome dinner with our sharply-dressed crew greeting us!

And I couldn't resist a little selfie with Chef Marcus and Hotel Director Alexander! Such a fun crew!

We'll be sailing through the evening and arriving in Vienna tomorrow morning. We're looking forward to a city tour in the morning and some free time in Vienna tomorrow afternoon, then a visit to the opera! (I know, I know -- I'm not a huge opera fan either, but when in Vienna...)