"BUDAPEST - IMPERIAL CAPITAL, TAKE TWO " a Budapest Travel Page by mtncorg

Budapest dates back into the 19th century officially when the towns of Buda and Pest were merged into one grand capital. History takes us back much further though. Romans established a fortified camp and town taking advantage of the local hot springs back in the 2nd-3rd centuries. The area developed over time, despite the occasional outsider forays - 1214 it was Mongols and then the Turks, in 1541, though they stayed a lot longer -150 years. With the movement towards an more independent Hungary within the Hapsburg Empire, Budapest came into its own as the co-capital of the Empire. Much like Vienna, Budapest has monuments that look back to a time when the hinterlands spread much further than what they do today. Also, like Vienna, Budapest had to survive the economic contractions of the post WWI landscape, but then, on top of that, a devastating siege at the end of WWII and a fifty year occupation by friends from the East. Today, Budapest is making its way anew amidst new political and economic situations. Compared to Vienna, the Danube gives it a physical beauty the former does not enjoy. The view over Pest from atop Castle Hill, the view of Castle Hill from the river, walking along the parks of Margarete Island or the grand avenues of Pest - Budapest is city of magnificent sights.