Throwback Tuesday: Fascinating Budapest, Hungary

I cannot help but rekindle my joy to wandering around Europe as I open my album at Facebook.
Such remarkable days as we enjoyed our first posting in Geneve and had a chance to actually explore this part of the world.

This time, I have Budapest.

This capital city of Hungary is truly a living proof of the grandeur of the past and the inexplicable elegance of nature.

Bo and I enjoying the night scene at Budapest :)

The trip was made in 2009.

Almost 7 years ago.

That summer break we decided to visit the city of bridges and stayed there for 5 days. Flying from Geneve with EasyJet, Bo was only 3.5 years at that time.

But he proved to be a great companion, happily traveling with Mama et Bapak and took his pram whenever he was tired.

We had quite a full itinerary here.

Pretty much using Trip Advisor as my 'private guide', we managed to see most of the highlights in this beautiful city.

Castle Hill, Buda Castle, Fishermen Bastion, Heroes' Square, St. Stephen Church, Citadel, Chain Bridge and so many more.

We strolled along Danube, which has been dubbed as one of the most beautiful rivers in Europe.

We took the tour to the famous Parliament house. I remembered vividly that it was rainy that morning. But we got our 45-minute tour inside this magnificent building. I couldn't recall the details but it was lovely.

Something that I love so much about Budapest is its purple sky. When the sun sets, sparkly purplish and orange sky is certainly a feast to my eyes.

Walking around the city was such fun as well, as we found so many beautiful statues and landmarks.
Like this super cute police officer :).

We managed to visit Szent Istvan,  also known as  St. Stephen Church.
Indeed, it is the largest church in Budapest with its 96-metre-high dome and incredible interior. Undoubtedly, this church wows each and every one of its visitors.
 

staying outside

I love the colorful marble mosaic outside, though it's not really the original part where the church was first built in 1845.
And once we stepped in, this is what we see.

And finally, we made a brief stop, twice actually, at the Buda Castle. We didn't take many pictures inside but when we waited for a while to catch our breath, the Castle turned amazingly beautiful with the lights on. Take a look...

So, that's the recollection of my memories in Budapest, Hungary.
Now that we reside in the US, we kinda miss Europe and its beautiful cities. 
Looking at all those pictures certainly make you feel nostalgic :).

I remember discussing Europe trip with my friend, Fita Chakra, who made the trip with her husband last year. We discussed a lot about the best route in Europe and cities that she should not miss. Being a great children books' writer, I believe traveling and exploring the world will be very beneficial for her. For sure it will inspire her more on her upcoming books :).  They didn't manage to visit Budapest but I know they had so much fun visiting Paris, Brussels, Vienna, Venezia, and so many more. Those are the cities I have visited as well.  So I guess I will certainly come back with more stories and photos from those cities.

What memories you love to share with us today?

Check out more of my stories at #Steller :)

Fun at South Beach, Miami, Florida

I have to admit that I have soooo many to tell you from our last #roadtrip to the Southern part of the US. When I say alot, it means so many of them.

Well, we stopped at 9 cities and crossed 8 states here in the country. 

And I only have two hands to type, haha...

So, bear with me if I seem to be telling the story on et off, pieces by pieces, as I am trying (hard) to sneak around my crazily-tight schedule at the office (and the High Level Segment of the UN General Assembly is surely approaching.. noooo ).

So, I usually started with the photos.

Haha...tons of photos we took around the trip.

Don't ask my how many photos we took for those 10 days on the road but for sure we have used 4 memory cards (some 16 GB, some are 8 and 4) and transfered them 4 times before using them again.

I just don't know..

It's always be the same story for us wherever we go :).

Take tons of photos and let's see what happens. Either you keep them in the computer, publish them, put them in the blogs, or just simply keep them as they are in the memory cards :). Anybody wants to help me sort them out?

Well, anyway....long story short, here are the photos I have chosen today..

Jumping session at South Beach, Miami, Florida ;).

We arrived at Miami the day before we hit South Beach.

That morning, we started with our brunch in La Baguette, one of the restaurants along that famous promenade.

yummy choices..

It was quite a big brunch we had ;)

kids meal with chicken fingers..

But we just couldn't resist the temptation of dipping our bare foot to the powdery sand.

So we went to the beach first before enjoying our sunny side-up and toast.

And how fun it was...

jump high Bo :)

Obi was flying as well :)

We were jumping around, taking some photos here and there..and simply enjoying the beach to the max.

Well, not really to the max...

And I guess you know why :)

We didn't swim here as we needed to continue our journey to Key Largo where I have booked a 2.5-hour snorkeling session looking down the famous underwater scene at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Garden. We just couldn't wait but while we were in Miami Beach, why didn't we make the most of it ;).

But our hearts were content..

Walking along this America's Riviera truly gives us the warm feeling of getting closer to home :).

We took some selfies as well here by the beach

cheeers...

While Bo et Obi just couldn't resist and play in the water ;)

the water was sooo tempting..

And after enjoying the warm salty breeze at the beach, we took some time stroling around the famous promenade, South Beach.

Stopped and enjoyed Lummus Park...

Lummus Park

As well as the lovely and famous art deco buildings along the street :)

Look at the sky :)

Well.. Thank you, Miami..

It was surely fun to visit this city  and enjoy South Beach, Miami, Florida ;)

Have you ever been to one place that reminds you of hometown?

Bo et Obi at the Boone Hall Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina

Remember our #Roadtrip this summer to the southeastern part of the US?

One of the most memorable stops we made was at the Boone Hall Plantation in Charleston, South Carolina.

I know I haven't really shared the story about this historical place but I will.
I will :).

This time, I just can't help sharing our photos there, particularly Bo et Obi :)

my Obi :)

Morning sky at Mid Beach, Miami, Florida

Morning sky at Mid Beach, Miami, Florida

It was taken right behind our hotel in Miami Mid Beach, Florida

during our #roadtrip this summer ;) 

I edited the photo using Lightroom and preset Zoo Benches for the first and the second photo...

giving me the purple hue on the sky :)

Join us un Skywatch Friday and enjoy the beautiful sky from all over the world :)

Pennsylvania State Capitol Building at Night

Pennsylvania State Capitol Building at night is indeed beautiful...

Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania.
Have you been to this city? 
Where the US Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were drafted?

Pennsylvania State Capitol Building

Well, after some times (more than a month, I guess >_<), I manage to write and post something about our trip tp Pennsylvania. Works have been crazy lately, even when we are supposed to have our summer break :).

So, a couple days off and two kids, we decided to go to the theme park.
One of the big ones near NYC is Hershey Park.
And as I have shared before here in this blog, I was taking a trip to Managua, Nicaragua for an official visit. And Bo et Obi were enjoying their break.
So, without further a do, that morning, I searched and booked for the hotel, got everything ready, and packed for a two-day adventure in Pennsylvania :).
It might sound crazy but we managed to have quite an adventure.

Destinations: Harrisburg and Hershey's Park.
How exciting :).
Even I couldn't stop smiling on our way there :).

As we headed to Pennsylvania rather late from NYC, we arrived in Harrisburg in the afternoon. 

It took around 4-hour drive from NYC. Getting out of Manhattan was an extra hour :).
But we just enjoyed the trip and made stops whenever we needed.

So, long story short, we arrived in Harrisburg at around 1 PM but the kids wanted to swim first. So, off we went enjoying cool water at the hotel and decided to see the city for dinner.

Just before dinner, we stopped at the State Capitol Building...

It was full moon and simply beautiful...

We missed all those details from this amazing beaux-arts state of the art and my hubby and I decided to return to this beautiful city again soon, to have a proper visit and historic tour. 
So many things to see and to d in Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, but our visit was to take the kids to the Hershey's Park :). 

Do you wanna hear more story about this great theme park?
I'll be back :)

But meanwhile, let's enjoy Pennsylvania State Capitol Building at night :).

Do you like visiting historical city as well?

Brooklyn Bridge through my smartphones

Brooklyn Bridge is indeed one of the landmarks here in the big apple.
Even for those who stay here for some times, like us :). 

Take the subway, walk a little bit and there we are.. 
Arriving at one of the most iconic bridges in the Big Apple.

Coming back to spend some evening (and also afternoon) with the kids and Udi, we can't help but take pictures here and there. And most of the time, we are too lazy to bring our camera and voilaaaa, we pretty much depend on smartphones.

We all know that smartphones are indeed smart. 

Panorama? Checked.

Selfie? Checked.

Short movie? Checked.

Slo-mo video? Checked.

Time lapse? Checked.

Everything is at your finger tips.

One magic button and you have them all :).

So I was looking at my photo album and I just realized that I have thousands of photos. Surprised, surprised..

As I am transferring most of those treasured, immortalized moments from my phone to my PC and later to my external hard disks (Yes.. I have used 3 1 -Terra-GB for all those photos and videos ;)> ), I found that I have some from the Brooklyn Bridge.

Some were taken last fall, some from recent visit this spring and the beginning of summer.

All of our visit to the oldest bridge using hybrid cable-stayed suspension in this country is always rewarding. And it is also easy to go there...Either you are heading there with the help of Waze or Google map while driving your car, or take MTA Subway line 6 to Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall and walk a bit, you are good to go :).

Once we got the sunset.. 

Then the twinkling sceneries of Manhattan at night, as well as sweet ice-cream session in this beautiful bridge.

when the night comes..

The construction of this bridge was done in 1883 and up until now, you can see Brooklyn Bridge in many movies, TV series, souvenirs and even chocolate :).

There is something about looking at Manhattan with East River as the foreground. 

I have to say it is bellavista that I can't get enough of.

Manhattan on the other side..

We have passed through the bridge with our car as well but we haven't tried to walk across the bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn or the other way around.

So far, my favorite spots are the Brooklyn bridge promenade, the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory and Pier 6. Bo et Obi loves this promenade as well as it is perfect for scootering :)

cheeers...

It's just simply rewarding to witness this beauty. 

How about you? Do you like taking pictures with your phone? What's your favorite object(s)?

Strolling around Midtown Manhattan

Summer break is here but works continue to pour like rain :(.

Well, at least in my case...

I haven't got a chance to take my leave and can't wait to have my break in August. 
Hopefully by that time we will be able to really enjoy some quality family time. 

Meanwhile, whenever we get a chance, we always try to go out and enjoy NYC.
I feel bad of spending so much time at work while Bo et Obi are staying at home.
Sometimes they come to the office and to the UN with me and that's when we stroll around Manhattan just to enjoy some fresh air and outdoors.

I forgot where exactly it was :)

As the UN and my office are located in Midtown Manhattan, we some times walk around the blocks. We usually end up in a restaurant or shops :). 
And strolling around Midtown Manhattan is indeed a pleasure...
Not long ago we just walked around midtown, took some pictures and ended up at the Rockefeller Center. We didn't go up to the Top of the Rock as we didn't really have much time. But even walking around here is nice..

We went here during winter when they have the ice rings and all those lovely Christmas decoration. But even without it, it looks nice :)

And here are some pics from that day...

ada yang capek jalan..ada yang asyik baca peta hehehehe

cheers from Obi...with Empire State Building at the back..

The Rock...

How about your summer break? Do you like strolling around the blocks as well like us?

New York City from above

I just notice that I have some shots taken with my smartphone just before landing in NYC.
I know it's been quite some times but it is amazing to see any city from above.
When you are flying up high and about to land.
Especially NYC...

With its scaterring islands, deep blue sea, hi-rise buildings and great bridges.
What a sight to enjoy :)

make me wanna swim :)

George Washington Bridge

Enjoy the beauty of sky wherever you are and join us in Skywatch Friday