Budapest is a city that never disappoints... full of stunning architecture, delicious food, beautiful views, and lovely people. The Budapest Christmas Market was one of our favorites of the trip. Actually there are at least 2 major Christmas markets in Budapest- one in the city center and one in front of St. Stephen's Cathedral. Both have traditional crafts, fantastic local specialty foods and, of course, lots of hot beverages!
We tried the chimney cake- similar to Pillsbury crescent roll dough that is wrapped around a skewer and then roasted over an open flame before being coated in your choice of sweet topping- we opted for cinnamon and sugar. From here we visited the Budapest Synagogue and one of the famous 'ruin bars', bars that are literally built into the crumbling ruins of bombed out WWII buildings. The one we visited also had a fantastic local food market.
We headed up to Buda Castle where we toured the beautiful Matthias Church and explored via segway.
We finished off with a dinner cruise along the Danube to admire the beautiful city lights of Budapest.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.