St. Stephen Basilica

There wasn't a lot of time for me to go site-seeing, what with looking for a house and getting the kids settled in school, but I did manage to take one afternoon to go see the Christmas market outside St. Stephen's basilica just before the kids got out of school for the Winter break.

This church is named after St. Stephen, the first king of Hungary, who lived about 1,050 years ago.  His right hand is housed in the reliquary and you can pay extra to see it, but I passed.  Seemed kinda morbid to me and I wasn't sure even how to ask about it, considering my Hungarian is so poor.  The structure is the same height as the Parliament building, at 96 meters (315 feet) high.  It took about 54 years to build, mostly due to a collapse of dome during construction which required demolition and major redesign and rebuild.  Organ concerts are regularly given and I hope to take the kids to one in the spring, maybe around Easter.

My favorite part is the artwork on the cupola:

But the altar and side alters are equally magnificent:

One thing that was kinda strange:  the internet and the guide books say that the tour through the chapel is free, but a small donation is appreciated.  I would have to disagree with the assessment that it is 'appreciated' and go right to required.  When I got to the entrance, there was a priest standing next to the "donation" box.  The box had a sign that clearly read "200 ft".  The priest's poster and demenor made it pretty obvious that his sole purpose was to check to make sure everyone "donated".  I actually don't mind that they charge to view the building, especially such a nominal fee (200 ft = $1), afterall, the basilica requires maintenance just like anything else, but I wished they would just come straight out and charge the price, rather than asking for a donation that isn't really optional.  It was weird but shouldn't discourage visits.  It's really just strange they don't come clean with the whole deal.

Okay, so last picture.  Here's the back of the basilica.

Comments

[jonbitter]

Awesome. Sarah and I have been debating on where to go if we ever get enough money to go on vacation. Now we can just have a virtual vacation as you discover cool things about your new home. ;-)

[Lora]

I almost feel like I am there with you. So excited when you can settle in and do some more exploring!

[kathy]

That is so fun to know you are experiencing such a great, once in a lifetime, experience. Thanks for the pictures. They are so amazing. kathy

[Melissa]

Very catholic appearing and so pretty. Old world stuff..love it. Love that you're enjoying experiencing it!