Hungarian Parliament

Since we are very important people and we have international connections, we were able to take an exclusive tour of the Hungarian Parliament yesterday with Tamász (pronounced Tomas), a good friend of Gabi's who works for the government. The building is very fancy on the inside, complete with faux marble (ironically more expensive than the real stuff) and gold leaf accents. We were whisked behind every open door Tamász could find (literally) and were able to see the "congress" in action and many of the private offices, including that of the Prime Minister. Also took a gander at the Royal Crown which was given to King Stephan in the year 1000 by the pope. Would put up a picture of this but it is very blurry. Good job, Bird.

Also, yesterday after the Parliament and lunch with Gabi, we met another friend of Kati's, Eszter, and spent a few hours with her while the rain cleared up. She will be visiting NY at the end of July, so we will be seeing her at that point, as well.

Today we are off to Venice via overnight train. Our schedule has changed a bit, as we will be spending only one day in Venice and heading off to Modena to stay with Dan's friend, Mario.

Looking forward to Italy.