BEYOND Budapest

world-famous orchestras and companies as the Chicago
Symphonics, the London St. Martin-in-the-Fields Ensemble and the
Nederland Dance Theatre. The permanent exhibition of the Ludwig
Museum includes works by Picasso, Warhol and the greatest
contemporary Hungarian artists. All are welcome to take in the
building’s breathtaking interior dimensions; there is also a CD store,
gift and bookshop, restaurant and cafeteria.
French Institute B4
I., Fô utca 17
ç 86 « 19, 41
Of the contemporary buildings in
Budapest this centre of French
culture built to the plans of
George Maurios in 1992 takes a
leading position. Although
designed to fit the form of other
blocks along the Danube
embankment, details of the
building are radically modern. One interesting feature is that the
Institute is adjoined to the inner courtyard of the neighbouring
house with a glass wall, thus anyone sitting in the buffet is witness
to the everyday comings and goings of a typical Budapest
apartment block.
Elizabeth Bridge B3
ç 5, 7, 7, 8, 78, 86, 173 « 2, 18, 19, 41, 118
In the year of its construction (1903) it was the world’s longest
suspension bridge, a
record it held until
1926. The bridge was
named after the wife
of Emperor Franz
Joseph, Hungary’s
beloved Queen
Elizabeth. German
troops blew up the original bridge in 1945. The new bridge was
designed by Pál Sávoly and built in 1964.
Liberty Bridge B4
« 2, 18, 19, 41, 47, 49, 118 ç 7, 7/A, 15, 86
Originally called Franz Joseph Bridge, it was constructed in 1899,
and following the destruction of all the Budapest bridges in 1945
this was the first one to be rebuilt (1946) since it had suffered the
least damage. During rebuilding all its decorative motifs were
retained: the mythical Turul birds, royal coat of arms etc.
Chain Bridge B3
ç 4, 16, 86, 105 « 2, 19, 41
The capital’s first bridge, a historical monument, has attracted many
tourists to Budapest: photographs or film of it illuminated at night,
with the imposing Buda Castle rising in the background, make for a
breathtaking sight. Count István Széchenyi commissioned William
Tierney Clark to design the bridge and engineer
Adam Clark (no relation) to build it. Construction
lasted from 1839–1849. The bridge did not
escape the destruction of the
Second World War, and it
was rebuilt in 1949, on its
100th anniversary.
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