March 22

It is now March 23 as I am sitting in my hotel room at 12:35 AM (Hungary Time), longing for my bed.  Wow!  What a wonderful and exhausting day!  The day started with a fabulous Hungarian breakfast, featuring various meats, breads, beans, eggs, and cereals.  We had a long window for breakfast, from 6:30 AM until 9:00 AM, which was kind of nice, because following our first full night of needed sleep, we were able to leisurely eat and socialize without a rush. We met in the lobby to board the buses at 9:30 AM for a  3 hour tour of the Pest on the eastern bank of Budapest.

Tour sites included Heroes Square, the Parliament Building, and St. Stephens's Basilica.  Students were then released for lunch and free time for about 3 hours.  After lunch/free time, we met at the basilica so we could walk to our first concert venue.  The concert was a success!  All groups performed beautifully in a one hour concert.  After the concert, we then boarded the buses to be taken to a late dinner, which started around 9:00 PM, where we were serenaded by two Hungarian guitarists.  We arrived at the hotel at 11:30 PM for immediate curfew and room check, which then brings me here, to my computer, typing this blog at now 12:46 AM (zzzzzzz).

 Our local guide for Bus 2

 Spring in Budapest

 The man in the ped sign wears a hat

 Ronald Reagan Statue

 That's how far we had to walk up with equipment

 Band Rehearsing