Enjoying Beautiful Budapest

We attended the SEND Youth Ministry Summit 2012 in Budapest, Hungary last week (March 18-25).  It was a great time to connect with others who have a passion for seeing youth all over the world come to know Christ!  We spent the week brainstorming, discussing, networking, and sharing with other youth workers.  We were very thankful for the opportunity to participate in the Summit, especially because we are still in language school and are not yet doing youth ministry.  Of course, we had to do the whole tourist thing, so we took advantage of free times and the weekend to explore the beautiful city of Budapest!  Here are a few pictures of our week:

The participants of the 2012 Youth Ministry Summit in one of our whole group sessions.  We had sessions Sunday evening through Thursday night (with some free time added in!).  What a wonderful group of people!  This wasn't one of those "boring conferences"--it was a great time to connect and share with others who have a passion for youth ministry! 

The group took a night tour of Budapest on the Danube River.  It was beautiful to see all of the city lights!

The Parliament Building in Budapest!  Absolutely amazing!  We heard on the tour that it has 691 rooms, over 12.5 miles of corridors, and a 96 meter high central dome.  Unfortunately, we didn't get to take a tour. :(

Ron Hardy, a mobilizer for SEND International, was at the Summit.  We had a great time visiting with him!  Ron is a great friend and mentor that we met while in college.  Many of you may remember him from our commissioning services.

Relaxing on a park bench that overlooks the Danube River.

The Citadel offers a great view of Budapest.  "Budapest" was actually two cities, Buda and Pest.  When the first bridge was built across the Danube River, the two cities became one--Budapest!  We spent the weekend with some missionary friends who are serving in Budapest with SEND, and they took us to several tourist sites.

St. Matthias Cathedral--another example of amazing architecture!  We took a tour, but we didn't get many pictures because it was being completely remodeled on the inside.

Posing in an archway at Fisherman's Bastion, a lookout that was once used for protection of the city along the Danube embankment.  We enjoyed learning about some history of Budapest, but we were thrilled to learn that the Bastion was featured as a Pit Stop on the sixth season of "The Amazing Race," our favorite show!  :)

Breathtaking view from inside St. Stephen's Basilica.  Isn't it incredible how cathedrals were designed to draw your attention toward the heavens?

A "touristy" pose in front of St. Stephen's Basilica.  We couldn't have asked for better weather--it was sunny and warm the whole week!  (Of course, we returned to Kyiv to wind, rain, and snow...but life is good!).

Our lunch--langos (pronounced "langosh"), a traditional Hungarian dish.  It is a deep-fried bread (similar to an elephant ear, but not sweet) that you can top with a variety of good stuff.  They usually start with sour cream and pile it on from there!  Andy's choice: Hungarian goolash with cheese and corn.  Cassie's choice: feta cheese, cucumbers, and tomatoes.  Delicious, although it's like a heart attack waiting to happen!  :)