One of the best things about traveling in Europe during the summer is the extended daylight hours. I like the slight disorientation of thinking that it is 6:30 pm only to look at a clock and see that it is 9:00 pm. Then in the morning, the sun peaking through my window shade makes me want to start the day a little earlier.
There is definitely something magical about watching a city come alive as the sun starts to rise. This is the time that many professional photographers recommend capturing pictures of whatever city you are visiting. That is both for the quality of the natural light and for the ability to avoid the hoards of tourists who are still in bed. At this time I basically have the streets to myself to take shots of famous monuments and scenic landscapes without worrying about getting a bunch of strangers directly in my line of sight.
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| I loved the sky behind St. Stephen’s Basilica |
Of course, those photographers are probably assuming that I am setting my alarm for a predawn hour so I can get out of the hotel in time to get some great pictures. Obviously those photographers are not Capoeiristas.
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| Standing guard over an empty square |
My main reason for visiting Budapest, Hungary this past weekend, was to participate in a Capoeira batizado and festival. Any Capoeirista who has done a bit of traveling knows that when you visit a city for a Capoeira event, there is little time to be a tourist. You are either participating in workshops, resting your tired muscles, catching up with friends you hadn’t seen in years, or doing a mad dash to transform yourself from a sweaty, exhausted mess into an attractive, fashion-wonder to head out to the party (and rest assured, there is always a party).
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| Just a few hours before this square was filled with weekend party goers |
And that’s why after 3 days in Budapest, I saw little besides the huge water park where the Capoeira workshops were held and the beautiful Parliament building that just happened to be visible from the tram I took to get to the workshops each day.
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| Curved buildings like this seem to be a European trademark |
I found the only time I got to wander freely around the city was just as the sun was coming up. That is not because I managed to rouse myself out of bed in the wee hours of the morning; its because that’s when I was rolling in from the party the night before. A combination of the sun rising before 5:00 am and the Capoeira group never knowing when to call it a night, means I walked home as the sun was coming up each of the three days I was there.
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| With my friends heading home after a long night on the dance floor |
And I have to say it’s the perfect time to see Budapest, especially because the daytime temperatures were creeping towards 100 degrees. All of the photos captured here are from my early morning strolls back to the hotel where I was staying. Unfortunately, at this time of the night/morning, I was only armed with my iPhone camera so the photos aren’t as clear as I would like them to be, but still they show a side of the city at the hour I most enjoyed.
