Beautiful Budapest and the Hungarian State Opera House

What’s in a word? Well…

When that word is “WOW” quite a lot actually.

Wow doesn’t even come close to covering it when it comes to the Hungarian State Opera House and I think you see why in the photos. I’d urge anyone who is lucky enough to visit this awesome city to visit or take a tour of the building. It would surprise me if you didn’t a similar reaction as I did when you first walk in and see the lavish neo-Renaissance decor. Once again with the wow!

“Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”

~Victor Hugo

Certainly one of the nicest things about what I do with my work is getting opportunities to have places like this all to myself. In this case myself, my guide from the Hungarian Tourism Board, and our host from the Opera House. I was not sure that I’d get the chance to visit and photograph this iconic building since I had just attempted to do the same in Vienna with no luck. While I had a great time in Vienna and it is an absolutely gorgeous city where I did get into several incredible locations… The opera house eluded me and my cameras.

Next time Vienna…Next time!

“If music be the food of love, play on.”

~William Shakespeare

The rich textures and opulent decor made me feel so small in the regal setting. It must be such a different experience during a show both in the audience and behind the scenes with so many people working on the productions well out of sight from the patrons.

I remember letting my imagination run away with itself while I was taking these photos. I was trying my best to envision what it would be like to take in a show and I hope that one day I’ll be able to return for such an experience. I was kindly invited to take in a show at the Bavarian State Opera House the next time I’m in Munich, and why not be greedy then and wish for a similar opportunity at another incredible venue such as the Hungarian State Opera House? Why not indeed.

The auditorium has a capacity of 1,261 and has the third best acoustics in Europe after La Scala in Milan and the Palais Garnier in Paris. While it is not one of the largest Opera Houses in Europe it certainly has the reputation of being one of the finest. Once again proving that size isn’t everything.

 

“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”

~William Penn

It took me a long time to finally process these images and I’m not sure why. I’m woefully behind in editing right now and could literally spend a few months doing little else but photoshop work. While it is a nice problem to have in many ways, I feel sad just knowing that there will be gems like these photos that I’ll likely never end up showing anyone, simply because there isn’t enough time.

I had a wonderful time in Budapest and that was in good part thanks to my kind guide from the Hungarian Tourism Board. She went out of her way to make sure that I had the best experience possible and her pride in her work, her city, and her country was contagious. Without a doubt I can say that Budapest was one of my all time favourite travel experiences and I certainly would love to return to spend a lot more time there. What made Budapest rank so high for me? The food, the history, the legendary spas, the architecture, and did I mention the food? :)

“A work of art is above all an adventure of the mind.”

~Eugene Ionesco

In a few weeks I will be heading off on another photographic adventure when I return to one of my favorite countries in the world. It will be nice to say hello once again to Italy. I’m are going to be scouting for locations in Umbria, Tuscany, Liguria, and Veneto for our upcoming Italy photo workshops that I have been planning for a while now. More news on this soon!

I’m really excited to be heading to so many beautiful places in Italy that I have never visited and to do it with someone who shares my passion for Italy, good food and wine, and photography is going to make this trip even more special. After that I’m in Spain on a job for a favourite client and back home for a short wile before heading to Iceland for my first of two sold out workshops this year.

I’m also heading into year three of writing this blog and want to say thank you to everyone of my readers for being so supportive all this time. There are some big and positive changes coming to the blog in the upcoming months, so stay tuned. The best is yet to come!

Travel Longer

I’m really happy to be the featured photographer in next month’s Travel Longer iPad magazine. What a nice honour to be interviewed and have my photography featured one month after legendary National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry!

For my readers Travel Longer (published exclusively for iPad on the Apple Newsstand) is offering a 3 month trial subscription for free. Here’s how to get it on your iPad:

To get the three months for free, use the code:  kaminesky (all lower case, no spaces) then…

Head to http://travellonger.com/code  to read how to use the code or just download the app from the Apple App Store: http://bit.ly/Tlapp

Hope you enjoy the magazine!