Budapest, day second, Basilica of St.Stephen

..Quite rightly, however, the inside of the Basilica has been criticized as being too dark - there are simply not enough windows for such a large building. Consequently, it's hard to fully appreciate the interior decoration of the church, which includes Gyula Benczúr's depiction of St. Stephen offering the Hungarian crown to the Virgin Mary. That said, recent improvements - which include additional lighting in the nave and the overhaul of the cathedral's organ - were part of a protracted restoration programme costing in excess of $17 million USD. Most of the funding, which was spent on the cathedral's exterior, has taken more than twenty years to complete although, judging by the results, it was certainly worth the expense! And, with the addition of an impressive piazza area, but the Basilica is definitely a "must see" for first-time visitors to Budapest, so we did.