The Sky Over Budapest

It might not be populated with angels, like the sky over Berlin. And yet again, it might, we'll just never know for sure. The silhouettes of the Twelve Apostles guard the city from the Saint Stephen Basilica, Budapest's second tallest building after the Parliament and the country's third, first being the cathedral in Esztergom. The future basilica's location was decided upon after the floods of 1838, when many of the city's inhabitants found shelter from the Danube's fury on this naturally elevated spot of land. The plans were set up as early as 1845 but the building was finalized only by 1905 and it was rebuilt several times during the 20th century, as two world wars and the passing of time took their toll on the structure. The latest renovation ended in 2003 and it concerned not only the basilica itself, but also the artworks inside and the adjacent Saint Stephen square.