Budapest, Hungary is a city for romantics and aesthetics alike. Its stunning architecture, historic districts, the winding Danube River and the nearby Buda hills make it the most beautiful city in Central Europe. In the past ten years Budapest has grown in popularity as a tourist destination and is now well equipped to delight any traveler. Forget “We’ll always have Paris” for this generation of adventurers: it’s “We’ll always have Budapest.” Here is a list of the most romantic things to do to ensure that you too fall in love in (or with) Budapest.

Of Wine and Walking Tours
Budapest is a great city for meandering walks and never ending picnic lunches. For an organized walk try- Free Budapest Walking Tours for guided tours of the city; the trained guides work only on tips. They offer a thorough general walking tour all year round; communist and Jewish Quarter walking tours are offered from April through October.

After the tour get out your picnic blanket and take a rest in the historic City Park, be sure to pass by the Vajdahunyad Castle, a model castle built to demonstrate the different phases of Hungarian building design.

After an afternoon in the Hungarian sunshine, you can quench your thirst at the House of Hungarian Wines (Magyar Borok Háza) in the Castle District. Enjoy the ambiance of a neo-gothic wine cellar and sample from nearly 700 wines representing the 22 wine producing regions of Hungary. If wine is your passion- consider making the trip for one of the annual Budapest wine festivals. The Spring Wine Festival takes place in mid-April in downtown Budapest. The Wine Village is next and takes place in mid-August; this festival is a more economical and less touristy than the International Wine & Champagne Festival in the Castle District, which takes place in September. However, at this popular festival both Hungarian and visiting wine makers introduce their best.

Dinner and Dancing
Next in the romance category should be a fabulous dinner with spectacular views of the city. Consider Spoon Café and Lounge or Café Pierrot. Spoon is located on a boat in the Danube River while Café Pierrot is warm and cozy. Both restaurants have extensive menus with vegetarian options. As the evening continues make a stop at Fat Mo’s Music Club, styled as a 20s style American speak-easy, it features live music on all weekend nights. For the serious club dancers, be sure to check out B-7. If traditional dance is more your style consider the Aranytiz Cultural Center. Here you can learn the czardas, the ‘tango of the east’, or simply enjoy the music. Since the 1970s the ‘dancehouse movement,’ as one part of a larger folk revival movement, has been popularizing Hungarian dance tradition. After the dancing, if you haven’t already had too much wine, be sure to sample pálinka, a Hungarian fruit brandy that is a common stable in most local bars.

Budapest is a great place to visit. While you there, make sure you stay in one of there many beautiful hotels. These hotels keep the historic grandeur that they used to have and look very old and European. I loved my time there. Plus, the city is so cheap, you can get a lot of bang for your buck. Usually, I stay in hostels when I travel, but here, I splashed out and got a great hotel in Budapest.

For many people Texas, the second largest US state, conjures up images of cowboys, tumbleweeds and George Bush II. But Texas has a lot of just about everything- bustling cities, beaches, wide-open plains, and world-class art and music scenes.

In grandiose Texas style, Austin, the capital city, does not just have good live music- it is “The live music capital of the world.” Austin earned the name because it has more music venues per capita than any other city in the United States- more than 200 to date. The people of Austin include a mix of artists, politicians, techies who work in Silicon Hills, students and professors from the University of Texas-Austin and, of course, musicians. “Keep Austin Weird” is a slogan popular among residents. You can find a live show any day of the year in Austin but to get the most music for your money you might want to attend one of the four annual music festivals: South by Southwest, Austin City Limits (ACL), Pachanga or Urban.

South by Southwest
The oldest and most famous festival is the South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media conference. Held every spring the festival has grown to include film and interactive media in addition to music. Musicians from all over the world gather in Austin to perform at 80 venues throughout the city. During the day there are conferences and trade talks about the future of the industry. In 2009 the festival attracted groups ranging from Kanye West to Metallica to Silversun Pickups. There are also enough up and upcoming new bands to satisfy the choosiest music snob.

Austin City Limits
The Austin City Limits (ACL) music festival is a three-day festival held every October. Last year more than 65,000 people came to see more than 130 acts on eight stages. The ACL is not limited to one genre of music and brings together rock, country, folk, indie, hip-hop, and bluegrass groups.

Pachanga
Pachanga Latino Music Festival is the newest of the festivals. It is held every May in historic East Austin on Lady Bird Lake. It is billed as a celebration of Latino music, food and cultural arts. Pachanga means “lively party” in Spanish. In 2009 twenty bands performed in Spanish and English at the one-day festival.

Urban
The Urban Music Festival is held each spring and features R&B, neo-soul, and hip-hop music. In 2009 the festival attracted 12,000 people to Auditorium shores. The Urban Festival is a community-building event and relies on volunteers and other local participation.

Music Districts
If you can’t make it to Austin in time for the festivals you can still stroll through the music districts to find live performances. The best place to start is the Sixth Street District- with more than 50 clubs you are sure to find what you are looking for. But if you don’t you can continue on the Warehouse District for some classic blues at the world famous Antone’s. If you like to be on the cutting edge be sure to check out the alternative music in the Red River District.

Remember that many of these festivals are very popular. SXSW has become an iconic event that attracts tens of thousands of people. So does Austin City Limits. If you plan on traveling there, you will need to book your hotels early. Very early. Rooms fill up quick and many of the good deals are gone quickly. When I went to SXSW last year, I used Hotels Combined for my bookings. They had a lot of choices and were cheaper than Expedia.