I knew nothing about Hungary until we were educated about Hungarian history today during our visit to Visegrad castle, the seat of the Hungarian kings for many years during the Magyar reign. It turns out that the Huns, who occupied the area of current Hungary in the fifth century were not the original Hungarians. It was not until the tenth century that Arpad unified the Magyars from the east, and established his kingdom in the Carpathian basin. Later his descendent Vajk was crowned in Esztagrom in the year 1000 as the 'Holy Crown of Hungary' and became King and then, because he was the the first of his family to become a devout Christian, was named Saint Stephen. A copy of the crown in on display in the castle, having been kept in the castle for significant periods of time. The kingdom was stable and strong until the Mongols invaded in the 1200's. Later, through marriage, Angevin kings ruled and still later King Sigismund from Luxembourg. The Magyars maintained their supremacy over the Carpathian plains until the Ottomans were victorious over the Hungarian army at the Battle of Mohacs in 1526. I had not known the history of the Magyars until today, and was unaware of how large and significant the kingdom was; the exhibition at the castle was comprehensive and informative, and the views high above the Danube spectacular.
It appears that Visegrad castle is a popular outing location for a Sunday. The parking lot was full cars with Hungarian license plates. Streets in the town were cordoned off for a bicycle race, the hotels were full of families and couples enjoying the spas and pools. It was hot and humid and exhausting to move, but we forged ahead. There were Roman ruins to see near the Danube, a ruined palace and a lower castle in addition to the upper one. I am always impressed when I ask my father about something, particularly about history, and he will remember intricate details about what he has read. When I asked him what he could recall about Visegrad, he informed me that it was at Visegrad that the bible was translated to the Slavic language and that Saints Cyril and Methodius had visited in the tenth century to spread the gospel. We had seen their statues yesterday driving through a town in Slovakia. Visegrad was not personally important to my father, but is was significant historically, and so that is why we chose to stay there. Our hotel was right on the Danube and we were able to walk along the water last night and again this morning.
On our way to Budapest, we stopped at Szentendre, called Sankt Andra in German, Sentandreja in Serbian and Svaty Ondrej in Slovakian. Over the years, the town was settled by all sorts of emigrants, particularly after the population was decimated by the Turks. There are many many churches and a wonderful centre with a pedestrian zone ( I am getting accustomed to being away from cars when walking in cities, and I wish that all cities would close off their centres to all but pedestrians; it is a much more pleasant experience). The town is right on the Danube, and we thought of getting our feet wet until we saw dozens of ducks in the water, and consequently it became far less inviting. We learned about Hungarian snacks, and tasted 'langosek', a fried dough spread with sour cream, cheese and garlic. We encountered a delightful couple who insisted that we try this specialty.
Our car was safe when we returned to leave the town, but we received our first parking ticket. Usually we are very particular about where we park, we try to read the signs and pay for parking when required, but it was Sunday and we did not pay enough attention. Oops.
Budapest was not far, and we found our hotel in the centre near St. Stephen's cathedral. Actually it is an apartment, not a hotel, with more space, and most importantly for us, a washing machine. Our evening walk led us to the huge neoclassical church, to the Danube, walking most of the way over to Buda, with a view of the palace and a glorious sunset. Dinner at a small outdoor restaurant near the university was a challenge; Hungarian food is meat oriented and we were eager for a salad, but none but pickled vegetables were available. I had a mushroom goulasch, but it was nothing like I remembered; there was no paprika used in the seasoning! Adam had told us that our great grandfather Anton was crazy for goulash and would go out in the morning hunting, and would ask his wife to cook whatever the catch of the day was, and he would eat goulash for breakfast! I grew up eating my grandmother's goulash, which my father always claimed was the best, and it was seasoned with paprika. The goulash Karen ordered yesterday and that of today had no paprika at all. Goulasch means simply a stew, and can be made different kinds of meat. It appears that being a carnivore is essential to Hungarian cuisine.
We have a day for Budapest tomorrow, and again we are overwhelmed with choices; the city has many churches and palaces and museums to see in a day.
It appears that Visegrad castle is a popular outing location for a Sunday. The parking lot was full cars with Hungarian license plates. Streets in the town were cordoned off for a bicycle race, the hotels were full of families and couples enjoying the spas and pools. It was hot and humid and exhausting to move, but we forged ahead. There were Roman ruins to see near the Danube, a ruined palace and a lower castle in addition to the upper one. I am always impressed when I ask my father about something, particularly about history, and he will remember intricate details about what he has read. When I asked him what he could recall about Visegrad, he informed me that it was at Visegrad that the bible was translated to the Slavic language and that Saints Cyril and Methodius had visited in the tenth century to spread the gospel. We had seen their statues yesterday driving through a town in Slovakia. Visegrad was not personally important to my father, but is was significant historically, and so that is why we chose to stay there. Our hotel was right on the Danube and we were able to walk along the water last night and again this morning.
On our way to Budapest, we stopped at Szentendre, called Sankt Andra in German, Sentandreja in Serbian and Svaty Ondrej in Slovakian. Over the years, the town was settled by all sorts of emigrants, particularly after the population was decimated by the Turks. There are many many churches and a wonderful centre with a pedestrian zone ( I am getting accustomed to being away from cars when walking in cities, and I wish that all cities would close off their centres to all but pedestrians; it is a much more pleasant experience). The town is right on the Danube, and we thought of getting our feet wet until we saw dozens of ducks in the water, and consequently it became far less inviting. We learned about Hungarian snacks, and tasted 'langosek', a fried dough spread with sour cream, cheese and garlic. We encountered a delightful couple who insisted that we try this specialty.
Our car was safe when we returned to leave the town, but we received our first parking ticket. Usually we are very particular about where we park, we try to read the signs and pay for parking when required, but it was Sunday and we did not pay enough attention. Oops.
Budapest was not far, and we found our hotel in the centre near St. Stephen's cathedral. Actually it is an apartment, not a hotel, with more space, and most importantly for us, a washing machine. Our evening walk led us to the huge neoclassical church, to the Danube, walking most of the way over to Buda, with a view of the palace and a glorious sunset. Dinner at a small outdoor restaurant near the university was a challenge; Hungarian food is meat oriented and we were eager for a salad, but none but pickled vegetables were available. I had a mushroom goulasch, but it was nothing like I remembered; there was no paprika used in the seasoning! Adam had told us that our great grandfather Anton was crazy for goulash and would go out in the morning hunting, and would ask his wife to cook whatever the catch of the day was, and he would eat goulash for breakfast! I grew up eating my grandmother's goulash, which my father always claimed was the best, and it was seasoned with paprika. The goulash Karen ordered yesterday and that of today had no paprika at all. Goulasch means simply a stew, and can be made different kinds of meat. It appears that being a carnivore is essential to Hungarian cuisine.
We have a day for Budapest tomorrow, and again we are overwhelmed with choices; the city has many churches and palaces and museums to see in a day.
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