Szia! Hello from Hungary! As soon as we crossed the Hungarian border I noticed that it was quite flat. This was a stark contrast to Austria, which is quite hilly and mountainous (reference Sound of Music). However, this flat plain is perfect for farming, and indeed Hungary has very rich soil. I decided I wanted to take a detour to Budapest, so we drove south towards Lake Balaton. We saw several castles perched on hills and drove through little villages. The drive along Lake Balaton was quite pretty. Then we turned north for Budapest and got lost. Go figure. In all actuality, it was one of those things where the driver just chose not to listen to the navigator, but I digress. We stayed in a little hotel in downtown Budapest on the Pest side. Dinner for the first night? Goulash and pepper-cabbage salad of course! The next day we started the touring but before I go into that, I want to tell a brief history of Hungary and why I came here.
Hungary has a very long rich history but I will just give some brief highlights. I suppose to tell it right, I should start with the "Real" Hungarians, the Magyars from Asia. They were tribesmen and horsemen, nomads. By the 800s they had settled in the Carpathian basin. Now, it is important to mention at this point that Hungarians have their own very distinct language. The only language remotely similar is Finnish, hence the name of the group, Finno-Urgaic, although recent literature has aroused some doubt. Regardless, there was one tribe and then they divided, taking their languages with them. Let me tell you, the Hungarian language is not like any other language. It is very difficult to learn, read and speak. I only know the important words: nagymama (grandmother), igen (yes), nem (no), koszonom (thank you), cukraszda (bakery), Szia (hello), and a kid's song my grandmother taught me. So, clearly I am ready! Anyway, as I said, the Magyars went south. Fast forward a hundred something years to 1001 AD. Hungary is made officially a kingdom in the eyes of Europe with the crowning of St. Stephen. He is credited with converting the Hungarians to Christianity, although his father, Geza, actually started the process. Fast forward another couple of hundred years to the 1500s...Ottoman Turk invasion. The Ottomans invaded and took control of Hungary, holding it until Hapsburg intervention in the 1700s. This started a new wave of Germanic immigration to resettle areas that had been decimated by the Ottomans and to gain a stronger foothold in Hungarian territory. The Hapsburgs held the Hungarian territory until WWI when they were defeated. Hungary lost 2/3 of its territory and 1/3 of its population with the Treaty of Trianon. They went through four governments in 9 months before Admiral Miklos Horthy took control as acting regent in 1920. He is a rather controversial figure since, although Hungary regained some former glory, communists, Jews and non-ethnic Hungarians suffered discrimination. This led to the deportations and deaths of thousands of Jews and Roma during WWII. At the end of WWII, Hungary entered a dark period under Soviet control. I will talk more about that later when I discuss the House of Terror. Soviet occupation ended in 1991 and Hungary entered a new age.
I am part Hungarian. My maternal grandmother's family was Hungarian, both her parents and their ancestors (or at least some of them) having been born in Hungary. So Hungary is a very special place to me! And so the Hungarian root search begins!
Cheers!
Elizabeth
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