Eger and Szilvasvarad

Make sure you check out my Eger/Szilvasvarad link on my blog to read up on its history and what I did there.

Szilvasvarad

Szilvasvarad

The old trains of the east

This is a primitve house of the Magyars

Fall is coming

The famous Lipizzaner horses are here in this town

Eger

This is me standing on the castle wall looking out on the town

The Hungarian Flag

Inside the castle in its secret tunnels

Me relaxing in a hot natural spring bath

University of Debrecen

This is me in front of the main campus building. My dorm is right behind this building.

Budapest

Here are just a few pictures of the awesome captial of Budapest. Sorry about the akwardness of the layout I am stil learning how to use this site.

Trip to Eger & Szilvasvarad

September 21-22

I went to a couple of nice quiet towns outside of Debrecen this last weekend and had the greatest of times.

Eger is an old castle town where the Hungarians fought off the advancing Turks. Eger is also famous for its wine. Legend has it that the badly out numbered Hungarians were given red wine from their general to boost their courage. When the Turks came to battle they saw the red wine all over their breads and believed that the Hungarians had been drinking the blood of wild boars and other animals and became frightened and ended up loosing the battle. Several years latter the Turks returned and defeated the Hungarians. In Eger there is a valley called the "the valley of the beautiful women". There are no beautiful women just a buch of gympsies selling cheap wine. The whole valley smelled of wine. Eger is a type of town where its nice to sit outside at a quiet cafe and listen to the nice classical music as the sun sets. One of the highlights of the trip was soaking in the turkish mineral baths with the locals. These pools are natural springs that get as hot as 41 degrees celcius. They are also high in sulfer content causing the water to have a nice smell. Mineral baths are great for the skin and body pain. I felt so refreshed afterwards, it is a must while in Hungary.

Szilvasvarad town is a great place to do some hiking and see the Lipizzaner horses. During the summer months there are shows and charriage races. We were able to see the horses pulling tourists and later we visited them in their stable.

It is so fun to plan out these excursions almost every week. I love looking at maps and reading all I can about these destinations.

Still Alive

On the 7th of September I left for Hungary for a study abroad. It took me an entire day to arrive in Budapest which is the capital of Hungary. I was so excited to reach my destination that I was unable to sleep on the plane. I arrived at the airport hardly able to speak Hungarian and somehow was able to make it to my school safely and rather easily.

Here are some random facts of Hungary:

1. Hungary has a population of around 10 million and is deminishing in size each year.
2. Hungary is part of East Central Europe. It has a little bit of the eastern influence but considers itself more a western nation.
3. Hungary once was one of the strongest nations in all the world. It once contained all of Austria, Romainia, the Slavic lands, Poland and the former Czechoslovakia.
4. Hungarians are not related to the Huns but come from the Magyars. Hungarians don't call themselves Hungarians but the Magyars.
5. Hungary is about the size of the state Indiana

Currently I am studying at the University of Debrecen. Debrecen next to Budapest is the second largest city. It is nicknamed the city of the sun. It is a beautiful city of about 2 hundred thousand. My school schedule is going to be great check this out.
Monday- 10-12, A cultural history of Hungary. My teacher actually offered us Hungarian peach brandy during class to help us understand Hungarian culture. After that from 12-14 I have tennis.
Tuesday- 10-12 US Hungarian Relations, 12-14 Ping Pong, 14-16 History of East Central Europe
Wednesday- 10-12 Soccer, 12-14 Hungarian Language, 14-16 Economics of Europe.
Thursday and Friday no class. I will be able to travel all weekend! I probably will take one more econ class and maybe one more soccer class and volleyball. I couldn't imagine a better schedule.

Life here is about 20 years behind the U.S. Now I know what it must of been like living in the 80s. The people are simple and nice. The food is very good. Hungary is world famous for some of the best cusine in the world. They cook some of the best soup I have ever eaten.

On those long weekends I intend on traveling around the eastern part of Europe. Hungary is a good place for me to set as my hub for those travels. I intend on visiting many places while here and after my schooling. I will keep an update on those adventures.

Hello from Hungary

This is the first picture that I took after arriving in Hungary.

Hello from Hungary

September 20 2007

I have almost been in Europe for two weeks now and I am finally finding time to update my blog. Sorry about the delay.