Travel Tip: Eger, Hungary

Last Monday I came back from a long weekend spent at my family´s hometown in Hungary, Eger and I couldn´t help but writing something about this wonderful small town.

You probably haven’t heard of it; but you are most likely to have had at least heard of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. Well, Eger lies 120Km north east of Budapest, and is connected to the capital through a direct motorway.

Allow yourself to get lost while taking a walk through the picturesque historic buildings, the wine yards and the narrow alleys in the old town.

Smell the calm fresh air of this beautiful city as you try one of the renowned red wines of the region, and believe me, you will get lost in history. As you look around you will feel surrounded by all the generals, captains, and bishops who have taken over and ruled the city since its foundation in the 10^th century.

Dobó Square

The 91 years long Turkish occupation around the 17^th century shaped a part of the culture, but it was not enough to overrule it, mainly a Christian (mostly Catholic) town, Eger´s traditional values are reflected by the many Churches spread around the city. Nevertheless the occupation left its traces in what is still to see in the city today. For instance you can see a fully preserved minaret, and the Turkish bath, a touristic highlight in the region. 

You will not fail to notice the castle of Eger, seized throughout the centuries by Turkish armies bishops, kings and aristocrats.. 

By paying a very low entrance fee you will be able to admire a place where the medieval times remained still, and where you can almost smell the passion and love the residents had for this castle at the time. 

Historic Centre

As you walk through the historic centre you can also note all the Baroque and Neoclassical buildings, a style I personally really like.

I am the kind of person who tries her best to enjoy life, I allow myself the time to drink good wine, eat good food, and take long walks whenever possible. Eger is the perfect getaway to combine all of this.

The city is very well known in the country for its extensive vineyards. Due to the relatively mild temperature, various types of grapes grow in this region, making it possible to bottle very high quality wines.

Wine Shop

I am very big fan of wines in general, but I think to describe the wines of Eger, I will need a whole new post J

Macok Restaurant at the Castle

Tip: to fully enjoy Eger you will need at least 2 nights/3 days

THE BOLD, THE THRILLING, THE HIP: BERLIN

This was a great weekend, good friends of ours visited us from Berlin; we know each other from the times we still lived in Budapest..one great city to spend your early, stress-less early 20s in.  

The weekend can sometimes be very very short..or wait, let me correct myself..the weekend is always too short! It is even shorter if you spend it in good company, and it turns into fast forwarding time machine if you spend it in good company and at great places!

As we walked between skyscrapers and promenades we had a chance to talk a lot about history, politics, and economy. These topics may seem boring to some, but it does get interesting if you share your background and experiences, and learn a different side of an apparently clear story.

Much has happened over the past 100 years.

The geography of the world has changed. Some countries have been first doubled than halved in their size. Monarchies rose and fell; boundaries have been closed, reopened and then closed again.

The world faced two world wars and innumerable regional wars thereafter.

Many of our most beautiful cities have been bombed down and rebuilt again. Some succeeded in regaining their once envied glory; others hopelessly fell into a decay.

Amongst all however; there is one city in Europe reflecting the beauty and the darkness, the highs and the lows, the good and the bold of the last century: Berlin.

I remember the first time I flew to Berlin, in 2010, I asked our friends to describe the city, or at least give me an idea of what it is like. The one answer I got was: "Hip! Berlin is Hip!" . I didn´t understand what that exactly meant, and have asked to define this properly again. The definition was just the answer repeated once again: "Hip, Berlin is hip!".

I was raised up in a picturesque wine region in north-west Italy and I am used to one certain type of people, and one certain landscape. The word hip never really belonged to my vocab  as a kid/teenager. But once I landed in Tegel Airport (Berlin) 4 years ago and took the tube to the city, I knew what they meant.

Berlin is a city of artists, a city of rebels and a city which never sleeps.

East and West, North and South literally meet in Berlin. The city is a real multicultural centre; about 20 to 30% of the population is either foreigner or has foreigner origins, which really warms up the generally cold German attitudes.

According to an article in Wikipedia, over 60% of Berlin´s population has no religious affiliation, which explains (to me at least) the openness of the Berliners to almost everything.

You can walk through an elegant area and suddenly find yourself in a graffiti rundown and then again at a designer studio. The city is home to a typical eastern bloc architecture on one side, and to some beautiful old buildings on the other.

The division between east and west is clear, the scars remain, and you can almost smell them as you walk from the first Döner snack bar in the world in Kreutzberg to the beautiful Charlottenburg Palace in Charlottenburg.

You don’t need major historical literacy to feel the uneasiness the existence of checkpoint Charlie (as well as all the other checkpoints), of the Wall and of the many barbed wires surrounding it have caused.

The atmosphere today is somehow still very surreal, as if the city were stuck in an eternal moment of quietness, as if the cars and people keep moving but the air remains still, the same air the previous generations breathed in, and the next generations will breathe in.  

The city has managed to rise up again and become the prosperous home of many, but as the daily stress takes over, and as you walk down Friedrichstraße it is hard to forget the atrocities and unfairness Berlin witnessed.

Yesterday a little jail too close to an unreachable west, today home to many immigrants hoping for a better life. Tomorrow, the place our generation will make out of it.

I advice you watch “Good Bye Lenin” if you can. A movie bringing to the point the many emotional aspects the unification of Germany and the fall of the wall resulted in. 

A rebellious, moving, and meaningful movie which might help you understand Berlin: the bold, the thrilling, the hip.

Strawberry Fields Forever

Finally summer knocked on German doors this weekend, and we inaugurated the best time of the year with a grill party (to celebrate a good friend´s birthday).

The thermometer showed 32 degrees Celsius, a heat the central European country is not used to.

 Almost each guest, on top of a present, brought a summer dish along. Mine was a fresh salad I like making when the temperature is burning…It was pretty much a success! And that´s why I would like to share the recipe with you .

Strawberry-Goat Cheese Salad

My salad, ready to be served :)

For this salad I mostly used fresh ingredients bought directly from farmers. Not only it is fun to go to a strawberry field and pick your own strawberries for instance, but it also helps local businesses to stay in the market. Often we go for cheaper, mass produced products in order to save a couple of cents, but this way we endanger local production and we eventually digest a great amount of chemicals.

Here is the beautiful strawberry field I drove to in order to pick up the best strawberries I saw this season.

"Pick them Yourself" Strawberry Fields close to the Main River in Germany

Ingredients

Dressing:

§    Olive Oil (1/4 cup)

§    Walnut Oil (1/4 cup)

§    Honey (2 big Tablespoons)

§    Pepper (to taste)

§    Salt (to taste)

§    Dill (1 Tablespoon)

§    Balsamic Vinegar Cream (2 Tablespoons)

Pls note that these amounts can be varied according to taste, some might want more oil, others more honey etc..

Salad:

§  (1/4 cup) Green lettuce and/or fresh baby spinach leaves (I prefer those to be honest, but I didn´t find any)

§    Creamy Goat Cheese (80g) - alternatively you can use Camembert if you don`t like Goat Cheese.

§    Honey (2 big Tablespoons)

§    Walnuts (1 cup) - if you use Camembert take almonds instead

§    Strawberries (500g)

.

Preparation

Dressing:

That´s easy :) You just have to mix all the dressing ingredients, except for the balsamic vinegar cream, in one cup and keep this aside ;)

Spread the dressing on top of the salad right before serving

Salad:

§  Wash Lettuce/Baby Spinach and place on a big, flat serving plate

§    Cut Goat Cheese in  little cubes (note; this might be tricky as the cheese is very creamy, don’t worry

    if your cubes are not perfect, they don’t have to be :) ) and place those on top of the strawberries

§    Chop Walnuts and spread around the salad

§    Walnuts (1 cup) - if you use Camembert take almonds instead

§  Top with the Balsamic Vinegar Cream

§  

So that was it, easy right? And it only takes about 10 minutes!

Note: I am aware that some of you might be living in countries where strawberries for instance are not locally produced, but that´s not a problem. In this case I would advice buying them from an organic store. But if it´s strictly necessary well, you can go to the closest Walmart ;)

Guten Appetit, have fun and enjoy your evening! 

Budapest: The Gem of the Danube

When travelling to Europe, most people think to first visit London, Rome, Paris and Berlin. 

What they don't know is what they could be missing out on.

Situated on the banks of the river Danube, Budapest is a major European "must see". 

Blending Gothic, Neo Renaissance and Modern, Budapest offers an architectural and cultural journey only a few cities around the world have. 

I lived in Budapest for about 3 years, and go back a few times a year - it keeps calling! 

There I learnt what it means to be independant, how to manage my money (hum, yeah whatever, I will never learn that!) and there I found out what it really means to live! Trust me once you get a taste of this city, you won't be able to get enough!

Budapest is divided into two parts by the danube, namely Buda and Pest, connected by 8 bridges - each showing a different style. 

The two mostly predominant sights one has of the city are the Buda Castle (on the Buda side, of course!) and the parliament's building (on the Pest Side).

Worthy of visiting are Hero's square, the St. Stephans Basilica, the Aquincum area (the remains of the ones Roman Budapest), the Opera House, the Fishermen's Bastion, the many Baths (e.g.: the Szécsényi or the Gellért Bath), and.and..and..well there's so much to see! 

Budapest is not only home to many historical sites, it is also the home of the wild! It houses some of the best party places of the continent, and it represents the experience of a lifetime for many exchange students! There is something going on for all musical tastes, for all drinking tastes, and for all "wallet" tastes. Regardless of the day of the week, or time of the day, Budapest has always something going on, open air events are the hit of the summer, while the Ruinpubs are the everyday all year long must stop personal tipps: Szimpla Kert, Instant, Kőleves (in summer), and Ötkert (in summer) !

Some highlights you shoudln't miss are the Wine Festival every year in September (although not widely exportet, Hungary produces some of the most amazing wines you could drink, offering a great variety of Reds, for instance from Villány and Eger, and Whites from the Tokaj region), the Sziget Fesztival every Summer and the yearly Palinka Festival! 

Note: Palinka is a national drink, a fruit brandy which taste might take sometime to get used to - as it is really strong!

There is just so much more I could write about this city, but sooner or later I have to go to sleep, work is waiting for me tomorrow, or rather, it won't wait for me!

So all I have been trying to say is, next time you plan your city trip, keep in mind this gem on the Danube in Central Europe! And once you opt for Budapest make sure to "live the vibe" of the city and not just to visit it!

Good night !!

xx

Photo: The Parliament captured with my iPhone from the Buda Castle on April 20th 2014, a slighly rainy day. 

Ps: Below are a few links to motivate and help you:

http://www.budapest.com/

http://www.ucityguides.com/budapest/sights-attractions-tours.html

http://ruinpubs.com/index.php?id=ilbud

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buda_Castle