One of Europe's most touristy cities - Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue 400; Táncház method: a Hungarian model for the transmission of intangible cultural heritage 00515; Folk art of the Matyó, embroidery of a traditional community 00633
What and Why
Budapest (pronounced /ˈbudɒpɛʃt/) offers a unique, delightful and cultural atmosphere, and is easily one of the most touristy and enjoyable cities in the world. Moreover it assimilates seamlessly world-class classical music scene, a vibrant scientific atmosphere plus a major financial centre connecting the former Eastern bloc. Recently it has even taken on the role of the region's party town.
Toponymy
Budapest came from the previously separate towns of Buda, Óbuda, and Pest, when they were in 1873 CE officially unified and given the new name Budapest. There is no agreed toponymy for either Buda or Pest. The more accepted origin is that Buda comes from
a Slavic name Buda, the short form of Будимир (Budimír); while Pest, comes from the Slavic word пещера (peštera), meaning kiln or cave.
See
Buda is the west bank of the Danube river (Hungarian: Duna) where the largest cluster of tourist spots are concentrated including the Castle Hill (Várhegy).
Castle Hill Funicular (Budavári Sikló)
The funicular (sikló) links the Széchenyi Chain Bridge (Széchenyi lánchíd) to the Castle Hill. A glorious view from the little capsule.
Széchenyi Chain Bridge (Széchenyi lánchíd)
The Széchenyi Chain Bridge is a chain bridge that spans the Danube between Buda and Pest, the western and eastern sides of Budapest. It quickly became a symbol of advancement, national awakening, and the linkage between East and West, after its construction in the mid-19th century CE. The bridge is named after István Széchenyi, a major supporter of its construction. At the time of its construction, it was regarded as one of the modern world's engineering wonders.
The Castle Hill encompasses all the tourist landmarks in the area and is the arguably the first port of call of Hungary's tourism.
Buda Castle (Budavári Palota)
Buda Castle (Budavári Palota) is the historical castle and palace complex of the Hungarian kings in Budapest. It was first completed in mid-13th century CE, but the massive Baroque palace today occupying most of the site was built in mid-18th century CE. The castle now houses the Hungarian National Gallery (Magyar Nemzeti Galéria) and the Budapest History Museum (Budapest Torteneti Muzeum). Incredibly the castle has never actually been occupied by the Hungarian Royal family.
Standing in front of the palace is the Monument of Eugene of Savoy–Carignano (German: Eugen von Savoyen-Carignan) (Savoyai Jenő Herceg Lovas Emélműve). This monument was brought in 1900 CE as a temporary solution until the planned equestrian statue of King Franz Joseph I (German: Franz Josef I, né Franz von Habsburg-Lorraine) was completed. This never happened, so the statue remained on his plinth. Prince Eugene fought against Ottoman's (Turkish: Osmanlı Devleti) attack during the Great Turkish War (German: Großer Türkenkrieg).
Dísz Square (Dísz Tér)
The main square with the various government offices.
Various governmental offices
At regular hours, there is a small change of guard of soldiers in the square as below.
Other views of Dísz Square.
Mary Magdalene Tower (Mária Magdolna Torony)
Part of a 13th-century Franciscan church used by Hungarian speakers, the Mary Magdalene Tower (Mária Magdolna Torony) was the site of the coronation of Francis II (German: Franz II, né Franz von Habsburg-Lorraine), as the Hungarian king. Under Ottoman rule, this was the only church allowed to remain Christian: all others were converted into mosques.
Matthias Church (Mátyás Templom)
Matthias Church (Mátyás Templom), officially the Church of the Assumption (Nagyboldogasszony-Templom) is an absolutely gorgeous white-marble neo-Gothic church with very colourful murals inside. The rococo spire of this church is one of the easily seen landmarks of the city as it sits on top of the hill. As in other Eastern European cities, it is further decorated with the Marian column.
The Marian column.
Fisherman's Bastion (Halászbástya)
The Fisherman's Bastion (Halászbástya), as above, is the large white tower and lookout terrace complex which is easily the most crowded on the hill. It was built in the late 19th century CE, and is named after both the mediaeval fishmarket nearby and the Guild of Fishermen who defended this section of the wall during past wars. The story is that different trades were responsible for defending different parts of the castle walls and that this section of the defenses was raised by the fishermen’s guild. The mounted statue between the bastion and the church is King Saint Stephen (Szent István Király) the first king of Hungary crowned about 1000 CE. Part of this is now a cafe.
Labyrinth (Labirintus)
Labyrinth (Labirintus) is a historical labyrinth under Castle Hill where Count Dracula (Romanian: Vlad Drăculea) of Romania was once imprisoned. Vlad's reputation for cruelty and his patronymic inspired the name of the vampire Count Dracula, but he was definitely not a vampire.
National Archives of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Levéltár)
The National Archives of Hungary (Magyar Nemzeti Levéltár) were created in the mid-18th century CE and is a very classy building.
Gellért Hill (Gellért-Hegy)
South of the Castle Hill is the Gellért Hill (Gellért-Hegy) where the famous Gellért Thermal Baths and Swimming Pool (Gellért Gyógyfürdő). The bath complex was built between during the 1910s CE with Art Nouveau style. References to healing waters in this location are found from as early as the 13th century CE. During the reign of the Ottoman Empire, baths were also built on this particular site, infused with Turkish culture of public baths.
Buy and Do
Paprika
There are a few things that should be bought in Hungary:
Porcelain
Easter egg or painted egg
We bought a lot, and I mean a lot, of paprika as it is damned cheap.
Hungarian dance (Magyar néptánc)
I had to share a joke about myself regarding the confusion of this important Hungarian culture, the Hungarian folk dance (néptánc). When I was in primary school we had a small orchestra and we actually learnt to play the famous Hungarian Dances (German: Ungarische Tänze) by Johannes Brahms. I thought this was a traditional Hungarian song and dance, but it was composed by the celebrated German with inspiration from various gypsy tunes, which had almost nothing to do with Hungary.
We ran into a street dance event, called csárdás and watched the Hungarian dance. All of them are dressed in traditional Hungarian outfit called Matyó embroidery, which will be described in the blog in Pannonhalma. Csárdás is the most important Hungarian folk dance and is usually perpetuated via these street events called táncház. Táncház, pronounced /ˈtaːnt͡shaːz/, literally meaning 'dance house' is a casual Hungarian folk dance event. It is an aspect of the Hungarian cultural revival of traditional culture which began in the early 1970s CE, and remains an active part of the national culture across the country, especially in Budapest.
Participants acquire dance knowledge from experienced members by direct observation and imitation through these eventws, to the accompaniment of live music, while using their own individual level of creativity to develop their competence and dancing ability and perpetuate the culture through generations.
Eat and Drink
Magyar cuisine (Magyar konyhaművészet)
After all the stress from Kroměříž, we were really glad we left the former Czechoslovakia (Czech: Československo) and reached Budapest.
Hungarian cuisine (Magyar konyhaművészet) is mostly continental Central European, with strong emphasis of the use of use of poppy, and the popularity of kefir and of course paprika. Typical Hungarian food is heavy on dairy and meats, fairly similar to that of its Eastern European neighbours. We will discuss more about the Hungarian food in the next blog in Budapest - Pest.
First dinner in this bar-restaurant called Piroska.
Stay
A simple and comfortable stay in the Pest-side of the city, Royal Park Hotel.
Getting There and Around
An easy day walk will around the Castle Hill would be a good time for travel. Budapest is fairly well connected with metro. The Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest History Museum has an entrance fee of HUF 2400 and 3200 Ft respectively. Buda itself needs at least three days. The entire Budapest is conveniently connected with metro.
UNESCO Inscriptions
This site has the remains of monuments such as the Roman city of Aquincum and the Gothic castle of Buda, which have had a considerable influence on the architecture of various periods. It is one of the world's outstanding urban landscapes and illustrates the great periods in the history of the Hungarian capital.
The Táncház (‘dance-house’) model of teaching folk dance and music combines traditional forms of acquisition with modern pedagogical and academic methods. Participants acquire dance knowledge from experienced members or tradition bearers by direct observation and imitation, to the accompaniment of live music, while using their own individual level of creativity to develop their competence and dancing ability. The dancing is complemented by singing instruction, handicraft activities and ethnographic presentations. Anyone regardless of age, competence or prior exposure can become an active participant. The aim is to establish a value-based, community-building, entertaining yet educational form of recreational activity through the practice and transmission of intangible cultural heritage. Táncház methods are also utilized in art schools and all levels of education, and influence folk dance and music performance. An annual National Táncház Festival and Fair constitutes the largest meeting of bearers, mediators and enthusiasts, yet age or content-specific Táncház-es have developed, as well as workshops, camps, playhouses and handicraft clubs. Increasing numbers of publications popularize Táncház and assist in refining and transmitting its methodology, while folk dance and music resource centres enable the public to access archival recordings. The model is easily adaptable for the safeguarding and transmission of any community’s intangible cultural heritage through hands-on acquisition, thereby sustaining its diversity.
The folk art of the Roman Catholic Matyó community in and around the town of Mezőkövesd in north-eastern Hungary is characterized by floral motifs that are found in flat-stitch embroidery and ornamented objects. Matyó embroidery decorates the traditional dress of the region, worn by local people in celebratory events and in folk dancing and singing. The floral motifs have played a crucial part in strengthening the self-image and identity of the Matyó community and are employed in interior decoration, contemporary fashion and architecture, in addition to embroidery. Community members established the Matyó Folk Art Association in 1991 to transmit the skills of embroidery and organize numerous cultural events and performances. In its Borsóka Embroidery Circle, anyone can learn the art, techniques and motifs of embroidery from experienced masters. In its Folk Dance Ensemble, members wear the finely embroidered traditional costumes, thereby contributing to their perpetuation. The national popularity of Matyó embroidery has made it into a form of auxiliary income, enabling women to buy the fine fabrics and supplies necessary for making elaborate costumes. Most often practised as a communal activity, embroidery strengthens interpersonal relationships and community cohesion, while allowing for individual artistic expression.
References
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