Traveling the Danube Through Eastern Europe Part One: Hungary

by Teri Popp, Tastemaker in Residence - Photos by Teri E. Popp and Paula Mertens

Budapest, a gorgeous, twinkling city of light found on the beautiful, blue Danube, serves as an incredible gateway to the historic countries located on its shores. Stunning by day, and sparkling by night, Budapest offers an introduction into a country subjected to both Nazi horrors and the former Soviet Union’s oppression—but one that has risen like a Phoenix from the ashes.

We visited Budapest 20 years ago when it was first vying for entrance into the European Union. At that time, you could catch glimpses of it’s historic and tumultuous past; however, it needed an incredible amount of reconstruction and revival. And reconstruct, it did!

Churches and synagogues have been refurbished to their former glory, parliament sits glistening-both during the day and at night, and new artistic endeavors line both the river’s path and interior streets. Large amounts of carefully cared for green space dot the city’s landscape along with a large assortment of trendy and traditional bars and restaurants. In fact, we found a gem of a restaurant with Aszu Etteem!

From Budapest, we traveled on to the provincial town of Kalocsa located on the marshy banks of the Danube 73 miles east. In Kalocsa, an old Magyar trading center for paprika, we enjoyed a lovely organ recital at Főszékesegyhá, the newly renovated Baroque Assumption Cathedral.

We ended our time in Hungary watching a wonderful horse show put on by the amazing Puszta Horsemen. The rolling plains of Hungary are called puszta, meaning barren or empty. Contrary to the meaning of the word, the area hosts massive fields of crops and livestock, reminiscent of Kansas or Nebraska. For more information on the Puszta Horseman or to plan a specific trip to see them, go to https://www.mircorp.com/hungarian-horses-puszta/ To view the video of the equestrian magic of the Puszta, you can also visit https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=B9fMXz_QNPE.