HUNGARY: Historical Villages and Old Town Squares

Many of Hungary's cities date back  hundreds of years.

We always enjoy going into the historic old towns because they are so interesting and different from where we grew up.

In Canada, buildings that date from the late 1800’s or early 1900’s are “old” for us.

So, buildings or old town squares that go back hundreds of years are fascinating.

Hungary has some very cute old town squares that date back to the Middle Ages, and now they also combine the history with current trends.

Following are a couple of highlights from Hungarian old historical towns, Eger, Pecs, Kőszeg and Győr.

HUNGARY: From Cave Dwellings to Palatial Palaces

For some unknown reason, I always find it interesting to see how people live.

While we were in Hungary we got to see both ends of the economic housing continuum.

Outside of Egar, in Eastern Hungary, we saw cave dwellings made from abandoned quarries where incredibly poor people lived.

And at the other end of the continuum, near the Austrian border, we saw the Versailles of Romania.

HUNGARY: Wine Making in Tokaj

The Tokaj wine region is in northeastern Hungary, near the Slovakian border, around the town of Tokaj.

It is a historic wine-growing region of rolling hills and small villages where the Bodrog and Tisza rivers meet.

Wine has been produced here since at least the Middle Ages, around the 12th–13th centuries.

The Tokaj region produces both dry and sweet white wines, but is especially famous for Tokaji Aszú, a sweet wine made from grapes affected by Botrytis cinerea, known as “noble rot.”

In 2002, the Tokaj wine region was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its historic vineyards, villages and wine-making traditions.

HUNGARY: The Impressive Parliament Building on the Danube River

The Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest sits on the eastern bank of the Danube River.

The building is impressive because of its enormous size, making it an iconic image of Budapest.

The colossal building is about 268 metres (880 feet) long and has nearly 700 rooms, making it one of the largest parliament buildings in the world!

Construction began in 1885 and was completed almost 20 years later in 1904.