Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 2014 (26. évfolyam, 1-39. szám)
2014-08-22 / 32. szám
Welcome to Europe’s cowboy country The Great Hungarian Plain For more than 2,000 years, the Great Hungarian Plain (known as the AlfoGld in Hungarian) has been home to a rich cultural tradition of pastoral living and animal husbandry techniques - from ancient nomadic tribes who left behind stone burial mounds known as kurgans, to the fierce Magyar warriors who arrived in the late 9th Century and founded a network of settlements along the Tisza River. The plain covers 52,000sqkm in eastern and southern Hungary alone, encompassing 56% of the country. But its full area measures nearly twice that amount, including parts of Romania, Serbia and Croatia. Founded in 1973, Hortobágy National Park is situated within eastern Hungary’s section of the Great Hungarian Plain. At 800sqkm, the park is both the country’s largest protected area and the largest continuous natural grassland in all of Europe. The region is especially well known for the semi-nomadic mounted herdsmen (or csikósok) who once roamed Hortobágy’s expansive alkaline pastures and steppes, collectively called the puszta. Pictured here, in traditional dress (a blue or white linen shirt and trousers with a black, wide-brimmed hat and feather), the herdsmen hold a similar place in the country’s cultural memory as cowboys do in the western United States. (Candace Rose Rardon) Despite the puszta’s bucolic roots, life has not always been pleasant here. After World War II, during the period of intense Sovietisation that swept across Central and Eastern Europe, Hortobágy became the site of 12 Communist forced labour camps. From 1950 to 1953, the State Security Authority (the Hungarian secret police known as ÁVH) deported an estimated 10,000 people from southern Hungary - many of whom were kulaks, or wealthy peasant farmers - and forced them to live en masse in the puszta’s sheepfolds and cattle sheds. It was only after Stalin’s death in 1953 that the camps began to close and deportees were released. In 1999,Unesco declared Hortobágy National Park a World Heritage site, in honour of the puszta being as significant culturally as it is naturally. Although no longer nomadic, the herdsmen now are employed by the national park to help preserve their traditions - some of which aren’t quite as long-standing as others. In 1923, Austrian artist Ludwig Koch painted a scene of a herdsman riding two horses, one foot planted on each backside, while steering three more horses in front of him - a feat locals say Koch must have imagined, not seen, as it was not how the herdsmen rode. But determined herdsman and horse teacher Béla Lénárd later brought the vision to life in 1953, and the formation has since become famously known as the “Puszta Five” It is still performed today in shows at the national park and across the Great Hungarian Plain. Located 180km east of Budapest, the eponymous village in the centre of Hortobágy National Park is easily accessible by bus or train from the nation’s capital, with both options taking three or four hours. Once in the village, recognisable by the iconic Nine Arch Bridge at its entrance (at 167m, it’s the longest stone bridge in Hungary), visitors can explore bird-friendly fishponds and animal parks, shop for embroidered felt coats known as szűr at the Craftsmen’s Yard and sample traditional meals at an original 18th-century inn, or csárda, located next to the bridge. For a true taste of tradition, be sure to order slambuc - the herdsmen’s savoury dish of noodles, potatoes and bacon, prepared together in a huge kettle over the fire. For an introduction to the cultural traditions of Hortobágy, the Pásztormúzeum, or Herdsmen Museum, is an ideal place to begin. Housed in a former carriage house just opposite the tavern (traditionally, the two buildings together comprised a csárda), the museum features several large-scale dioramas that replicate the herdsmen’s historic way of life, along with written explanations provided in several languages, including English. Pictured here is a U-shaped vasaló, or what served as the herdsmen’s kitchen. The room was roofless and made from reeds, and was one of several temporary structures that the csikós built as they shifted their grazing herds through the puszta every year. Located about two kilometres from the Nine Arch Bridge is the 300-year-old Hortobágy Máta Stud Farm, one of Hungary’s foremost breeding centres. Visitors can hire horses, book riding lessons, attend lively equestrian shows or join horsedrawn carriage tours through the national park. Inside the park, it is impossible to miss the handsome herds of Nonius horses often gathered around the distinctive T-shaped sweep wells that are a muchneeded source of water on the puszta. The Nonius breed (Nóniusz in Hungarian) was first developed two centuries ago to assist Hungary’s military as heavy-boned draft horses; breeding efforts today spring from a desire to preserve the horse as an important part of the country’s heritage. In addition to the Nonius horse, several other breeds of domestic livestock have strong connections to the Hortobágy. Herds of water buffalo and Hungarian grey cattle (pictured) are still tended within the national park, as are curly-haired Mangalica pigs and Racka sheep - known for their characteristic corkscrew horns. Altogether, some 50,000 sheep, 9,000 cattle, 400 horses and 250 water buffalo make their home on the vast, open plains of the puszta, and are looked after by more than 200 herdsmen who live in nearby villages. Included in the park’s carriage tours is the opportunity to briefly ride one of the Nonius horses, followed by a demonstration of the herdsmen’s renowned horsemanship - as well as of the specific practices unique to their traditional livelihood. In the 18th and 19th Centuries, when highwaymen (or betyárs) would roam the plains and attack travellers, it was vital for horses to be trained for conflict. Pictured here, the herdsmen taught their horses to lie flat on command, immediately concealing them in the grassland. They also familiarised the horses to the sounds of gunshots by striking the ground with their whips. Several festivals are held in Hortobágy each year and make for especially compelling times to visit the national park. The Bridge Fair is held on St Stephen’s Day each year (20 August) while the St George’s Day Drive-Out Celebration takes place around St George’s Day in late April. The St George’s Day celebration is a spring festival in honour of the new grazing season, during which herds of Racka sheep (pictured) and Hungarian grey cattle are led across the Nine Arch Bridge before being taken out onto the puszta. The festival also involves folk dancing and traditional meals, as well as the National Fair of Organic Products - all additional reasons to visit this • fascinating, lesser-known region ^ COuntry. bbc.com Hungary evoked the admiration of the world in 1989 Hungary has evoked the admiration of the world in 1989; at the time Hungarian people had leaders who have had the courage to take risks and their decisions meant the only glimmer of hope, to refugees, said father Imre Kozma, founding president of the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service at the opening of the event series called ‘Day of Welcoming’ in Budapest this Thursday. Twenty-five years ago, tens of thousands of East German people have arrived to Hungary as refugees with the decision of never returning home. On 14 August 1989, the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service has opened the first refugee camp in the garden of the Zugligeti Church. Through this, the largest humanitarian action of former Europe was triggered, in which the charity service has aided 48,600 people for more than three months. Since that, this day is celebrated each year as the Day of Welcoming. While remembering the accommodation of the nearly fifty-thousand refugees, Imre Kozma said “we celebrate that the members of the Zugligeti Parish gave the only valid response to the events in 1989, which is acceptance.” He recounted that when he and Hungarian-born German baroness Csilla von Boeselager said yes to the request of the West German embassy seeking help in taking care of the East German refugees, “that was a very credible response” and for this response the “members of the Zugligeti community had already trained their souls for years.” The founding president of the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service highlighted that the reception 25 years ago meant life itself not only for East German refugees, but also for those who did it, because “people need to feel what fills you out when you are doing good”. Imre Kozma thanked former Prime Minister Miklós Németh for being a regular visitor to the Zugligeti refugee camp 25 years ago and with his presence encouraged the inhabitants of the camp. In rewarding his efforts, Imre Kozma awarded him the Csilla von Boeselager Prize, founded for this very special occasion. Monika Balatoni, State Secretary for Cultural Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade stressed that Hungarians are the “people of liberty”; thus by opening gates and borders “the path of freedom has opened for East Germans through Hungary”. As she said, the former political leadership needed a serious political strategy in order to reach that East Germans could return to their home country. The State Secretary stressed the importance of remembering, because - as she said - time passes, so more and more people disappear among those who remember what have happened in 1989. She added that emphasis should be given to the engagement of Hungary should remain successful in posterity; hence the slogan of this year is “Shared Success”. Monika Balatoni also said that it should be remembered how much the Hungarian people have done for the freedom of in Central Europe. “Hungary has a big heart” and in 1989, she had leaders who have had the courage to take difficult decisions in a historical moment. MTI Hungarian film premiere in Monrovia Moleman 3 - Journey to the Surface, the third episode of the awardwinning Hungarian subcultural documentary series Moleman, will have its international premiere at the 10th Action On Film International Film Festival and will be screened at the Krikorian Premiere Theaters (410 S. Myrtle Ave. Monrovia CA 91016) on Thursday August 28, 7pm. Tickets: http://www.aoffest.eom/#lproduct/prdl2/2604718831/ moleman-the-consultation-thur.-8-28-7pm Moleman is a documentary series about the independent subcultures of the modern youngsters. Under the cultural surface of the metropolis lies a flourishing art life and alternative recreational activities are available. There are many who do not follow the mainstream taste, and do not fall for the temptation of the commercial media. These subcultures and artists should not be underrated or disregarded. Moleman chooses different characters from this world, and allows us to peek through their eyes into different cultures and lifestyles that lie out of the realm of celebrities, but they exist, creat works and are taking shape. The new episode Moleman 3 - Journey to the Surface is a documentary diary about a journey from the underground to the cultural surface. Music styles and artists ignored by record labels and the mainstream media didn’t have much chance of getting wide recognition back in the day. The digital revolution changed everything. The internet and digital technology, accessible to everyone, reshaped the music industry completely. The possibility of doing worldwide self-management and creating quality content becoming available to everyone has opened the way from the streets to the biggest stages. During his journey, Moleman shows you independent artists and genres building themselves up from the bottom, who do not follow the mainstream taste, but find their own way to the surface. Beatbox, turntablism, DJing, live improvisation, and bedroom and award-winning producers, are waiting for you on this road. The film, as the other two episodes, was made with no-budget in the free time of the filmmakers and with a big help of the crew. Producer: Gabor Csepai, Szilard Matusik, Director: Szilard Matusik For more information about the films, visit www.molemanfilm.com Watch the entire Moleman 2 film for free: http://molemanfilm.com/ about-moleman-2/ (Choose subtitles) Hungarian Journal
