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Enthralling with surprises

Inder Raj Ahluwalia

Arriving at night, we saw nothing. A tired check-in, hasty dinner and a good night's sleep. That was about it. But tomorrow was another day... Morning brought with it the strong smell of coffee and a stronger urge to get out and explore the town, and som e town it turned out to be.

Situated next to the mouth of the Maros and on both sides of the Tisza, Szeged is the seat of Csongrad County, the administrative, cultural and economic centre of South Eastern Hungary, and its third largest provincial town. It also has a vibrant history .

In the 2nd century Szeged was a Roman outpost, in the 5th century it was Attila the Hun's seat, in the 9th century the conquering Magyar Chiefs held their first national assembly in present-day Opusztaszer, and the 11th century saw the settlement become part of the royal estate. 1728 was the year of the infamous witchcraft trials, with 13 people burnt at the stake (the peninsula of the Tisza bank where this happened is still called Boszorkany (Witch Island). In 1849 the town was briefly the national cap ital.

The downtown area is almost choked with architectural, cultural and art treasures. Our first stop was Szechenyiter, among Hungary's most beautiful squares, built as a park with artistic statues, the buildings lining it giving it a unifying effect. The ne arby Town Hall is a building of artistic taste and a harmony of styles. And the `Bridge of Signs' follows the example of the bridge in Venice, and was made in honour of Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary (1848-1916).

In the neo-classic style Grunn Orban House, we were shown the country's first printing house, and then led to the balcony decorated with so-called `Attila relief'. Then on we went to Votive Church, the fourth largest in Hungary, and ended up at the neo-c lassic Zsoter House, a former military hospital and later national government building. The Palace of Culture is a museum with statues, pictures, pharmacy exhibits and period furniture, showing local history.

If ever there was a city of statues, it is Szeged. They seem to have taken over. There are the symbolic brown `Blessed and Destructive Tisza Statues' in the pool in front of the Town Hall. And there are statues of Ferenc Deak, Lajos Tisza, Pal Vasarhelyi , Istvan Szechenyi, Lajos Kossuth and Ferenc Rokoczi 11 to name a few.

On the left embankment of the Tisza, one sees another face of the town. Ujszeged is renowned for its broad parks, houses surrounded by gardens, sports grounds and open-air baths. The Botanical Garden with its ornamental park with glass and foil houses, p onds and rock and rose garden, is a must-see.

Hungarian cuisine, like most things Hungarian, is born from strong traditions. For those looking beyond Hungarian Ghoulash, there is the famed Szeged Fish Head Soup, a local delicacy of some standing. Also famed is the Szeged Salami, also called `winter salami' which has an interesting history. In the Bach era, sons of various nations were held prisoner in Szeged Castle, and a local butcher called Mark Pick hired them as labourers. Some hired Italian prisoners started to produce Italian style sausages a nd salami. After smoking, the thick pork salami was stored on the Tisza's embankment and became coated with a fine gray layer of mould which gave it flavour and also helped to preserve it. As it rotted in the heat, it was only produced in the winter, hen ce the name. The secret of the seasoning was handed down from generation to generation of butchers, with the salami-master being the only one to know the proportions of ground spices to be mixed with the minced meat. Spicy salami slips down easily with t he light table wines of the sancy vineyards, produced in the sunny region between the Danube and the Tisza. Csongrad's red wine and Pusztamerges' riesling, are well known.

Came time to leave, and I couldn't help wondering why I hadn't heard of the town before. Szeged came as a surprise, packing much more than imagined. As a town of history, it is still evolving. As a tourist centre it ranks high in every possible way. And when it comes to cultural richness, it has few equals...

Fact file

Getting there: Szeged is best accessed from Budapest. Though there are no direct flights between Indian and Hungary, Budapest is only an hour's flight from several other European capitals.

Accommodation: Local accommodation comprises hotels of all classes, from deluxe down to standard and budget class.

Best season: The summer months are the peak tourist season, but winters, though cold, also offer plenty to see and do.

Food: Several restaurants serve authentic local cuisine. A meal for two at a standard restaurant costs about $30.

Tips: Indian nationals require a visa to enter Hungary.