2005 - marc

Danube Regions in Three Countries Travels in the river valley with stops in Bratislava, Baja and the Danube Delta

Beginning from a tiny spring in Germany’s Black Forest, then gathering strength as it flows to become Europe’s biggest river, the Danube offers a fantastic panoramic view of the capitals of Austria, Slovakia and Hungary. It flows slowly over the landscape, easing itself to separate into different arms in the Szigetköz on the Slovak-Hungarian border to gush on enclosed by hills near Visegrád. Wherever it flows, the Danube dominates its surroundings and hugely affects the everyday lives, customs and the gastronomy of the people who live on it. In Bratislava, it is towered over by a castle; in Baja they prepare a famous fish-soup from its fish; in Romania, the Danube Delta is a World Heritage Site, one of Europe’s least spoiled natural environments. Three countries, three stops, three cultures of the ever-varying and captivating Danube region.

Taking a Walk in Bratislava

Blava, as Bratislava (Pressburg) is called by the Slovaks, is a cosy and atmospheric small city with a completely refurbished historic quarter, pedestrian streets, coffee houses and cultural treats. It has been inhabited since the Stone Age. In the 1st century, the Romans settled in the area, which later saw the Frank and Avar rule. Slavs arrived here in the 7th-8th centuries. The city received its name from Bavarian dwellers, who named the castle erected by Vratislav, Prince of Moravia, Preslawaspurch. That name later shortened to Pressburg, then changed to Prespork, which Slovaks used until 1920, until when Czechoslovakia was formed, it acquired the name of Bratislava. Hungarians called the city Pozsony, after the man in charge at the castle, and this is where its Latin name, Posonium, originates from as well.

Bratislava had an important part to play in the history of Hungary: from the 10th century on; Vratislav’s castle was one of the major bastions protecting the north-western borders of Hungary. In addition, Bratislava was the Hungarian coronation town for some three hundred years and it was here that the Hungarian Diet, the national assembly, met. Between 1531 and 1784, after the battle of Mohács was lost to the Turks in 1526, it was raised to capital rank, and was used by the national assembly until 1848. After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in 1918, Bratislava became the second most important city of the newly formed Czechoslovakia. It became a capital again after the separation of Slovakia and the Czech Republic in 1993.

The visitor to Bratislava may catch a glimpse of the ambience of the Monarchy years. The historic city centre has pleasant small squares and prominent buildings one next to the other. It is interesting to see remnants of the past and modern city features blend together, such as some amusing public sculptures, like the head of a repairman appearing out of the ground… However, the city is dominated by the Danube and Vratislav Castle rising above it. The large, square-planned block with its four towers is both a tourist attraction and a spectacular scenic point. The architectural styles cover several periods, from late Baroque forms to the attributes of a full Baroque style. The Slovak National Collections are housed in the castle as well.

The Danube is an inseparable part of everyday life and patterns in Bratislava. The river, offering access as well as a panorama second to none, was once a key factor in bringing food supplies to the city. Among the steep streets below the castle is Fish Square, where fish taken from the Danube were once sold. The square also boasts one of Bratislava’s architectural masterpieces, the predominantly Gothic Saint Martin’s Cathedral, a complex building with Renaissance elements added during the two centuries of its construction. The gilded royal crown adorning the cathedral’s tower is a memento of the coronation of Hungarian kings that once took place here. The 16th century inner court of the Town Hall, which bears the inscription “Muzeum” on Bratislava’s Main Square (Hlavné námestie), highlights decorative arcade-covered loggias. No visitor should miss Mihalska ulica, one of the city’s finest pedestrian streets, with many monuments and the sole old town-gate to have survived, the Michael Gate.

Baja, a City of Waters and for the Palate

On the banks of the Danube-Sugovica backwaters, surrounded by the flora and fauna of the nature reserve of the Forest of Gemenc, the city of Baja was built. Some 160 kilometres from Budapest, with a population of 40,000 including Hungarians, Germans, Serbians and Croatians, the people of Baja have lived here happily side by side for centuries. This diversity of nationalities is captured by the local buildings, customs and family names. Baja’s main attractions include Szentháromság tér, which has a Mediterranean feel, and the neo-Renaissance Town Hall with the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Michael, the Catholic Serbian Bunyevác Village Museum and the neo-classic Synagogue, which houses a library collection.
The Danube has been important in the history of Baja since the original settlement of Magyars in Hungary in the 10th century. Waterways provided means to trading and therefore to making a living here for centuries. Nautical items, docks and water-mills are hallmarks of the region’s landscape, along with centuries of traditions in fishing, fish trading, net and cauldron-making. Baja in Hungary is known as the “capital of the fish soup”: and this “sacred meal” of the city which has become its symbol, is still prepared with noodles, based on the original recipe of the poor young fishermen. Fish soup preparations are a vital element of any festival programme or holiday feast. Each year, on the second Saturday of July, Baja organises the People’s Celebrations - “the celebration of the fish soup in the capital of the fish soup” - , when the famous local soup is cooked in 2,000 cauldrons on the city’s main square and on Petőfi Island. Two nearby cellar-towns, Nemesnádudvar and Hajós, join in on the festivities with music and wine-tasting programmes.
Those who are interested in the life of the people who live by the Danube should not miss the István Türr Museum’s fishing exhibition, or the Ferenc Deák Museum of Dams. Baja is an excellent starting point for short or long excursions to the world of Danube backwaters, dams and shady riverbanks. There are opportunities for swimming, fishing and other activities not far from the city and those arriving by water can tie up at a yacht pier. Visitors are invited to walk, cycle, drive a boat or a horse-drawn carriage in the unspoiled natural environment of the Danube-Dráva National Park. This contains the Gemenc Forest, a large part of which is still flooded by the Danube each year and where everything speaks of fishing, rare animal species and the life of people in the floodplains. Visitors are welcome to try out themselves the folk tools used in fishing, learn the tricks of net-weaving or even make a spoon out of Danube shells. And a visit to this region is not complete without tasting Baja’s fish soup!

The Ultimate Stop: the Danube Delta

The area surrounding the 5,000 square km Danube delta is one without roads or settlements, consisting purely of rivers, islands, channels and a complex weave of reed marshes. The reed marshes alone stretching over 240,000 hectares have naturally shaped life for people here. Everything is linked to reed processing: animal feed, paper and alcoholic beverages are made from reed, and even the roofs of Western European “luxury dwellings” are sourced from this area.

Adventurers to the delta will find a paradise of animal habitats, with 1,500 species including 250 bird and 90 fish specimens, some of which no longer exist anywhere else in the world. An example is the fish called viza which can still be spotted here. The unbelievably rich and unaffected natural environment is one of the last of its kind in Europe. Protected and rare birds draw many ornithologists to the region, and the river waters with their rich resources of fish make this a popular place for anglers. There are several research laboratories operating in the region, where ecologists, biologists and geologists are working – many with the very aim of preserving a biodiversity in the Danube Delta. They have reason to be worried: the Delta is gradually moving towards destruction, as the silt deposited by the Danube here increases the onshore land by about 40 metres each year at the expense of the sea surface. A visible result is the Sulina lighthouse, which had once been erected by the gorge of the navigable Sulina arm and now stands on dry land far away from the water.

The people indigenous in the area were the Lipovans, who came here from Russia in 1772. They are Orthodox by religion and have retained some of their old customs (for example the compulsory beard for men) and their language. The name of the group derives from the Russian word lipa (lime tree), and is connected to Lipovan icon-making, which uses lime. Lipovans are excellent fishermen and boatmen; they have adapted fully to the Danube-dominated delta region, and have hand-made tools and other everyday objects. Nuns and monks living in the monasteries of the delta region also make a living by working with their hands. The World Heritage title and a special protective status, which the Danube Delta was accorded in 1991, have helped keep this tranquility.