Busójárás in Mohács

Every winter the little town of Mohács hosts a week-long festival called Busójárás (sounds like "Boo-show- yar-ah-sh," literally: the walking of the Busó). Busó are typically men dressed in animal pelts adorned with cowbells, wearing carved wooden masks and usually carrying wooden noisemakers, pitchforks, and/or whips.

This is a Busó

Busójárás is typically celebrated in February, but is tied to the Roman Catholic calendar, always ending on the seventh Sunday before Easter. So, this year it wasn't until early March. We caught the last day of the festival which begins with a parade and ends with a huge bonfire.

Boats full of Busó paddle their way across the Danube to kick off the walk into the city center.

There are variations on the origin of this tradition, but it has most frequently been explained to me by Hungarians that it is to "scare away winter."

One origin story of the festival, dating to the Turkish occupation of Hungary, tells that displaced Hungarians and Croatians dressed in Busó costumes to scare the Turks out of Mohács. While none of my Hungarian friends endorse this story (often pointing out that they actually lost that battle), it is not uncommon to see references to this legend in the decorations and costumes.

A Busó carrying the head of a "Turk"

The "walk" features groups of Busó from Mohács as well as other cities and villages from Hungary and the nearby countries of Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia.

Street musicians in costume

It is similar to a parade, but most spectators walk alongside the Busó, snapping pictures and getting teased. It is very common for the Busó to be silly, sometimes spraying water out of their masks or just chasing lovely young ladies. There is not a parade route in the sense that we would think of one in the US, rather there are many streets filled with Busó wandering throughout the city until the main event later that evening.

Winter's coffin


Busó sculpture


me and a little Busó

In the main square, a stage in front of the town hall features singers and dancers. Throughout the square there are plenty of Busó to admire.

my friend Peter poses with a Busó






two Busó carrying a large horn


every few minutes we could hear this canon being fired


these Busó were being pulled along on a spinning platform

The main event of the final day is the huge bonfire in the main square. "Winter" is ceremoniously burned in effigy.

Goodbye winter!

Fundraiser Ball 2011: Dancing Debut!

This year I took part in the faculty dance performance at my school's fundraiser ball. Jon was a good sport and was my dance partner. Here's a clip of our little number:

We are front and center. Jon's wearing a blue shirt, silver tie and a hat. I'm wearing a black and white polka dot dress.

It was a huge success and we had a great time. We actually performed it a second time as an encore!

Rosemary Christmas Tree

This year instead of buying a Christmas tree we decorated our rosemary plant.

Mátyás Király Christmas Program

Baking Christmas Cookies in Hungary

I think that whenever you move, whether it be across town, across the country or across an ocean, you can't help but occupy your mind with the many things that are different. Needless to say I had a very long list when I first arrived in Hungary. But now I have lived here over two years and don't notice these differences as often.

This was my second year making Christmas cookies with my advanced-level English students. I figured I wouldn't be in for any surprises this afternoon.

We rolled out the dough,


cut out the shapes,


baked the cookies, made the frosting


and frosted them, exactly as I had planned.

But just in case I forgot I was in Hungary...

Three of my boys knocked on the window of the classroom and showed off a wild boar's head.

I made sure they washed their hands before they came back in.

Kalocsa

Pécs, Villány, and Villánykövesd

We finally went to Pécs!
After a disappointing attempt to see the lovely city a few months ago, Jon and I finally spent a couple afternoons in Pécs. Our friends Peter and Laura drove us down on the new M6 highway from Kecskemét, and we were there in under 2.5 hours.

the streets of Pécs

Pécs has a very Western-European feel, setting it apart from most other cities I've visited in Hungary. The city dates back to ancient Roman and early medieval times and was under Ottoman rule for over one hundred years.

National Theater of Pécs

Locks of Love

One interesting custom I have seen in some of the Hungarian cities I have visited is a gate covered in locks. The one in Pécs is the largest I've seen so far. If you look closely,

you'll see each lock is inscribed with two names and often a date. Couples symbolize the strength of their love and devotion by locking up their personalized locks and throwing away the key.

city hall

In Pécs we met up with the rest of our little tour group. The weekend trip was organized by a Hungarian friend Jon and I met this summer in Vienna. We didn't spend much time in the big city, but enjoyed walking around for a couple hours in the nice sunny weather before piling back in cars and heading to Villány.

Villány

Villány is just short drive from Pécs and is the southernmost wine region in Hungary. We stayed at a charming little B&B-type place owned by a couple who also owned a cellar. Once we dropped off our stuff, we headed to the cellar for a wine tasting followed by a big homemade dinner.

The owner of the cellar guides us through a tasting of his wines.

The next day Jon, Peter, Laura, and I soaked in the still-sunny weather while walking around the little town and its neighbor, Villánykövesd.

Villány's train station

The cellars of Villánykövesd

grapes climbing up a cellar

The weather was perfect. We found a nice path through the hills and did a bit of climbing to take in the view. That evening we had another homemade meal at the cellar and caught up with the rest of the group, who had gone to a nearby thermal bath for the day.

looking back on the hilly path

I waited and waited for this butterfly to finally land so I could snap a picture!

The next day the four of us visited Pécs again on our way back to Kecskemét. Everything was closed for November 1st (All Saints' Day is a national holiday in Hungary), but we walked through some lovely gardens and enjoyed the low-key feel of wandering through the city.