Kosice

Our day started with a walking tour of Kosice, the second largest city in Slovakia after the capital Bratislava. The city of Kosice seemed less "communist" than those in Bulgaria and Romania, with the majority of its old town intact and seemingly less "grey boxes". It was fascinating learning about the history of each former communist country we've been to. They were all intertwined but yet so different. The varying effects of communism on each country had also been particularly interesting. I realised how little I knew of the region, and of the Austro-hungarian and Ottoman Empire. There's my non-fiction reading material sorted for 2020!

The coat of arms Kosice. The compicated history indicated on it with Hungarian, Roman, French symbols

St Elizabeth Cathedral in the day time

The original bell from the bell tower. It fell down a few years ago.

Used as a decoration for advent candles!

State theatre

Unfortunately all the ice works are melting or has melted because of the warm temperatures :(

Yup please don't complain of wet bums later...

One of the few shops open down the craftsmen lane. This one a pottery store. Handbells for only 5 euros each!

Opa and Oma bought us a matching he and she doctor ones! 

Very delicate handiwork

The workshop on display

Our 3 hour walking tour covered the main sights of the old town including St Elizabeth Cathedral, the state theatre, the lower gate of the city from the 13th century, as well as other historic buildings and landmarks. The craftsmen's lane, unfortunately only had a handful of shops open, one of them being the pottery store. We were able to see the potter in action, and there were many exquisiste products. It was such a shame that we could not bring them home. 

Our tour ended at the Christmas markets where we foraged for food and dessert. The children discovered "caj" = warm sweet tea and it became their mulled wine alternative. The markets were atmospheric with entertainers on stage, Christmas music in the background and many locals out and about. We saw a gigantic cauldron and our guide informed that it was cabbage soup, one of Slovakia's traditional soup. They were selling it to raise funds for charity. For a mere 2 euros and for a good cause, we joined the very long line for some soup. Although it didn't look appetising while being cooked, the soup was a surprise hit. It disappeared in record time!

The group reconvened for dinner at Le Colonial, an easy stroll from the DoubleTree. Again, it was a restaurant with a rustic ambience and everyone was relieved that the service was significantly faster! The food was also nice, although probably not as tasty as at Villa Regia.

Time for chimney cake. Trdelnik in Slovak!

Survival of the fittest

Christmas markets!

A community drive to raise funds for charity. Selling cabbage and sausage soup!

It was a VERY large pot of soup

A quick photo with the entertainers while in line

At 2 euro a bowl and for a good cause, the line was VERY long

The soup was very delicious!!

Mmm...how could we resist potato being drenched in oil....

The cooked potato pancake. It was actually very delicious but a little too oily

Finishing off with mini donuts

Don't ask why the children chose kiwi dressing...

Another evening, another rustic venue with a modern Christmas decorating twist

Another duck dish, this time with cabbage and crepes. They do it well!

Hungary to Slovakia

Hungarian House of Parliament made completely from marzipan!

The day did not start off in a good way. We were supposed to be picked up at 9am to commence our private tour of Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Our guide and van did not arrive until 0950. It was difficult to contain the group agro as we had been waiting by the side of the road in the cold for nearly an hour. Our guide, Peter, was also the owner of the company. He was very apologetic and we did believe that his reason was genuine. We were also accustomed to a very different style of guide in the form of Romanian George. Peter was no George. He was less of an intellect but more relaxed. He had a different sense of humour to George but was very attentive and responsive to our needs. He took our complaints onboard well and made no excuses. The rest of the day fortunately went smoothly!

We were taken to Szetendre, a small picturesque village on the Danube Bend. Usually teeming with tourists in summer, it was quiet and peaceful during our visit. We visited a marzipan museum which was a bit like an edible version of Madame Tussauds. Whilst we appreciated the creations, I'm sure that some of us would rather eat wax over marzipan, given the chance.

The Slovakian party bus!

They had marzipan creations of everything you can think of under the sun including Mickey!

The famous Queen Maria

Intricate nativity scene

Small workshop where a cactus is being made

The pretty village centre

Paprika! A hungarian favourite

Danube, or more accurately a small side stream

Lunch time!

Garlic soup. Yum!

Veal stew. Very tasty!

Marzipan "play dough"

Lara's creation. Not sure I'd want to eat it after it has been fingered by the children...

Our tour of ex-communist countries continued in the form of Slovakia. There was a noticeable improvement in the quality of the roads and general organisation in Slovakia. The roads in northern Hungary had been particularly poor. The journey of 180km seemed to take forever and it was dark when we arrived in Kosice. We were all glad to check into the known comforts and reliable standard of the Hilton Brand. Our hotel was just on the edge of the old town which made it convenient to explore.

Peter took us for a brief walk through the old town to our restaurant. Unfortunately dinner at Villa Regia turned out to be a very drawn out affair in an extremely overheated building. The service was SO slow which was a shame as the setting was charming & rustic, and the food was actually excellent. Both the duck and ribs that Malcolm and I ordered were one of the best we've had.

We were all sweltering...

Everything was so pretty! Here are the serviettes

Duck with onion puree. SOO good!

St Elizabeth Cathedral