Eger, Hungary... my kinda town

This weekend, I headed East. I visited a new friend in Košice, Slovakia. Sam is from Maine and is teaching in Košice this year. He showed me around his new town and I went to his web conference for U.S. and Slovak students to discuss the image of America. It was very interesting and a little depressing.

On Saturday, Sam and I went to Eger, Hungary. It is a town with an incredible history. In 1552, they were attacked by the Turks. The Hungarians were severely outnumbered, but with the help of the women in the town and some red wine, they were victorious. The wine stained the men's beards, and the Turks concluded that the people of Eger got their strength and courage by drinking the blood of bulls. Now, Eger is known for its Bull's Blood wine. What a legend! We visited the scene of the battle, the castle of Eger. It was the most incredible castle I've seen so far. Our next mission was to sample the famous red wine. We walked to Szépasszony-völgy, the Valley of Beautiful Women. There are hundreds of wine cellars carved into the mountainside where they sell the local wine. Each cellar has its own charm. We went into numbers 3, 17, and 10. When the sun went down, the town had a new mood. It was still buzzing but peaceful. Eger will always be one of my favorite places. It's a town known for strong-willed women and great wine. What's not to love!?