ECO-MUSEUMS

                                                 Fun Places to Visit

      During my travels I have visited several eco-museums. I always look for something new and different.

     The Hungarian museum is located along the Danube River not far from Budapest. Established in 1967 and opened to the public in 1974, it replicates a village from the last century. At the old cemetery the docent asked us to note the different colors of the wooden markers, then explained that blue designated a child and black an adult. A male marker was pointed and a female marker was rounded. If a woman was married twice she had two rounded mounds on her marker. The carved wooden markers told a story for those before people could read and write. These markers were certainly new to me.

     Eventually this museum will have 300 buildings in ten units. When I visited it had 10 houses, three churches, seven mills, an inn, school and workshops. The museum will explain history and illustrate social differences. It was an interesting visit.

     The eco-museum in Las Landes, Bordeaux, France was established in 1970 and covered 10,000 square kilometers. A train delivered us to the entrance of the museum.  Sheep added much fertilizer to the sandy soil so grass was able to grow. Maypoles were explained to us. The aromas wafting from the outdoor ovens made me hungry for the fresh baked bread inside.

    Ballenberg, in Switzerland, was the first eco-museum I visited and probably my favorite. Set in a lovely wooded area, well maintained winding paths led from one house to the next. I was practically interested in the apothecary and the hand lace makers.  There was a large restaurant at the  edge of the grounds where we enjoyed a delightful lunch to bring this museum visit to a close.

    In Stockholm, Sweden the eco-museum, Skansen means little fortress. It is the oldest such museum having been established in 1891.  Its 150 buildings are located on one of Stockholm’s islands where it and the zoo occupy the entire island.  In the old schoolhouse we saw the rabbit tail erasers that were used to clean chalk boards. With no electricity the school day was short and the teacher and his wife lived in a room attached to the classroom. 

    Each museum was different and had something new to see and learn about.

An eco-museum is a museum focused on the identity of a place, largely based on local participation aiming to enhance the welfare and development of local communities. Eco-museums originated in France, in 1971. The term  refers especially to a new idea of holistic interpretation of cultural heritage vs the display of items and things of traditional museums. Many such museums are located in Europe.

    There are many such places around the U.S.; we just haven’t adopted the term eco-museum instead we call them interpretive, open, village etc.

OLD ZOOS

     My California travel buddy, who I met in the Swiss Alps, was an LA zoo docent, so we visited many zoos in our travels. In return she accommodated me with my floral clocks and botanical gardens. We each learned a lot from the other.

     The oldest zoo in the world, Tiergarten, was built in 1752 at Schonbrunn Palace in Austria, just outside Vienna. It was designed around the Emperor’s breakfast pavilion, so he could enjoy the animals along with his morning chocolate. On a very hot day, after walking about the zoo, we decided to have lunch in the pavilion, now a small restaurant.

     Many animals were gifts from European nobility and diplomats from all over the world. In 1828 the first giraffe and first elephant born in captivity were born at Tiergarten. How exciting that must have been!  Even on a hot afternoon the lions, leopards, and black panthers were active and passed only a few feet away behind heavy glass.

     The zoo went under government control in 1921, but in 1991 again became a private enterprise. Today the zoo is actively involved in the protection of threatened species.

     On another European trip we visited the Budapest zoo on a quiet Sunday afternoon. This zoo dates to 1866. Besides the hundreds of mammals, even more birds and reptiles are residents, plus the complex also includes  a large botanical garden, and includes 69 buildings. The elephant house, modeled after a Turkish Mosque was really beautiful.

     Here I saw some new animals which my zoo docent friend was able to explain and identify for me. Of course all the signs and map were in Hungarian.  A couple of  times we were a bit confused as to where we were so we looked for a young male to seek help. Both times we were just around the corner from where we wanted to be. In Europe look for a teenage boy or young man as they almost always speak English—that tid bit never failed us when traveling.

    At the Edinburgh zoo we were having trouble finding the painted hunting dogs. Eventually we spotted a fellow who we thought was a zoo employee. We asked if was familiar with the zoo layout, and then showed him the map and what we were looking for. He stopped what he was doing and trotted all over the zoo until he found the dogs for us. We double stepped to keep up with him and thanked him for his help. Then he told us he was the insurance inspector doing his annual inspection. Just  another example how we found friendly and helpful people everywhere we traveled.   We spent half a day in each of these zoos and I certainly wouldn’t mind visiting them again.

BUDAPEST SITES

                                           A Couple Must-See Sites
Dohany Synagogue

       The Dohany Synagogue, with seating capacity for 3000, is a striking Byzantine structure, and is Europe’s largest, and the world’s second largest, synagogue. Built in 1859, it is still used by Budapest’s conservative Jewish community. With its two 140-foot-high onion domes, it is a fine example of Moorish-Revival architecture. The synagogue has recently been restored. Next door is the Jewish Museum.

       The Holocaust Memorial, designed by a contemporary Hungarian sculptor, is in the form of a weeping willow tree. Thin metal leaves, purchased by survivors and descendants of relatives fall from the branches. It is a moving memorial.

      Budapest had one of the largest Jewish populations in Europe. Centuries ago Jews had to live outside the walled city. When the city expanded those areas beyond the walls were included into the city. During the Nazi occupation of Hungary over 20,000 Jews took refuge in the synagogue. However, 7000 did not survive the bleak winter of 1944-45. The original brick wall of the Jewish Ghetto can still be seen.

       Auschwitz swallowed 600,000 Jews. During WW II, Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat, saved many Jews by supplying them with false passports.

Open Air Museum

      One day with a pleasant ride through the countryside, up around the Danube Bend we stopped at the Hungarian Museum, an open air eco-museum. Established in 1967, it opened in 1974. It is a reconstructed village from the last century.

     Stopping by an old cemetery a docent explained the wooden grave markers. “The blue marker means the person was a child. The black marker, an adult. The marker for a male is pointed, the marker for females is rounded. If a female married more than once she had another rounded mound. The markers are carved of wood, and were used to tell a story before people could read or write.”

      I found this interesting as I’d never heard nor seen such markers before.

      We learned that eventually there will be 300 buildings in 10 units. During my visit, there were 80 houses, 3 churches, a chapel, 7 mills, an inn, school, and workshops. The museum explains history and also illustrates social differences.

      In passing she said, “Feudalism was eliminated in the 18^th century. In the 19^th century one in 20 was titled noble, but was not necessarily rich.”

      Walking around the complex we spotted several different fruits ripening on trees.  It was a very interesting visit.

Parliament Tour

      The top of my priority list on my  third or fourth trip to Budapest was to tour the inside of the Parliament Building. It is a magnificent building and you might like to check post 4-2-14

BUDAPEST'S PARLIAMENT

                                A Spectacular Building

            On two previous visits to Budapest I had only seen the Parliament building from the outside, and from the water it is spectacular. As the largest, most beautiful, and best-known building in Budapest, it is one of the symbols of the city and on this visit my number one priority was to tour the inside of the building.

            We left early in the morning to ride the subway to the proper station, which was easy. We had been told that various tours were held in various languages. It was a bit of a challenge to find the right entrance to buy tickets, and when we finally did we had missed the English tour by a few minutes. We bought tickets for the next one, an hour and a half later.  There is not a lot to do in the immediate area of the Parliament building. The river was high and the steps leading from street down to the river were under water more than half way up and blocked off.  We walked along the Danube River and walked across the famous Chain Bridge. My traveling buddy on this trip was not much of a walker and I exhausted her walking across the bridge where on the other side she didn’t want to walk any farther. So we backtracked and found a café to sit and enjoy a cup of café while we waited for our tour.

          The Parliament House is a neo-gothic structure with a renaissance dome. It is one of the largest state buildings in Europe.1945 was the only time before 1990 that an elective legislature convened in its great hall.

Resembling Westminster, it was built 1885-1902. Its 691 rooms occupy 17,700 square meters.  Measuring 871 feet long and 383 feet wide, it is one of the largest parliaments in the world. The dome is 312 feet high. The building can be seen from most anywhere on the riverfront

Fifty 5-story apartment blocks could fit inside this huge building. There are 27 entrance gates. We walked up the 96 step grand entrance hall over the red carpet. This hall is magnificent.  There are 90 statues and coat of arms of Hungarian cities, and 152 statues and pictures of national fauna throughout the building. There also are 40 kilos of 22-23 karat gold used in the building.

The central dome hall has stain glass windows. The inner dome is 27 meters high while the outside dome is 96 meters high. I wished I could lay down on the floor to better view the ceiling frescos. From the central dome there are two identical wings. The red star on top of the dome was removed in 1990. Walking down one hall the guide stopped to point out the brass cigar holders that line the window sills outside the debate room. One would place his cigar in a numbered slot and it would continue to burn for as long as the gentleman was in session. I tried to photograph this unique piece of memorabilia but had little success.

The inside of Budapest’s parliament is spectacular! The Hungarian Holy Crown and coronation insignia are kept here under the central dome. We arrived just as the guards were changing.

You know nearly every venue exits through the inevitable gift shop. There was so much to see on this tour, I simply couldn’t write fast enough as the docent explained one thing after another, so I was desperately looking forward to buying a book in the gift shop. But it was not to be, because believe it or not, Parliament did not have a gift shop!  For the rest of my stay in Budapest I checked every bookstore I could find but could not find any kind of a book that explained the history and the building’s contents or features.

The tour was well worth our time. If I ever get back to Budapest I’ll repeat it again to obtain more information. It is truly a gorgeous building.

TWO OF BUDAPEST'S SYMBOL'S AND HIGHLIGHTS

 Matthias Church

            Also called the Church of Our Lady or Coronation Church, Matthias Church is a beautiful turn of the century neo-Gothic structure. Symbol of the city’s Castle District, this is where kings were crowned. The raven, the sign of 15^th century kings, can be seen on the towers.

            The earliest remains of the church date back to the 13th century when King Béla IV. (1206-1270) commissioned the building of a church at Castle Hill after the 1241-42 Mongol invasion. The north tower was built at that time (1255-1269)

            King Matthias Corvinus expanded and embellished the building in Renaissance style and  added the 195-foot high southern  tower. The Matthias bell tower bears a raven holding a golden ring in its beak, the royal coat of arms.          

            Our guide told us, “King Matthias was known for his fairness and justice, and Hungary flourished under his rule. He was married twice in the church that bears his name. Built in the 13-15^th centuries, it is another symbol of Budapest.

In 1541 the Turks invaded Hungary and occupied the country for 150 years. The Turks turned the church into a mosque and white-washed the wall covered frescos. After Buda was retaken, the Jesuits were given the church and made some Baroque alterations. The church became a parish church in 1773. It was restored in the latter part of the 19^th century in neo-gothic style.

            The exterior and the frescos as well as the marvelous stained windows originate from that era and are the works of Hungary's greatest artists of the time.

             Today, inside  the church one wall retains  its Turkish geometric design, while frescos are evident elsewhere.  The structure has a beautiful mosaic roof. Because of the exceptional acoustics, concerts are often held in the church.

            A memorial plaque on the outside of the church commemorates all who lost their lives while the country was under Hitler and Stalin rule.

Fisherman’s Bastion

             Perched on the edge of the Castle District behind Matthias Church is a neo-Romanesque structure known as Fisherman’s Bastion. Built at the turn of the century in the location of the old fish market; it  provides  a panoramic view of the Danube River and Pest. The seven towers represent the seven tribes of Hungarians when they settled down by the Danube in the Carpathian basin in 896. The building has many turrets, terraces, parapets and stairways offering  exceptional views.It is an unforgettable landmark in Budapest.

            Fishermen's Bastion never was used for military defensive purposes; it was created only for decorative reasons.

          From the backside of the structure one can view part of a medieval wall that is between it and the Hilton Hotel.  When the medieval ruins were discovered during the construction of the hotel, the hotel’s design was altered to accommodate, not destroy, the ruins.

   Nearby is a statue of St. Stephen atop his horse.