KALOCSA, HUNGARY

                                 Hungary's Cowboy Country
        Once a swampy area, homes are built up off the ground to cope with frequent flooding.  A visit to a country home revealed white walls were covered with floral designs. Originally only the ceiling borders were painted, but eventually  painting emerged to cover the entire wall. White lace curtains graced the windows below the open-beam ceiling. Even the stove in the corner of the room was painted with flowers.

       On one wall was a picture of a girl    in native costume which  is worn only to church or for special occasions. Over the years the colors of the flowers on her dress change. Young girls would have red roses, as she grows, matures and marries the flowers will change to lilac and in old age the colors will be quite drab. The art of Kalosca embroidery was born in the second half of the 19th century. The motifs were borrowed from nature.

      Assumption Church is the fourth built on the same site, this one 1734-1755. The 4664 pipe, 3 keyboard organ is the second and dates to the mid 1800s. One of four Roman Catholic archbishops of Hungary, the town has a beautiful cathedral, archbishop's palace, and seminary.  The unusual thing I noticed in this church was the use of pastel pink and yellow in many places on the walls. There are four side chapels. We enjoyed an organ concert here but the music was very loud.

    Kalocsa is located six miles from the eastern bank of the Danube River in the Puszta, the Great Plains of Hungary.  Hungarian cowboys are called csikos.  There are many large ranches in the area, and we drove to one of the horse farms for an excellent goulash served over barley. An interesting milk pie, like nothing I’ve ever eaten before, topped off lunch.  

     At the Puszta horse show Magyar cowboys demonstrated their equestrian skills. The entertainment started with a horse parade, followed by all sorts of exercises that were once practiced for wartime. For example, riders taught their horses to sit or lie down providing a

smaller target or protection for the rider during battle. A boy on a small burro provided comical contrast to the magnificent steeds. The highlight of the show was when a cowboy completed a complicated twist to the Hungarian five-horse racing, more commonly known as the Puszta-fiver. Standing on the rear ends of the back two horses the cowboy controlled eight horses with his reins!  Amazing! It was my first such show and it was outstanding.

You may want to read all about Paprika on post 7-31-11

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