Where a detour tastes like wine

Slow travel means leaving room for the unexpected. The original plan was actually to follow the Balaton cycling route from Szigliget to Tihany, but that morning we decided to make a little detour to the “basalt organ pipes” on Szent György (St George) Hill. That detour itself was more than worth it, by the way.

But on our way back towards Lake Balaton, we met a friendly police officer who told us to continue on foot. We first checked the map to see if there was perhaps a cycle-friendly route available, but in the end we decided to carry on walking. And luckily we did, because a little later we understood why: we had stumbled right into Hungary’s biggest annual wine harvest festival!

We were in Badacsony, an important wine region on the shores of Lake Balaton, especially famous for its delicious white wines. The whole village — and all the surrounding villages — was out and about, young and old alike. Every winemaker from the region had decorated their own tractor or horse-drawn carriage and joined the long parade. We even saw vehicles from Poland and Austria. Along the way, wine and grapes were generously handed out. Traditional costumes, dancing and music were naturally part of the celebrations too. On the village square, the announcer introduced each vehicle: “And now, the Szábo family, who have been running a four-hectare estate since 1850, growing Olaszrizling and Kéknyelű grapes…”

It even left us a little speechless. There’s something beautiful about seeing Hungarians of all ages keeping their traditions alive. Without a publicity caravan, (almost) without amplification, but 100% authentic. Of course, Belgium still has its village festivals too, but here we seem to stumble across them remarkably often — and above all, everyone seems to take part.

If you really want to taste Hungary, you have to put the hurried Western way of life aside for a while and simply let yourself be carried along.