Hungary has a complex sense of identity, not generally regarding itself as Balkan or Slavic, but Western. The country's assortment of cultures can be traced back through its history.
During the ninth century, Finno-Ugriar nomads came into Hungary via south Russia. The Arpád Dynasty ruled until the end of the 13th century, when Hungary was devastated by a Mongol invasion. Hungary fell under Turkish sovereignty during the 16th century, re-establishing independence after the Thirty Years' War. Hungary then formed an alliance with Austria and was ruled by a Magyar aristocracy. It remained an essentially feudal state until 1914 (under monarchic and republican regimes), with an antiquated (by European standards) social system that was not fully dismantled until after World War II.
Being landlocked, this mosaic of cultures and lineage can also be explained by the country's shared borders with the Slovak Republic, Ukraine, Romania, Croatia, Serbia, Austria and Slovenia. Yet despite being landlocked, Hungary contains some beautiful stretches of water - such as Lake Balaton - and pulsates with hot, medicinal springs.
Hungary has also managed to retain its unique language and customs. Immense pride in their homeland may lead Hungarians to persuade the tourist in Budapest to spend some time also exploring Hungary's thousands of acres of vineyards and orchards, plus 11 national parks and hundreds of protected areas.
Nevertheless, Budapest is a fantastic capital city in its own right, situated on a beautiful stretch of the Danube. The city is made up of two parts – Buda, the older, more graceful and cobbled part, and Pest, the commercial centre. The capital is a lively city that has long been a haven for writers, artists and musicians. And Hungary has a lot of them, with rich traditions in folk and classical music, the birthplace of Liszt and Bartok. Budapest is also filled with the strains of much more modern music, which spills out of nightclubs, trendy bars and discos.
Yet beneath this glossy surface lurks the remembrance of how Hungary sided with Nazi Germany during World War II. Once the Germans were driven out by the Russians in 1945, Hungary became a Soviet-style Socialist state, a member of the Warsaw Pact, and a People's Republic. Although the Hungarian regime was, by the 1970s, the most liberal of all Soviet bloc systems, the Socialists nonetheless maintained a firm grip on the country's political and economic life. Finally, Kádár, the Hungarian Communist leader, was removed from the ruling Politburo in 1988 and Hungary began the transition to a pluralistic political system. The first elections were held in the spring of 1990.
Such history is gradually being ebbed away. Gigantic Communist statues have been dumped in Szoborpark (Statue Park), on the outskirts of Budapest. Hungary is now a member of the EU. Such integration has brought both further touristic development and keen preservation of what is wonderful about this country.
