The Memory Book Tour
ZoOm Hungary

What was it like for a girl a hundred years ago in the center of Europe? See a young girl’s life in the days of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy where family and romance were overrun by war. The Memory Book Tour takes you to there, to a place where Amálka grew up.

The Memory Book Tour

In The Footsteps of Amálka, you visit Budapest, and Szolnok, her birthplace. We now think of her life as exotic. You will go to Transylvania, where she spent holidays and recorded memories of the grape harvests. This is the life revealed in Linda Fischer’s The Memory Book. It is a journey you will remember forever.

Duration of the tour: 5 or 7 days. 

Your tour includes the hotel accommodation, ground transportation and guiding.

 Day 1: Budapest 

It all starts with the culture of the times in grand Budapest. You see Buda and Pest, the ancient and modern parts of the capital, including the World Heritage Sites of the Castle Hill, and Andrassy Boulevard with the Millennium Monument. And more. Off the beaten path, you will get the full flavor of this magnificent city.
On the Pest side there is the Millennium Monument on Heroes Square and City Park. Your visit includes the Vajdahunyad Castle, the Szechenyi Thermal Bath, the Gundel Restaurant, the Budapest Zoo, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the Art Gallery.

Then you travel to the Budapest Opera for a photo stop, and St Stephen’s Cathedral. A full tour of the Hungarian Parliament is on the list, as is a tribute to the Statue of Imre Nagy, the martyred prime minister. But there is much more—the Ethnographical Museum, the Memorial of 1956 Revolution, and other monuments to Hungary past and present.

Amálka’s Budapest was vibrant and tragic.We view the Great Synagogue and the Holocaust Memorial in the Jewish district of Budapest. It provides a stunning contrast to the view of the Danube in full panorama on the Buda side.

From the top you will see Gellert Hill, the Citadel and the Statue of Liberty and the iconic view of the Capital. You will visit the Castle Area with the Royal Palace, and medieval remains, the Hungarian National Gallery, the Szechenyi Library, and at the top of the funicular, the Matthias Fountain. There is a long history to absorb, including Fishermen’s Bastions and the Matthias Church, as well as the Holy Trinity Monument, the Hungarian National Archive, and another fantastic view of both Pest and Buda. 

The extensive tour takes about 8 hours, after which you will be dropped off at your hotel. Special requests can also be accommodated.

Day 2: Budapest in Depth

Budapest has many dimensions in time both before and after Amálka.Choose your special day! Are you interested in the Communist Era and life under the Soviets? Are you fascinated by history, or art? We offer special tailor-made tours for you. 

The Memory Book Tour

Day 3: Szolnok

Visit the home of Amálka. Szolnok has a special charm. Szolnok, originally called Zounok in 1075, sits on the lazy river Tisza which traverses five European countries. This county seat is surrounded by natural beauty and thermal waters. But Amálka’s life here was less bucolic. Szolnok has been destroyed 14 times. 

The tour includes seeing the Art Colony of Szolnok and where the artists fulfill Hungary’s long artistic line.

Day 4: Amálka’s Transylvania Tours

The young girl traveled widely with her family. You will overnight in Nagyvárad (now Oradea, Romania). It is an ancient city located just 8 miles from the Hungarian border, spanning both shores of the Sebes-Körös River. Nagyvárad is a great starting point for exploring Transylvania. First documented in 1113 under the Latin name Varadinum, it is home to 19th century Art Nouveau with its richly decorated facades and features an astronomical clock depicting the phases of the moon.

Day 5: Amálka’s Transylvania Tours

What did the Amálka think of Transylvania? It has a legacy of monuments, ancient, medieval and to her, modern. You will visit, Kolozsvár (known as Cluj to Amálka) which is still home to the Cathedral of St. Michaela. It is a vast Gothic hall-church (1487) which saw the baptism of King Matthias Corvin, and sermons condemning the extermination of the Jews in 1944.

Time to absorb

You will have seen much by this point. Choosing the 7 day tour includes an extra day in Budapest and Transylvania to absorb it all. It is well worth it.

The Memory Book Tour features:

  • Romantic Budapest
  • World Heritage
  • Special Day
  • Szolnok Art Colony
  • Charming Transylvania
  • Past and Present
  • Parliament
  • Danube Speedboat
  • Matthias Church

 

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