One place we wanted to go on our previous trip was the town of Eger. It is about a 2 hour train ride away and rumored to have many things worth seeing. The first such thing we saw as this statue of Dobo Istvan in one of the central squares.
This fellow Dobo is a city hero who has a city square named for him.
This square in the center of Eger got its name from the heroic captain of the town's stronghold, who fought against the invading Turkish army in the 16th Century. The square itself is a pedestrian zone with many market stalls throughout the year. Visitors should check out the statue of Dobó, which was made by Stróbl Alajos in 1907. The square also hosts various concerts and performances. The Forst-House (built around 1760), the Town Hall and the Minorite Church are also located in this historic, baroque square. If you're feeling hungry, don't hesitate to try the Hungarian fare in the Arany Oroszlán restaurant.
The streets leading in to the square are all friendly places filled with restaurants and lots of stores selling things to tourists.
Some of these places were most curious. This antique store (régiségbolt in Hungarian), advertises with a gas mask and uniform from WWI. Not something you see every day.
A more common sight is a wine shop. Eger is on the edge of wine country and there are lots of places here selling local wines.
I always enjoy finding manhole covers with great designs on them. The ones in Hungary everywhere are nice. This one caught my eye.
There are three things that Eger is really known for: churches, a castle, and this minaret. In the middle ages, the Turks took over and this was a muslim city. When Dobo Istvan helped drive them out in the 16th century everything muslim was destroyed except this one tower.
I enjoyed seeing it but choose not to climb the ~100 steps to the top and pay the price of admission. Just didn't seem like fun on this warm day.
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