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Balatonalmádi |
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The first major settlement along the northern shore is BALATONALMÁDI
, a resort since 1877, which now has a pleasantly faded air, although
most visitors to this part of the shore pass straight through, favouring
instead the more buoyant resort of Balatonfüred. However, its decent
beaches, pleasant lakeside walks and varied cultural programme make it
worth stopping off for. Its bus and train stations are situated at the
top and bottom of the main square, Városház tér, while in July and
August boats from Balatonfüred and Tihany arrive at the pier, ten
minutes' walk eastwards through the lakeside park.
The best time to visit is during the Almádi Days at the end of July, a
nine-day cultural festival featuring folk dancing, operetta and a big
craft fair around the lakeside area. The grape harvest celebration in
mid-September is a smaller event - a day of wine and music, with a grand
procession through the town.
All the sights in the town are church-related. A few minutes' walk west
of the centre, the small Chapel of the Holy Right Hand ( Szent Jobb
Kápolna ), tacked on to the left side of the Church of Szent Imre, at
Óváry Ferenc utca 47, was originally located in the Royal Palace in Buda
and housed the holy right hand of St Stephen, which is now in the
Basilica in Budapest. During the reconstruction of Buda palace after
World War II, the chapel was spared from destruction by Stalinists, and
rebuilt at Balatonalmádi in 1957. Peering through the bars of the gate
you can see the impressive gold mosaic by Károly Lotz, although the
turquoise walls give the whole thing a tacky feel.
Two other unusual churches lie in Vörösberény , the older part of town,
twenty minutes' walk up Petofi utca, and along Veszprémi út (ask at the
bus station which bus to catch). The Baroque parish church, built in
1779 for the Jesuits, contains interesting frescoes depicting the
order's founder, St Ignatius, as well as some contemporary figures; you
can get the key from the plébánia , two houses behind the church. Just
uphill stands a fortified thirteenth-century Calvinist church, whose
shape has undergone many changes over the years; only fragments of
frescoes and a couple of windows remain from the original. The key is
available from the priest's house ( Református Lelkész Hivatal ),
directly below the church at Veszprémi út 105. On Fridays in July and
August the church hosts concerts of Renaissance and Baroque music.
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