Location: Eger Castle (Hungary)
she was too absorbed to notice her skin sparkling in the sunlight
I was sprawled naked on the cool tiled bathroom floor with a wet towel draped over my body. The breeze of the fan relieved me momentarily. It was midnight, and yet the sky was glowing red with thick smoke that stung at your nostrils. The bush had been burning for weeks. I was trying to sleep - how anybody can sleep in 49 degree weather is beyond me. I lay there bitterly cursing my shoe-box apartment which was more like trying to occupy a sauna. As I lay there I wished for a cool change or a brilliant summer storm, there hadn't been one in weeks. I imagined dancing barefoot in the cool rain with the thunder and lightening violently fighting the sky above me, the thought of cold was my only respite. Then I slept.
I woke up remembering this night. When I visited Hungary I never imagined that the weather could reach similar temperatures, but there I was, damp with sweat and unable to sleep. In the morning I was grumpy, as I drank delicious thick coffee relief washed over me. An assortment of salami, cheese and crunchy toast was followed with the news that on this day we would visit Eger Castle. I was ecstatic!
For anybody who knows me well, will know I have a fascination with the old. Whether it be an archaeological site, an abandoned building or a historic site, it doesn't really matter! I like to explore my surroundings contemplating what life would have been like at that specific time, the people and their own personal stories.
I walked through the stone archways, past some cannons and alongside the stone walls of Eger Castle. I was transported back to 1552 with armies of invading Turkish soldiers, sieges and an underground fortification systems. I was mesmerised by the history and how this structure held so much significance to the soil I was currently strolling upon so calmly. It was hard to imagine thousands had died where I stood.
The rocks of the castle radiated with warmth, and on occasion I would take refuge from the blaring sun under a proud standing tree. Had this tree witnessed what had occurred on this site?
Afterwards, with a refreshing and utterly delicious ice-cream in hand we walked back to the car - I was daydreaming of many centuries past completely forgetting the sun that was painting my shoulders red.
I woke up remembering this night. When I visited Hungary I never imagined that the weather could reach similar temperatures, but there I was, damp with sweat and unable to sleep. In the morning I was grumpy, as I drank delicious thick coffee relief washed over me. An assortment of salami, cheese and crunchy toast was followed with the news that on this day we would visit Eger Castle. I was ecstatic!
For anybody who knows me well, will know I have a fascination with the old. Whether it be an archaeological site, an abandoned building or a historic site, it doesn't really matter! I like to explore my surroundings contemplating what life would have been like at that specific time, the people and their own personal stories.
I walked through the stone archways, past some cannons and alongside the stone walls of Eger Castle. I was transported back to 1552 with armies of invading Turkish soldiers, sieges and an underground fortification systems. I was mesmerised by the history and how this structure held so much significance to the soil I was currently strolling upon so calmly. It was hard to imagine thousands had died where I stood.
The rocks of the castle radiated with warmth, and on occasion I would take refuge from the blaring sun under a proud standing tree. Had this tree witnessed what had occurred on this site?
Afterwards, with a refreshing and utterly delicious ice-cream in hand we walked back to the car - I was daydreaming of many centuries past completely forgetting the sun that was painting my shoulders red.