Day 7: Fri 16th – Kolarovo, Gyor & Sopron - Hungary

Sunrise 6:23 am – Sunset 7:03pm

Weather Forecast:    29 and sunny

Steps:               8,814     6.08 km              

We departed Levice at 8am. Karin's mother surprised her by arriving at the hotel as she was checking the luggage.  We have a new driver today because Laszlaw is having his obligatory 2 day break. The new driver, Josef, is also Hungarian.

First up this morning we headed to Kolarovo.  The road we travelled along, was not  only a country road but a back road, country road. The land was very flat and all farming. Crop farming, not animal farming.  This area is the food bowl of Slavakia. 

Europe's longest wooden bridge is there.

It stretches 86 metres over the River Maly Dunaj and the original bridge was built in 1892.  That one was destroyed in the 1950's and the current one was built in 1992, from the memory of local older villagers. 
Some people made the comment that the bridge in Lucern is longer but that one is not all wooden.  There is some concrete & steel in it.  
We arrived  around 9:45am.  First stop was at a local hotel for a loo stop.  Karin had provided us all with a paper cup and her mother had baked some scones and at the bridge we had a 'last drink' in Slovakia.
The local school were having canoe races on the river.

Then it was back into Hungary for a visit to Gyor.

We crossed the border into Hungary at 11:10am and had a short comfort stop about 11:20. Back on the road again and as we are on the highway, Karin had asked us to pay for our optionals.   We arrived in Gyor around midday today.  Gyor is located on the confluence of the Danube, Rába and Rábca rivers.  Although it was first inhabited by the Celts and Romans, the city is now noted for its baroque charm.

We met the local guide at 12:20.  Some pics taken in Gyor

The local tour finished just after 1pm and I joined Sandra & Geoff for lunch at a local  cafe. 980.huf for a salad and a beer or just over €3.00.

We were due to depart at 2:20 but didn't get away until 2:30, as one of the women fainted in a nearby supermarket and an ambulance was called. Some of the tour people were also there but the ambulance people wouldn't let her go until a doctor said that she was okay, hence the slight delay.

Arrived in Fertod Lake around 3:45 pm for our visit to the Esterhazy Palace.

We started our tour of the Palace at 4:15 and finished it shortly before 5:15.  On the bus and on our way to Sopron by 5:40.

Arrived at the hotel Sopron at   6:05.

Departed for the optional Wine Tasting & dinner at 7.15. There were only 13 of us on the optional and we were back at the hotel shortly after 9:30pm.   Looks like a full moon out there tonight.  The optional was interesting and the guy who presented the wines and explained things, was very good.  I enjoyed it and learnt a couple of things.