Pecs, Hungary: A (Hot) Gem

As I mentioned yesterday, Pecs has a history of both Roman and Turkish rule.  As such, there are strong influences of both Islam and Christianity.  The first place we visited today was a mosque-turned-church that is on the central square.  The shot above shows the original mosque windows and details (the red/white stripes are an Egyptian design); the Christians kind of just added things on to the existing artwork, so it was neat to see both traditions in one place.  One of the coolest things about this visit was that Janine and I met this man who was Muslim, and he translated all of the old Arabic writings on the walls for us.

The other major church in town is the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul.  This church was always Christian, but the artwork still has an Eastern feel to it.  Unfortunately, the church was too dark for good pictures, but the crypt (see above) was well-lit and had nice marble and mosaic work.

The one time today when we weren't hot was when we went underground to the Tettye Caves.  The caves are naturally formed in tuff limestone rock, but were artificially enlarged, and have housed everything from mills to people to an amusement park.  Currently, it's just a nice tour (though it was in Hungarian...good thing we had the English brochure to help us along!).

We walked down to the main square after a late dinner for one last wade in the town fountain, and the buildings were beautifully lit.  It was like Christmas in July!