The Csango Festival in Jaszbereny
Summer in Hungary isn’t complete without a festival or two and there are many to choose from. The Csango festival is an annual festival in Jaszbereny, about 1 hr 30 minutes from Budapest by train or bus. The Csango are a Hungarian speaking minority who live in 3 locations ( The Ghimes valley, Moldava and Tara Barsei in Suth Eastern Transylvania ), they have a distinct dialect, costume and folk traditions.
Jaszbereny is a regional centre/ market town in central Hungary, it has a small but attractive centre, there is a small museum, a baroque church, a lily-filled river traversed by foot bridges. I imagine it’s usually very quiet. There are places to stay and a few places to eat.
I arrived on Friday afternoon to streets stalls selling food, crafts and women from Szek in Transylvania selling textiles.
I enjoyed a chilled wander around and chats with old acquaintances but the highlight for me was the Csango village ( Csango Falu), a textiles- filled yurt conceived by Gabriell Kelemen who has collected a beautiful range of Csango textiles and costume. I have seen many Csango textiles but here was an opportunity to identify textiles frpm different Moldovan villages including one that I have owned for a number of years) Gabriell is very knowledgable
As evening approached and the stage entertainment commenced, the crowds grew larger and a really lovely festival mood. There were particularly amazing performances by visiting dance groups from Mexico and Columbia. I was in Jaszbereny for less than 24 hours and missed the gala performance and displays by Hungarian dance groups.. next year!
The main stage and festival area are free, there were some extra concerts, dance shows and dance house events for which tickets were available to purchase.
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