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Life beyond

the inner ring road

Szeged, built along important waterways and land routes the flood of the river Tisza and Saint Nicholas, surrounded

at the mouth of the Tisza and Maros rivers, owes its sta- by the fishermen of Szeged on the church’s main altarpiece.
tus as a city to its location. One of the central deposits of Újszeged (New Szeged) used to be a separate town from
salt shipped from Transylvania on the river Maros was in Szeged until the 19th century, when tobacco farmers

Szeged from the 12th century, in the salt houses on the were settled in the previously marshy and boggy area in

banks of the river Tisza. The transportation of salt pro- the 18th century. The Great Flood of Szeged in 1879 did

vided an economic basis and commercial experience that not reach Újszeged, but the flood two years earlier had

allowed Felsőváros (Upper Town) to become the centre almost completely destroyed this part of the city. Today,
of craftsmen and guilds, trade, water-based lifestyle and it is fully developed and provides numerous recreational

transportation of Szeged by the 18th and 19th centuries. opportunities for residents and tourists alike. Crossing

The wealth of the residents of Felsőváros is evidenced by the Belvárosi (“old”) bridge, the Erzsébet-liget (Elizabeth
the fact that the most ornately embellished Szeged slippers Park) immediately opens up before us; a popular place for
and the most intricately embroidered fur-lined coats were people who like to jog, walk their dogs or visit the play-
made here. Slipper making developed from the traditional grounds. The four-season water city called Napfényfürdő

profession of tanning, and we owe both skills to the Turks. (Sunshine Bath) Aquapolis is located only a few metres
Further away from the water, we reach the heart of the from here. The Botanical Garden of the University of Sze-

bourgeois Felsőváros, which was once clustered around ged can also be found in Újszeged. A special plant to see is
the Szent György (Saint George) Square. Th e medieval the Indian lotus, which was added to the collection more
Church of Szent Miklós (Saint Nicholas) and the Minorite than 80 years ago and enjoys its living conditions in a pond
(Franciscan) monastery stand here. Saint Nicholas is the filled with artesian water from the well of the botanical gar-

patron saint of merchants and sailors, and the artist painted den, forming the largest open-air stock in Central Europe.

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