Get to know the Hungarian counties – Part2

In Part 1, readers could get to know the first 9 counties in Hungary (in alphabetic order). Part 2 covers the remaining 10 Hungarian counties.

Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County

Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county lies in the Central region of Hungary. Two rivers flow through the county: Tisza and Kőrös. The capital of the county is Szolnok. The county used to be called Szolnok county (before 1990). The county is named after the city of Szolnok and after the Ossetians (Jasz) and Cumans (Kun) who settled in this region.

Szolnok is located on the banks of the Tisza, at the heart of the Great Hungarian Plain. Its location made the city an important cultural and economic crossroad. Main sights in Szolnok are the Airplane Museum, the Beer Museum and Manufactory, the Synagogue and the Tiszavirág Bridge.

Komárom-Esztergom County

Komárom-Esztergom county is situated in the Central Transdanubian Region. IT shares a border with Slovakia. The county seat is Tatabánya. The Szelim cave and the forest park of Gerecse Mountain are popular tourist attractions in Tatabánya.

The city of Esztergom is also located in Komárom-Esztergom county. Esztergom was the capital of Hungary between the 10^th and the mid-13^th century. The Esztergom Basilica is one of the tourists’ favourite sights in Hungary. The Esztergom Basilica is the seat of the Catholic Church in Hungary, and it is the largest church and the tallest building in Hungary.

Nógrád County

Nógrád county lies in Northern Hungary. The county shares borders with Slovakia. The mountain ranges Börzsöny, Cserhát and Mátra lie partly in the county. Due to the mountains, the county is characterised by small villages. The two most significant settlements are Balassagyarmat, the former county seat, and Salgótarján, the current county seat.

Pest County

Pest county is situated in Central Hungary. The county surrounds the national capital: Budapest. The majority of the county’s population lives in the suburbs of Budapest. The county shares a border with Slovakia. The Danube flows through the county. The capital of Pest County is Budapest. However, Budapest and the county are administratively separate. It is planned to separate the capital from the county by 2020 completely.

Somogy County

Somogy county is located in the South-Western part of Hungary, on the border with Croatia. The county stretches between the Dráva and the southern shore of Lake Balaton. It is the most sparsely populated Hungarian county. The capital of Somogy county is Kaposvár. The Csiky Gergely Theatre in Kaposvár is one of the most famous and most big theatres in Hungary.