Prince Charles is in this Szekler village in Transylvania – PHOTOS
Zalánpatak (Valea Zălanuluihad) had an unexpected guest today. Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, had quite a busy day in the quaint Szekler village. Receiving guests, touring the surrounding fields, and walking around the village were only a couple of things on his schedule. He even made a toast in the barn of his new house. Read below for more.
The Prince of Wales arrived
Since early in the morning, TV reporters have been swarming the yard of a house in Zalánpatak. They are keeping an attentive eye on what is happening in house number 1, reports Háromszék.
Suddenly, one of them spotted the Prince of Wales himself, casually walking down the porch.
Photo MTI/Edit Kátai – The Prince of Wales greeting the locals
Not only that, but around the barn, workers were pitching tents, and women were setting up tables. These preparations only lasted a short while. The member of the British royal family kindly asked the TV and press to move aside – preferably to a place where they are hard to see. This is because Prince Charles and his guests were preparing to dine, which requires utmost privacy. The head of the British guards promised something in return. If the press left Prince Charles alone for a while, they would have ample time to take pictures of him around the village. Around 2 pm, he and his guests took a stroll around the settlement.
The following two hours were quiet but full of suspense. Only the arrival of new guests was causing a commotion. Soon, Countess Anna Kálnoky appeared at the gate, accompanied by her son and some close acquaintances. At the time previously promised, the royalty set off on their tour around Zalánpatak. The Prince of Wales, accompanied by Count Tibor Kálnoky, came out through the gate of the house.
Prince Charles refused to talk to the press, but he did quickly answer a couple of questions: “After three years, I am delighted to be back in this wonderful region,” Prince Charles commented.
Prince Charles in Transylvania. Photo: MTI/Edit Kátai
Why is Prince Charles visiting?
A press member from the above source managed to gather a bit of information. The locals shared the information they had. Prince Charles bought a new house and a parcel of land by the edge of the village. Something is going to happen there, locals added. The Prince of Wales is already the owner of private property around the settlement, as an article by Travel to Transylvania mentions.
The new site was easy to spot. An imposing barn stood there, open from both sides. Inside were tables, already set. A cheerful group of people soon entered, but the press had to leave yet again. As this was a private property, they could not stay. Following this, joyful laughter and the sound of clinking glasses could be heard outside.
After twenty minutes or so, the group left for their outing. At this point, more photos could be shot: the guests trekked through bushes and streams to continue their excursion in the meadows.
Their walk lasted almost two hours, and when they arrived at the ducal estate, Prince Charles had this to say: “How come you’re still here?”
Photo MTI/Edit Kátai – Prince Charles himself and his company together on an outing
The distinguished guest is visiting Sasfehéregyháza and the surrounding area later today.
Source: 3szek.ro, traveltotransylvania.hu
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15 Comments
Would be great if Hungary didn’t claim a Romanian village as its own, considering said village is in Romania and they are just using its Hungarian name. Sometimes you seem to forget that Transylvania is no longer a part of Hungary. Best get on board with reality.
In Transylvania there are ONLY Romanian villages. Period.
The price says it is a Romanian land, not Hungarian. There must be a mistake in your title.
Dear Alexandra, our article says Hungarian in its title because 98% of the residents of Zalánpatak is Hungarian. Therefore, it is a Hungarian village. If a village in Hungary is 98% populated by Romanian people, it is a Romanian village, even if it is in Hungary. That is the Central-European reality where nationalities live mixed in many areas.
Dear John Woods, the title is misleading, that’s the problem. If you say such details (ethnicity, the historical region) about the village, you have to say also the country. It’s obvious the intention if you know the details of the region and it’s history, but I’m sure you know it. And I say it as a mix roumanian-hungarian who knows in which country he lives.
It’s not such a big deal, it’s about respect and not appealing to centuries ago facts.
Thank you.
It is not a good moment to make statements like “a Hungarian village” about villages in România, even if, technically, you’re not wrong.
We are in the middle of a silent war, with Hungarian government actively investing in certain areas of Romania, trying to actually create sort of an Hungarian state in the middle of our country, which they know it’s not permitted by the Constitution.
You are playing with fuel near a great camp fire…
Dear John, in Romania there is no locality with this name. The real name is Valea Zălanului – which is a village in Malnaș commune in Covasna county, Transylvania, Romania. A locality located in a certain country belongs to that country and not to another country. A locality in Romania is Romanian regardless of its ethnic component. The civil authorities in that locality are Romanian, not Hungarian. The property deeds for the house of Prince Charles were issued by the Romanian authorities, not the Hungarian ones. With all due respect, the explanation provided by you is similar to Putin’s explanation of the Crimean peninsula and the Donbas and Luhansk regions. 🙂
Dear John Wood,
I guess that you’re right. Btw, there are plenty hungarian villages in Transilvania where there are mostly hungarian residents. There are a lot of unnecessary tensions between the hungarian people that live in Romania and the romanian people. They go by having their own flag, trying to become autonomous, etc. Some are also triggered by nationalists from Hungary.
What I think it’s best is if we would all live in peace, no matter where and what kind of blood runs through our veins.
Dear John, you can do better next time. You are free to use as many words as you like but a hungarian village is not mentioning that the people in the village are szekely and that the village is in Romania. We are used with this technic when hungarians are using Transilvania instead of Romania. Doing so, you just harm our good relations with all the people in the entire country, including Transilvania. But maybe this is what you want, to create artificial conflicts.
Regards, Florin.
PS: Tomorrow I will visit Balvanyos, I will discuss with all the people, even in hungarian a bit, I will eat a goulash.
Jó napot kívánok!
On behalf of the DNH team, we apologize if the title upset some of our readers. We’ve made some corrections.
Sat românesc,nu unguresc, ți-ai dori sau ai vrea?
It’s still not a correct title since that’s not the name of the village.
I was born very close to there ,The area was part of Hungary prior to world war 1, After the war it became part of Romania, My village Homorod Janosfalva was 100% Hungarian Speaking (Szekeky) The Romanians later renamed the village Ionesti ,But sign entering village still has both names, I stayed at Zalanpatak and villagers definitely are ethnically Hungarian, In Canada we have French Canadian Towns, Perhaps the term should Szekely Romanian village, Changing the name does not change the ethnicity , Perhaps the Romania should embrace the reality of ethnic diversity, Certainly it was not the case
@John Woods, your response is nonsense. Balderdash as we say in English.
Back to Prince Charles. Hungarian speaking Romanians welcome to him and his Mama as well. Bet they don’t want his younger brother Andrew, though.