Miskolc will shake meat aspic, Košice will shake the crowd

Unusual atmosphere, good entertainment and rich cultural programme can be experienced by lovers of pork skins, hooves and tails in Miskolc, Hungary. From Friday to Sunday, 22^nd – 24^th February, Miskolc will hold the 13^th Winter Aspic Festival. The exhibition and tasting of a wide range of meat aspic and gastronomic specialties, and the competition in the best prepared and best-tasting gourmet delicacy will be “spiced up” by the Košice artists performing on a special stage.

Košice – European Capital of Culture 2013 has prepared, for the expected 200 000 participants to the traditional winter events, many exhibitions, theatrical performances and musical shows that will represent Košice and strengthen the relations between the neighbouring towns on both sides of the border.

Aspic and good food gourmets will have an opportunity to enjoy also the Košice cultural festival menu including performances by music bands Chiki liki tu a, Mango Molas and Silvayovci. The Miskolc city Gallery will hold an exhibition of architect Ľudovít Oelschläger showing the structural and building transformations of Košice – Óry Lajos – Retrospective. Hungary presents the exhibition Hard Nut comprising authors of contemporary young visual works – Svetlana Fialová, Vlasta Žáková, Jarmila Mitríková and Dávid Demjanovič. The actors of Thália Theatre are ready to attract the audience by their staging of Candles Burn Low, written by Sándor Márai. His life will be depicted in the documentary film Against the Wind.

Twenty thousand servings of meat aspic prepared by the best cooks will fill hungry stomachs and smooth the palates of visitors to the renowned and popular event offering a tasty mouthful of cultural life. All in all, this is the right combination of ingredients, which the organisers are planning to mix for unforgettable experiences.

The local tradition of preparing aspic feast goes hand in hand with a legend that is still alive thanks to the festival. It is no wonder when something looks at you from the jelly-like matter. They know why. Legend has it that one day a special event occurred in an unspecified pub in Miskolc. The innkeeper let “kocsonya” solidify in a cold cellar. It came to pass that the aspic smelled good, a frog jumped in it to taste the delicacy and got trapped. In the dim light, the innkeeper did not notice the frog stuck in the aspic and she served a portion to a guest. The guest, of course, noticed the frog trapped in the plate and slammed his fist on the table: “Az angyalát, I have never eaten meat aspic with eyes! Since then, Hungarians have a popular saying: “Winks at me like a frog in Miskolc aspic.”

The festival is always full of edible, plush, wooden and ceramic creatures. In Miskolc, roast pigeons do not fall from heaven, however, a frog might fall on your head or into your aspic. Tradition is tradition, and it is different everywhere. Miskolc simply cannot be without this amphibian.