A sizzling trip to Eger - Prison, Castle, and lunch!

     Today the JSBP group jumped on the train at 7 AM towards Eger, a city in northern Hungary known for its beautiful castle, thermal bathes, and Hungarian red wines. Our group planned to visit the Heves Prison in Eger, as well as the famous Castle of Eger. Both were very different, but interesting places to see. I learned many interesting facts about Hungarian prisons systems, most of it completely shocking, especially when comparing the prison to one in the United States. The Castle had a beautiful view of the whole city which was great, but it would have been much more enjoyable if it wasn’t so hot! We were even treated to a delicious lunch at a local restaurant!

            When arriving at the Prison this morning, I was initially shocked by the outdoor appearance. The place was much more beautiful than any prison in American I had ever seen! Below are a couple pictures.

 The outside of the building.

Everyone seems equally as shocked that this was the prison.

          Upon entry, we were told to put our electronics in a locker, (unfortunately could not take pictures inside) and hand the officer our passport. We asked if bringing in food and drinks were fine, and the officer explained it was. This was another shocking moment for me. In a jail or prison in America, most of the time you are not allowed to bring items such as these in. I could tell from these first five minutes that this was going to be a very informative adventure.

            The Governor (warden) introduced himself and then showed us a presentation about the prison and allowed us to ask many questions. I was surprised to learn that the males, females, and juveniles are all held within the same building! This is unheard of in America. Within the Eger prison, there were separate floors for males and females, but they were only a flight of stairs away from each other. He also explained many wonderful things about the Hungarian prison system. He explained that most of the people are in prison for crimes of theft, robbery, or other property crimes, rather than violent crimes or drug crimes. Further, he said that most inmates are serving between a couple months to about 7 or 8 years. This is also another shocking aspect! In America, a sentence that short is fairly rare and is probably one of the least amounts of time most prisoners are serving. The Governor explained that there are very few prisoners serving life sentences within the Hungarian Prison system. Once again, I was shocked considering how popular of a sentence this is within America, especially for the most violent of crimes, which are seen in the courtroom everyday. The Governor was reiterating the fact that it does not need to be violent and terrifying within a prison. There are not gang members in every corner and screaming and yelling within the hallways. There overall is not much violence. Of course, it is still prison, with limited rights, cells, certain foods, but overall the Hungarian prison system seemed like heaven compared to American systems.

            To bring this point home, when walking through the prison it was painted yellow, with beautiful pictures on all of the walls, up and down each hallway! It was more attractive in some aspects then my room in Budapest. It certainly had more pictures at least and gave you a feeling of happiness with plants everywhere. Bringing my mind back to reality, I realize it is a horrifying prison, but the artwork and architecture of the prison was so lively compared to prisons within America, Also, the cells were much nicer than any prison cell I have ever seen. Why can’t prisons within the United States look more like this prison in Eger? Of course, one reason is because of the amount of violence and mass numbers of people within the prisons in America. It would be silly to have nice looking artwork on the walls when prisoners would just destroy it in a second.

            Another shocking factor was that the prisoners could smoke! The Governor explained that the prisoners can buy cigarettes from a store that comes a couple times a month, or they can have their relatives send them in their package each month. Also, the prisoners can be granted a ten-day “vacation” from prison if they are on good behavior for a long time. I could not believe this! These prisoners just have to check in with a police officer while they are on their vacation! It seemed so simple when the Governor was discussing it, but that would be completely unheard of in America.

            The Governor explained some really wonderful projects that the prisoners participate in throughout the town of Eger, most of which were first created in the prison. He showed us pictures of the prisoners building parks and cleaning up different parts of the town. I asked if the prisoners received shorter sentences because of this work, and surprisingly he said they didn’t. I thought that was strange but also very cool! Who would ever think that prisoners would do something nice for the community without receiving something in return?

            I could probably talk about my experience at this prison for much longer but I should wrap it up. Overall, it was an amazing experience. It was frightening to visit a prison, which seemed so calm and peaceful compared to an American prison. Barely any fighting, rarely attempts to escape, no deaths, minimal gang activity, sometimes a vacation, beautiful artwork, and the ability to participate in great programs. The Governor was a kind man who taught me many things about the Hungarian prison system. I am very glad I could obtain this knowledge!

            Lastly, the castle was beautiful, below are some pictures and videos of the view and of us JSBPer’s traveling around the town.

            Although extremely hot, it was a great day and a good experience! 

 View of the Hungarian flag from the top of the castle!

 View from the top of the castle!

The JSBPer's in a well!

Here is a video of the view from the castle!