Francis Berger
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Places I Have Lived, But Never Been

11/17/2019

2 Comments

 
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The village of Obánya, upon which I modeled the fictitious village of Oszabad in my novel.
Looks like I’m in for a bit of a treat this Christmas. My wife recently informed me she had reserved a bed-and-breakfast in the town of Bonyhád in southern Hungary for the Christmas holidays. In all honesty, I know absolutely nothing about Bonyhád and, as far as I can tell, there is not all that much one can know about the place. Simply put, it is a rather nondescript and – dare I say it – insignificant place. Why then, you may be asking, do I consider spending Christmas there a treat?

Well, Bonyhád is not very far from a little village called Obánya, upon which I modeled the fictitious village of Oszabad in my novel. I did quite a bit of research into Obánya before I wrote my book, and I know practically everything there is to know about it – its history; its buildings; its church; its current and former residents. But here’s the catch – I have never actually been there. In fact, I have never been within 200 kilometers of it. Nevertheless, the village has lived and breathed within me for the better part of eight or nine years.

Visiting Obánya – a place I have never been but have written about extensively – is bound to be an interesting experience. It will be fascinating to see how my fictitious depiction of the village compares with reality. I anticipate I will see much of I wrote about reflected in the buildings and the surrounding landscape, but I also feel I will encounter many things I failed to take into account or perhaps got wrong. I am also looking forward to visiting the city of Pécs – another place I included in my novel, but have never visited.

So this Christmas will be about being in places I have lived, but never actually been. Should be quite the experience!
2 Comments
bruce charlton
11/17/2019 20:49:57

I had some very good experiences visiting places in New England in which I had been immersed over many years through my reading of Emerson, Thoreau, Robert Frost and others - I spent most of the time in a state of magical exaltation!

Reply
Francis Berger
11/18/2019 10:28:14

Yes, I am hoping for something similar, Bruce. I am curious to see how these places I have built up in my imagination will look/feel in real life.

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