Saturday, March 17, 2007
The Pearl of the Danube
Have you ever heard of a famous waltz, “By the Beautiful Blue Danube”, by Johann Strauss? That “beautiful blue Danube” is the river that divides Budapest, Hungary. It is the longest river in the European Union and Europe’s second longest river. It flows through not only Hungary, but also other countries such as Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Ukraine. Among these places, Budapest, Hungary is called “the Pearl of the Danube” because of the most beautiful scenery of the river.
The beautiful scenery is not the only significance of Danube River. It is also a source of drinking water, an important transport route, and fishing. In Germany, almost thirty percent of the water for certain areas comes from purified water of Danube. It is an important transport route because it connects the Black Sea with the industrial centers of Western Europe. The significance of fishing has enormously declined, but there are still some active fishermen at certain points of Danube, and the Danube Delta has an important industry.