We began this day with a tour of Nadasdy Castle, the centerpiece of Sárvár. In 1534 an existing earthwork castle and town became the property of the influential Nádasdy family. Under Tamás Nádasdy, Sárvár was the focus of the reformist and humanist struggle in West Hungary. He made possible the publication of the first Hungarian translation of the bible and a grammar in Hungarian by János Sylvester, a scholar of Erasmus. For the rebuilding of the castle he brought Italian experts in fortifications to Sárvár who designed the pentagonal Renaissance castle with its defensive ramparts. The famous Andrea Palladio is said to have been involved in the plans for the massive gate tower. Tamás's successor Ferenc Nádasdy, who completed the castle around 1650, was involved in the conspiracy of the Hungarian aristocracy against the Habsburgs ("Wesselényi conspiracy) and paid for it with his life.

After leaving the castle and Sárvár, we pedaled through lush farmland toward the town of Sümeg, which is overshadowed by a striking castle on its adjacent hilltop. During a long day of riding, we saw many imposing hills in the distance and speculated which one was to be Sümeg -- hopefully not the most distant.

The day was topped off, after we reached Sümeg, with a spectacular thunderstorm, high winds and a torrential downpour. Our hotel lost electrical power near the end of this storm but luckily not until dinner was completed.