The last few days have been very bad ones for geese around Europe, and especially in Hungary, as butchers and cooks have finished preparing for Márton nap (St. Martin's Day), a traditional feast day that falls every year on November 11 and generally features heaps of roast goose and oceans of wine. So perhaps we owe it to them to explain what all the killing, eating and drinking is about. And we owe it to you to tell you where you can take part in some of that eating and drinking.

First of all, who was St. Márton/Martin? In short, he was a fourth-century Roman soldier-turned-clergyman, who happened to be born in what is now Hungary (Szombathely, what was then known as Sabaria). He became a saint in part because of a story from his early life in which he cut his cape in half in order to help cloth a beggar (that's them up top, as seen by El Greco), which makes him known today as the patron saint of beggars.

As for the goose, when Márton was appointed the Bishop of Tours, France, he tried to get out of it by hiding in a stable full of geese. The geese, however, started honking, and gave him away. (Another reason people eat goose on Márton nap is that it is right around the time when young geese reach the weight when they can be killed.)

There are many folk beliefs relating to Márton nap, and most have to do with geese and wine. According to one old saying, "Who does not eat goose on St. Martin's Day, will be hungry all year." Weather was predicted from a bone of the goose eaten on St. Martin's Day: if it was long and white, winter was going to be snowy, but if it was short and brown, winter would be warm and muddy.

Though some historians and wine experts dispute the connection, Márton has also been widely known as "the judge of wine." This can be interpreted two ways: new wine can be tasted on this day, or the weather on this day indicates (or determines) the quality of the vintage. Because of this, the wine made right after the end of the harvest - Hungary's equivalent of the French Beaujolais nouveau - is sometimes known as Szent Márton bora (The label to the left is from a bottle of St. Martin's wine from Villány producer József Bock.)

While many Hungarians will celebrate St. Martin's Day around the family dining room table, there are also numerous public programs for those who want to get a taste of this unique gastro-holiday, including the following:

At the Szentendre open-air ethnographical museum, the Skanzen, a "Goose Feast" ("Libator") is being held on November 11-12, where visitors can try goose and wine specialties.

The eastern town of Nyíregyháza will celebrate the holiday with a two-day gastronomy show. Programs start at 10:00 on Saturday at the Nyíregyháza-Sóstó Museum Village where guests will be greeted with bread slathered with goose fat (libazsíros kenyér) and wine. Visitors can participate in various Márton-related contests ranging from "barrel riding" to "wine stealing," and watch dance performances and a goose "beauty contest." Programs on Sunday start at the same time and will include a live rendition of popular children's tale "Ludas Matyi" ("Matyi, the Goose Herd"), baking of mézeskalács (gingerbread-type cookies made with honey) and candle-making.

Another gastronomy and wine festival will be held over the weekend in Neszmély, a beautiful town near the Slovak border. Guests can visit cellars, taste local food specialties and enjoy theater performances. In Márton's birthplace of Szombathely, the holiday is a week-long celebration, with various gastronomic events lasting until November 13. More St. Martin's Day events will be held in other towns, including Zalaegerszeg, Ópusztaszer and Szenna.