Deutschbentschek in Banat

Deutschbentschek Photos:

Cemetery photos taken by John Ehardt and by Richard Schicht & Jim Hulka, 1973 and 2006; additional contributions courtesy of Helen Hays and Christian Andor

Village photos taken by Richard Schicht & Jim Hulka, 2006; additional contributions courtesy of Christian Andor and Jane Ehardt Moore
 

The Photographers:
 
 

John Ehardt and his wife, Kay, traveled to Deutschbentschek in September of 1973.  They stayed with relatives of John's grandmother.

John writes, "There were no cars, and the one we drove there from Bucharest was greeted with a great deal of interest, parked in the relative's yard.  The Polaroid camera we had gotten as a wedding present was the biggest hit.  By the time we left (after five days), nearly everyone in town had a schnell photograph ("fast picture") of themselves and us."

Richard Schicht and his nephew Jim Hulka, along with Jim's wife and Jim's mother (Richard's sister), visited Deutschbentschek in May of 2006.  They took a train from Budapest to Timisoara, then hired a car and driver to take them to Deutschbentschek and on to Ianova.

Richard writes, "Once we got on the outskirts of Timisoara the traffic lessened and, as we approached Bentschek, disappeared altogether.  We did see a few horse drawn cars with rubber tire wheels.  The roads had numerous potholes.  The farm fields were deserted."