Seeing the New Year in, the Old Year out

Hope everyone’s holiday season was filled with happiness, warmth & joy too! I’d like to improve the opportunity to wish all of you happy 2007, a New Year blossoming with smiles and sunshine happiness!

This year we spent Christmas Eve at my parent’s place six of us. On that day we were expected to a lunch at Krisztián’s grandmother and mother too. The festive board included the odd dishes as the inevitable chowder (halászlé) as my father prepares, fish in breadcrumbs with tartar sauce, stuffed cabbage, poppy seed and walnut strudel but I could carry on… By now I’m fill of them and I don’t want to think of eating. In turn New Year’s Eve comes with its cold buffet with good taste and good appearance, frankfurt sausage (virsli) after midnight with mustard, ketchup or horse radish and certainly the inevitable beefsteak as my father prepares (I don’t like it because it’s row meat) with toast.

We gave a toast to Botond (Györgyi & Péter’s firstling) who is my junior by 21 years and a day. Levente is as cute as ever, full of vividness, he was lurking under the Xmas tree and we were afraid of falling the 3 metres high tree over. The boys gladly displayed their newest toys that they have found under it. My mum prepared a cake called molehill with a little marzipan mole on top for Boti and for my birthday as well.

And what are we doing at this time? We enjoy the holiday with relaxing, cooking, taking delight in the presents, receiving guests, having long walks afield and it’s high time to make our big wedding album ready…

Finally, one more picture. This was taken at the ninepins alley in Tata on the occasion of closing the year in company way. These people are only a splinter group of the whole company. Ones omitted the active part of the day (me too, but in fact I was there as an eager supporter, just look for me on the photo).

The last hard-working days in 2006

We have less than a week till Christmas. I hardly believe that Christmas Eve is on Sunday. December is extremely flitting. Tomorrow will be our last workday and the year-end ceremony will be on Wednesday in Tata. In the afternoon there is always a sort of sport activity. Last year it was soccer for boys in a fitness camp, this year it will be ninepins. Then we go to the hotel where the festal dinner and a very short speech by the chief owner is and where accomodation and on the following day breakfast is provided. The majority will sleep there but I won’t, Krisztián wouldn’t liked the fact, so he will pick me up at around midnight. He said that he called for me at any place at any time instead of sleeping separately. Otherwise, I’ll be 26 years old on that day.

Pigsticking

The male members of the family (my father, Krisz, Lajos) got up at dawn on Saturday to stick a pig at my father’s sister’s place in the country 230 kms far away, in Elek. The poor pig had a feeling of his danger because it had eaten nothing for 2 days and had hidden in a corner of the pen. They brought the half of the pig home and prepared the sausage-meat, the greaves, the roast joint and the other „porklings” at home. The boys held their ground heroically in spite of the fact that neither of them have nearly never taken part in pigsticking. We made an end of that day at around midnight.
Xmas preparations are in progress, I primped up the house, my gift supply is rather incomplete than complete, I need to purchase western boots for Krisz, it will be his great surprise. The decoration is just a simple advent-decoration, Krisz remarked that our house is like a souvenir shop, now the best part of it is lag behind.

Saint Nicolas

This evening is a special one for children because they’re waiting for "Mikulás/Télapó" to bring countless sweets: candies, chocolates and in case of wickedness: a little rod. It’s said that they should put their cleaned boots into the window in order that He can fill them. I remember that I got frightened a little when I got my first rod. The buffers in the nursery were fearsome and made me to be a good child - awhile. When I was getting on in years, I had to take my sister to sledge (in those days there was still snow) or we went to the church where we heard a lot about the good works of Bishop Miklós and got a little parcel from the priest whose beautiful vestmen was always suitable to the occasion.

Water of Life

Finally, we chose the ecclesiastical program on Saturday, so we were in Esztergom with the chaplain. Seven newly married couples took part in the excursion (although far more couples were who decided to get married this year) icluding the couples who helped in the spiritual preparations for the wedding. We travelled by a private bus and talked a lot about the weddings and saw each other’s wedding photos. We started with a holy mass in the basilica that was said by our chaplain and was served by a little boy (as an altar-boy) of one of an accompanying couple. Then we visited the basilica and the crypt as well. The building is monumental, the internal high up to the cupola is 52 metres, the thickness of the wall at certain points are 100 metres. After the basilica we went to a christian art museum. When we became very hungry we had a luch in a plain restaurant. Before we got under way home, we walked the bridge that connects Hungary with Slovakai from which there is a great view to the basilica above the Danube. We prayed a lot (during the mass, in front of a candle for some people, before the lunch and on the bus as well), so we stopped some gaps in this way and I’m proud of Krisz because of his patience and endurance.I got up at 7 on Sunday to begin the cooking. We had some guests coming by 2 PM. The menu was „palócleves” by Krisz, „sonkasaláta” by me (my real favourite, I can eat at any time at any quantity, my mother found this in a gastronomic magazine called Magyar Konyha from 1985), mashed potatoes by Krisz and chickenlegs in breadcrumbs by me. As you can see, Krisz is a great help in the kitchen, I’m proud of him, again.

Dilemma

Our weekend agenda is quite full. I don’t kow where to go preferably, it’s too bad that people can’t be more places at the same time. On Saturday we should take part in an excursion that is organized by the chaplain to Esztergom. Those couples are invited who got married in the year of 2006. It might be a pleasing all-day cultural program icluding visiting the „bazilika” and praying. On that evening will be a so-called New York Ball. New York is the name of the dance club where we started to dance. Last year was the first time when we were witness of fantastic dance shows of certain couples. The beginners usually show their dance knowledge they picked up till that time, the advanced always go on the boards with something new and amazing. On Saturday I have to tidy up the House and cook in advance because we will have company on Sunday (two of my mates from college years – one of them with husband and with a little boy). I can’t wait to see all of them.
I would like to go on that excursion but if we go, I can’t get finished with the things I planned – although Krisz is a great help by cooking – and we’ll miss the ball in which we’re interested very much. Put the case that it will be bad weather on Saturday and the excursion won’t be as good as we expect.

Dropping around

We have visited Józsi & Ildi at their place and were witness to the children-bath. The new baby is very calm, we hardly could hear his voice, he is all right. Noémi grew a lot and starts to understand everything we say to her. They live in the mansard of the house of Józsi’s parents and they are before an enlargement, they would like to add a story to a house.
We celebrated my mother’s 47th birthday on 15 November. It was a homely dinner.
Yesterday we received the parents in our home in order to have a look round. We did the cooking the whole day because we prepared some specialities such as we ate in Szilvásvárad last week (collop of veal with stewed broccoli, cauliflower, carrot on it, perfused with white sauce and rasped smoked cheese on top – served with rice with maize) and Krisz cook his first bone-soup (including marrow bone). We did very well, we succeeded making up a tasteful menu that everyone liked. By the time we ended up the clearing and washing up the dishes, it was late evening.

Wellness Weekend

Krisz picked me up at noon at the office on Friday and we set forth on journey. I reserved a room beforehand in Szalajka Liget Hotel **** in Szilvásvárad. It’s a village in Nothern Hungary near Eger, appr. 130 kms far from Budapest, it’s located in the natural beauties of the Bükk Mountains. This Holiday-Resort is a new establishment at the fridge of the forest, we payed a friendly pre-price. The whole weekend was beyond expectation. I don’t know why but we were fixed up in a VIP apartment (instead of a simple double bedroom) with jacuzzi and balcony with beautiful view to a meadow with grazing cows. We could see the squirrels jumping up and down from our bed through the french window. The apartment was so high level that we couldn’t have imagined a nicer one, even the smallest item was perfect. We liked the menu very much, it was half board with breakfast and dinner. It was a rich smorgasbord including selected delicious dishes one and all, I hardly can list the nomerous food at breakfast. In the evening we had the choice between 2 kinds of soup, 5 main courses and several desserts. It was high-class, we were satisfied at all points.
Next day we made an excursion to the Szalajka Valley and walked to a paleolithic cave in Istállóskő where some elders used to live. It was roughly 10 kms there and back. At the beginning of our way we affiliated with a huge black cat (with especially soft hair). The Szalajka Source gurgled next to us with a host of trouts (kind of fish) and it was our company during the whole walking. We could take delight in different wonderful scenes like small, smaller and bigger waterfalls as well which shapes were varied depending on the size of the rocks on which they flew through or on the relief. On our way to the cave we could see a lake, a moor, a glade and other natural beauties. I visualized how this scenery could look like in winter. It would be amazing. There’s a dinkey (little railway) running in the wood in certain part of the year.
After we had taken the fresh air, we tried some fine things in the hotel. In the wellness section the following services were available: finnish saunas, steam cabin, aroma cell, salt-cabin, infrasauna, jacuzzi, kneip-pool and finally an outdoor pool which can be covered. We also took part in a refreshing orange-cinnamon massage.
Here is the point: we had a healthily perfect weekend.

Roof above the Cars

A garage is being built in our countyard in order that the cars won't be coverless anymore. Great!

Bálint – The Halloween Baby

The happy parents of the latest arrival in the family are Józsi (my cousin) & Ildi. They expected the baby by 20 October but he was late, the childbirth had to be forced. We’ve visited Ildi in the hospital. She is still a little bit weak but both enjoy good health and hardly wait to go home to the firstling, Noémi - who was one year old on 13 October.

Pre-shopping for Xmas

I can’t wait the weekend in order to continue the hustle at home. Saturday will drop out because Krisz has keep after me for over 2 months for going to Austria, to McArtur Glen Designer Outlets in Parndorf which is near the border. Maybe we will also go to Vienna to walk the Mariahilferstrasse, the famous shopping street and if we are there I won’t omit the roasted marron.

Events of the Long Weekend

We were looking forward to the long weekend which consisted of October 23. Everyone suspicioned that the day of the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution would be scandalous. The official commemoration was pontifically organized – according to the circumstances. From afternoon to the following day’s dawn there were more fights in different points of Budapest between the police and the demonstrators who were fluently on the move to avoid the encirclement by the police. The policemen used tear gas grenades, tinted water-cannons and gum shots to dismiss the crowd. According to press releases there were no impinges but there were in fact.
And now I tell about our engagement of this short holiday in general terms. On Friday we were eager to leave the office to give ourselves up to the long weekend. Still in the afternoon I started to tidy in order to move in this weekend. On Saturday morning we got up early because one of Krisz’ colleague came to us to set the antenna on the rooftop. I would’t have thought but they finished only in the evening. Now, we can see 6 man-made moon with several music channel - especially on Krisz’ great pleasure. In the evening we took my mother to a shopping centre because she was alone, my father was in the forest. On Sunday morning me & my sister decided to go to a flea market to sold some clothes. In the afternoon my father did BBQ. Anyway, the weather was fine with 22 degree the whole weekend. Then I wanted to immortalize the Elizabeth Bridge in its gala dress so we went to the town. We parked the car and walked on that part of the Gellért Hill where I never been before. It’s full of statues of notorieties from the world history and the view is great. When we came down we saw that some roads were closed, the vehicles had to choose other way. We saw that a lot of people were standing at the bridgehead seeing something down: the demonstrators were just going on parade with big national flags and banners and torchs, on old lorries called Csepel shouting ”Put the PM in prison!” or ”Join us!”. It was just like in a movie. On Monday I prepared a full breakfast then we drove to Tata (the neighbouring town of Tatabánya where I used to go to the college), to the Old Lake. I really liked even the approach, the edge of the road was full of beautiful colorful trees which got dressed in autumnal tones: the leaves were yellow, brown, quite red, rusty and few still green. We walked round the lake, it’s quite big with its 7 kms.

Afterword from the Budapest '56 Szabadság Nyilatkozat:
"A forradalom üzenete, hogy a szabadság legyőzhetetlen, az emberiség szabadságra született. A szabadság ajándék, de szabadon élni közös felelősség."

Autumnal Morning Town

Here it is a morning shot of Gellért Hill taken from the Petőfi Bridge on my way to work. The day before yesterday I went on foot through the bridge to the office instead of travelling by train. Otherwise, it seems to me that the ticket controllers come to stay on the combinos – which have been set into action again and since then it went wrong again, in some case it could not depart. I still don’t like those vehicles and not even the impolite ticket controllers. They work in gang. Sometimes I rather drive my car, but the problem is that I’m due to leave almost at the same time as if I used the vehicles of the Budapest Transport Company because of the usual morning jam. Halcyon days when the company was in Budaörs! This area is even worse since there’s ”lomtalanítás” in this district. (Please, somebody tell me the English word.) People unhouse their trucks and stuffs at this time, the things they won’t need anymore into the street in front of their house. Gipsies come with their wrecks (well-to-do with trailers) and rummage in the mess and make a dart on those things they like or of which they think can be useable. Sometimes come to grips with each other but in most cases they leave a people on the spot to guard over the things they need so that other gipsies can’t lay hands on it. I don’t like walk the streets at this time. I don’t like those people. When the garbage truck comes, there is only a small rubbish to pick up, the rest of it lies about. The most of it has been carry away by that time.
We have started to heat the House. Till now, we were fortunate in point of the weather.

Ordinary Joys

I’d like to let my beloved known about the status of our moving. We can move completely in in a week because WE HAVE MANAGED TO GET EVERY SINGLE PART OF THE WARDROBE, we’re past the assemblage, the settings, my father and Krisz inlay it during not a whole afternoon. They had to brake down some tiles to put the wardrobe in its place. It’s perfect and it’s full of clothes. I load up in the evenings and now that I do this I see how many piece of clothes we have in fact. I still need to bring away some things from home like books and articles for personal use.
There was another thing in which we found pleasure: a pussycat migrate to our garden and still hold her ground. (In fact, there were 2 of them but the older one – they might be siblings – disappeared by the following day.) Krisz would have liked to named ”Géza” but it turned out that it’s female, so its name turned to ”Gizi”. She is very friendly and playful, always march on us and if she wasn’t so insistent, I’d rather give her up because I’m afraid of the heavy traffic in the front street, a crazy driver might run her over.

Wardrobe

We have (partly) managed to got it! After long waiting and flattering we are in possession of our new ancient pickled wardrobe. It’s a too long and unamusive story to be shared with you, I’d rather don’t run afoul of it. At first, we had only the frame of it, then the doors but the shelves are still in short supply. I hope for the assemblage this weekend supposing the shelves arrive.

A new week began...

…and I’m full of energy thanks to the weekend happenings! After all we could spend 2 whole days and a half together with Krisz. On Friday evening we were invited to a dance club where our teachers and other good dancers had a performance as an opening ceremony. I would had gladly seen their show but in consideration of Krisz’ weariness, we rather stayed at home (he didn’t have to work on Friday night but he had to go to the office in the afternoon after the previous day’s nightshift).
On Saturday we were invited to a wedding ceremony in Szentendre. One of my colleague got married. They went out together almost for a long time as we did. The workmates presented them a bottle in which some similar banknotes was put (after clearing) and had a unique wine bottle tab made with their names, the date and a quotation on it.
We got up early at Sunday dawn and set off at 4 AM with my father. We joined him and went to his hunting ground to Nógrád to scout in the forest. It is appr. 80 kms far from Budapest. It was completely dark even when we arrived. After we had registered in the hunting book and visited my father’s hunting box, we went to the forest. We got out of the car at border of the woods. It was still dark and I hardly knew where to step. In spite of that it rained more than a week ago, it was splash here and there and some plashes. It was quite exciting in the darkness. Fortunately it began slowly but surely to dawn, to light up. The air was vaporous, the grass was dewy. We spoke in whispers all the time while we were in the forest. Once in a while we stopped and keep our ears open. We harked to stags’ (male deer) rut. We approach the voice but we had to sneak and mind our steps and the sticks under feet. Sometimes it was a little bit terrific when a strange burr sounded straight from the surrounding bush and I don’t know what it was. My father always exactly knew. Sometimes he sniffed wild-pig smell in the air or saw deer-flies or showed foot-prints which were giveaways. The acorn fell out fluently which was a little bit illusive. Summing up: 7 kms walking, a wild-pig family, an old deer, a little dead mole. Then we went back to the hunting box to have a full breakfast with bacon, onion, sausage, tomato, etc. and gathered up the apples and we struggled with hornets.
On our way home we had a look at the pensioner’s house in Alsópetény that my father is building. It’s almost completely ready. It’s a very huge buildup.

In Sunday afternoon we went to our weekend house to collect the fallen nuts and to beat down the rest of it.

Convalescence

It’s high time to get well. I was ill for more than a week. I didn’t stay at home because I knew that I would’t have relaxed or have a rest. I tried to cure myself of the cold only with hot honeyed tea. I’m against medicament, I swallow a medicine only in case of emergency, when it’s necessary very-very much. My wisdom tooth-growing was of this kind. Anyway, it’s said that the illness lasts for a week without medicament – 7 days with medicament. There was only one day when things changed for the worse. At that time I decided to have a sick-leave but by next morning I was much better. By now, only my voice is that I don’t like.
Krisz had a nightshift last week and still works at night this week as well. They have a lot of work (from September always, then the top is in December with calendars, Xmas cards, leaflets, cds…) and the printing mashine need to operate round the clock, it mustn’t be stop in the management opinion. He is very exhausted, he hardly can sleep by day.

Fall is here

We got a peaceful sunny weekend over. Mornings and evenings are cold but in the daytime the weather is fine. Owing to this treacherous weather (6-8 degrees in the early morning, 26-28 degrees in the afternoon) or to my doubtful clothing or to the epidemic or to the yesternight sweaty jogging or either of the children infected me on Saturday at Erika’s place or I don’t know how I’m confined, I have a cold. I drank 2 cup of honeyed tea in the morning, it was momentarily better but I still have a sore throat, I feel discomfort, my nose is running. I hope that I soon recover.

On Saturday evening the family gathered together, on Sunday evening Chris went hunting with my father.

Unfortunately, we still need to wait at least one more week for the wardrobe.

The House

At the weekend we were busy with primping the House. Chris cut the grass, I tidied the rise level. Mainly the bathroom need to be cleaned because our water-meter was changed because of a water-pipe cracking in the street which caused pluggage in the meter. The water was hardly flow from the taps. When the repairmen fixed it up and we made water, it was very gravelly. The bath was as if somebody had came from the sands and had had a shower and had left the sand behind. Beyond that there were other servicemen in our house last week. We bought the selves and the stands and Krisztián set up. I’m going to pigeonhole books and photos in beautiful frames. I can’t wait to spread the carpet on the floor and I can’t wait to move completely in. At this time we’re waiting for the wardrobe, it’s out of stock. If we get it, we can put our clothes into it and can move in. It will be a large one (300x58x236) and is just like other furniture in the dining-room, in the bedroom: ancient pickled dense pine. The two huge mirrors were also put in its place in my gym. It’s an entirely empty room with mirrors, there is a door overlooking the garden. The new wardrobe will be here. It will stand from wall to wall. If the House will be presentable, I enclose some inner picture.

Krisztián's New Beloved

Stormy Fireworks

Another thick sqall in Budapest. Unbelievable destruction was caused by the storm on the day of our first king Stephan, on the day of the establishment of the kingdom. I can’t believe that this terrible tragedy could happen.
That Sunday was a shiny one (the last dog-day in meteorologists opinion) and there was no sign of rain or bad weather and we were informed by the news in this way: ”Those who are planning outdoor program this evening take raincoats with themselves…” This year we decided to see the fireworks from the top of the hill of which foot we live. It’s ages since we last went up at this occasion, usually we go to the downtown. It was 5 of us: my mum, my sister and her boyfriend, my HUSBAND and me. We settled down, a lot of people were waiting for the play of lights on the sky around us. It was a few minutes to 9. It began still lighten behind our back. It meant nothing to nobody. Then it began to breeze. Some people stood up and start to go down from the hill. Then it began to blow hard, catching up screes and dust, then it began to rain. A dust-storm sprang up, we couldn’t open our eyes, we had to get down from the hill. It was blowing so hard, I was afraid of going with the wind, down to the deep. The rainwater was over our ankles, it was flowing in large quantities. While we were running home I was just laughing without intermission because it was a very funny situation, never in my life got a soaking like this and we did not see the fireworks, only the very beginning in the midst of finding the way of escape from the hill. My father laughed at us at home when we entered soaking wet with dripping clothes and hair.
All things considered, in the downtown where over million people came together to see the fireworks, it was not funny at all. A windstorm with rain broke in upon the crowd at a speed of 120 km/h. It was stampede, the fear of apocalypse just like in a disaster film. Five dead, five hundred injured. Some clipping from the press release:

Szülők kisgyerekekkel futva menekültek haza, közben a tetőről cserepek estek le, a kitört ablakokból üvegszilánkok zuhogtak a járdára, több helyen megszólaltak az autók riasztói, a hegyről pedig patakokban zúdult le a víz. Az eső a nagy szél miatt vízszintesen esett, látni egyáltalán nem lehetett.
· Egy 12 éves kislányra és egy 30-40 év körüli férfira a budai rakparton egy fa dőlt rá, és már nem lehetett megmenteni őket, egy idősebb nő halálát pedig szívinfarktus okozta. A Dunán felborult egy hajó, két utasa eltűnt, egyikük holttestét Ercsinél találták meg.
· A legnagyobb problémát a trolibuszok és villamosok vezetékeinek károsodásai okozták, az infrastruktúrában keletkezett károkat néhány tíz millió forintra becslik. A MÁV-nak néhány kidőlt fa okozott gondot, 30 vonat késve indult a fővárosból. Mintegy 250-300 millió forintos kár keletkezett a Fővárosi Kertészeti Rt. (Főkert) kezelésében lévő, a budapesti fás területek negyedét kitevő faállományban, 364 fa fordult ki vagy tört el, a fővárosban összesen mintegy 1500 fa pusztult el és 10 000 sérült meg komolyan a vasárnapi viharban. Az üvegezéssel foglalkozó cégek forgalma jelentősen megugrott vasárnap óta. A legtöbb bejelentés a Budai Várból és a IX. kerületből érkezett, de Budapest minden részén betörtek üvegeket a repülő ágak és tetőcserepek.

Responsibility, insurer’s relief, and how could have been this tragedy avoidable are another long stories.

Spanish Holiday

We spent a week on Mallorca from 8th to 15th August. It was beautiful with its palm trees and we gaped at the jahts at the port of Palma de Mallorca, one was more beatiful than the other. Actually, I don’t wish to go back any more. It was entirely full of tourists and the most of it were German youngs. They’re infamous for their revelry and ill-behaviour. E.g. they go into the sea with cigarettes in their hand and put it out in the water, they’re lying about all day and set off to rave in the late evening and when they arrive at dawn it’s impossible not to wake up for their noise-making and howling. The main problem is that they leave countless waste about and the whole island is full of every kind of rubbish. Our accomodation (**) was well under our expectation. It was a little hole with musty smell, we spent most of our time without doors. We thought that it can’t be worse but the car that we rented (Fiat Punto Cabrio) was a wreck, there wasn’t an unbroke part of it, it was dangerous, life-threatening, dirty, disgusting (we had to reserve in adavance). So, we were suffer some disappointment but we liked the freshly pressed orange with ice cubes, the refreshing salty waves of the sea, the mindless lying down on the beach, the island course by a boat, our sun-tanned skin that we got during a week and to listen interesting stories about the island. E.g. the reason of the numerous mandel tree – a long time ago there was snow (!) in a morning on Mallorca and the queen liked it very much and wanted to see another time as well. The king was suggested by the counsellors to set mandel trees. So, at the period of blooming it is just like snowing. We visited a lovely little town called Valdemossa where Michael Douglas & Catherine Zeta Jones have a summer villa which can be approachable only seaward. There are three Michael D. and two C. Zeta Jones jahts at the port.
The point is that it wasn’t our most pleasant holiday but time beautifies everything…