We were invited to my friend Annamaria’s house earlier this week for dinner. The original plans were to attend a Gergely Borganyi piano concert at the Liszt Music Academy in Budapest–my cousins Rita and Bandi were going to join us. Unfortunately, Borganyi had to cancel because of illness. Annamaria prepared a “typically” Hungarian dinner for us–let me just say that it was out of this world. (For those of you who are interested, she served mai jos hurka, a grilled sausage made from chicken livers, tejfolos lesco (a dish of Hungarian peppers simmered in tomato sauce with sour cream and small bits of grilled kolbasz (Hungarian sausage) served over rice), and a variety of cakes from the local cukraszda (bakery). We took a combination of metro and bus to Annamaria and Tas’s home in the 2nd district of Pest, up in the hills overlooking the city. Annamaria was waiting for us at the bus stop, and the first thing we noticed was the incredible scent of lilacs that were blooming all around us. It was a wonderful visit and we appreciated their warmth and hospitality. Annamaria and Tas live in the house where Tas grew up…it is a csalladi house. There are five apartments in the building and they are all occupied by Tas’s relatives. The courtyard to their house was filled with flowering shrubs and more lilacs.
Thursday, we are on our way to Veszprem…a small city in western Hungary near Lake Balaton. It is “America Week,” and we were to attend the keynote speech by Jeffrey Levine, Deputy Chief of Mission at the American embassy in Budapest and an afternoon panel on the US, the Media, and Politics. My colleagues and I were scheduled to give our 9/11 panel presentation on Friday afternoon.
The railroad track is lined with lilacs in full bloom, as well as some other pink- flowering shrubs which I don’t recognize, but that are stunning. Bernard commented on the profusion of lilacs, and I mentioned that my mother always talked about the lilacs…they were among her favorite flowers. She loved their scent.
So, Mom, I am thinking of you with love. Now that I am here, I understand so many things better, including your love of flowers. I also realize that you were a lot better cook than we gave you credit for.
Thanks for tuning in and best regards,
Marcsi
PS: Thought you might enjoy this photo we took on the train home…it shows the farms lands on either side of the railroad tracks between Budapest and Debrecen. I’m not sure what this crop is, but these fields of gold light up the Hungarian countryside.
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