Another busy week

On Monday we came into town as planned. We fetched my Eliquis en route in, so I am now supplied for a while, if not all the way to my check-up. It is really crazy how chaotic everything is in the Health Service and in pharmacies. I'll have to go and see the nurse again when we get back home.

The leak

The insurance assessor came on Tuesday to inspect the damage to the ceiling caused by the leak from the flat above and went away happy. In the evening I went to the Old Music Academy for a free harpsichord concert with Ros and Ian.  It was fantastic. Bernhard Klapprott was holding several master classes at the Academy and finished his stay with this concert. The hall was not full, so I need not have worried about getting a seat.

János Balázs

Wednesday had my first piano concert of the season in the Palace of the Arts and very brilliant it was too. János Balázs, who is getting quite famous around the world played all 12 of Liszt's Transcendent Etudes and 2 Liszt adaptations: Winterreise from Schubert and 6 Polish songs from Chopin. It was simply breathtaking, he has such technical proficiency, but a lot of insight and emotion too. His interpretation is unique. At the concert I saw Bozsa for the first time in several months.  She looks well; her granddaughter is a year old, which is amazing, considering she was just born the other day.

The medieaval castle in Várpalota

An then on Thursday we left for the Kali basin to stay with friends and celebrate the 60th birthday of David, one of them. En route down we managed to get a few geocaches, one was a 4 parter in a town which is far too industrial and not exactly pretty, but the area we walked round in was nicely kept and attractive.

Next was a monument just outside the town on a prominent bare hill with fantastic views.  Finding the box was a bit frustrating, as it was supposed to be hidden behind some rocks.  Well, the base of the monument was a sea of derelict, irregular and deteriorating rocks, so I spent a good time looking behind every loose one looking for the right hole.

Pretty little bridge near the cache

Then came a weird one by a pretty little lake where the only clue was that it was magnetic. Obviously it had to be hidden in or behind something metal. Finally it did turn up inside a metal fence post.

The ancient little circular church in Öskü

The last one was a virtual one on a most interesting and unusual little circular church, which I have seen before. It was still very interesting and Roy, not having seen it before, thought so too.

It started getting too dark to carry on, so we made for the village of Monoszló and our friend. He is such a marvellous host that we got soon exhausted by having to eat and drink all the time.  I think I consumed my usual monthly alcohol allocation in 3 days.

A 400 year old oak tree

A stages of the cross with the chapel at the top of the hill

The castle at Nagyvázsony

On Friday, while awaiting the arrival of the others, Roy and I went geocaching again.  Some were really easy, some were impossible, but all showed us something pretty, interesting and with great views.  We didn't get back until about 5pm and found 7 caches in all.  They had varied histories, some were ruins, others springs, or castles or old trees or stages of the cross and, of course more pretty lakes. There were another 2 which we looked for for ages and still didn't find, but such is life! One of them is probably missing, because a few comments on the cache page on the internet said the same, but the other one must have been there somewhere, just we were a bit pissed off and tired by then to find it.

Ruins of a church from a disappeared medieaval village

A few of the party had arrived on Friday evening and we had some lovely food, drink and chats, before both Roy and I faded out by 9pm.

Sheep and goats en route to one of the ruins

Church ruins in the middle of the puszta

Weird statues by one of the lakes

Another ruined church

Saturday morning Roy stayed behind to help with preparations for the party, while I went to get a few more caches. The first was quite a walk, but the weather was gorgeous and at the end of the walk I saw a couple of lovely old medieaval ruins. The next one was very close and easy by some modern statues and a lovely lake.  The third one, however, was very frustrating. It had two parts and the clues were so hopeless, that I had to give up at the end.

The rest of the party had arrived early afternoon awaiting the arrival of the birthday boy. He finally rolled in about 2.30pm and was suitablye surprised at so many people celebrating him. Our host had made us a large stew on an open wood fire in the garden and we had beer, spirits and wine flowing freely.

Talking of wine, after lunch we walked to a vineyard about a mile away, where we tasted one rose and two red wines, which were pretty good too.  We bought a couple of bottles of the rose and I am really looking forward to drinking them. I had to translate the sommelier's speech, which was good fun, especially trying to guess the vintner terminology.  There was a photoshoot going on which was for the winery's wedding brochure and the owner of the vineyard also played the piano for us.

We visited the storage cellar with lots of lovely and enormous barrels (some 225 litres, others 500 litres large). The main cellar was still out of bounds due to carbon monoxide resulting from the fermentation process. They explained what a barique barrel was, which I didn't know.  It is apparently one where you burned the inside a bit, so the wine gets a smokey flavour. Only robust wines can be fermented in one of those when the barrel is new, while secondary and third filling is for more delicate grapes, so that they are not overpowered by the barrel's flavour.

Of the three wines I liked the Pinot Noir Rose best, the full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon was good too, but I am not a Merlot fan, and neither is Roy, so we gave those to others along the table. I always thought Merlot is for people who don't really like red wine, so they can just about cope with it. We prefer more acidity, roughness and flavour.

The happy revellers on the steps of the winery

David, aka Incredible Hulk, the birthday boy

Rabies with Canadian touches

The rose wine awaiting my pleasure

After we walked back we all had a little rest and then departed for the party in the village hall. The decoration was lovely, David was suitably pleased, had  lots of presents and then the dancing started. Unfortunately I got a bit unwell, probably I had too much physical activity in the previous 48 hours, not to mention a furious Scottish dance they talked me into taking part in.  I had to go back to the house and go to bed early.  Well, it was still midnight when I got to bed and about 1.30am when I went to sleep, but the rest of them were having fun for a good few more hours.

Hulk with the star present, the red dress

On Sunday morning the whole group went for a hash run/walk, but I had to stay in bed to get better and thus missed it.  Roy stayed with me, which was nice, but he wasn't going to go anyway. To be quite honest, I wasn't too upset at missing it. While the weather was really gorgeous, I have probably seen all the views and other sights already over the years we kept visiting some other friends who live nearby. Thankfully, I managed to have a good 2 hours' sleep and felt really refreshed and quite well by the time they returned.

Round the long table at the restaurant

Two lovely people: on the left our host, on the right an old friend

Finally, we went to a nearby restaurant to have a late lunch and left for town about 6.30pm from there. We gave a lift to Baldric and Titi Tata (silly hash names, I know, but believe me, they are really apt!) and were in the flat by 9.10pm.

This coming week is more of a rest than activity. I have a lot of catching up on missed television programs, have the Bryson book to read, I also have a hair appointment, and we are going to see Ros and Ian's new kitchen, but without Ian, who had already departed to China for a month, on Wednesday. Also possibly an exhibition of Csontváry, one of my favourite painters, much in the style of  L. S. Lowry and if I feel up to it a bit more caching, but only drive in caches or those that are no more than 100-200 metres from the car.

My parents' grave in the garden

And finally, finally, just to remember that today is All Souls' Day. As we now have both my parents' ashes in a nice memorial in our own garden, I post here how we left it when we came away a week ago.  Unfortunately we are not there to light the candles toady, but we will do so when we are back in the village.