Hungarian Hillbillies Part three

We now have the cable Tv working again.....there are 800 channels...from all over the world....everything from BIBLE Television, to triple X porn. 600 of the channels are Pay TV, which includes all movies....of any value, porn, good sports..and anything of value...This leaves me 200 channels of World News....Including Al Gercieris(spelled wrong) and AL queda TV..... and a lot of locals stations from Spain and down to Italy......which we can call peasant Tv... The local fashions, which remind me of taking a trip thru the Sears Catalogue from 1950's, programs about farm animals, the pumpkin crop, local wine making, fence building, protection from vampires...(and you DO USE GARLIC...and other very interesting programs, including creative ways to watch paint dry. But it is better of a choice, than just watching the blue screen of the TV with no picture....We had no programing......for a very simple reason, the batteries in the "clickers" were dead.
Somewhere around 1:30 Benno and I started the trek downtown, with his newly fix car that broke down on the way to Budapest. We were somewhere in the middle of nowhere...when the car broke down again. Afer a number of "Oh shits" and "I am tired of these fucking cars" and " I am gong back to Amsterdam next week." we got out and examined the motor. We found nothing...but logic had it..that the motor was not over heating, the battery and starter worked. no gas was leaking from under the card....thatl.....it must be the fuel pump or the fuel filter.
Benno called Tommy on the phone and he and Frank(Ferri) were there in minutes and found..in seconds the reason for the breakdown.....Some belt was broken, without which the electric system.

We all piled into the second car...which is also BENNOS, which he drove here from Spain..It is also on its last legs....but still running...After I threw out a pile of emplty beer cans from the front seat.....and ignored an ashtray filled to the top with cigarette butts....and more butts on the floor, we headed downtown Naykanitza for car parts and other thngs needed to complete the construction of BENNOS Brothers HOUSE. We first went to the OBI, there version of HOME DEPOT...and almost as larges as the ones in the STATES.....From there, we went to the car parts store....for the second time in three days....One item blew me away.....a complete exhaust system for BENNOS RED "LADA" a Russian inexpensive auto.....the cost for this system...including the pipes and muffler was around 20.00 TWENTY DOLLARS...Amazing.....in the STATES with installation it would have been 500...... From there we went to a Pub and had drinks....then Benno and I went into town, and the "BOYS" went on to the house to fix the car.
Our first destination was to go to a bank to exchange DOLLARS for Hungarian Forints...The banks charges all kinds of fees, asked for our address and wanted to see my passport......and got a hell of a lot less than i did in VERESHEGUHAZ dealing with Franks Father.......We then went to a restuarant...that had a high rating in a tourist book.......but was brought up by BENNO FIRST....A place called ROBNSONS....not a very Hungarian name, but the food was strictly HUNGARIAN....the MENU we were given was in HUNGARIAN....and was so many pages long, that if it was in ENGLISH, I would have had a hard time making a decision, but being in HUNGARIAN....it was so much more difficult.....even though I could read...half of them......i was more than curious what the other offers were.....We then got an additional menu in both ENGLISH and GERMAN.......and would you believe, it made more sense to me in HUNGARIAN......some of the terms were hysterical....they translations were horrible and incorrect.. There was one dish...with describe a stew of fruits of the sea and other sea "gadgets""' well, rocks, stones, sand, sea shells, sea weed, sunken ships,...are all sea gadgets..what in hell did they mean?
Other things like mushrooms pulled with rice.,....other phrases like "potatoes baking in the oven" There were a lot of things that were pulled. I ordered a platter...that was supposed to have steamed cabbage,,,and spareribs......I got very thick bacon and saurkraut.....Unfortunately I forgot to steal a menu, because there were so many funny mistakes.....if i go down town again, I will offer to buy a menu....or steal one with permission..
The soup was wonderful.....cream of garlic soup with cheese melted on top....the other platter was good...but nothing to write home about....a chicken cutlet(sauteed) and some kind of pork or beef cutlet, cucumber salad, roasted potaotes.......all good but not special.....Benno had a friend trout..supported by boiled potaotes....the fish in swimming position...and staring at BENNO... The meal was complete with a large apple PALACHINTA with almond sauce on top and whipped creme...well, it was good, but mine.....last night were much better. and teh ALMOSN sauce was yellow...and didn't taste like almond sauce....but it was good. But I am a very fussy person, when i go out to eat, I like food to be different and better than I can cook it....

After dinner we were going to an INTERNET CAFE, and then for more cake and cappuccino...when BENNO looked at his wtch and exclaimed "oh shit....Its almost 6 and we have to go to PishyBacchi's to get lumber for tomorrow and we are late....."So we raced down the the BUS station to find a bus to take us back to HOHOMKARCOM or what ever the name of this little Village is......we found the BUS station, found which bus to take, and they were talking loudly when he approached a rotary or a cirlce in the roastarted walking around......looking to spend 20 min...until the bus arrived...when the phone rang..It was...Frank and TOMMY....they would pick us up..instead of the bus....GREAT.....
In less than two minutes, there they were!!! In the broken down red car that we had left on the HIGHWAY 2 hours before......It is as they appeared in a flash of light....there was no way they could have driven....from the Village in that time....I never found out how there were able to get back to the car....bring back the FORD from SPAIN to their Village, and return to get us....and fix the car..all in the time that we had dinner...I said to BENNO, that was impossible.....he laughed.......and didn't ask how they did it.... Soon we were on our way back to the VILLAGE...BENNO was now driving....We approached a ROTARY or Circle in the ROAD and BENNO went around this circle three times.....and then..chose one of the roads.......We then dropped off the pair of miracle workers at the home of ATTILA....a young but heavily blacked bearded men, who also works on some of the property here.......and BENNO and I were off to PishyYBACCIS HOUSE.....(by the way....Bacchi means UNCLE....or a title that old men give themselves to younger people)

Pisshybacchi invited us in for a drink..."just one "pitzie"(tiny) drink.....but first before climbing the stairs to his home, he took us into what looked like a garage, half buried in the hill. It was not a garage....but a wine making house, and a wine cellar......He was one of the men who appeared a few days ago...to pick all of BENNOS grapes that were all over the property....and he showed us...the barrels they were now in....and fermenting...
We went upstairs, followed by a lovely sweet large dog named WHISKEY...that I had met a few times already.....He visits all the friendly people in the area, who love him and feed him.....and probably has a home...I was very happy to see himbecause I brought him a DOGGY BAG from ROBINSONS....his tail was wagging at warp speed as i fed him....(I will post photos when I can get onto the internet...) we then went upstairs and PishyBacci brought out a bottle of what he called "uibokor" or NEW WINE....It was white, went down smoothly, and had a good taste..It wasn't strong at all, stronger than mere grape juice,but not like regular wine..yet after a few glasses....i started feeling it.........then he insisted we have sausages and bread...and fresh paprikas..and more wine....and he started telling stories...., some of which Benno was able to translate.... He was a man in his 80's kind, with a twinkle in his eyes...and enjoyed the company...and I enjoyed the warm hospitality that is so, associated with Hungarians,,,especially the poorer ones. Benno got a call, now, inviting us down to the bar...to Meet TOMMY and Frank for a drink......Remember the BAR and General store ar both owned by the same guy in the village..and the two buildings ARE the village....and its where the bus stop from town. I was somewhat reluctant to go in,...this is a hillbilly VILLAGE, like the ones in KENTUCKY HILLS, where the people all make their wine and whiskey illegally at home...and are rough tough souls...BENNO said I have never seen anything like this, and it might be the worst bar on this planet...and i shouldn miss this .....I went in......TOMMY,FERRI, JOSIE_BACCHI(another worker that I met the day before) TOMMYS mother and father.....who were at dinner the night before....were all there...with one huge red bulbous nosed drunk.....and a skinny pocked marked GYPSEY....whose wife soon came in, yelled at him, he staggered over to her...and she grabbed his keys and left him there...in a fog,laughing..and there was one of blond guy there in overalls...a very
pleasant looking guy...No one there was intimidating...nor were there than many people there.
I had a beer and to my surprise the beer SOPRONI (beer from the town of SOPRON(pronouced SHOPRON) was very very mild.....and tasted less like beer than anything i have ever had.....and really nice.....The MOTHER, of Tommy and stood up and announced in HUNAGRAIN that MAURY.......Bennos friend is the KING of PALCINTA...referring to the dessert of the night before...and they toasted me and my cooking ability......I had another beer...Then TOmmys father....got up and put money into a KAREOKE Machine and started singing...for a while...The place was filled with laughter....and smoke....and more smoke...From there we went to TOMMYS HOUSE for more beer, more UIBORKOR brought in by Frank who made it.....himself......and was just happy as a little boy.....when i told him i really liked it a lot.....We drank wine and beer..then TOMMYS wife brought out open sandwiches of cheese and headcheese.....and we ate again.....and drank and laughed...and the smoke here too filled the room.....we stayed at TOMMYS The longest.....and had the most fun.....the laughing was great....I understood most of what was going on.........and surprisingly i didn't get drunk..not even really high....and so far no hangover....
The warmth of the evening.....in hospitality is something i am trying to convey. It was all real. The laughing.....and the giving of what they have to strangers.....this is an experience you cannot get as a tourist....You cannot buy this in a fancy hotel, or at fancy restaurants....its something that actually to ove 12 yearls to develop BENNO is a true friend.. an honest wonderful person......his character was immediate felt by the HUNGARIANS here...He treats them with fairness and kindness..which they know is real...and any friend of BENNOS becomes their friends.......
They know that I am an American and BENNO is Dutch....BUt when I told Frank that I am HUNGARIAN....he jumped up...and I got 2 kisses..one on each side of my neck..and wet ones.. I wonder if this means wer are engaged (LOl)
I have learned a few words this week that I have committed to my Hungarian Memory banks......"barat" friend is one of it... ALl of them couldn't remember my name, so many starting calling me BARAT..which is a great honor......