William Penn Life, 2009 (44. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2009-12-01 / 12. szám
Reflections on Hungary Member recalls his favorite moments from this summer’s WPA tour to Hungary by Richard Sarosi I have finally added the last picture from the 2009 WPA trip to Hungary to my photo album. I enjoyed going through the photos and remembering the places we visited and the little incidents that happened along the way that made the trip a lot of fun. So, now I want to share some thoughts about this trip. I really enjoyed our group who traveled to Hungary. It was a manageable size at 15 people. I got to meet some fellow Clevelanders (Hank, Fran, Kathy and Floyd) who traveled with us to Hungary and who traveled to the WPA Picnic on the Branch 14 bus in September. It was a pleasure to travel with my sister, Caroline Lanzara, who was on her first trip to Hungary. By the end of the trip, she was a seasoned Hungarian who was able to use her knowledge of the language to speak with merchants and restaurant staff. She was able to get us what we wanted without offending anyone. The ice made it in our drinks every time. I was glad she was able to experience Hungary with me. Caroline also provided some entertaining moments for us, such as when she wore her money belt—with her passport and her U.S. currency safely stored inside—into the thermal pool at the Hotel Orchidea. It took a couple of hours to dry it all out. When we got back to Detroit, the customs official had a hard time trying to scan her passport...maybe it was the mineral water. Caroline also wanted to know when she should begin using her Hungarian currency....This question came after we had been in Hungary for several days. We both enjoyed so many aspects of the trip...the boat ride on Fertőd Lake...seeing where the Iron Curtain fell (and learning this was the area where a young Endre Csornán crossed the border when he left Hungary)...Lake Balaton (WOW! What a treat)...the dinner above Lake Balaton with the gypsy orchestra and our phone call home so that our parents could enjoy the music that was being played...the Herend factory and -AO 6724 Szeged, Sárosi út 11. S' 62/549 The author’s favorite photo from his trip to Hungary: a license plate holder bearing his last name, Sarosi. Richard Sarosi (left), his sister Caroline Lanzara and Albert Frate enjoy a meal during the WPA tour to Hungary. showroom...crossing Lake Balaton on the ferry with Caroline running to catch it...Eddie dressing up in the traditional Hungarian folk dress...the wild boar lunch...Caroline and 1 eating our first goose dinner...the palaces...the dinner with the pigs knuckles and delicious syrupy crust...the desserts...Vienna...Bratislava...the Museum of Terror...the Budapest synagogue...and Budapest, which I am enjoying more with each visit. Caroline, Albert Frate (also on his first trip to Hungary) and I enjoyed exploring Budapest and walking more than eight miles with our shopping bags. We walked down the Váci Utca, enjoyed a fank from McDonald's, then crossed the Chain Bridge and went up the incline to Buda Hill where we visited the World War II Memorial Building/Revolution Building and the observation wall. Then it was back down the incline, across the Chain Bridge, up Andrassy Utca and back to our hotel. We had sore feet, but no one complained. We had a problem with our global phone, and Albert was able to share his phone with us until we got the problem solved. This little matter took about two hours of long distance calls to the U.S. to correct...or, it could have been corrected when Caroline threw our phone out of frustration and got it to work on her own. The look on Albert's face was a "Kodak moment." My favorite picture from the trip was of a license plate frame of a car dealer located on Sarosi Ut in Szeged. If I am able to return there, I have to find my street. Caroline, Albert and I are proud to have had the opportunity to visit the homeland of our grandparents and other family members. We now have a greater interest in locating the villages and towns where our families lived and possibly finding relatives that might still be living there. I want to thank Endre Csornán for all the work he did to make this trip a success. I hope that the 2010 trip will be just as exciting. My niece Lynn has expressed interest in going to Hungary, and I hope she will be able to go. Köszönöm Szépén! [wp[j 6 William Penn Life, December 2009
