Tuesday November 5 2019

08:00 Lois and I tumble out of the shower cubicle. We were very dirty because we didn't get the chance to take a single shower during our 4 days of babysitting our grandchildren in Haslemere, due to early morning trips ferrying them here and there.

After breakfast I sit down with the computer because my friend, "Magyar" Mike is arriving this morning at 10 am to take part in our weekly "Hungarian hour" and I have to work out a short Hungarian vocabulary test I want him to take at the beginning of the session - and he will do the same for me.

I try to make Mike's test super-easy because he has aged a lot in the past 1-2 years and sometimes has difficulty remembering even the most basic Hungarian words.

"Magyar" Mike in happier times: with our Hungarian

friend János, on my first ever visit to Hungary in 1994.

Me with János in 1994

10:00 Mike calls at the door and we start the hour by exchanging vocabulary tests. He does well in the test - I have to say - and I give him good marks and a smiley, to encourage him a bit. At the moment we are using a very old textbook that Mike likes - it was first published in 1987, before the fall of the Berlin Wall, and it is sometimes fun to see some aspects of the old communist bureaucratic system in use.

For example, there is an ongoing theme in the textbook revolving around a young English woman, Eva, visiting Hungary for the first time. She arrives in the country only with English money, and she goes into a local bank to get her Hungarian forints - the cashier stresses to her that she cannot take any Hungarian money with her when she leaves the country and she must keep her receipt if she wants to exchange her Hungarian money back to English pounds, or suchlike. My god, what a crazy world they lived in in those times !!!!

It is also interesting to see how much the British pound was worth in the forints at that time - just 70, whereas now it is 400, or thereabouts. It may be that the forint's value at that time was artificially supported by the Hungarian government, but I'm not entirely sure. The jury is still out on that one.

The textbook dialogue emphasizes the importance of keeping an eye on the foreign exchange market. I tell Mike about a surprising report I read a couple of years ago on my go-to news site, Onion News.

NEW YORK - At the close of trading on Monday, the US dollar fell to a record low of $0.60 against the counterfeit US dollar, which also outpaced the dollar against the euro and the yen.

"We don't even accept regular US dollars any more," said Union, NJ 7-Eleven manager Rick Grove, who echoed the sentiments of merchants nationwide. "We've been stung a few times accepting the right ones. I always tell my cashiers if it feels fake to the touch and you can't see both sides when you hold it up to the light, it’s fine."

My god, what a crazy world we live in !!! And Mike and I both check the contents of our pockets to make sure we just have the fake dollar bills, which we do, thank goodness. And we breathe a sigh of relief. My god, what madness !!!

11:00 Mike leaves, and Lois and I drive over to the local Sainsbury’s supermarket to do some foodshopping. We are almost out of fruit and vegetables after spending a short holiday with our daughter Alison in Haslemere, Surrey.

our local Sainsburys supermarket

We both feel a little in low spirits, and lacking in energy after our exciting couple of days with Alison, Ed and the kids, and it will take some time before we get back into our old rhythm and resume our normal tempo, we know that for sure.

12:00 We have lunch and afterwards I go to bed and take a gigantic afternoon nap. I get up at 3 pm and we relax with a cup of tea on the couch.

17:30 We have dinner, a little earlier than usual, because Lois has been planning to take part in her sect's weekly Bible seminar, taking  place tonight in Brockworth library, but she changes her mind later after her hip begins to hurt. It will be nice to have her company tonight - we both feel a little below par and are not enthusiastic about having to get back into our normal routine life again - damn!

20:00 We stick our feet up in front of the television. An interesting documentary is on, (part 2 of 6), about Australian train journeys. The programme's host is the charming Michael Portillo, who 30 years ago was one of Margaret Thatcher's ministers, but who has recently built a new career as a TV host.

Portillo has the habit of wearing very pretentiously colourful and totally inappropriate clothes in his programmes. And Australians recognize him wherever he goes because Michael's programmes are also popular in Australia, it seems.

Michael is today travelling from Sydney to Broken Hill, a silver mining area, a train ride that forms the first part of the great Sydney to Perth "Indian Pacific" train journey.

He takes the train from Sydney's main train station, where he discovers that the whole journey (from Sydney to Perth) is 2500 miles, or so, and that there are only 4 stops on the route – good grief, what madness !!!! The whole journey takes 4 days.

This train interests Lois and me a lot because we are considering taking it in the opposite direction, from Perth to Adelaide. We plan to spend 2 months in the country next year, first and foremost to visit our daughter Sarah in Perth, and her family. But we also wanted to visit Lois' cousin, Stephen in Adelaide, and we thought it would be a relaxing way to travel from Perth to Adelaide, and much more inviting than flying.

This morning my friend "Magyar" Mike tried to persuade us not to take the train - he said you don't see much more than a handful of trees day in and day out.

But Lois and I really want to try out the journey. We like to go to bed on a train and get rocked by the movements of the train. We stayed overnight on a train from Brussels to Munich in 2006, there and back, on the way to and from Hungary, and it was super nice.

flashback to us in 2006: Lois with lion in Munich

Me at Munich's Nymphenburg Palace

Lois being serenaded in a restaurant in Szeged, Hungary

Us in Szeged, Hungary: with "Magyar" Mary (right)

- happy days!!!!

Also, in Australia, we would have the perfect excuse not to do much during the day - just eat and drink, and relax in general, and the like: a dream come true ha ha!

The Indian Pacific train is incredibly long - over 2,300 feet long - what madness !!! And there's a charming Australian stewardess who shows you to your compartment and makes sure you have everything you need in the compartment or in the restaurant car and the like.

The train is over 2,300 feet long

 a charming stewardess shows you to your compartment and makes sure

that you have everything you need, in the compartment, the restaurant car etc.

What's not to like ha ha ha !!!!

22:00 We go to bed - zzzzzzzzzz !!!!

Danish translation: tirsdag den 5. november 2019

08:00 Lois og jeg vælter ud af brusekabinen. Efter morgenmad sætter jeg mig med computeren fordi min ven, ”Magyar” Mike kommer i formiddag kl 10 for at deltage i vores ugentlige ”ungarske time”, og jeg må udarbejde en kort ungarsk ordforrådtest, jeg vil have ham til at tage i begyndelsen af sessionen – og han vil gøre det samme for mig.

Jeg prøver at gøre Mikes test supernem, fordi han har ældes meget de seneste 1-2 år og har svært nogle gange ved at huske endda de mest grundlæggende ungarske ord.

”Magyar” Mike i lykkeligere tider: sammen med vores ungarske

ven János på mit første besøg til Ungarn i 1994.

Mig sammen med János

10:00 Mike ringer på døren, og vi starter timen ved at veksle ordforråtest. Han gør godt i testen – det må jeg nok sige - og  jeg giver ham gode karakterer for at opmuntre ham lidt. På tidspunktet bruger vi en ganske gammel lærebog, som Mike kan lide – den blev først udgivet i 1987, før Berlinmurens fald, og det er nogle gange morsomt at se nogle aspekter af det gamle kommunistiske bureaukratiske system i brug.

Eksempelvis er der en løbende tema i lærebogen, der kredser om en ung engelsk kvinde, Eva, der besøger Ungarn for første gang. Hun ankommer i landet kun med engelsk penge, og hun smutter ind i en lokal bank for at få sine ungarske forinter – kassieren understreger til hende, at hun ikke kan tage ungarske penge med med sig, når hun forlader landet, og hun må beholde sin kvittering, hvis hun vil veksle sine ungarske penge tilbage til engelske pund, eller lignende. Du godeste, sikke en skør verden de levede i i de der tider!!!!

Det er interessant også at se hvor meget det britiske pund dengang var værd i forinter – bare 70, mens nu er det 400, eller deromkring. Det kan være, at forintens værd dengang var kunstigt støttet af den ungarske regering, men det er jeg ikke helt sikker på. Juryen er stadig ude om det.

Dialogen i lærebogen understreger, hvor vigtigt det er at holde øje med valutamarkedet. Jeg fortæller Mike om en overraskende rapport, jeg for et par år siden læste i mit go-to nyhedswebsted, Onion News.

NEW YORK - Ved handelets slutning mandag faldt den amerikanske dollar til et rekordlavt niveau på 0,60 $ mod den falske amerikanske dollar, som også overgik dollaren over for euro og yen.

"Vi accepterer ikke engang almindelige amerikanske dollars længere," sagde Union, NJ 7-Eleven manager Rick Grove, der gentog følelserne af købmænd landet over. "Vi har fået snydt et par gange på at acceptere de rigtige. Jeg siger altid til mine kasserer, hvis det føles falskt at røre ved, og du ikke kan se begge sider, når du holder det op til lyset, er det fint."

Du godeste, sikke en skør verden vi lever i !!! Og Mike og jeg tjekker begge to vores lommers indhold, for at sørge for, at vi bare have falske dollarsedler, hvilket vi gør gudskelov. Vi ånder lettet. Du godeste, sikke et vanvid!!!

11:00 Mike skal af sted, og Lois og jeg kører over til det lokale Sainsburys-supermarked for at købe ind. Vi er næsten uden frugt og grøntsager efter at have holdt en kort ferie hos vores datter Alison i Haslemere, Surrey.

vores lokale Sainsburys-supermarked

Vi føler os begge lidt nedslåede og vi mangler energi efter vores spændende par dage hos Alison, Ed og børnene, og det vil tage lidt tid før vi kommer tilbage ind i vores gamle rytme og genoptage vores normale tempo, det ved vi med sikkerhed.

12:00 Vi spiser frokost og bagefter går jeg i seng for at tage en gigantisk eftermiddagslur. Jeg står op kl 15 og vi slapper af med en kop te i sofaen.

17:30 Vi spiser aftensmad, lidt tidligere, end normalt, fordi Lois planlægger at deltage i sin sekts ugenlige bibelseminar, der finder sted i aften i byen Brockworths bibliotek, men hun skifter mening senere, efter hendes hofte begynder at gør ondt. Det vil være rart at have hendes selskab i aften – vi føler os begge to lidt skidt tilpasse og er ikke entusiastiske over, at måtte komme tilbage ind i vores normale rutinemæssige liv igen – pokkers!

20:00 Vi smækker benene op foran fjernsynet. De viser en interessant dokumentarfilm (2. del af 6) der handler om australske togture. Programmets vært er den charmerende Michael Portillo, som for 30 år siden var én af Margaret Thatchers ministre, men som for nylig har bygget en ny karriere op som tv-vært.

Portillo har for vane at gå i meget prætentiætentiøst kulørte og totalt upassende tøj under sine programmer. Og Australere genkender ham, hvor som helst han går, fordi Michaels programmer også er populære i Australien, ser det ud til.

Michael rejser i dag fra Sydney til Broken Hill, en sølvmineområde, og hans togtur danner den første del af den store Sydney til Perth ”Indian Pacific”-togrejse.

Han tager toget fra byen Sydneys hovedbanegård, hvor han opdager, at hele rejsen (fra Sydney til Perth) er 2500 miles, eller deromkring, og der er kun 4 stop på ruten – du godeste, sikke et vanvid!!!! Hele rejsen tager 4 dage.

Dette tog interesserer Lois og mig meget, fordi vi overvejer at tage det i den modsætte retning, fra Perth til Adelaide. Vi planlægger at tilbringe 2 måneder i landet næste år, først og fremmest for at besøge vores datter Sarah i Perth, og hendes familie. Men vi har også lyst til at besøge Lois’ fætter, Stephen i Adelaide, og vi syntes, det ville være en afslappende måde at rejse fra Perth til Adelaide på, og meget mere inviterende, end at flyve.

I morges prøvede min ven ”Magyar” Mike at overtale os ikke at tage toget – han sagde, man ikke ser meget flere, end en håndfuld træer dag ud dag ind.

Men Lois og jeg har meget lyst til at afprøve rejsen. Vi kan godt lide at gå i seng på et tog og bliver rokket af togets bevægelser. Vi overnattede engang på et tog fra Bruxelles til München, og det var superdejligt. 

tilbageblik til os i 2006: Lois med løve i München

mig foran Münchens Nymphenburg-slot

os i Szeged, Ungarn: sammen med "Magyar" Mary, til højre

Lois i gang med at modtage en serenade i Szeged, Ungarn
- lykkelige dage!!!!!

Også, i Australien, ville vi ikke blive nødt til at have en undskylding for ikke at gøre ret meget i løbet af dagen – spise og drikke bare, og slappe af generelt, og den slags: en drom gjort til virkelighed ha ha!

Indian Pacific-toget er utroligt lang – over 2300 fods lang – du godeste, sikke et vanvid!!! Og der er en charmerende australsk stewardesse, der viser dig til din kupé og sørger for, at du har alt hvad du har brug for i kupéen eller i restaurantvogn og den slags.

toget er over 2300 fods lang

en charmerende stewardesse viser én til éns kupé, og sørger for,

at man har alt hvad man har brug for, i kupéen, restaurantvognen osv.

What’s not to like ha ha ha!!!!

22:00 Vi går i seng – zzzzzzzzzz!!!!