Our neighbours Csabi and Szonja surprised us by inviting us to their daughter Szonja's ballagas, a kind of graduation ceremony from 8th grade. The only other time I had been at the school was several years ago when I tried to exercise my right to vote in the local elections. A newer building has been erected behind the early 19^th century Baroque-style Bónis-Gedeon Manor, which also served at one time as the school building but is now in a state of terrible dilapidation. There is a plaque here honouring one of the teachers, the well-known poet Kalász László (1933-1999). The students, all 13 of them (10 girls and 3 boys) that completed their instruction from the original 20, traipsed around their now-former school building and through their classrooms and singing songs to their teachers. The school flag was passed to representatives from grade 7 (this class only has 9 students), and the graduates took turns or together sang songs and recited poetry to the gathered families and teachers. Grade 7 had decorated the stage area with roses. Kata presented little Szonja, who at her age already towers over most adults, with a traditional "hobo's bag" for her further travels. The bag, actually a nice kitchen towel, was folded around a packet of salt, a couple homemade pogacsa, a wooden spoon, a 1 Euro coin, the first carnation from our garden and a small angel pendant to set her on the path of life.

Kata and I then went home to change into warmer clothes because the wind was whipping up and clouds were gathering. We returned an hour later to a party already in full swing. We were honoured to be the only non-roma and non-family members invited to the celebration. Szonja had made kind of pork stew outside in an üst (cauldron). Kata does not normally eat pork, but reported that it was very tasty. I busied myself with a stack of bread slices and homemade pastries. It was not an ideal combination considering the amount of hazi palinka (homemade brandy) that was flowing, which was generally good but also included some of the worst I have ever tasted. We had the pleasure to meet several more family members, including Csabi's daughter who had been living in Ireland for the last three years and was eager to show off her English. Csabi sang several songs on the guitar, but was quickly drowned out by his daughter's preference for pop music. Some people had already gone inside to dance, but when the rain finally hit; Kata and I stayed out to dance in the rain awhile, and then joined the dancing inside. It was an extremely pleasant day among our new friends.

Late in the afternoon we continued the construction of Kata's rock garden in our courtyard. This involved over 20 wheelbarrows of soil, a bag of horseshit, and untold loads of rocks, but it is looking great. The stone roses (Sempervivum, houseleeks) are already in place, and the next phase will be other plants and medicinal herbs.

Even though we often feel we are constantly on the back foot, the garden is coming along nicely. The runner beans have made their way to the top of the supports we put in place and are now climbing on the window bars. These will have to be pinched off. Big pea pods are forming, the rocket has gone wild after surviving the expected attack by ground fleas, the early potatoes are flowering, the zucchini is looking large and fabulous, the cukes and broccoli have returned to their normal colour rather than stay purplish, and the tomatoes are finally taking hold. Likewise the cabbages and carrots are coming along nicely. There is so much sprouting now that we are feeling overwhelmed. Hopefully Simon and Dori can come by soon and advise us further. We have been able to eat mixed salad from our garden every night, and we are already trying to keep up with the Swiss chard. Spiders of all shapes and sizes have taken up residence in the mulch - I have never seen such variety. Hopefully they eat aphids and ants. Aphids had attacked our beans, but a spray of walnut leaf tea seems to have averted the danger. The garlic we planted from the market in Kata's hometown of Dombovar had been very impressive, but then it got hit by some kind of grub. With the leaves yellowing and no signs of the tell-tale flowers, we decided to pull one and see. What a beautiful sight! We have pulled 17 garlic bulbs for drying and braiding, leaving the remaining seemingly weaker plants in for awhile longer.

The big disappointment has been the sour cherries. Last year, the day after we arrived, the tree was bursting with ripe fruit and had to be picked immediately. This year, the tree suffered its first pruning in decades, was hit by frost, then by a caterpillar attack. The birds managed to eat any remaining survivors and we were left literally with less than a handful of cherries.

The birds in Aggtelek National Park (ANP) are varied, many are protected, and they are all very loud. Anyone we speak with on the phone immediately comments that they can hear the birds. The countryside can be incredibly loud, even in the middle of nowhere. I have never paid much attention to birds, and have never emotionally understood what bird watchers find so fascinating. I remember on my year abroad in Scotland staying in a hostel on the Isle of Skye and meeting a couple British birdwatchers in the common kitchen who invited me to go with them the next morning. I thought, why not, let's see what this is all about. We met the next morning after breakfast and wondered over to the seashore and plopped ourselves down on a rock. As expected, the guys unstrapped their binoculars and began observing. When they passed them over to me I asked them the names of several birds. To my great surprise, they did not know and did not care. Didn't they have a bird watching book and check-off list? "No," they replied, "we just like watching birds." This really put a new spin on things for me at the time.

In Aggtelek National Park, one cannot help but notice the birds. Stork nests atop utility poles line most village streets. Whenever you mow the lawn, storks will descend for easy frog pickings. They will even buzz you, like Smaug in The Hobbit, while swimming across Rakaca Lake. You just see, and feel this huge shadow passing over you and skimming the water...

The pheasants, with their strange startled barks, seem to be rampant this year. Birds of prey, such as Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca), Saker Falcon, Lesser Spotted Eagle (Aqulia pomarina), European Honey Buzzard (Pernis apivorus), and  Short-Toed Snake Eagle (Cicraetus gallicus) line posts and sit atop signs along the roadways. One flew right at Kata's windshield before pulling up at the last minute. Cuckoos and nightingales (which have the lovely Hungarian name fülemüle) are vocal constant companions. ANP even conducts nightingale walking tours in spring led by one of its bird specialists Sandor Boldogh. And then there is what I have termed the hülyemadar, or idiot bird. I have no idea what it is, but this creature imitates the sound of an 18-wheeler backing up into your living room, day and night.