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Postcards from Pannonia

by Adam von Dioszeghy and Aliz von Dioszeghy

346 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #06-3307; ISBN 1-4251-1564-0; US$24.95, C$28.69, EUR19.95, £13.95

Two Americans buy and renovate a dilapidated country house in Hungary. In the process, they encounter various characters, human and animal, learn the ways of the country and local customs, and do some great cooking.

About the Book

A freedom fighter of the 1956 Hungarian revolution, after over 40 years in the US, and his California-born wife, decide to return to his native land to live. What's more, they decide to purchase a dilapidated country house-with about 7 acres of land-perched atop a hill in the foothills of the Bakony Mountains, nestled in the middle of an ancient area the Romans called Pannonia. The house sits alone, set apart from the neighboring village of 1,200 souls. The couple is idealistic, brave and - some might say - idiotic to undertake such a task. Of course, the house needs to be renovated and made fit for habitation. Craftsmen and workers need to be found. The work needs supervision. As our hero and heroine are "absentee owners" (living mostly in California), they are people who could easily be taken advantage of by unscrupulous and greedy locals. Country folk often focus on strangers as exotic and wealthy - true or not - and this is especially the case when the "strangers" are viewed as "rich Americans".

The situation calls for caution and careful planning. Fortunately, a local "good Samaritan", in the form of a native and pillar of the community, befriends them, comes to their aid time and again, and becomes their guardian angel. Amid seeming chaos and very real trepidation, restoration and refurbishment begins. While progress is far from smooth and continuous, no major disasters occur. Local craftsmen are found who are ably kept in check by Anti, the guardian angel. The skirmishes are numerous and colorful, but the locals (who for some reason concoct the story that the house has been bought by a "famous American film producer"), gradually accept the interlopers.

As time passes and the owners spend more and more time on the property, boundaries come down and friendships are forged. There are invitations and counter-invitations issued and accepted. People offer their generous help with problems otherwise unsolvable. The house is completed. With the assistance of these new-found friends, the adventuresome newcomers plant a vineyard, and now spend over seven months a year in their new paradise. Life is good...

About the Author

Adam von Dioszeghy: Born and educated through high school in Hungary. As a university student there, participated in the Hungarian Uprising against Soviet domination in 1956. Escaped Hungary and settled in the US. Graduated from Stanford University majoring in English literature. After three tours of duty in the Vietnam War as a naval officer, pursued studies in law, receiving his JD degree from Stanford Law School. Practiced law as a trial attorney in the San Francisco Bay Area for 35 years.

Aliz von Dioszeghy: A native Californian, coming from parents both of whose roots go back over 300 years in America - mostly English, Irish and French, but NO Hungarian whatsoever! - she has lived in the Bay Area most of her life. She was educated at the University of San Francisco, holding a BS degree in economics. She has had a successful career as an executive head hunter. Moved to Hungary with her husband in early 2000.

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