Dr. Ambedkar School

Something I notice is different in Hungary is this: whenever you catch a train Hungarians seem very reserved. The other thing is once you are out of Budapest the passengers don’t go out the station through a barrier with a ticket collector as they do in my country. They simply walk off across the fields in the direction of their home. To me this all looks very strange.

To reach Sajókazá I take two trains: an intercity train to Miskolc then a local train that stops at Sajókazá. When I get off there are no station buildings, no signs, only a delapidated platform; a ghost station really. There are about seven other people who get off. They are all Gypsies. As we walk off across the fields we all set of in the same direction. By now it is obvious that we are all going to the actual village of Sajókazá about a kilometre away. I hadn’t been looking forward to carrying my heavy bag all this way. However something happens that has never happened to me before in Hungary. All the children come up and talk to me.

- What is your name? they ask.
- My name is Saul, I say.
- What is your name? I ask them.
- My name is Vivien.

And so on.

Mostly they speak to me in Hungarian and I speak to them in English. Then they realise I am going to the Dr Ambedkar High School and they find out I am English. They start to teach me a little Hungarian: English =Angol. They talk about iskolar: scholar or school I guess.

Anyway this journey has suddenly become very eventful and I have made several little friends and met some uncles and aunts (I think) on the way. I don’t feel like a stranger anymore because everyone smiles at me.

This is my welcome to Sajókazá.

Saul Deason
23rd March 2009