Gyor, Monday, May 24

Today was short on events, but long on execution. We began with a tour of the Haus der Donauschwaben in Bayern, a Munich version of the one in Sindelfingen. This museum has a much smaller library but far more artefacts. We received a guided tour in German, translated by Johannes. Our guide, the director of the place, was very passionate about keeping alive the memory of what happened to the Donauschwaben after the War. Translation was not really that necessary, as the pictures and artefacts spoke for them selves. This place is well worth a tour if you are in the Munich area, but the hours are limited and a translator is helpful.

We were joined there by Helmut Birg and Josef Lang. Helmut is the gentleman who worked with Ray on the Georgshausen book and who we missed at the Hofbrauhaus last night. It was good to be able to spend a little more time with him. He is an interesting man with many stories to tell. Josef Lang collaborated with Marta Istvan on a picture book about all the Donauschwaben monuments in the former Yugoslavia. He also has many stories to tell about the horrors of those post-war days. Several of us purchased the book and I picked one up for our library.

We left the museum just before noon and spent the rest of the day on the road, arriving at our hotel in Hungary about 7:30. We ate dinner on the patio, fighting off mosquitoes. This is our third time at this hotel on three tours. It is composed of two or three buildings stitched together, with lots of flights of three to seven or eight stairs. It is a bit of a challenge getting around, but it is so quaint that people seem to be able to overlook the inconvenience for the experience.