17-VIII-1990.

Trip to Szeged with Tereza and her husband (daughter left with grandparents). Lasted three days. I was driving their Renault 17, which was about the first time I drove a luxury (relatively) car. Got into a radar trap near Horgoš, where they put the radars on both sides of the curve, so whoever flashed me a warning from the other direction did it in vain, because I saw the radar on their side of the road and thought I've passed it... This was the first time I saw cops using their brains like this.

We did this like real tourists. The dinar was still strong, still equal to 7 RSD = 1DEM, and we all had money like never before. So we ate at a restaurant (not really memorable, except they had the hot peppers in a too salty solution... way too salty. Ileš was right - there's no good fish čorba north of the border). Slept in a vacant student room somewhere inside the Dóm university complex). Attended a show of "István, a király" rock opera (Stephen, the king) about their king from XI century or so, who sold his (country's) ass to Christianity, of the catholic persuasion, just to affirm his throne. The music was OK - and I later discovered that I liked the band who made it (the Illés). Not particularly enthused with the opera itself; it's ok for a rock opera but nothing to write home about, no memorable aria, just a lot of historic costume and limitations of the genre.

We paid only three tickets for the four of us, don't remember why - perhaps got them from a scalper, or the guy at the booth didn't have more, or didn't want to sell more. I gave the tickets to the guy and then asked him, in english, where are these seats, and gesticulated a lot, pointing now to the tickets and then to the seats. Meanwhile the girls were around me and Tereza's husband kind of sneaked behind their backs. I think we simply didn't have enough forint left and the exchanges were closed.

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Mentions: čorba, Ileš Notaroš, Tereza Mazek, in serbian