Monday, 14 May

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#003333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="044d4c00dduajq.gif"> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="95" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 46 WIDTH="91"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="46" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="91" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> <A HREF="id147.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sunday, 13 May"><U><IMG SRC="0450b0b0.gif" border=0 width="11" height="11" ALT="previous" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A>   <A HREF="id149.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Tuesday, 15 May"><U><IMG SRC="0460b0b0.gif" border=0 width="11" height="11" ALT="next" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A>       <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="11" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="11">   <A HREF="id133.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="May"><U><IMG SRC="0480b0b0.gif" border=0 width="11" height="11" ALT="up" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <IMG SRC="20daf880.jpg" border=0 width="175" height="136" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Puszta Herdsman driving 5 horses at Hortobagy, Hungary</div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#003333" FACE="Arial" ><B>The Gastropod's Trail</B></FONT>     |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Gastropods Trail"><U>home</U></A></div> <div> Monday, 14 May</div> <div> Hortobágy, Hungary to Kecskemet, Hungary</div> <bR> <div> We had signed up for a tour of the 'real' puszta by horse-cart yesterday and at 10 o'clock we started out for a two hour tour. It may have been a tad touristy but a unique chance for us to see the herds of semi-wild cattle, sheep, pigs, and geese as they are still kept by the local herdsmen.</div> <bR> <div> After an hour we stopped for a demonstration of the herdsmen's skills dressed in the traditional and distinctive outfit which consists of a shirt, loose trousers, waistcoat, hat and the 'szür', the long, embroidered felt cloak. The 'szür' is an ancient garment of Asian origin that herdsmen and peasants wear tossed over the shoulders, just as noblemen wore it's counterpart, the plissé. The item of clothing with the longest tradition, though, is the crinkled, loose trousers. It is said that the herdsmen's knowledge of nature is unparalleled: They can tell the time by the position of the sun, moon and stars. Their weater-forecasting ability is also remarkable, based only on the color of the setting sun, the shapes of the clouds and the behaviour of the animals.</div> <bR> <div> The inseparable companion of the Herdsmen are the Hortobágy stud-horses. The 'Nonius' breed has been bred here and adapted to the conditions of the puszta over the past centuries. As a kid I had seen Hungarian Herdsmen doing stunts in the Circus - seeing them in their colorful garb in the open puszta was just fantastic. </div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <IMG SRC="24d26ae0.jpg" border=0 width="550" height="174" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="6"></div> <div> Wherever one looks, there are draw wells in the puszta. The thick, strong well-sweep is the tallest structure on the plain. It's willowy sweep works as a two-arm lifter; the well's whip hangs down from the sweep holding the heavy wooden bucket at it's end. A long, hollowed wooden tray reaches into the well-curb. Two-sweep wells (like the one above) are needed for large herds.</div> <bR> <div> We truly spent an unforgettable morning in the puszta.</div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>