József: If it’s past two o’clock in the morning, I can’t really sleep, so I usually listen to the radio. If I feel there’s a lot of work to do, I get up at four. If I don’t have a lot to do, I laze in bed until half past four or five. Then I wash myself, kiss my wife and start my day in the workshop at half past five. I’ve been working here since 1971, and my daily routine hasn’t changed since then.
Ibolya: I wake up when my husband leaves for work. Then I go back to sleep for a bit, before either the alarm clock or the voices of our children wake me up properly. I arrive in the shop at around half past seven or eight.
József: When it comes to rock music, my favourite is The Rolling Stones. In terms of classical music, it’s Chopin.
Ibolya: Beethoven. I also enjoy the music of Eastern cultures, including Arab music. As I have daughters, I also have to be up to date with the current trends in music.
József: The Pope's Rhinoceros by Lawrence Norfolk. But, come to think of it, I liked his other book, Lemprière’s Dictionary even more.
Ibolya: I have very little time to read, unfortunately. I love Sándor Márai’s books, though.
József: Transylvania. The Bakony region and Northern Europe.
Ibolya: Isfahan and the Middle East.
József: I prefer restaurants. Ibolya enjoys cooking and she wouldn’t let me set foot in the kitchen anyway.
Ibolya: I prefer cooking, but we both love Chinese food.
József: I look through the papers in the morning. During the night, I like to listen to Inforádió [a Hungarian news radio station].
Ibolya: I mostly read foreign newspapers.
József: Heti válasz, Demokrata [political weeklies], Élet és Tudomány [a weekly newspaper about science], Rubicon [a monthly history magazine] and Várak, kastélyok, templomok [a bimonthly magazine of classical architecture].
Ibolya: I read English, German and French magazines and confectionery magazines.
József: Confectioner’s clothes.
Ibolya: I used to love artisan clothes a lot. Anikó Németh was my favourite. Now my taste has changed and I prefer jeans and T-shirts. Simplicity and comfort have become more important to me in clothes.
József: Women’s clothes.
Ibolya: Anything that doesn’t suit my character.
József: I enjoy making creamy pastries.
Ibolya: I love all the things women typically do, though I don’t do needlework, crocheting or knitting.
József: With Sándor Márai.
Ibolya: With Mrs. József E. Auguszt, the grandmother of my husband. I’d ask her about our common lives.
József: My father, from a professional point of view. And, in terms of humanity and character, my class teacher in grammar school, who was a monk.
Ibolya: My father-in-law. I always listened when he talked. I was his Liebling (we always spoke in German). He had a major and very positive influence on me.
József: They should have integrity and love.
Ibolya: They should be persistent and not give up after their first failed attempt. They should keep on trying.