Banana Bread Muffins

Our initial conversation with Dr. Mandy about wanting to make muffins went a little something like this:

Sarah: "So, we were thinking it would be fun to bake in the flat"
Dr. Mandy: "Oh wonderful! What were you thinking of making?"
Sarah: "Well, my mom has this great recipe for bran muffins that she would always make for us at home, and I think she's going to email it to me, so I'd certainly like to try to make those."
Dr. Mandy: "Ah, I see. Well, Hungarians don't really have 'muffins' per se. I'm sure you've noticed that most of the bakeries sell pastry-type things."
Stacey: "We've noticed."
Sarah (always the optimistic one): "Well, I'm sure we'll be able to find a muffin pan, right?"
Dr. Mandy: "Mmm. Maybe, but it might take some looking."
Sarah: "Great!"
Stacey: "This is so ridiculously hopeless. Why are you so set on making muffins?"
Sarah: "Why not?"
Stacey: "Have you found Baking soda yet?"
Sarah: "Well, no. But I'm sure we'll find some."

Stacey: "Have you seen anything that remotely resembles a muffin tin?"
Sarah: "No, but I'm sure we'll find some"
And so on and so forth....

Here I am though, making banana bread muffins on a Saturday afternoon. I even took a picture for proof. Finding the muffin pan and muffin tins was a bit challenging because they don't bake the same way we do at home, but we did eventually find some. The muffins themselves though would not have been possible if Mom and Dad hadn't mailed a box of baking soda and vanilla extract in my care package. I've seen similar items in the store, but when it comes to baking, it's much more important that the ingredients are correct and precise.

The whole signifiance of the story is that even though just about everything here seems as difficult as hiking Everest, they are not altogether impossible. It's just a matter of putting things in perspective and moving foward one step at a time. Yesterday it was ordering my beef stew in Hungarian (and pronouncing it correctly- Bonus!), today it's making muffins that taste like home. The things I'm learning in my semester abroad!

Nightlife and Gödöllő

Despite the fact that public transportation closes down by 11:30 p.m. (Nightbuses, however, run till about 4 a.m.) there is a magnificent nightlife in Budapest. From hip and funky bistros, to Irish pubs and dance clubs, it makes Westminster look like a fossilized librarian in a permanent coma. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just a bit more exciting here on the East side after 8 o'clock.

I haven't really mentioned my late-night excursions, but for those that are wondering (or tsk-tsk'ing) the legal age to drink here is 18. I'm 19 going on 37, so there's no problem there. Over the weeks I've tried a few of the local beers, and they're quite good. However on one occasion I made the mistake of ordering Pilsner Urguell, a light Czech brew. To make a short story shorter, I now have a coaster on my desk for that particular beer with "WORST BEER EVER" scrawled on the back. I am most enamored with the quality of the "two-buck chuck" because here a bottle costs about $1.25 and it actually tastes like wine -not grape flavored moonshine. Fascinating! Neither Sarah, nor I, are interested in keeping a "stocked" flat like some other students undoubtedly maintain, but we do enjoy trying the cheapest wine we can find at our family dinners.

Today was another fun excursion out of the city, this time to the town of Gödöllő. It is the home of the Royal Palace; originally built in the 18th century, and now recently renovated to display the luxury and splendor of its Austro-Hungarian aristocratic occupants. The Hungarians were very fond of one in particular, Empress Elisabeth ("Sissi"), who enjoyed the estate tremendously and was warmly welcomed by the town residents. After her death, the palace fell into decay and was eventually confiscated by the Soviets. Recently given a "face-lift" of sorts, the palace is now a museum portraying its 19th century glory.

Pictured left is the "Gödöllő" Herend porcelain; it was made just for the Palace. Frankly, if it wasn't so darned expensive I'd probably buy an entire set myself, set it up on a table as such, and look at it all day long. I doubt the Empress sat around and admired her teapot, but I certainly would!

The estate itself is substantial; I'm sure it stretched a lot farther than the motorway that now borders it. We walked around the grounds after touring the museum and it was rather fun to imagine the ladies strolling along in their poofy dresses holding dainty umbrellas, and the men riding after the hounds on a Royal Hunt. I also thought to myself how challenging it must have been to be an aristocrat in this time. Sure, they lived lavishly, but in conflict, where did their true loyalties lie- in Austria, or Hungary?

Night at the Opera House

Four sets of heels clicked along the sidewalk as we made our way to the State Opera House. Naturally we had embraced the opportunity to dress up, but we had to look classy! We were attending a Hungarian Opera, of course.

The building was stunning, to say the least. I'm quite sure my mouth was agape like every other stupid-looking tourist in the theater as my eyes scanned the intricate detail and artwork that covered the walls from floor to ceiling. Mind you, I try not to act like a tourist anymore, but I just had to pull out the camera and snap a few shots.

The evening program included two performances; the first a ballet "The Wooden Prince"; the second a folk-music opera, "Spinnery". I enjoyed both, however I found the ballet to be a bit more beautiful and inspiring. The lifts that the dancers performed were truly impressive-- I am 100% sure that everything is a billion times harder than it looks on stage! The Opera, on the other hand, was rather confusing until I read the synopsis and learned that the plot wasn't intended to make a lot of sense anyways- it was simply framework for the music.

This was definitely one of those experiences that must be tucked away in memory as a "Highlight of Budapest." The culture around the Fine Arts in Budapest is one of the most important aspects (I think) of the city. The art, the music, the architecture- all I can do is soak it in and hope I'll be able to walk away with a greater understanding (and a better appreciation too) for what it all means.

On a side note, I met a nice couple from New York today on the metro. They were in Budapest for a few days, and had already enjoyed the reader's digest version of the city on a 2 hour tour bus ride. It really made me think for a minute how much you miss when you zoom around on a bus, watching some of the most fascinating pieces of architecture and history go right by.

They also told me that they had had no English-speaking issues whatsoever, and it seemed like everyone spoke it. I really had to laugh at that one, and told them they probably hadn't ventured far enough from the tourist areas. Most of my day-to-day interactions outside the College are with people who speak minimal, if any, English. Regardless though, it was fun to chat. They asked about Szentendre, which I highly recommended, as I had been there only a few days before, and wished me luck on my studies before heading to a nearby museum. I find it funny how nowadays hearing American English is a good-enough reason to start a conversation with complete strangers; back home I would never have done such a thing. Then again, random conversations and idle chit-chat are one those things that you don't notice until it's not there. Kind of like oxygen, ya know?

Yep, all in a day of life in Budapest.

A Day in Szentendre

It could not have been a more perfect day for wandering the cobblestone streets of the Serbian artists' colony known as Szentendre. For $1.50 oda-vissa (round-trip fare) we traveled 45 minutes into the suburbs of Buda via the HÉV commuter rail line. It was unbelievably easy; soon enough we were enjoying the fresh air and quickly falling in love with this adorable little town.

Located right on the water, Szentendre is a thriving artist colony and tourist trap. However, just a few steps off the beaten path are charming galleries and pastry shops, so it's worth the effort to tuck away the map and get lost for a little bit. Before we did that though, we made sure to find the Margit Kovács Museum- it was part of our Hungarian Culture Class assignment. I have no doubt in my mind that this was the highlight of the day; Margit Kovács is regarded by Hungarians as a "poet of ceramics" and the collection on display was just incredible.

After visiting the National Gallery and Museum of Fine Arts, I loved the change in material. Margit Kovács is known for her moving sculptures of women, and the folk-art influenced pieces depicting village life- all of which I thouroghly enjoyed. In fact, I managed to find a picture of one of the pieces, titled "The Fates" which is shown below. I really wasn't expecting too much from the museum, but I am so glad I went; it was a beautiful and inspiring experience.

We wandered around for a bit more and admired the Serbian Orthodox Church that seemed to punctuate the hub of the town. All of a sudden it was 4 o'clock and time to head back into Budapest. We all agreed that the museum was very much worth the 700 forint entrance fee, and that we shall return to see and experience the open-air museum that is located about 10 minutes away.

All in all, a great day in a great town with great friends. Can't get much better than that!

Day-to-Day Differences

Somehow over the course of this week, I managed to acquire a rather nasty cold, and thus the last few days have been just miserable. Sitting in class, wishing I could plug my nose and put my sore throat and headache in my backpack for the duration of the lecture, is not what I would consider "A good time in Budapest." But I'm still alive and kicking, and so for that I am thankful. Knowing very well that my miniature pharmacy is sitting happily at home makes me feel that much better.

Sarcasm aside, I've opted to stay in the flat for the last day or two so I don't really have any interesting stories. However, I have had some time to put together a little visual story of some differences that I've noticed between life in the States and life in Budapest...

For one, the currency. At this time, 180 HUF= $1 USD. Wouldn't it be odd if Americans only paid for things with pennies? A loaf of bread would be 125 pennies, instead of $1.25; a new car would be 2,000,000 pennies instead of $20,000. That's pretty much how it works here in Hungary.

I tried to capture as best I could the dramatic difference in size of the same product. It seems that just about all of the food-product containers are bigger in the States. Maybe it is a city thing, maybe it is a European thing, maybe it's a little bit of both, but I know for sure that I've done more runs in the last four weeks to the grocery store than I have in the last year of my life!

This falls under the "stupid American" story category. On our first night in the flat we had no food to eat, so we went to this little Italian place on the corner. I ordered their "Margherita" pizza, thinking I was getting a tasty treat with fresh basil and tomatoes. Let's just say I was a wee-bit disappointed when the pizza that I was served was just plain and simple cheese. I honestly thought they had messed up my order! My misconception was finally brought to light when I was kindly informed that the Hungarian Margherita was, indeed, plain and simple cheese. So, here you have it: Hungarian Margherita vs. American Margherita pizza.

For this picture, I could not find American comparison. You just don't see a big brown dogs everyday on the New York Metro! I think it's really neat how dog-friendly the city is, although no sidewalk is sacred when they choose to leave behind a landmine (I've learned to walk with one eye watching the ground, and the other where I'm going).

I'm going to cross my fingers that I feel better tomorrow than I did today. It's really not fun to be out and about and feeling "debajo de clima" but alas, that is life, y a veces no es facil! (sometimes it's not easy)

My Morning at the Office of Immigration

Thanks to a recently passed law, all residents of Hungary must apply in-person and be approved by the Office of Immigration. It sounds easy right? Just like trying to get your license renewed at the local MVA on a Saturday morning, or Christmas shopping at the mall the day after Thanksgiving, or standing in for Siegfried and Roy in their next show.

It was probably the most ridiculous experience I've enjoyed in Budapest thus far. The office, which I learned later was at a temporary location, was conveniently located 40 minutes outside of Budapest in the middle of the suburbs, and only accessible by bus. Thank goodness our coordinator Margot was taking us, otherwise we would have been S.O.L. Once we arrived, we quickly learned that no one spoke English. That's like going to the Office of Immigration in San Antonio, and none of the employees speak any Spanish. It was really quite a mess, and Margot had to translate for everyone.

The beauty of bureaucracy is that there can never be enough forms and papers to be filled out. In this particular instance, there were a lot of papers that we were "supposed" to have, but no one knew about until we got there. Poor Margot was so stressed out and frustrated by the end- of the 26 students that went, only 5 were approved. Sarah and I got lucky because our landlord actually signed the contract and it was solid- but we had quite an ordeal ourselves.

Again, there was no warning that we would need a passport-quality photo for this pleasant procedure, so naturally neither I, nor Sarah, brought one. We were promptly informed that we would need one, and we should use the photo booth in the lobby. "Okay" I say to myself, "I can handle that" and we walk over to the machine. The charge is 700 forints for 4 pictures, which is reasonable. It only became unreasonable once we realized that the bill-slot was broken. Now we needed 1400 forints in coins- and that's a lot of coins. So we all empty our pockets and come up with about 500fts, which isn't even enough for one person, but at least it's something. As we're staring at the handful of coins, wondering how we're going to scrounge up 1100 more, a man opens up the Coffee Vending machine to do maintenance. Seizing the opportunity, one of the students trades the remaining cash for coins out of this machine. After fifteen minutes of coin-hunting, we were finally set.

It get's better though! As Sarah is putting in the coins, one slips from her hand onto the floor. She bends to grab it, and at that very moment, the flash goes off. She gets herself into place for the second flash, but we're wondering how it's going to turn out. I'm rather peeved with the whole process by this point, and take my turn in the booth. Putting in the coins, I sit back and wait. And wait. And wait. Why is there no flash? Finally the camera goes off, but the look on my face rivals that of a convict on America's Most Wanted.

Our pictures finally come out, and we both had to laugh because they're just that ridiculous. Two of Sarah's are of the photo booth, but the second two came out fine. The first two of my photos are just black because the camera never went off, and the second two look like mug shots taken from the county correctional facility. At least we got approved and don't have to go back a second (or possibly third) time. My friend from Zimbabwe said she had to go back 6 times before they finally gave her the okay.

I think what's really mind-boggling is that people all over the world try and navigate this red-tape without a coordiantor, a translator, or a guide, in the hopes that they, too, may live in that country. They are much, much braver than I.

Traditional Hungarian Gulyásleves

One of the biggest American misconceptions of Hungarian culture is the authentic "Goulash" dish. We imagine a thick, hearty stew that sticks to our insides like meat-flavored plaster. Tasty, I'm sure, but nothing like the Hungarian dish that it is based off of.

In the native tounge it is referred to as "gulyás" and comes from the word for a cattle stockman or herdsman. Traditonally prepared as a soup, it consists largely of meat and potatoes, flavored generously with spicy paprika. Oftentimes the dinner is served with dumplings, polenta, or a hearty bread. You can only imagine how deprived I felt for having realized that I've been living in Budapest for three weeks now and have yet to enjoy traditional gulyás! So, last night Sarah and I walked about a block to a little restaurant that served traditional Hungarian cuisine and finally tried this infamous dish.

It was so good.

I'm hooked for sure, and now I'm going to make a point of A) finding more and B) figuring out how to make it myself before I leave; two noble goals that will certainly keep me occupied for most of the semester.

On an entirely different note, my care package from home arrived yesterday and I do believe the words of my coordinator were "Wow, you look so happy because of that box." She was right too- it was probably the happiest moment since I got here. To be able to read the food label on the back of my American-sized container of baking powder was pure joy. Thanks Mom and Dad!!

Weekend at Lake Balaton

First and foremost, I am sure that the good weather we enjoyed all weekend was because both Sarah and I brought along our heavy winter coats. It is with my great pleasure to report that we never once had to use them! It was in the mid-70's and sunny the whole time; warm enough to wear tee shirts and sandals, but too chilly for anyone sound of mind to want to jump into the Balaton.

In case you are not familiar, Lake Balaton is in the south-western region of Hungary, and notably the largest standing body of water in Central Europe. Similar to how families flock to Myrtle Beach, or Bethany, or Ocean City for summer vacation, Lake Balaton is the place to be for Europeans on holiday in the summertime. Visitors enjoy swimming, sailing, fishing, strolling, biking, staring at American tourists, and all sorts of watersports.

Our itinerary was full and exciting; we were on a "study-trip" and instructed to observe the art, architecture, and culture of the sights we saw because a presentation is due after our second trip to Prague and Vienna. Our first stop was an excavation site of an ancient Roman village located West of the Danube. A good bit of imagination was needed, but fascinating nonetheless. We continued on the fishing village of Tihany and visited the Abby (pictured right) which dates back to the 11th century. Notice the light beams coming in through the windows...

Our evening included a very nice three-course meal at a local etterem (restaurant) paired with a wine tasting of the local White Varieties. Yum! The next morning we found ourselves navigating windy country roads (not easy in a tour bus) and enjoyed the sight of what are known as the "Witness Hills" because they have seen so much; most are the remnants of old volcanoes, such as the one pictured below.

Once in the quaint town of Tapolca, we enjoyed the most unusual and interesting experience of boating along the waters of an underground cave. It was like a ride at Disney World, but better. Not only were the boats not attached to any sort of guidelines or bumpers, but we had to paddle (or push) it along ourselves! In some places, the cave was so low and narrow that we'd have to crunch down to avoid hitting our heads; I referred to the final passageway as the "Birth Canal" if that helps any for the mental picture.

Our final destination of the day was the resort town of Keszthely. The hotel was lovely- right on the waterfront with a private island to boot. Before dinner, we took a pleasureboat cruise around the Balaton; the rest of the night was free for exploring. Thinking there might be something fun in town, we wandered about for more than an hour, but to no avail. It was the off-season, and most of the city had gone into hibernation. Ironically, the best party was in the lobby of our hotel. Go figure.

The next morning we found ourselves strapping on slippers over our shoes and padding along the 250 year old wooden floors of the Festetics Palace- an 18th century French chateau that was occupied by the nobility of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Everything about it was beautiful- the walls, the molding, the paintings, the gardens. The library was breath-taking, housing over 90,000 volumes and one of the very few collections that safely survived World War II. I love to imagine what life was like within these walls.

My favorite part of the trip was our stop at the headquarters the porcelain manufacturer Herend. We took a tour of the "mini manufactory" where we got to see the step-by-step process of fine procelain creation. It was incredible to see- the detail, the labor, the skill involved. They had stations set up with employees demonstrating the different steps or techniques involved- from making the porcelain material, to painting the products (all by hand) using stencil, or done freely. The museum shop was equally amazing in how many beautiful porcelain products were for sale and on display, however the price tag discouraged me from making any purchases. A simple tea cup, for instance, costs about $100. Pretty steep, but good bargains can be found around Budapest so I'm going to keep my eyes open.

Harder than it looks!

After a pleasant conversation with my Mom, I mentioned that my new friend from Iran requested a classic "American" dinner for our family get-togethers. She quickly offered to email her very, very tasty White Chicken Chili recipe and suggested I that make cornbread on the side. I say, "Great! I'll check my email tomorrow" really having no idea what interesting mess I was about to get myself into. In fact, let's play a game; it's called, Can-You-Guess-What's-Inside-This-Package......and the two packs in English don't count!

Okay, so maybe you can. But now take these handful of packs and put them in an aisle section with over 50 others. Not an easy task! And so you can only imagine how proud of myself I was when I found the Cilantro, Cumin, Black Pepper, Chicken bouillon, and baking powder. I am determined to make Mom's Chicken Chili, cornbread, southern-style green beans, and mashed potatos to boot.

The only other really interesting thing that happened today was the delay in our daily commute. We waited for some time-- maybe 5 or 10 minutes for the bus, but no luck. "Where could the busses be?" we asked ourselves. Instead of waiting, we took the metro and got to class with a few minutes to spare. It just so happens (as we find out later) that one of the buses that runs the route caught on fire this morning-- and a few of our classmates were on it! Hence the delay. No worries though, everyone was fine.

This whole living in Budapest can be rather interesting sometimes...

Sunday at the Flea Market

I do believe that the weather here is more fickle than the mind of a 13 year old girl. On one side of the river, it's sunny. On the other side of the river, it's cold and cloudy. The locals blame it on global warming, but who's to say for sure?

Yesterday I had the pleasure of enjoying another wonderful cultural experience- the Budapest International Wine & Champagne Festival. We arrived in the early afternoon for the Harvest Parade, and watched as the narrow streets literally filled with about 800 people adorned in colorful costumes and traditional attire. Following the masses, we found ourselves once again within the walls of the Budapest Palace. We armed ourselves with the mandatory tasting glass, pouch, and two tasting tickets, and proceeded to wander aimlessly amidst the 100+ vendors. It was rather intimidating, to say the least. Where do we start? What do we try? We were about as useful as a blind gardner trimming a topiary.

While exploring a bit, we found an eatery booth that was serving meat stews being cooked in these giant couldrons. It smelled good, but we opted to go back to the bakery that I'd found last week for a light pastry lunch. Once we returned to the festival, we decided to utilize the free pass to the Hungarian National Gallery that our admission had included. We were promptly scolded for not having any clue what we were supposed to do, and probably for not speaking any Hungarian either. Regardless of the fact that we're not the first, nor the last group of confused foreigners to try and find our way in Budapest, I've realized that a sense of humor is imperative in dealing with this huge language barrier.

The art was very interesting, and the rest of the night was full of music, wine and champange. I tried a local Merlot, a classic Tokaji, and two champagne varieties of Törley. The evening was quite pleasant, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

This morning I decided to go and check out the local PESCA Flea Market. Located in the heart of City Park, it remains relatively undiscovered by tourists. It's possible to sift through the mess and find some great bargains, although haggling is almost always expected. On my walk through the park, I finally got a good view of the Vajdahunyad Castle. It was originally built in 1896 for the millenial celebration to show the diversity of architecture in Budapest, but was so popular that a permanent structure was designed to replace it. I just love the moat too- it really completes the romantic motif of the area. I'm definitely going to come back here if the sun ever decides to make a cameo appearance!

Although I had to pay a very small entrance fee to the market, seeing all of the odds and ends that people were selling was priceless. There was everything from clothes and shoes, to obsolete (and modern) electronics, to glassware, silver, and linens. It was a lot to take in! More importantly though, it was neat to be in a market that has not been infiltrated by tourists. Sure, people might be selling the shoes they wore to get to the market, but there was an obvious absence of the cheesy tourist souvenirs. I was so happy when I made my first purchase and haggled the price down 100 forints. I can't really divulge what I bought because there is a possibility that it might be a gift when I come home, but it made me very excited nonetheless.

Viszontlátásra!

A Trip to Centrál Kávéház

Like most of the McDaniel students in Budapest, I do not have classes on Friday. The three-day weekend is rather strange though because back home in Westminster, the scheduling perk of "Free Fridays" is practically unheard of. I think it is partly due to the students' inclination to travel on the weekends, as well as the much more laid-back style of work hours in Europe. Plus, most of the teachers do double-duty: teaching classes in English at McDaniel, and classes in Hungarian at a nearby university.

My Free Friday began with a trip across the street to something like "Bed, Bath and Beyond" and I was actually rather impressed with its wide selection of things and stuff despite the petite size of the store. I needed a little lightbulb for my desk lamp, and successfully found one for 250 forints ($1.38). I then walked back across the street to the local mini-mart Spar and bought a week's worth of bread for 200 forint ($1.10). Food here is rather cheap, although beverages are not.

I've been very diligent in my bookeeping for the past two weeks, and plan to keep track of my spending throughout the semester. Since we have yet to settle into a "routine" I'm still in the process of determining the average cost of living. The initial fees for the school, books, cell phone, and cleaning supplies has by far been the most expensive, about $175. But they are initial, and we had been warned that there would be a few of them. Sharing the cost of groceries, I've spent roughly $80 in establishing our pantry- salt, sugar, flour, canned veggies, pasta, potatoes, garlic, ceareal, etc. However, a trip to the mini-mart for Milk, bananas, rolls, a tomato and stick butter only puts me back about $6. Dining out can be in inexpensive alternative as well, but going out to parties and clubs frequently is a costly hobby.

Right, moving on then! After my errands, we decided to go and check out Centrál Kávéház, which was rumored to be a very nice place and recommended to me by my Hungarian teacher. It was first built in 1887, nestled in the heart of the bustling city center. Used by journalists, reporters, and writers, the coffeehouse was rather lively and popular. Creativity and innovation simply thrived here. Surprisingly enough, the facility survived both World Wars, and in 2000 was restored as a replica of the original Viennese coffeehouse that it once was. The interior is beautiful and elegant, and we all agreed that the ambiance is just fantastic. I would highly recommend the experience to anyone visiting Budapest.

Everyone ordered coffee and lite fare, all of which was quite tasty. I had a cappucino and Central Coffee Cake, which was delicious. We enjoyed ourselves for quite some time, and commented that it was very nice not feeling "rushed" like we so often feel at home when we want to linger after a meal. Here, the service system is quite different. Waiters may take care of a certain area, but there is nowhere near the degree of "attentiveness" that we enjoy in the States. What's more, oftentimes an entirely different person will bring the tab and handle the money; it's customary to tip 10%, and must be given directly to the waiter. Having been a waitress myself, I find this both strange and interesting. There are so many cultural differences here, I feel like I've only figured out the tip of iceburg.

Until next...

A Family Affair

For the past three days, it has been cold, grey, and rainy- not the type of weather that is conducive to sightseeing and walking around the city! So, rather than wallow miserably in this abnormal spell of chilly gloominess, our group of friends decided to have a family dinner.

Sarah and I had been invited over the night before to dine at Pannonia 5, where three of our friends live, and in turn we invited them to join us at 23 Szent Istvan. We then recieved a call from our good friend Corey, who was out with his new friend David (an International student from Iran) asking us what we were doing this evening; we invited them over for dinner too! I ran through a mental list of dinners that we were capable of making with the food in our flat, and decided on pasta (6-7lbs) with sauce, paprika and sausage topping, freshly made bruschetta, and some cookies for dessert. Feeding seven was a little intimidating, but I did manage to pull it off and still make it edible. Bon Appetit!

It was so much fun to have dinner all together; even though we flew in to Budapest as acquaintances and friends, we will certainly fly back as family.

And of course, with all families, it is imperative that a family photo is taken....

First Day of School and River Cruise

The McDaniel College Budapest campus comprises of one building, as pictured. It was first constructed in 1896, and currently houses the Study Abroad program for students like me from the Westminster Campus; a 4-year program for students in Central Europe who do their first two years in Budapest, and then finish the final two in Westminster; an international pre-Med program; and an intensive Math Study program for students from colleges across the States. All said and done, there are about 150-200 students total.

The school began as a synogogue for the Jewish population, but after WW II there weren't too many Jews left in the city to attend. It was then confiscated by the Soviet Communists who made it a "building for the people" and used it for Special-Ed teachers. When the Communists were finally booted out in the 1980's, the building was left alone for about three years or so until McDaniel College decided to move in. The first study-abroad program in 1994 had a whopping three students, the brave pioneers of the wonderful program I am enjoying today. It wasn't until recently, though, that students were allowed to live independently in flats across the city. Now that we've spruced up our own flat, I'll try and post pictures of it soon.

My first class went well- I believe there are only four of us in it- but the material is interesting, and the teacher isn't crazy. Sarah and I were hoping to pack sandwhiches, but much to our dismay, ants had taken residence in our bread loaf. We added ziplock bags, and chip clips to our shopping list, and compromised with Cheddar and Pepperoni Matzo sandwhiches instead.

President Coley led us in our formal Convocation ceremony, and afterwards the school enjoyed a reception on a river boat cruise up and down the Danube River. It was a beautiful night, and the sight of Budapest on the water was wonderful. Over the course of the evening I became aquainted with many new students, some of whom I hope to become friends with over the course of the semester. The math students are from everywhere- Houston, Upstate New York, Southern California, Colorado, Michigan, Oregon, Isreal, Wisconsin....you get the idea. And they're all brilliant too. Pictured below is one of the many Turkish Spa Resorts.

Castle District

My morning began as the bells rang for the 10:00 Mass at the Matthias Church. I do not consider myself religious by any means, however I felt that attending a service would add another layer to my Budapest acculturation. Approximately 70% of the Hungarian population is Catholic, 20% have a protestant affiliation with the Hungarian Reformed Church and 5% comprise the small Lutheran following.

The service I attended was about an hour and a half long and in Latin and Hungarian. Even though I didn't understand much, I was in awe of the sheer splendor of the building. It is one of the very few churches in Europe that is not ornamented with gold leaf; rather, every inch of the interior is painted. The look is very gothic, but in no way simple.

Afterwards, we walked around the castle district. I found a wonderful little bakery on a backstreet that smelled so delicious I just had to walk in and try something! I can't recall the name of what I got, but it was oh-so-good and looked like this... mmm! There was some sort of tomato on the inside too- very tasty.



After returning to the main sqaure, we decided to go our seperate ways. I scoped out a Turkish Bath that I would like to try sometime, and then headed back to the flat to meet with Dr. Mandy. We both agree that our situation is much, much better than before, and any issues or problems that remain will be addressed within the next few days. Despite our first day or two that left both of us feeling very blue about the situation, Dr. Mandy has been wonderful in taking care of us. She literally came over to our flat today with flowers for each of us and asked, "What can I do to make things better?"


I think things will get better, especially since school starts tomorrow. Quite frankly, I don't think there's any way for it not to get better because we pretty much started at Ground Zero of this experience.

Kerek egy negyed kiló kolbász!

This morning was our first shopping excursion in Central Market. The prices are very reasonable, so for a total of something like 1,000 forints ($6) we brought home a bundle of bananas, green grapes, nectarines, sandwhich salami, sausage, and sweet paprika, as well as a very tasty chocolate croissant for a snack while shopping. I contemplated getting a string of garlic and paprika too, but I'm not quite sure how they prepare the hot chilies.

We then found ourselves walking down the Vaci Utca (Vah-tsee Oot-sah) which was ever so beautiful in the sense that all things Hungarian had been concentrated into an alley of tourist-oriented shops. The crystal is beautiful, as well as the elaborate lacework on the napkins, tablecloths, and placemats.

For lunch, we ordered the infamous 22" pizza from Don Pepe's. It feeds between 4-6 people, and must have magnetic powers because everyone stared at us (even more so than before) as we were walking back to the flat to eat it. Here, a plain pizza is called a "Margherita" (culture difference #527) and the XXL size that we ordered only costs 3,100 forints ($17); it was really tasty!

After the sun had gone down, we made our way to Hero's Square, which is probably one of my favorite monuments in the city. It was built to commemorate the millenium celebration of Budapest, and honors the leaders of the Magyar tribes who were the founding fathers of the country. I love how it looks at night, the lighting is just fantastic. Because of the throngs of people wandering about, I thought this photo below would do it better justice.

This next picture was from the tour on Thursday- I was very moved by this building because it is a memorial to those who lost their lives in the destruction of the uprisings. The black spots on the walls are bullet holes and scars from the gunfire between the Soviets and the Hungarians in the 1956 uprising. Nearly all of the city looked like this building during those tumultous times.

This final picture was taken from the Palace and overlooks the Danube. Parliment is the beautiful building on the right, and there is no other way to describe its architecture as simply spectacular. Whomever designed our Capitol Hill really should have checked out Budapest first for some ideas! Ironically though, the building was completed in 1902, but did not house its first democratically elected goverment until 1989. Hungarians really had to fight tooth and nail to get the country back into their own hands.