Crossing Bridges

There's a proverb that became all too relevant to me in this bittersweet weekend: "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

I had the privilege of crossing bridges over canals in Amsterdam with two of my closest friends this weekend. But this joy was interrupted when we had to cross a different kind of bridge: making decisions in light of tragic events that were far too close for comfort.

Amsterdam: Bridges Adorned with Bicycles


I happened to have the same Thursday night flight as two others in my program and so we kept each other entertained on the way to and while waiting in the Budapest airport. It was nice to have the company and someone to hold my bag while I got my shoes off to go through security - even though I forgot to take off my jewelry.

My first friend landed in Amsterdam shortly after me and we met at the end of the hike it took to get to the arrivals hall (that airport is HUGE). We took a bus to the hotel, got off at the wrong stop and, once we became too skeptical of the directions I got from Google Maps, stopped in a gym to ask the reception for directions. It was another 20 minutes walking but (as we constantly reminded ourselves) we were in Amsterdam - where canals make navigation easier and excessive bicyclists make crossing streets scarier.

Street-sized hallway in the Amsterdam airport

Amsterdam sign by the Van Gogh museum - nearly empty in the rain

Street and bridge completely covered by bicycles. They even had their own parking lots!

More bicycles in front of the palace by the Red Light district

We finally found and checked into our hotel - a Best Western half an hour out of the city - before venturing back out for dinner. We decided to stay in the area so we didn't have to attempt navigating night buses. We ended up at a restaurant down the road where only one waiter seemed to speak English and the menu was only in Turkish and Dutch, but the food was good and we got two mugs each of Turkish tea on the house.

The next day we met our other friend at the train station and found a café for breakfast in the city center. It was delicious and they had two cats! That wandered freely and received attention from whomever they pleased. We intended to go from there to the Anne Frank House but thought the line was too long (this will come back later) so we went to the Van Gogh museum instead and followed that with a tour of the Heineken Factory.

Heineken Factory

Heineken Factory

Cat in the cafê

Saturday was emotionally sobering. We woke to the full news of the attacks and to friends, family, and school officials confirming our locations and well-being. My friends had to confirm they had safe travel back to their cities and one of them had to completely change her plans to avoid flying in to Paris. It was stressful, it was frustrating, and it was sad.

For comfort we returned to the café with the cats for breakfast. We went to the Anne Frank House - only this time the line was three times as long and we waited (freezing) for two hours. But it was incredibly worth it.

We saw the bookcase that hid the doorway to the secret apartment where she and seven others lived in hiding. I learned things I didn't know about the holocaust, about Anne Frank, and about her diary itself. For example, she rewrote most of it with the hope and intention of it being published after the war.

Canal by the Anne Frank House

Once we let it all sink in and got our thoughts together again, we walked to the Red Light district to see what all the hype is about. It's exactly what you'd expect from the Red Light district.

Christmas decorations in the Red Light district

The rest of the night was spent back at the hotel pre-packing and watching Netflix before calling it an early night - one of my friends had to leave shortly after four in the morning because of adjusting her flights. It was fun as always to see them, especially in a pretty European city, but it did not go as planned.

Bridges of Nightmares 


This weekend was the closest I've gotten to being ready to go home. In the wake of tragedy I missed the comfort of home, of my native tongue, of distance, and of being able to go in to the next room to hug my friends and family.

I'm mad.

I'm mad that we had to cross this bridge. I'm mad that one of my friends had to deal with the stress of finding the safest way back to her study abroad city in Western France. I'm mad that we cancelled our trip to Paris next weekend out of safety - out of fear.

I'm mad that nearly every conversation I've heard in English since has been related to the attacks; that this is what preoccupies minds. I'm mad that it is a conversation that has to be had. Most of all, I'm mad that we live in a world where such a tragedy, such a violation, may occur at all.

I'm also lucky.

I'm lucky that we happened to schedule our Paris trip for the following weekend. I'm lucky that my biggest loss in all this is $80 and a few extra days with my friends who I will see again in a couple months regardless.

I'm lucky to attend a school that was proactive and sure to check on the locations and well-being of all students currently abroad and to update students and families frequently. I'm lucky to live in an age where technology makes that so easy; even Facebook activated a safety feature that allowed people to check in and check for others. I'm lucky not to have lost anyone in the attacks.

But many people were not as lucky. My thoughts and prayers are with those whose lives were lost as well as with those who remain but will never forget. I hope that they can recover and move on.

In the words of Anne Frank: “... in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”

 

The Art of Getting Lost and Being Alone

A Plan-less Itinerary

This weekend I decided to take a solo trip to Vienna, Austria. This was the first I’ve travelled during the semester outside of trips coordinated by CIEE and my first trip completely alone.

I bought bus tickets at 2 a.m. two days before I was set to leave and accommodations later that same day.

I chose to book an AirBNB based on several of my friends’ positive experiences with it. I did my research to find a private room in an apartment with a reputable host not far from the inner city. I communicated with my host before making my reservation, as I recommend to all considering AirBNB.

There was nothing on my to-do list for this trip. Even when I was waking up in Vienna, I didn’t have a plan. It was unlike anything I’d done before, and it was one of the best experiences I have ever had.

One of the first places I found - a park by the Habsburg Palace

Being Lost and Alone (and Incredibly Happy)

The best part of traveling solo? There were no expectations. I put no pressure on myself. Instead of focusing on experiencing everything I could fit in, I focused on taking my time and relaxing, because that’s what I wanted out of the trip.

B Vocal - a pop-comedy a cappella group, one of many a cappella groups performing Friday on balconies to start a month-long festival. I heard them sing "The Circle of Life" in German and a 60-second version of "Les Misérables."

A street made for window-shopping

The first day, I slept in as late as I could and only walked around for a few hours before going back to the apartment to Skype with friends from home and watch Netflix until I went to bed. It gave me a taste of the city, so I wanted to get an earlier start to explore on Saturday.

But you can’t always get what you want and I left the apartment shortly before 11 a.m. That morning I went on the hunt for a specific café, got very lost, and ended up at a different café. There I met an older couple from New Jersey who were in Europe for vacation and who thought I was Viennese until I started talking to them (so I must have been doing something right).

I actually don’t know any German at all and I even found myself missing the Hungarian language. Most times I heard English speakers in Vienna, they were searching (in vain) for signs in English so they could figure out where they were. I was no help, seeing as I also didn’t know where I was at the time.

Austrian Parliament - I missed this building completely the first time I passed it.

Once I ate, I walked around for hours, going wherever I thought looked pretty. I let myself get lost until I couldn’t anymore. After a while, I found that I’d turn a new or unfamiliar corner and suddenly know exactly where I was and another piece of the puzzle fell into place.

I found the Sisi Museum and walked through the Imperial Apartments, home of Empress Elisabeth (aka “Sisi”) and Franz Joseph I of the Habsburg Empire. The apartments shed light on the life and assassination of the empress. Pictures were restricted but I got a couple small souvenirs from the (moderately overpriced) gift shop.

Sisi Museum and Imperial Apartments

Habsburg Palace

The weather was uncharacteristically warm for November and I got outdoor seating at a busy café to enjoy apple strudel and mélange (coffee with milk typical for Vienna). For dinner I found an Italian restaurant on one of the many simple side streets (I simply can’t resist the possibility of a good Italian meal - and it was good!).

Mélange and apple strudel from Aida

I let myself get distracted on the way back to the apartment and followed the light and noise from a small shopping corridor. There I found Xocolat, a chocolate store where I spent way too much money on treats for family and myself. Okay - mostly myself.

My final day was wrapped up with sunshine and temps in the mid-60s (Fahrenheit). I went to a café around the corner from the too-busy café I originally had my sights set on. It had a limited and mostly elderly crowd but it felt homey and the waitress was one of the kindest I encountered in Vienna. I even ran into the couple from New Jersey there that I had met the previous morning!

Vienna may be a big city – the Imperial City –, but it’s in a small world, the perfect size to lose and find yourself again. Still, coming home, even to a temporary home, with familiar terrain and language (yes, even Hungarian is more comforting to me than German now) will never get old!

Back of Habsburg Palace on Sunday

Being Hungry in Hungary

One of the biggest changes I’ve experienced over the last two months in Budapest has been my eating habits. “Picky eater” is an understatement when describing my diet pre-college. You would likely be shocked if I told you how I limited myself, mostly out of stubbornness.

College helped me to expand my food repertoire some but I still had a long way to go. I didn’t have the push that I needed to really make a difference beyond an isolated meal here and there. That is, until now.

Perhaps it’s being in a foreign country, respecting the culture, or finally caving in to curiosity. Whatever it is, it’s working. Since leaving for my semester abroad I’ve eaten pork, salmon, soups, and more vegetables than ever before.

Salmon breakfast at Centrál Kávéház

The Hungarian diet is not easy for those who don’t eat meat, but it is livable. I had never eaten pork before I came here (and I still don’t plan to eat it more than necessary), but the few times I have had it here I’ve actually enjoyed it! Still, the vegetarians in my group always have alternative options and get by fairly easily.

I’ve had an amazing bagel with smoked salmon, goat cheese, and leafy greens at Café Alibi; fantastic pumpkin cream soup from Leves (which also happens to be the Hungarian word for soup, pronounced “leh-vesh”); and soups, pork, and homemade doughnuts (Hungarian: fánk) in Transylvania.

I have easily eaten more vegetables in the past month than over the last five years combined. Despite difficulties with the stove burners in the common kitchen, I enjoy cooking for myself on occasion and will add a handful of veggies to most of my meals. I’ve grown mildly attached to peppers – especially the white paprika (the vegetable version of the red spice)! Only to be expected in a country known for its production of paprika.

The university dorm is on a street lined with restaurants, among which are some of my favorites so far. Like most cities, I could easily eat out every day that I’m here and not repeat locations.

Some of my favorite simple to-go options include: Wokzilla (Asian food for sit-down or to-go), several gyro places, Ráday Fánkterápia (American donut shop), and Budapest Bagels (which is exactly what it sounds like). My favorite gelato option by far is Gelarto Rosa near St. Stephen’s Basilica (and yes, that is the correct spelling of Gelarto Rosa). What’s better than delicious gelato in the shape of a rose??

For sit-down places, one of my absolute favorites is Púder Bársínház and their chicken dish served with a wheel of goat cheese on top and white rice on the side. I eat there about once a week on average...

Chicken dish at Púder Bárszínház

I’ve also (finally) found a couple of decent Italian restaurants: TG Italiano and Pizza Eataliano are a couple of my reasonably priced favorites so far. I have yet to experience the renowned Comme Chez Soi or the Zeller Bistro, but I’ve heard from others in my group that they are both musts while we’re here.

Of course, there are plenty of traditional Hungarian dishes! Honestly, I’ve only had a few: stuffed cabbage and goulash in Transylvania; langos in Szentendre and in the Budapest Central Markethall; and csirke paprikas (chicken paprikash) from... well, most restaurants.

Langos from Budapest Central Markethall

Dessert is a whole other topic but my favorites restaurants for them so far include: Ruszwurm Cukrászda, Nándori Cukrászda, Café Vian (especially their cocoa crepe with apple cinnamon filling), and Centrál Kávéház. All are great places to satisfy a sweet tooth.

Desserts and hot chocolates at Ruszwurm Cukrászda

Apple pie from Café Vian

Cocoa crepe with apple cinnamon filling from Café Vian

Opera cake and a latte from Centrál Kávéház

Whatever the meal or time of day, there are a ton of food options all over the city. One thing’s for sure: you will not go hungry in Hungary.

Birthday in Budapest

I am the oldest of my friends and the only one to celebrate my birthday while abroad. And it couldn’t have been better! My 21st birthday was Friday, October 23, and I was fortunate to have two of my closest friends from home visit me this weekend to celebrate. Since we’re in Europe, they weren’t excluded from toasting with me in celebration and it was fun to introduce them to some good Hungarian wine!

October 23 also happens to be the 1956 Revolution Memorial Day in Hungary (as I mentioned in a previous post). Some museums were free for the day, though we didn’t go to any, while many other places were closed. Fortunately, many places were still open regardless.

My roommate, our friends, and I started at Central Café (one of my favorite dessert places) for breakfast before walking toward Parliament to see the memorial decorations.

Hungarian Parliament

The clouds cleared away and we walked to the Buda side of the city to see some areas we hadn’t yet viewed with blue skies, and then got desserts at the famous Ruszwurm Cukrászda to share.

Fisherman's Bastion

Ruszwurm desserts

The evening brought us to the area near the famous St. Stephen’s Basilica and we decided on an Italian restaurant a block away for dinner. I can finally say that I have found good Italian food in Hungary. From there we headed to the Sziget Eye (Europe’s largest travelling Ferris wheel) in Erzsébet Square. We got a spectacular view of the city from the top with the streets and monuments lit up in the night!

Sziget Eye

From Sziget Eye

To wrap up my 21st, we stopped at Gelarto Rosa for lovely gelato in the shape of a rose before heading back to my dorm for a night of Netflix, wine, and plenty of talking. And that was just Friday.

Gelarto Rosa

My second friend got to Budapest on Saturday, creating Part II to the birthday celebrations. Once we got her from the airport, we had a quick late-lunch/early-dinner at Púder Bárszínház (one of my favorite restaurants in the city) before going to the Hungarian State Opera House to see Swan Lake (one of my birthday presents from one of my best friends).

Hungarian State Opera House

Hungarian State Opera House

Our opera box

I had never seen an opera or ballet before and went into it knowing it was a four-hour ballet and prepared to be extremely confused. We ended up with amazing seats in a box on the first floor and, while we had a little difficulty following (and staying awake) for the first half, we adored the second half. We felt very classy for the night.

We followed the ballet with drinks and amazing desserts at Café Vian, not far from the opera house, where we stayed and talked until just after midnight. It was good that we were not far from my dorm because we ended up watching the last tram of the night drive away, so we walked the rest of the way back. Thankfully, it was a beautiful night to end a fantastic two-part birthday celebration with two incredible friends in an amazing city!

Let it Rain, Let it Rain, Let it Rain

Growing up in New England, I have certain expectations from nature during any given season. I’m used to being surrounded by trees and I’m used to those trees displaying brilliant fall foliage before becoming bare. I’m used to colder weather and the possibility of a mid-October dusting of snow.

Hungary, however, does not care about my expectations.

Living in a large city is the first limit to my interaction with nature. Instead of trees, buildings surround me in Pest. These building are examples of some of the most breathtaking architecture I’ve ever experienced firsthand and each with its own story. They breathe life in a different way, but they’re also constant, unchanging.

Pest

Simply walking across a bridge to Buda brings you to a whole different world and you can feel the change in the atmosphere. While still being littered with small shops and restaurants, it’s much more residential and home to most of Budapest’s natural aspects. When I need it, it’s a breath of fresh air!

Just yesterday I walked to Buda on a whim to climb Gellért Hill. The hill is an odd combination of paved pathways and hiker-made dirt paths. The paved paths create a sort of maze of possibilities to get to and from the top on either side. Admittedly, I got a little lost on the way down...

Buda (Gellért Hill on the left, Buda Castle on the right)

It’s nice to have some access to nature where you can get a little lost and forget that you’re in a massive city. Still, this is a far cry from New England autumn (though I may be slightly biased). Here the trees that are not still green are a pale yellow or they skipped right to a crunchy brown.

I was told before coming here that Hungary has more of a rainy season than a winter before January. This should have been my queue to prepare for such, but instead I thought I’d see for myself first. Now I’m not sure why I doubted that.

Rain on Széchenyi Chain Bridge

It’s been raining the majority of this past week, a mix of sprinkles and downpours when we least expect with a touch of wind. In the evenings I find it beautiful with the glistening city lights, but I’d probably enjoy it even more if I had a raincoat (or any coat with a hood for that matter). I just got an umbrella a couple weeks ago and it’s already been put to good use – when I remember to bring it with me, that is.



It’s not what I’m used to but it is more-or-less what I expected for this time of year. I was mentally prepared for different, even if I wasn’t exactly materially prepared to be in it... And I appreciate every drop of rain that falls off my nose when I don’t have my umbrella.

Not Dracula’s Transylvania

This weekend’s CIEE excursion was to the town of Kalotaszentkirály in the region of Transylvania, Romania for three nights. Several students know people who have participated in this program previously who would tell us that it was a very rural village and the trip was tough and exhausting but that we absolutely had to go. And they were right (even if we didn’t get to see Dracula’s castle)!

We got up before the sun on Thursday morning to be at the bus for 6:30 a.m. and prepared for a long journey. The stop at the Romanian border was pleasantly quick considering they had to individually register 26 of us and we were not complaining. From there it was another hour to the Transylvania border.

Once we reached our intended region, we stopped at the Körösfeketetó Fair, the biggest and most famous weeklong fair of the Transylvania region. It was essentially set up like a flea market with a mix of traditional items, authentic antiques, clothes and shoes, and odds and ends. A rain shower surprised us and we hurried us back to the bus for the final leg of the trip as everyone finished shopping.

The village of Kalotaszentkirály was far more modernized than we were led to believe, but it was definitely more rural and closer to the vision many of us had of “Eastern Europe” than what we have found in Hungary. The Transylvania region was a part of Hungary until the Treaty of Trianon in 1920 so, despite being in Romania, most people we encountered spoke Hungarian.

We split into groups to stay with host families in the village, most of whom spoke only Hungarian. It was the ultimate test of what we’ve learned in our language class so far. The host families were incredibly hospitable and we will all miss the home-cooked meals we were treated to throughout the weekend!

Friday we went to the salt mine in Turda (Salina Turda) where we tasted the salt from the ceiling, yelled into the echo chamber, and rode boats in the lake at the bottom. The mine was active from approximately 1075 until closing in 1932.



It reopened in 1992 as a tourist attraction with a sort of amusement park (which is far more profitable than mining salt by hand). The park includes the boat rides, a Ferris wheel, and games such as mini-golf and billiards.



From the mine we decided that the weather was nice enough to follow through with a hike. We went to a mountain that was more like a cliff and climbed our way up (and back down). It was like walking through seasons – we went from sweating and stripping off as many layers as appropriate at the start to freezing and bundling up in the rain at the top.

The views as we climbed were incredible and it felt amazing to reach the top, even though we were in a cloud and could not see a thing. It was a tough hike that took a little over three hours total but everyone agreed that it was worth the effort and exhaustion despite not having a view from the top!

St. Michael Roman Catholic Church

Reformed Presbyterian Church

Saturday we went to Kolozsvár (Cluj in Romanian) where we visited the Reformed Presbyterian Church that (Hungarian) King Matthias gifted to the city in thanks for their help and hospitality towards his mother when she gave birth to him there in 1443. It was a very plain looking church that contrasted greatly against the very ornate Saint Michael Roman Catholic Church we saw next.

After having a little free time in the city, we went back to the village to witness the invitation to the Harvest Ball hosted by the local youth (around 15 to 20 years old). This consisted of the youth in traditional clothing (boys on horses and girls in a carriage singing) and one boy dressed as a “clown” on a donkey yelling out the invitation. He said if you didn't show "may the legs of your bed break" so obviously we had to go.

Before the ball we went to a small market town where we watched a man make chess pieces. We proceeded to spend as much of our Romanian leu as we could to avoid having to exchange the currency again.

That evening we went to the ball, where we watched the youth perform and we danced the night away – first with folk dancing, then more of a club style. I got to dance the last folk dance with one of the locals (who, thankfully, spoke English so he could actually tell me what to do)! It involved a lot of spinning and it was a blast!

We were supposed to make another stop on our way back to Hungary but the rainy weather made it impossible so we headed straight back to Budapest. We were all sad to say goodbye to our host families (and their cooking) but we are all happy to be back in our own beds. It’s home sweet Hungary!

What We’re “Really” Here For

We were able to meet most of the professors within the program during orientation and one of them pointed out a fact that would come to hinder us in this new environment: Americans tend to be painfully visual learners. We like structure and PowerPoint presentations with clearly labeled lessons.

The European teaching style can be less direct and, while PowerPoints are still used, the professors may go off on more tangents than American students are used to. It all connects and makes sense in the end, but it can make note taking much more complicated – especially when you add in the challenge of deciphering an unfamiliar accent.

Another adjustment for me with classes is the concept of a double class, having two 90-minute sessions of the same class back-to-back so that it meets only once a week, usually to accommodate a professor’s schedule. This is nice because you only have to meet once a week, but it can also be exhausting because of the length and many of these are in the evening.

I strongly recommend stopping at a café on the way to one of these classes to properly caffeinate yourself in preparation. Oh, and bring a snack.

It can also be dangerously easy to procrastinate on assignments for classes when you have a whole week to do them. Trust me, it’s not worth it. A week of time can also mean a week’s worth of homework. Don’t get me wrong, the professors for classes in the program understand that most students are travelling and trying to take in the culture by being out and about rather than stuck inside studying all the time – but this is also still college and there is an expectation that your work will be completed.

Professors can also help with that cultural immersion. Many classes include trips, usually brief around the city in lieu of a lecture, but sometimes day trips as well on Fridays, when most people don’t have classes. These help us learn the city in ways we wouldn’t without a local guide and bring us to amazing places we may never have taken the initiative to see on our own.

When you’re living in a beautiful big city that you previously only hoped to visit, it’s easy to forget the reality of your “vacation” – you still have work to do. But it’s work that helps you understand the place you’re in, it’s history, people, and culture. In the end, isn’t that understanding, that immersion what you really came for?

Halls of Corvinus University of Budapest. Who wouldn't want to go to class here?!