Alright everyone, so last time I left off with preparing for my trip to Hungary. It has been a few weeks since then, and a nonstop whirlwind of travelling. To give some insight, right before April, Sid and I flew to Hungary and got back on the 1st of April. Then, we stayed in dear old Oestrich-Winkel until the 6th, and the 7th we flew (via RyanAir) to Montpellier in southern France. From there, we train-ed it to Marseille, then to Nice, then bussed it to Monaco, got stuck in Nice because of stupid strikes à la française and the following morning, travelled the ENTIRE French Riviera to Barcelona. We stayed in Barcelona until the 14th and then the 15th was spent in Girona, where RyanAir would take us back to Germany. After being back for one night in OeWi, we took a night train to Munich (this would now be the 17th), spent a day in Neuschwanstein (fairy tale castles built by Ludwig II) and then night-trained it to Berlin, where we spent another two days and trained it back to OeWi again. That was the 20th. I am writing this blog to you, sitting on a blanket in a fort made out of suitcases in an airport, waiting for the RyanAir flight to arrive in 7 hours. Why? Tomorrow, I’ll be in Rome.
Ladies and Gentlemen: Barcelona is amazing, but more on that maybe later. This blog was meant for Hungary. As I mentioned in my introduction, many blogs ago, I am a Russian born in Hungary. How is that possible? My parents are both from Moscow, where pretty much the rest of my family lives. When they were 21, in 1982 (ooh, I gave away their age!), they left the USSR to go on an exchange in Hungary as mechanical engineers. They ended up doing their doctorates there, and studied for 10 years in that central European country. When the USSR fell apart, and everything was a big mess, they decided to emigrate. Having various pen pals in Canada, UK and Australia, they waited for the first answer of invitation and moved with little me in ’92. (Canada obviously answered first.) I still have tons of memories from my short toddler life in Hungary, and going back this time, without my parents, I was really able to get in touch with my early childhood. It was amazing.
Standing in the amphitheatre of Szent Istvan Egyetem, my parents' old university.
I was born in a small town 30km east of Budapest, in Godollo, home to Sissi’s favourite castle and to the largest Agricultural University in the country, Szent Istvan Egyetem. Going back, almost 18 years later, I was amazed to see old ladies remember my parents, and me as a little girl. It felt like a home away from home, somewhere where I would always be accepted. Some of you, who are reading this, must know exactly what I am talking about. Being children of first generation immigrants, or being that first generation yourself, and having a strong upbringing in the style of the motherland, sometimes you feel that you don’t belong anywhere really. The way our parents raised us doesn’t fit in with the rest of the Canadian kids, so we are not 100% Canadian. However, when we visit the relatives in our “home country” they tell us how “Canadian” we are, and how we don’t really fit in there either. This can be devastating sometimes: no place to really call home. While being a citizen of the world is cool, when you have the chance to feel a real connection somewhere, that you’ll always be welcome just as you are, that can be really special. That’s what I felt in Hungary. But enough about emotional me.
Standing in Buda, overlooking the Danube to Pest.
Budapest is like Paris meets post-communism. Honestly. I’ve been to Moscow, and to Paris, and for me, Budapest is like the collision of the two. I find it a lot more welcoming than Paris, and it has so much more charm and Hungarian flavour to it, that it is a must see for sure. This capital is divided by the Danube River into two. Buda is the old historical part with churches, the National Museum, and old Roman ruins from the ancient capital Aquincuum. Pest is the urban and more “grand” half, also home to castles and parks and thermal baths (and the Opera!) but with a more modern and bustling feel. You get two completely different experiences in one.
The thermal baths in Pest. They include a huge indoor section too (steam rooms and aroma/colour therapy included).
Just an example of amazingly affordable delicious Hungarian food.
More advantages of Hungary, other then the fact that there is so much to see and that it is really an amazing country, is that the food is ridiculously delicious and super affordable, and that the Opera House has the cheapest seats in all of Europe, so that’s the way to go. But don’t think the Opera House is cheapy-cheapy on the inside. It is all covered in 24-karat gold, with a 2 tonne chandelier, intricate wood work, world class acoustics, and rivalled only by the Vienna opera house. Hungary is just the best deal.
The infamous Hungarian Opera House.
I also ended up doing a promotional/education U of A School of Business presentation to the heads of the University there, which was a super cool experience. They were also really interested in how our system works, how we are graded on the curve, and how our administration differs. Who knows…maybe in few years there might be exchanges between the two! That would be pretty neat.
Alright, I think I’ll finish this blog here. Environmentally friendly findings are now next, so hold on. The floor of the airport is starting to feel really hard, and the blankets and pillows Sid and I stole off one of the night trains are not offering much cushioning.
Good luck with the end of exams!
Elena
