Back to Berlin

We left Dresden this morning to return to Berlin. As you may have inferred from my writing, this trip did not enthrall me like trips of the past. I think there are two reasons for this. Ron is leaving for the States for three weeks shortly after we return home. This is a gray cloud hovering overhead and the other is that he planned too much in too short a time. We have spent a lot of time on trains coming and going.

Berlin is an exciting city, though my best memories are from before the wall came down. There was a tension and excitement of being there and feeling the danger that increased the senses. However, we have been many times since then, because it is full of wonder. This trip, the city was in the last minute stages of preparation for the World Cup. We stayed at a self-catering apartment called Colorfield. When one sees the apartment, it is appropriately named. The colors are charmingly mixed and the bedroom had a huge sumptuous bed.

As we wandered the city, evidence of Football Mania could not go unnoticed. In front of the Brandenburg Gate, there was a giant soccer ball. All of the souvenir shops had soccer memorabilia obliterating the usual Berlin tokens. If one were not a soccer fan, there was no hope in getting a keepsake void of sports.

As pathetic as it may be, there are things American that I long for the longer I am out of the States. A good bagel and a donut are two of them. Berlin has a Dunk’in Donuts and I had to stop. They offer a delicious bagel sandwich that was more than a treat; it was ecstasy for the deprived taste buds. Ron made fun of my need until he saw the sandwich sitting in front of me and then indulged himself.

The one sight that is worth mentioning is the Holocaust Memorial. The last time we were here, it was still in construction. When I first saw the completed creation, I thought it was a waste of space, money, and an insult to the ideals it was meant to honor. A grand square block is filled with rectangular, dark depression moon gray solid blocks of varying heights. They are set in rows that have paths through both horizontally and vertically. The paths are undulating, so as you walk you are rising and descending amongst these massive columns. I set off walking, while Ron took off in another direction. I was ready to continue to criticize this monumental failure as I walked, but something transformed me as I did. With each step of disappearing behind extremely high columns and reappearing with the shorter ones, I gained a sense of walking, wakeful meditation. I felt a peace surround me. Each column then represented a person from the Holocaust each telling their own story as I walked by their life path, sharing with me their tale of sorrow. In some aisles, I was all alone while in others I could see another at a distance, many columns away. I felt a connection with these strangers as we listened to what secrets were being shared. While deep in thought, I heard the sounds of a child running and laughing. My first reaction was to criticize the parents for letting a child play in this honorable space. A moment later, my thinking transposed those thoughts to the sounds of laughter of children who innocently lost their lives for unconscionable reasons through no fault of their own. The child’s hullabaloo then became a song of praise and homage for those young ones who never reached their full potential. I was deeply moved.

We have an early flight tomorrow and return to Budapest by 11:00 am.

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Back to Dresden

This is a short trip, so we do not have a lot of time for Dresden. We return to Berlin this evening. It is still icy chilly and we need gloves for comfort. Ron insists on making the most of the time, so we walk all over the city and take public transport when necessary.

In spite of the bombing in WWII, there are still many highlights in this city. The Baroque Frauenkirche or Church of Our Lady is one of them. It is a Protestant sandstone church built in the 18th century, but was leveled during the war. A 12 year reconstruction project was undertaken at the cost of $160 million to bring it back to its original appearance. This was completed in October 2005. Architects and historians were able to piece together the original bricks that were still useable using archives and photos to put them in their original places. The church looks spotted as a result. The dark fire burned bricks stand out from the new replacement bricks surrounding them, giving the church a sense of resurrection or a phoenix rising from the ashes. Of the original stones, 8,425 were salvaged to be part of the reconstruction.

In the same area is a long wall with a 100-meter long porcelain mosaic called Fürstenzug. It is the ‘Procession of the Dukes’ displaying the rulers of Saxony. Nearby is the Semperoper opera house. It was built by Gottfried Semper, thus its name, in the mid-19th century. It is said to be one of Germany's finest examples of neo-renaissance architecture. Fire destroyed it in 1869 and again in 1945. The current building is an exact replica of the original.

The river Elbe runs through the city and divides it in two. We walked over the bridge a few times and enjoyed the views from both sides.

One of the most amazing sights for us was the Zwinger. This amazing complex was commissioned by Augustus II (the Strong), the elector of Saxony and king of Poland due to his passion for collecting paintings, sculpture, antiquities, but especially porcelain. His collection included 14,500 pieces of porcelain from China and Japan. He established the porcelain factory at Meissen in 1710. Augustus admitted his passion for porcelain was his maladie de porcelaine (porcelain sickness).

Augustus began to build the Zwinger in 1711. It resembles a palace and can easily be mistaken for one. The architect Matthaus Daniel Poppelmann designed it. The Zwinger was destroyed during World War II and partly reconstructed in 1952 and 1963. Now it is fully reconstructed and restored, displaying the famous porcelain collection.
This evening, we take the train back to Berlin.

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Leipzig For the Day

Rene is quite the host. The breakfast was incredible with large assortments of rolls, jellies, cheeses, meats, and yogurts. After a filling breakfast, we left for the train station to go to Leipzig for the day. The ride is about 1:15.

Leipzig had the largest Hauptbahnhof in Europe until Berlin usurped it. This seems to be the trade fair capital of Germany and an important city for such throughout Europe dating back centuries. What we did not know was that Leipzig was having a Goth festival. As we were walking and admiring the beautiful architecture, there were many other sights to see walking along side of us.

For music lovers, which I do not count amongst the many, Leipzig is where Johann Sebastian Bach lived for a good part of his life and was the Kantor in the Thomaskirche. He is buried in the choir with the Bach archives across the street. Felix Mendelssohn headed the Gewandhaus Orchestra and founded the first conservatory in Germany. Richard Wagner was born here, receiving his musical training here. This city also boasts Germany’s first stock exchange.

The tourist office is always Ron’s first stop when we reach any destination and this time was no different. While he was drilling the attendant with questions inside, I was speaking with the unfortunate one who pulled the outside duty. I asked her if it was always this cold in early June. She said that she and her colleague were discussing this this morning. The reports are that due to global warming, the polar caps are melting causing a cold front to come through Europe, making this a very unusual summer. Her teeth were chattering as she related this information.

We spent the day here before taking the train back to Dresden. I could have spent more time here. The architecture is amazing and the city is lovely. The Goth distractions were both welcomed and annoying. Annoying since I wanted to snap as many pictures of them as I did the city itself, but time was limited. However, they were entertaining.

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Germany - Dresden

For some reason I have yet to discover, I have been resistant to writing about our trip to Germany a couple of weeks ago. I am not certain why, but it could have been the weather that had a grave affect on my mood. We took budget airline EasyJet to Berlin. Though the budget airlines have been a boon to air travel, the cost has more than doubled over the last year purportedly due to gas prices.
We arrived at Schoenefeld airport in a timely manner. The metro to the city is conveniently located a couple of blocks away under a protective covering for inclement weather. Within a half hour, we were in the heart of Berlin, but our travel had not ended there.

We immediately went to the new Berlin Hauptbahnhof, now the largest train station in Europe boasting five levels of tracks, shops, restaurants, and services. It was built on land that was once bisected by the Berlin Wall, making it a symbolic gesture of uniting the city. We took a train from here to Dresden using a ticket booked online and printed out with a barcode.

Arriving in evening into Dresden, we walked to the B and B we booked. It was about three blocks from the station. However, Ron wrote down the wrong name for the buzzer and the name he had was not on any bell. He started pressing buzzers one by one to ask if they knew of a B and B in the building. By the fourth attempt, our host came to greet us at the door.
We stayed with Rene Müller at Mary-Wigman-Str. 19, Dresden (reneaglaser@aol.com). Looking at the e-mail, I can see why Ron was looking for a Rene Glaser on the doorbells. Rene has a very nice comfortable room, but we just dropped our things and went to walk the city in the twilight.

Being Saturday evening, there was not much open other than restaurants and bars, but it was lovely seeing the city at this time of day. The streets were crowded with tourists and residents strolling and chatting in various languages. What struck us the most was that it was COLD. We both had liners under our coats, but we could have used gloves and scarves too. The outdoor restaurants all had their heatalators on to keep the hungry crowds warm enough to sit through a meal.

Dresden was once called the “Florence on the Elbe” being one of Europe’s architectural and artistic highlights. However, much of it was bombed during WWII and much of the city was not much more than a rubble heap. On February 13, 1945, 800 British aircraft showered the city with 2,600 tons of bombs. The Americans followed the next morning with 300 Flying Fortress bombers. It is estimated that 25,000 people were killed, while 13 square miles of the historic city center were destroyed. With temperatures rising to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit, the burning city was visible to pilots from 100 miles away. Dresden was a central hub for the Nazi’s and the city remained loyal to them, hence its destruction.

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Comments from the Peanut Gallery

Someone sent me a caring note to what I guess was the last blog entry. I repost the pleasant and the not so, without bias.

1. You REALLY need some serious help.
2. Get some strong meds.
3. Lay off the coffee
4. Get a life.
5. GROW UP FOR G0&%$@M SAKE!!!

For the flip side, this came is at the same time.

You make the most frustrating events sound almost funny but at least entertaining. I keep reading as if it is a mystery...can't wait to find the finish...which is also entertaining in a commisserating way....would all probably happen in the states as well as in Hungary, only you'd understand all the under the breath epitaths. Margie

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Jeers and Cheers!!

When you live here, ‘expect the unexpected’ is not an advertising theme or the motto for Disneyland. It is a way of life. I woke at three in the morning with a panic attack. Who has panic attacks in their sleep? The simple answer is ex-pats. For the more complicated answer consult your local therapist. I must have been dreaming about our appointment with Immigration. That is Scary Movie 6, 7, and 8.

We get a student lined up to go to Immigration with us, not to assist there, but to aid us with our ID cards, which have to be attained at the district office. However, the Immigration attorney from our well financially fed helping agency was meeting us. I wanted the attorney to tell the student what we needed and how we needed to do it. We pay this agency 880 Euros each for guiding us through the maze of the Residency Permits, but they fall short with the last final touch, our ID cards. Perhaps if they rounded up to 900 Euros, they could throw that in.

Let’s take a detour here. The AGENCY sent Ron an e-mail yesterday. They made him pay for renewing his Work Permit (250 Euros) and Annual Visa (320 Euros) since they would expire before the Residency Permit was issued. These were good for exactly two weeks now that the Residency Permit is approved. They also charged me 250 Euros for two years running and then told me that they made a mistake. It turns out that since I only work at the university, I have no need for a Work Permit and should not have applied for one. We had a discussion about professional responsibility and the reasons for a refund, but that matter had been swept under the table. Needless to say that when Ron received the e-mail yesterday stating that now that he had a Residency Permit approved, he no longer needed the Work Permit, I was enraged, but not for the obvious reasons. What set me off was that they were ‘offering’ to rescind the Work Permit for 120 Euros. Can you believe the gall? When we absolutely do not need them any longer, I will send out reviews to anyone and everyone who may potentially use them.

Back on track, we show up at the Immigration office at 11:45 for our noon appointment. The attorney who is supposed to meet us is not there yet, nor by noon, nor by 12:10. At 12:15, he arrives, goes up to the window of the one and only worker who issues Residency Permits. The student with us shares that he heard the word ‘postponement’ but did not hear the rest. My nerves start tingling, my blood pressure rises, and my mind wants to be on vacation in any other country but here or the US. The lawyer turns to us and says “It seems you had an appointment for yesterday, but changed it.” This is true, I tell him. I had to administer thesis defense exams at the university, but our agency worker was notified in plenty of time and rescheduled the appointment. The attorney continues “When she made the new appointment on the Internet, she made an appointment for turning in the paperwork for a new Residency Permit application, not for picking up approved ones. Therefore, they could not pull our permits from the files. Our original appointment was yesterday; shouldn’t they be hanging around someone’s desk somewhere? I have to give the lawyer credit, he cajoled the worker in a sweet manner to try to push for today, even if later in the day, but without success. We have an appointment for 8:30 am tomorrow. I was going to insert a picture here, but it would have been of me strangling a Hungarian Immigration officer or agency worker, so it was thought best not to have that type of evidence floating around. Jeers all around!!!

On the bright side, I was to go to the Fulbright office tomorrow to review applications for Hungarians wanting to go to the States. Since the day may be in chaos, I went today instead. It took me about three hours to read, reread and evaluate the applications and write reviews. When I was finished, they told me that they had forgotten to mention that they pay an honorarium for doing the reviews. I earned 16,000 Huf for my three hours of labor, though I thought I was doing it for free. That comes to $80.00 at today’s exchange. Cheers for this one!

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Life Has Been a Bit Hectic

Life has been a bit hectic lately with our B and B guests. May has been exceptionally busy with guests leaving from and going into the same room on the same day. I am not complaining since all of them have been outstanding human beings that have enriched our lives in some way regardless of how long or short their visit has been. This is one joy of running a B and B. The other side of the coin is that I have not had time for things that I wanted to do, like write, label my photos, visit museums, and so on.

The other interruption thus far is the administration of State exams. This is the equivalent to the Masters Thesis defense in the States. This would not be such a problem if it were organized, but I have learned that is not a concept here. I was told to arrive at 9:00 sharp. At 9:15, I was the only faculty member ready to start. We started at 9:30. One faculty member read and graded a thesis, but refused to be the examiner since she was not an authority on American culture, so it was deferred to me, who had not read the thesis. There were only two exams today, but on the 14th of June, there are eight. Ugh!

As I left the campus, I had to stop at the Fulbright office to drop off a package for an American professor that was leaving something for them. A half hour later, I get a call from them asking me if I would consider being a reviewer for the Hungarians who have applied to go the States. I said I would; however, we are leaving on Saturday for Germany. They need them done by next Thursday, the day we return. Being soft, I offered to go in on Friday and read as many as I could then. On my way to a different bus than I usually take, I passed by this building, which has intrigued me. It is the home of an old, dead Hungarian painter that has been neglected for too long. It is a shame and a waste.

Before going home, I stopped at the used English book store to pick up some books that arrived and had to go by Keleti train station. I love the building and had my camera with me.

Tomorrow is the day we go to Immigration for what should be the last time, getting our five year Residency. I have a student lined up to go with us to the local office to get our photo I.D. card giving us almost all of the rights of a Hungarian citizen.

We will be going to Dresden and Berlin, so you can read about them here.

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The Underground Transportation Museum - 3 Stars

This is the second in my museum series, if one could call the Citadella a museum. The Underground Transportation Museum is located in the Deák Metro station, appropriately enough since it only houses the history of the metro (subway) lines in Budapest. I have passed this place thousands of times in the last five years, have been curious about it, but never bothered to go in. There is another transportation museum in Budapest, which is outdoors.

The ticket office directly outside should not be confused as the ticket office for the museum. This is the ticket office for the metro. The museum ticket office is immediately inside, not that it much matters since it looks just like a metro ticket office and the tickets are identical. Entrance for adults is 185 Huf, less than $1.00. Your receipt for entry is an individual ticket for riding the public transport in the city. There is no difference whatsoever. It is not certain if you have regular metro tickets if you could use this in lieu of buying one, but it would make sense. The ticket seller validated the ticket just like one would when going on a bus or tram.
It is basically is the history of the subway (metro) system in Budapest. It is impressive when you find explanations and other information in English in any foreign museum. Though we were not expecting this here, it was a pleasant surprise to discover everything had been translated. After reading all of the information available, goggling at the old subway cars that were on display from different eras, we had only needed one hour for a thorough tour. I ward it three hearts out of four. It is concise, educational, informative, and there was English. Transportation is not in my top ten categories of favorites, but this was well worth an hour and you cannot haggle over the cost of admission. I give it three stars!

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A Note to Paul Roberts

I am happy to see you returned to continue reading. You see, there are some disadvantages to living here. You cannot use PayPal to the fullest extent, there are only two TV channels in English (CNN International and BBC news), the peanut butter is awful, and Amazon.co.uk will not send used books here. : (

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Saying Good-bye Yet Again

We met with Beth and Bob to say our last good-bye for the fourth time. This was the final, final though as they leave on the shuttle at 7:30 am tomorrow for the airport. Beth was a Fulbright Scholar here for one semester. She is a nursing professor in Nebraska. Bob, her husband, is a microbiologist. They are two fantastic people that we had the pleasure of sharing life experiences with over the semester. We will miss them and truly hope our paths cross again...but not in the States, here in Europe.

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The Citadella

Ron and I wanted to see the photo exhibit at the Citadella, which Patricia and Don had talked about. It is a temporary exhibit called “Children of War”. Though they thought the photography was amazing, they felt horror at the subject matter.

We took two buses to get there and then had to hike up the rest of the hill; only tour buses are allowed at the very top. It was a clear sunny day, making the fresh air jaunt more enjoyable then the time we went in the heat of August. There was a queue of tour buses waiting to park, alerting us that there would be plenty of tourists. The views of the city are breathtaking from up there, making it a popular place to visit.

One can walk around quite freely and go to the lower vantage point under the statue of the lady with leaf in her hands, but to go higher and into the exhibit will cost you a bit of cash. According to the brochure given to us after shelling out 1,200 Huf each, we had these things in store for our viewing pleasure:

• An exhibit of military history with the artillery used by the Soviet army during their siege on Budapest
• A photo exhibit of Budapest from 1850-1945

• Waxworks and “Siege of Budapest, 1944” photo exhibit in the air-raid shelter from WWII
• Photo exhibit in the Hotel Citadella
• Memorial park showing the life of St. Gellért
• Exhibit of local history of Mount Gellért

It sounded exciting and enough to fill a half a day, which was a bit worrisome since we had guests coming to our B and B. We did not have that much time. The reality is a bit different.

Our first stop was the photo exhibit. It was in-depth, the photography was amazing and there were explanations in English. Since 1940, there have been 129 wars in the world and over 300 million children have died as a result. The photos covered numerous countries from five continents, not always grouped together. Many had some short explanation. The photos were hung on both sides of the walls in a hallway in the hotel that went in a circular fashion ending where one begins. Since I did not realize this, rather than bounce from side to side, I was going to view one side of the hall and then the opposite on my return to the entrance. When we found ourselves in the lobby yet again, Ron was too overwhelmed to join me for the other side. It was emotionally draining, so feeling I had seen enough, we just left for the next exhibit.

Walking toward the statue from the hotel and on the left was the local history exhibit of the Mount Gellért. Four store like display windows protect the exhibit from viewers sticky fingers. What is displayed is mostly geological information, nothing visually stimulating other than a few facts about the Celts and Romans who once occupied the area.
Next, we entered the bunker. This being the shelter and the wax museum, there were separate rooms to view from a hall only with wax representations of the ‘life’ during the war. If you are hawk or a historian, you could stay busy there for an hour or more. It took us fifteen minutes to walk through and take some photos.

The “Memorial park” is a small rounded out area, which I suppose could semantically be called a park with the few flowers and shrubs in the overgrown planted area in the center. Again the history of St. Gellért is told in placards with pictures behind store front windows. Reading the explanations about the two folklore tales of his life, one being in the 1000s and the other placing him in the 1500s, there is not much to be impressed with.

If one were motivated, you could take a stairway down by the base of the statue for yet more store windows with still more displays that look as enthusiastically enticing as the rest. We decided to forsake this opportunity for more exercise. By now, Ron was getting anxious about being home in time for our guests; he took off for home and I continued on, merrily snapping pictures. The statue at the top looks just as impressive from the free viewing area, 15 feet below where I was standing, but shoot, I had paid to get in. I was going to get my money’s worth. The cityscapes were giving me chills of excitement. It was incredibly beautiful to see the whole city from here.

As I was leaving the area, I realized that what was meant by the Budapest 1850-1945 photo exhibit was in the free area. There are large billboard type photos with inserts showing various sights of the city in different years within the range stated. Was it worth the 1,200 Huf for the museums? Well, the photo exhibit was worth the 5 Euro charge, but this is a temporary exhibit. I would not pay it again unless there was another exceptional exhibit in the hotel. The view can be seen for free not that much farther down to make a difference.

Taking the back way down, I walked the trail to the Rudas thermals and took the bus to the Gellért Hotel for a picture. From there, I hopped on the 49 tram to the Great Market to wander around a bit. Realizing how often I recommend to guests that they get a langos in the market, I thought I had better do some quality assurance testing.

For the uninitiated, a langos is the Hungarian version of fried dough, but with a difference. My favorite is with shredded cheese, ham, and garlic juice. When you go up the escalator to the second floor, there is a restaurant. By-pass this and follow the food stands along the one wall. At the end of the row of food stands is the only one that sells langos. The market being a tourist attraction, the langos stand has gone commercial with ‘Mexican’, ‘Italian’ and other nationality type langos toppings, but to be assured of a cultural experience, get the type that I get or one with sour cream and shredded cheese. They are delicious, but do not plan on eating again for four hours; they are filling.

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The Last of the Whine

The Last of the Whine

One of the California wine growers has or had the slogan “No wine before its time”. One nice thing about ex-pat living is that you are not infiltrated with advertising slogans to the point of mental numbness. But, I digress from the point of this note. If you have read past posts, you will know I have WHINED heartily about the Visa process here, the aggravation, the expense, and so on. This is the last of the whine. We found out last night that our 5 year Residency Permits were approved and we can pick them up on May 31st. So as of now, there should be no more whining about this topic.

With this we are fully legal Hungarian residents for a period of 5 years without jumping through any further hoops, diving through any barrels, not having to play nice with Immigration officers or shell out to overpriced agencies. We will have the same rights as Hungarians do, but since we don’t speak the language, we probably will not know all of them. Up until now, we have been legal with one year renewable Visas, but we had to have Work Permits in addition. Good-bye Work Permits.

At the end of the 5 years, we have two options. We can renew the Permit for another 5 years with a simple one page application or we can apply for Hungarian citizenship. The second option is not feasible for us since we would have to take an exam in Hungarian (ain’t going to happen folks), plus we would have to relinquish our U.S. citizenship and Social Security. I still have fantasies that there will be Social Security when I am retirement age. If not, I better get more serious about my writing and start to pump out something publishable.

For those of you who are not familiar with Hungarian, there are 44 letters in the alphabet. It is part of the Finno-Ugric, which comprises Finnish, Estonian, and Hungarian; however, Hungarian is off on a branch of its own. It is one of the languages which is agglutinative, which means word meanings are modified by adding different and multiple endings or suffixes to the words, rather than using prefixes. It is not easy to learn and not easy for native speakers to understand when foreigners try speaking it.

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Hello Paul Roberts

Hello Paul Roberts,

This comment came through: “Wonderful story, you might look at using PayPal to transfer the money to the school bank account.” Thanks Paul! For a wild moment after reading your comment, I had a long ‘DUH!!’ moment and was ready to give myself a swift kick for not thinking about this. BUT, before I did something self-abusive, my memory loss was reverted. I have a PayPal account; however, gosh darn them, they will not send money to Hungary. Hungary is not in the Euro zone yet and I guess PayPal does not want to muddle around with Forints.

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Tossing Money to the Wind

A Hungarian benefactor living in the US gave our department at the university a check for $2,000. An American check here is worthless. You cannot cash it for less than $60.00 in fees and it takes up to six months. The faculty on the other hand was all salivating at the prospect of spending it. The list included a projector for PowerPoint presentations, an all-in-one fax/copier/scanner, and the list went on. This demanded a faculty meeting to decide how to spend this worthless piece of paper and how to cash it.

While sitting in the meeting fairly disinterested since none of my suggestions were receiving any attention, when it came around to how to cash the check, I felt six pairs of eyes burning into my face. Well here is an idea, we will give it to Ryan and he can deposit it in his US bank account in CA and then give us the money. Oh, boy! Did I NOT like that idea. But, I had them mail the check certified to a friend in CA who deposited into my account. Then the next issue was how to get it back. The options were to take it out in $400.00 increments, my daily ATM allowance from the bank with a $5.00 charge for each plus their ‘we can screw you’ currency conversion charge of 10%. Option two was more fiscally sound. I could shop for what they wanted, pay by credit card and then pay off my credit card immediately with the money in the account. They wisely chose option two for ¾ of the money.

However, the patron gave them yet another check for another $2,000. My nightmare all over again, but this time they wanted it in cash. Yikes! It seemed like a brainstorm to get a cash advance from the ATM on a credit card. I took out the max equivalent of $1,000.00 and shoved it into a pocket in my wallet. I would do this in two installments; after all, they were dependent on my generosity to get the cash either way. They would just have to wait for the cash sequel.

So I have this thick wad of Hungarian forint bills stuffed in my wallet and I am heading to the metro. This was one of those days when the ticket inspectors were checking tickets before you could attempt to get on the escalator to the trains. They mob up there like defensive guards at a sporting event. Traffic is slowed to a snail’s pace and everyone is suddenly in a hurry even if they were not five minutes before. Not being concerned, having my annual pass, I open my wallet to display it as I go gliding by onto the moving stairway. I am bumped in the back by the next anxious passenger throwing me forward as I am trying to put my wallet back in my backpack. That does not happen, though. The wallet goes flying into the air, gravity and airflow of the escalator tunnel pulling it open and forint bills go flying through the air like confetti at a wedding. A thousand dollars of forints are traveling faster than I am and in all directions. People going down are angry and disappointed that those on their way up have the catcher’s advantage and the best escape. I immediately visualize wrestling Hungarians to the ground or getting a second job to recoup this money.

When I finally reach the lower level, my reverie comes to an end, I loosen the tight grip on my wallet and put it snuggly into my backpack thinking of what could have been.

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Boldolg Szűlettesnapot

We celebrated a guest’s birthday on Sunday. It was a grand occasion for us to have a guest here for their birthday. This is the first time in our 2 year B and B history. His picture is not here to protect his identity. : )

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School is OUT! But the losses continue

School is OUT! But the losses continue

The semester is over. Yahoo!! Yesterday when I entered the grades into the computer system, marked my last day for this semester. My only summer obligation is to be on the committee for Masters Thesis defenses on June 14th. Other than this, I am free until September.

I am publicly stating my goals for the summer to try to keep me accountable for accomplishing them. I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions, because we are usually on vacation at that time, so who in their right mind wants to resolve anything while having fun?

Here are some of my goals:

• Move our second website to a new provider (boring)
• Rewrite my children’s ABC book (exhilarating)
• Rewrite my book on our travels since leaving CA (demanding)
• Re-title all of my photos that have 200099392.jpg on them to make them more identifiable (mind numbing)
• Visit every museum in Budapest and write a summary of it, whether or not it is appealing to me (challenging)
• Read two novels a week (easy to do)
• Blog, blog, blog (loving)
• Prepare three new classes for the fall (invigorating)

Summer is so anticipatory in April, but when it actually rolls around, I miss my students. One class has been with me for four semesters; it is emotional saying good-bye to them. They become part of my extended family, having spent hours with many of them outside of the classroom as within. Many contact me over the summer months to meet for a coffee or beer; contact with them will not be totally absent. I always want to do the group hug thing, but Hungarians are not huggers. Darn them!

Yesterday, John and Mike left for the States. John was the former Fulbright Scholar who returned for a Hospice Conference. He has made inroads with the Ministry of Health by showing them money saving options for in-patient care. His partner Mike is a pleasure to share time with. We will miss them both.

In another ten days, Beth the Nursing Professor and her husband Bob will be returning to the States also. They have been exceptional company and mentally stimulating.

Our adopted nephew will be leaving in August for a year in the States. As happy as we are for him, he is closer to us than my own nephews. It will be a major void in our life not having him around. He is such a high-quality human being; he deserves the honor and scholarship he received. I will be at a loss without his assistance at the university next year. He has been indispensable with the new students, getting them oriented to university life.

In August, we will have to start our cycle all over again with meeting new Fulbright Scholars and creating a social network all over again. And life goes on.

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Thank you, Eleanor

Ryan,
I've have enjoyed your comments and travelogue tremendously. I know that I've seen you either on Travelzine or WWtraveler. I've been to Budapest twice. Once was in 1967 and the other time was 2003. I hope to return again and will certainly try to stay with you. I feel that I missed most of Budapest, after reading your Blog.

The first time we had a government guide, so saw what she wanted us to see. The second time I was so exhausted after 4 weeks in Europe that I only saw a bit. Next time it will be my primary destination and I hope to see much more. Keep writing the wonderful things you write.

Eleanor Donohue

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All good things

All good things…

I first inclination is to say that Patricia and Don are like family; however, each person has their own emotional connotation of family. Even for me it is contradictory, since their being who they are was more nurturing than my immediate family has been in a decade. We are feeling the loss and anticipated it hours before we awoke early this morning for our last good-byes. We tried stretching last night to greater extremes to ignore that shadow of gloom that was going to accompany the tugging pangs of separation. Yet, morning came too soon at 5:00 am.

It is astonishing to me that we met these people by accident, nevertheless, within a
week’s space at their place and a week at ours there is such a strong bonding friendship that will last over the moments in time we have shared. It was only by serendipity that Ron bought a copy of a 2001 travel guide for our 2006 trip to South Africa and found their apartment for rent in it. How the universe spins the webs of connections to bring people into our lives.

Saying good-by is not my strong point. All of my emotions rise to the surface exposing my vulnerable side to whoever is present at the time. Perhaps if I were a sufficient wordsmith, my display of sentiment would not supersede the turmoil that stirs within.

Tonight we will have to have strawberries and halva, a ritual initiated, established, shared, braced, and entrenched in our hearts all over a week’s duration with two exceptional people that we will dearly miss…until next time.

We love you two!!

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My Kingdom for a Village and a Pig

For the entire week, Don had insisted he needed to see a village. Regardless of his explanations, we could not understand why. We did everything imaginable to talk him out of it. After all, who comes to Budapest for a mere week to venture out to the country to see peasants and pigs? He persisted in wanting to see peasants and pigs, not to say that there is a relationship, but this is assuredly a pork eating culture.

It seems that the notions Americans have about this part of the world, other non-Europeans share in these ideas too. Those who have few experiences with the culture believe that there are farms for miles and civilization is somehow on a different page of the country's book. Sometimes it is true, but they are surprised when they have to travel three hours to find the experience they have in mind. Hungary does have many small cities, but they are cities. I thought I had him convinced to use a photo from the Ethnographic Museum by doctoring it up, but alas, my powers of persuasion are not as great with anyone that is not dependent on getting their university grade from me. He finally found a village called Holloko. The next question was how to get there.

Last night, while Ron and Patricia were at the opera, I had a student translate the bus schedules. This village did not have a train station, not a good sign. Don roused himself at 5:00 am to leave on the 7:00 am bus, but since Patricia was concerned; we gave him Ron’s mobile to use. We were more concerned about his returning; the buses are not regular or often. Don was off for the day for what should have been a two hour bus ride to one town, a switch of buses in Szecseny, and then his final destination of Holloko. At 9:00, I received an SMS stating that they were in the worst traffic jam and he was still in Budapest. I refrained from writing “I told you so” but I was able to think it with satisfaction. A couple of hours later, the next SMS or SOS (?) came through “Among peasants at Szecseny, but no pigs yet.”

As we wondered why he would leave this beautiful city that he found so enchanting looking for pigs, we found tremendous humor in it nevertheless. Patricia maximized her free time by going with Ron to the bookstore to buy books by Hungarian authors translated into English, some souvenirs for her children, and some grocery shopping for their trip home tomorrow. Yes, they are returning home tomorrow. Our lives will be torn apart and we will have empty nest and separation issues to drive us into therapy, but if I think about it now, I will not be able to type through the tears. I am gasping air in chunky gulps just thinking about it.

When guests go shopping, we always encourage a “Show and Tell”. Show us what you bought and tell us who is it for or where you will place it sort of thing. With Don and Patricia it is more relevant since we have been to their home, so the mind pictures are vividly realistic.
Ron, Patricia and I went to the opening of the New York Hotel for tea. Now this is a story in itself, but the New York Hotel has had a sign proclaiming “OPENING SOON” in on the front of it since we arrived here in December 2001 and who knows how much longer before that. Well it finally opened this week and we were like children wanting to visit the candy store. It is magnificent and worth the wait, especially since it just around the corner from us. The experience was lovely sitting in this elegant dining room having tea and coffees, but the one piece missing was not having Don with us. This would have made it complete, but he was off looking for pigs and peasants. We absorbed the swank atmosphere without him, thinking we would drag him back here when he ventured back. This was starting to have elements of the prodigal son theme. The waiter, who brought our check, said that he recognized Patricia from her novels and would be honored to provide her tea on the house. We were so overwhelmed with this; we authorless companions did not mind paying for our coffees, which were not complimentary. Alas, being with a recognized authoress in such ambiance is enough satisfaction.

When we returned home after going off in three different directions doing errands, Patricia did her magic and whipped up a luscious lunch to share. After lunch naps were in order, but when I awoke, the prodigal friend had returned. After spending eight hours on a bus going to a village that no tourist will ever venture to, he had stories to tell. This is what makes his friendship so endearing; his stories are fantastic and being a professional photographer, they are supplemented with visual aids as well.

Don never found the pigs, but did find cows, peasants, and fields of canola. With all of his travels, he had one hour to spend in the little village of Holloko to shoot photos before returning on the only bus that would have allowed him to return in time to share dinner with the other four guests we have invited to meet our loved South African family.

Ron is planning a buffet dinner with Patricia’s assistance. John, a former Fulbrighter who has returned to Hungary, will be here with his partner Mike. Beth a current Fulbrighter will come over with her husband Bob. We will have a full house. This is a good thing and for this we give thanks.

Post note: John and Mike brought bottles of wine to share. Beth and Bob had bottles of wine in hand as well as a Bird of Paradise. Patricia and Don gave us a magnificently beautiful gloxinia. As a joke, Patricia, Ron, and I gave Don a marzipan pig. Dinner was wonderful, the sharing, caring and connections were amazing. Everyone had something in common with someone else, making it a great web of inter-connectedness. The whole group of us went to the New York Hotel to ogle. What a tremendous group of people we know and only because we moved here.










Here are some books by our esteemed authors, each and every one recommended reading. I would say this even if we did not love them. The books are incredibly good. Don is an editor/author/photographer for Getaway magazine focusing on Africa with an international section as well.

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Healing Waters

Patricia was charmed by Ron’s invitation to join him at mass at St. Stephan’s cathedral, so off they went for the 10:30 mass. As soon as they were out of the front door, Ron remembered he left his keys on the counter and Patricia left her transportation pass in the room. Ron wanted either Don or I to run these things down, but both Don and I were still in our robes. Ron had to make the return trip.

They did an abbreviated mass, since the three of them were going to go to Széchenyi thermals for an afternoon of water fun. The Széchenyi Thermal Bath is o­ne of the largest spa complexes in Europe. It's also the first thermal bath of Pest. Chances are if you have seen photos of men playing chess on floating chess boards, it was this thermal. It is mixed men and women and bathing suits are mandatory. During the warm months, there are separate roof top areas for nude sunbathing. This thermal has a graduated pay system. You will pay 2,000 Huf for a locker or 2,300 Huf for a change room. If you leave within 2 hours, you will receive 800 Huf refund. Leaving between 2 and 3 hours, the refund is 500 Huf. If you really are enjoying your stay and leave after 3 to 4 hours, you will have 200 Huf refunded. After 4 hours, you do not receive a refund. To see photos of it, go to our website at www.budabab.com and then the Thermals link.

After a late morning tea, the three water sprites made their way to the medicinal waters. I decided to lag behind, do some writing and finish up end of the semester school work. I was still at the computer when they blew in the door, Patricia especially beaming like she swallowed the sun. With a Cheshire cat grin, she exclaimed “Ron’s timing was perfect. If we had done the baths at the beginning of the week, I would have said forget history, forget culture. I just want to go to the baths every day.” Asking if they enjoyed it would have been redundant. Don and Patricia each had a massage, so they looked like two little puddles of South African butter, so thoroughly relaxed.

The four of us combined foods for a Sunday feast of cold roasted chicken, olives, salad, fresh fruit, and halva. Patricia had bought a loaf of challah bread and we broke it together and ate. We stuffed ourselves with sharing both conversation and friendship. The food was nourishing and delicious, but only poor seconds to the sharing experience.

After the dishes were done, Don and I were heading in different directions for a nap, but Ron found a soul mate for his love of opera. He and Patricia went to the other opera house to see “The Magic Flute”.

As Don and I emerged from our respective cocoons, we had a non-stop conversation traveling through a dozen threads of topics. We were planning Ron and my next vacation to Africa when the music buffs wandered back in at 10:30. The opera received accolades from our two aria fans. We sat around for our evening tea, strawberries, and halva continuing our nightly ritual and then said good-night.

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