9 people and a baby

That's the number of people we've had staying at our house the last two nights.  Although we have a big flat, it's never held 12 people at once before.  On the couches, floors, and even the terrace.  People were sleeping everywhere.  But what a joy it's been to be a guest house again!

When Will and I were first married, he ran a volunteer house in Kenya.  After two months of being married we had 25 people living with us.  I spent the summer tagging along to volunteer projects, cleaning, and helping cook for everyone.  One Kenyan white woman, who was our neighbor, told me I was a very accommodating wife, with cynicism in her voice.  The truth is, I loved it.  I loved doing it with Will.  I loved hosting people.  I loved all the interesting conversations with people from all over the globe.  I loved being able to provide a home (even for a short time) for others.

And here we are again.  When some good friends asked to bring their mission team through Budapest and shack up with us, it felt like old times.  Come on over!  Today a bit of nostalgia emanates from the house as people sit on couches and floors eating breakfast.  This was the reason we chose this big flat.  This... and the terrace, of course.

Hungary in the news

The latest headlines...

Hungary's parliament approves new rules restricting public use of swastika, red star

Pedal power: Budapest's bustling bike culture

Large crowd protests anti-Semitism in Budapest

And the World's Best Jump Roper - Adrienn Banhegyi

A stranger's helping hand

Tonight on the way home from work I watched a mom with two kids and a baby in a buggy getting on the tram.  A man on the tram grabbed the two kids (about 3 or 4 years old) and pulled them up the tram steps while another guy grabbed the front of the buggy to pull it on.  The mama settled herself and her kids into the tram seats.  I thought... "In an America city, if some guys grabbed a lady's kids like that, she would freak out."  I love that Hungary still has that helping-hand-I'm-not-here-to-kidnap-your-kids mentality.  I'm realizing that all those people who stare at me on the tram are really just watching out for the strangers around them.  A great cultural trait!

Snow Day!

What every teacher and student dream about...
Too much snow.
No school!

On my morning commute I got all the way to the Bus 63 stop, the last leg of my trip to school, when I got the call... No school today.  Good thing because the bus was nowhere to be seen after a 20 minute wait.  Way off schedule.  So I hopped back onto the tram into town, along with everyone else.  It was quite a crowd!  The rest of my morning involved a walk around the neighborhood (thus the pictures), breakfast at our corner cafe and a nap.  Then it was noon, and I still had the whole day to relax.  It's evening now and it looks like things are warming up.  The bus will probably be running on time in the morning.  But one snow day is better than no snow days.  Thank you Mother Nature for a day off!

It's coming!

January and February were the coldest months in Budapest last year.  It got down to -22 C (-8 F).  The last place I lived that was that cold was Alaska.  As a child.  So after 16 years living out of Alaska, including the last three years living on the equator... it was a bit of a shock.  This year I'm a little more prepared.  I own wool socks, long underwear and the warmest coat North Face sells for women.  So in the next week or two when the Danube looks like this...

Will took this picture last February near our house.

... I'm prepared!

Prepared to stay in my warm cozy house with "Fireplace" playing on the TV.

To market, to market to buy some glühwein...

European cities are known for their Christmas markets.  Some are better than others.  This year we hit up Prague, Dresden, and of course Budapest.

Prague, Czech Republic...
Most beautiful square,
Most made-in-China crap to buy,
Best place to hang out with friends,
Best beer,
Most picturesque.

Dresden, Germany...
Most medieval,
Best craftsmanship knick-knacks to buy,
Best rebuilt city (demolished during World War 2 by the Americans, but rebuilt to look like it did before),
Best place to get new mulled wine (glühwein) mugs - even got one from 2011 this year... Hmmm,
My favorite market so far.

Budapest, Hungary...
Best market to buy pottery,
Best market for mulled wine,
Or any wine,
Best place to go out with girlfriends during Christmas,
The market that now feels like home.

Jack Frost Nipping at my Nose!

Today the snow came.  The wind is biting.  And my little black dress (with long sleeves, tights, leggings, and boots) under a winter coat is NOT enough.  The price of looking cute for a party.  Walking home from the tram tonight, Will and I decided that the night of my birthday will not involve a late night out like it should, simply because it is too blasted cold!  Looks like cozy nights are going to be more frequent.  Winter is here!  The kids enjoyed sledding at recess.  I have pulled out my women's arctic parka, which is more like a sleeping bag than a coat.  (As Will pointed out - not flattering.  But who cares, it's warm!)  Wool ski socks are back in my sock drawer.  December, January, February... Fingers crossed March is warmer.

It's not all bad though... Christmas markets are open.  Lights are up on streets and buildings.  Mulled wine warms your hands while walking about.  I really do love Christmas in Budapest.  (...when I'm wearing my sleeping bag coat.)  And icebergs aren't floating down the Danube... yet.

Take a look!

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co-worker,
book author,
teacher,
and fellow expat in Budapest,
just started a blog that is really great.
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An American in Budapest

Someone reads this besides my grandma...

One of the Budapest websites interviewed me as an expat blogger in the city.  Kinda cool.  Check it out.

Top Budapest Travel Guide

An evening run

Once again I joined the throng of runners after work on Margit Sziget (Margaret Island).  It is a peaceful retreat for me in the city.  And full of sites to see...

Tight rope walkers practicing on a rope hung between trees.

Kayaks cruising alongside the island.

Blind runners hanging on to a rope with "seeing" runners at the other end guiding them.

Big butts.

Little butts.

Long legs.

Short legs.

Fall leaves.

Gardens and flowers.

Kids climbing on Medieval ruins.

The stinky petting zoo.

Lovers on a bench.

Picnic-ers in the grass.

The water fountain dancing to classical music.

The sun setting behind the Buda hills.

I love this city!

Jewish Hungary

Many people don't know that Hungary once had one of the largest populations of Jewish people in Europe.  Until a group of terrorists rounded them up and shipped them to their deaths.  In Budapest I've heard it said that one in every five people killed at Auschwitz was Hungarian.  At one time Hungary was the last place Jewish refugees fled to in Europe until the Nazis invaded this final escape and hope.  Memorials throughout Budapest honor and remind us that these horrors happened.  Synagogues are still hidden throughout the city, part of apartment courtyards, unnoticeable unless you're looking.  The Old Jewish Ghetto still serves kosher food to its community.  The Grand Synagogue gives tours to help us never forget.

Yet sixty years later anti-semitism still plagues Hungary.  Prejudice seems to be a common theme amongst politicians and rioters, co-workers and friends.  The craziest part?  Many of those politicians who align themselves with these openly anti-semantic political parties are discovering they are actually Jewish too.  A mother, a grandfather, a relative who escaped, a grandparent who died in a concentration camp.

A recent article, A Letter From Budapest, reiterated how serious this issue really is.  How seriously people fear and hope and hate and want change.  Read it.  It's really worth it: A Letter From Budapest.

Music to my ears.

For four weeks I've heard English every day.  Only English.  When we arrived at the Dallas airport on our way back to Budapest, the sounds began to change.  Spanish speakers sitting next to us in the terminal.  Hindi spoken in the next row on the plane.  Arabic behind us.  We were getting closer to home, where the linguistic variety is comforting.  Closer to a place where multiple languages are heard daily.  Not always understanding every word spoken around me feels like home.  I like that.

Signs of Summer

Summer is here.  It arrived around the first of May, when Budapest broke its record high temperature at 32 degrees C (90F).  But its not just sunny days that show signs of summer...

Tourists walking around the city with their maps,

Asking for directions in English.

Cruise ships coming up the Danube,

Waving up at you on the bridge.

Cotton from poplar trees flying everywhere,

into our living room,

our bedroom,

even downstairs where no windows are open.

Windows open in the day

And the night.

The fan blowing on the bed.

Lighter blankets on us as we sleep.

That ring around my tub getting a little darker.

Men on bikes, 

Women on bikes,

Kids on bikes.

Runners with no shirts on Margaret Island.

Sunbathers in the grass.

Kids playing in city fountains.

Allergies.

Flowers.

Green leaves.

Teachers reminding each other, "Five more weeks!"

"Home"

Where is home?  We had this conversation at the faculty lunch table this week, laughing at the irony of the word "home" for expats.

Home is Budapest.
Home is "back home" where our families live.
Home is where our community is.
Home is where we once lived.
Home can be said for two different places in the same sentence.
Home can be our permanent address where we have never actually lived.
Or the state on our driver's license.
Home is where there are people who love us.

This summer we're going "back home" to visit family.  "Home" meaning the U.S.  I'm not even making it up to Alaska this time and still it's called "home".  Then we're coming "home" to Budapest, where we live and work and go about our regular routines.

Home.
It's a funny word.

A little boy on the tram

Today Will and I sat across from a small boy and his mother on the tram. We sat quietly for awhile, as is common on the Budapest tram. Even the three year old sat silently in his seat, looking out the window. Then Will and I began quietly chatting about this and that. The boy looked at us and smiled. He proceeded to point his small finger in our faces and chatter away to his mother about us. I have no idea what he was saying, but it was obvious he realized we were not Hungarian or not Hungarian speakers or strange because of the way we were talking. His mom seemed a little embarrassed at first, but Will and I just smiled back and laughed at the cuteness of this kid. How is it that a little boy can identify the difference of these foreigners sitting next to him? Culture and language are interesting aspects of life that even a three year old gets a kick out of. I wonder what he was thinking and saying... (I need to learn Hungarian!)

George Washington in Hungary?

Today we wandered through City Park on our way from a market and came across this:

It's a statue of George Washington with a plaque stating "Hungarians in America 1906". Why? I have no idea. It's interesting that throughout Budapest there are several references to the U.S... A statue of Ronald Reagan. Roosevelt Park. Roosevelt Square. And more recently, a statue of Steve Jobs. Unusual. Anyone know why American men are honored around Budapest?

A Glimpse

Our beautiful city...

It is a privilege to live in Budapest. Thank you, Hungary, for having open doors.

I looked in my closet yesterday and realized...

When I moved to Budapest

I owned 3 sweaters

And a lot of ratty summer clothes

Washed by hand

And dried in the African sun too many times.

When I looked in my closet this week

I saw 11 sweaters

And a few ratty summer clothes

Washed by hand

And dried in the African sun too many times.

Last year at this time

I was wearing a sun dress and sandals to work.

Now it's -7 degrees F

And I'm wearing long underwear,

Trousers (leggings don't cut it!),

2 pairs of wool socks,

2 shirts,

1 sweater,

1 scarf,

1 hat,

1 amazingly warm coat,

And ugly old winter boots from years ago

To work each day.

I looked in my closet yesterday and realized...

It used to take me 2 minutes to get dressed in the morning.

Now it's a full 15 minutes with all those layers.

I'm ready for spring.

And it looks very far away...!

It's cold in Budapest!

When I looked at the temperature on Friday, it was colder in Budapest than my home town in Alaska. Winter has come to Hungary!

On Saturday morning it started snowing...

And it kept snowing all day...

We went out and enjoyed it...

A little stroll...

A little shopping...

A little time with friends...

Sunday night is supposed to bring 3 or 4 more inches...

Everyone is hoping for a snow day at school...

I'm not holding my breath...

But I am enjoying the snow in this beautiful city!

Looking through another lens

Today I had a really good conversation with a Hungarian friend. She was talking about attending the pro-governement rally last weekend (see previous post) and very candidly expressed her frustration with the Western world putting pressure on Hungary about their new constitution. She explained to me that "liberal" has a completely different meaning in Hungary than in the West. In Hungary liberal means people for the old politics - communism and nazism. Wow! That's definitely a different meaning than my Western terminology. As she continued to express her views, I began to understand more and more that Hungary is not a Western country. It looks Western on the outside, with its well-paved roads, big shopping centers, fast food, and white people everywhere. But on the inside, people look through a very different lens than my Western one.

Only 20 years ago Hungary was controlled by Communists from Russia, before that it was the Nazis, before that they lost half their country to political map changes, before that the Hapsburgs, before that the Turks and Mongols and all sorts of invaders. Naturally, this history effects the view of Hungarians. After years of oppression and dictators, they finally get to do what THEY want to do with their country. And they should.

When I moved to Budapest, I expected Hungarians would view the world somewhat similarly to me, especially in comparison to my previous experiences in China and Kenya. I expected big differences in Asia and Africa. But Europe? I've been surprised. In a good way.

From my Western perspective, I disagree with many things in the Hungarian constitution. But when I try to take a look through a Hungarian lens, I understand a bit more why the nation is supporting some of these things. If I were Hungarian, I may have attended the pro-government rally too.

Always willing to learn another person's perspective.