Panni Vagyok

Breathing... Kind of an important part of surviving. Shallow, labored breaths are all I can manage right now.  I feel terrible for my roommate Jihye, I don't know if she's had a complete nights sleep since I've gotten sick due to my constant coughing.  I will perish here... Some rare strain of Hungarian flu has settled in my lungs and sinuses and my immune system can't handle it.  Okay... maybe I'm being a bit melodramatic, but I don't think I can avoid the doctor's office anymore.  I've officially been sick for over a week and nothing has changed. 

Whatever, sickness is just a minor detail in what has happened in the past week...

Hungarian: one of the most complex and challenging languages to learn, and I'm obsessed.  My Hungarian class has quickly become my favorite class.  I've always wanted to learn a second language (and I don't think I can count my stunted vocabulary of Spanish as a second language anymore) so why not Hungarian? I know I have no real hope of coming anywhere near fluent in only four months, but I'm hoping that I can learn a few important things: "Hello, my name is Anna" "Where is the bathroom?" "One beer please" etc.  Lately I find myself walking down the street and trying to pronounce the words on the signs.  Although I try to say it in my head, it probably looks like I'm talking to myself because I get frustrated and repeat it again until I get it right (thanks Dad because I inherited this quirky trait from you).  

Along with the language, I find myself wanting to learn about the culture and the history.  One night last week, my friend Loes and I found ourselves in need of something to do, so we decided to learn a traditional Greek dance with our Hungarian friend Luca.  As it so happens, the class wasn't being offered that night, so we went to a cafe instead with Luca and two of her friends.  Hours passed and we barely had time to notice.  We talked about almost everything and I loved hearing stories and facts about the country.  My favorite part of the night was when I learned that in Hungarian I have a nickname.  Is it weird that I always wanted one?  Apparently girls named Anna can have the nickname "Panni," (pronounced Pon-ee) and if they're young it's "Pannika." Needless to say, when I found out that I had a nickname I got really excited, maybe even a bit too excited over something that really isn't that big of a deal.

Anyway, the next day Loes, Dora, Melia, and I set off for Budapest.  As we made our way through the city it was hard to pay attention to where we were walking.  When we found our hostel I was a bit concerned.  It was down the street from a strip club and the building was really dark when we first walked in.  Dora pretty much summed up my feelings when she said, "We will die here..."

Thumbs Up Hostel

Inside the bedroom

It was actually a really nice hostel.  The manager Gabe was really nice and recommended things for us to do and told us about places we could eat.  The beds were kind of uncomfortable, and the pillows were ridiculously small, but everything else was really great.  We shared a room with three American students from Boston and a Canadian who was on his way to India.  

Loes' cousin Mieke is studying in Budapest this semester so she showed us around the city:

This was the Jewish synagogue that was really close to our hostel

Chain Bridge with Buda Castle in the background

We also went to a restaurant called, in English, The Blue Rose where we had traditional Hungarian foods like goulash soup (which was absolutely delicious).  After dinner we went back to the hostel and got ready for our night out.  While getting ready I had a chance to talk to the Canadian, his name was Tanner, and discovered that he had already actually been traveling for the past six months and was now planning on staying in India for at least four months.  It sounded like he was having an "Eat, Pray, Love" adventure.  Nonetheless, he enraptured me with his countless stories about where he's gone and what he's been doing, and he made me cringe when he was talking about his trip to the Amazon and the size of spiders you can find there.... ugh... Regardless, I'm unbelievably jealous of everything he's been able to do in the past year and couldn't seem to stop asking him questions.

Later that night we went out to a popular bar called "Szimpla," which looked like a combination of a basement and a drug house.  After getting over the initial shock of thinking "where the hell am I" and "what are my chances of leaving here alive," I sat down, looked around, and actually decided that I really liked the eccentric atmosphere.  If this had been a bar in America, however, a girl would walk in, decide that she would be safer in a New York City alleyway at 2 a.m., and promptly leave.  But this is Europe, not America, so I enjoyed myself.  

Us in Szimpla where we found Max, another Erasmus student from Pecs visiting his girlfriend for the weekend... Small world

The next day we set off with Tanner to see some of the other things that Budapest had to offer:

The Terror House, a museum that was once the party headquarters for the Hungarian Nazis. 

Many people were tortured, imprisoned and killed here.  It was a sobering tour, but really interesting and I'm glad we went.  I realized that I, an American grandchild of a WWII veteran, cannot, and will not ever fully comprehend the tragedy of this war.  I was not alive during it, I did not lose a family member to it, and the war wasn't fought on American soil.  I was shocked at how I was just realizing this now.  I just never realized how removed I am from this war, and I know that I'll never be able to fully comprehend the loss and tragedy that the people here had to endure.  Needless to say, I was beyond humbled.  

Okay, onto a lighter topic.  After the museum, we made our way over to Buda:

The Parliament building and I... it's postcard worthy

This castle-esque structure is called the Fisherman's Bastion

I honestly don't know what else to say.  Budapest was beautiful.  Did we do much while we were there? No, we came to simply see things, and really that's all we needed from this trip.  Are we going back? Of course, we barely even scratched the surface of everything Budapest has to offer, and I cannot wait to discover what else we'll find here.

Barbra Streisand

A blast of icy wind startles me as I make my way down the lamp lit street.  After closing my eyes for the briefest second I look up and see a combination of snow and rain illuminated in the lights above my head.  It's beautiful, but none the less cold, so we begin to walk faster due to our need of warmth, drinks, and, most importantly, a good time.  We arrive at the club, always hoping for a student discount, but not always getting one, pay the entrance fee and check our coats.  Usually I'm the last one to finish doing so because I'm still in the process of deflating my large personal space bubble that Americans are accustomed to.  Therefore I'm not quite used to asserting my position in line, but I am getting better (that old lady in Burger King didn't know what hit her...)

I check my coat, find my group and we make our way onto the dance floor.  A haze of smoke is the first thing I see and breathe in.  I take a second to acclimate my lungs and proceed to the bar.  After deflating my space bubble a little more, I get my drink and join the other students on the dance floor.  We attempt to make a circle but in a crowd like this it is virtually impossible.  As we dance, or at least try to dance, the music is all you hear and it's what you hold onto.  The lights overhead beam different colors onto the crowd and everyone is in someway dancing to the beat.  

The chord progression signals that a new song is about to start.  All at once everyone around me is beginning to yell and jump... I may have missed something.  Everyone knows this song that I've never heard before.  Not that it was hard to catch onto, the lyrics are just "ooo" and every now and then the artist throws in a "Barbra Streisand."  But for some reason it seems to be one of everyone's, and I include myself in this, favorite song to hear at the club.  I can already tell that whenever I hear this song I'm immediately going to think of Erasmus. 

Barbra Streisand Video

Ode to the Comforts of Home

Riddle: How do you dry 2 and a half weeks worth of clothes with no dryer, no hangers, no clothesline, and no drying rack?  I don't think there is a right or wrong answer here. My method? I take grocery bags, lie them on my bed, and lay out as many clothes as possible on them.  And what about the remainder of my clothes? I just find any surface possible that I can lay them on.  It's a wonderful system, I know, and, as you might have already guessed, every surface on my side of the room is covered in damp clothing.  At least the air is filled with the smell of... whatever scent my laundry detergent is... mandulatej?

As you can now tell, my Hungarian language skills have also not improved.  This has gotten me into some troubles when buying food.  For example, lets venture back to Thursday.  I was hungry and had to go to the grocery store.  I have this wonderful idea that maybe I should make myself some Chicken Riggies for dinner! Now that I'm anticipating a taste of home, I immediately embark on my journey to Spar and begin looking for the correct ingredients.  While I'm making my dinner, I soon realize that something doesn't smell right.... the sauce.... actually, it doesn't look quite right either. It turns out that I bought something closer to tomato paste than spaghetti sauce.  Oh yeah, and it tasted absolutely awful, I wouldn't even let anyone try it.  Needless to say I kept avoiding it and eventually threw it away because I couldn't even bring myself to try and digest it.  Oh well... live and learn... or in my case, make the same mistake a few times and eventually figure out what I've been doing wrong.

The weekend, however, went by much smoother for me.  A group of girls and I ventured into the city and visited some of the monuments (which I relished every second of).  We went to a cafe in the city center and ate pastries, drank cappuccinos, and just talked.  It made me think of my roommates and how we would do the same thing... except substitute the pastries and cappuccinos for Wegman's macaroni and cheese and/or Oreos (p.s. Happy Birthday Emily!). 

And now that brings to Monday... I have always hated Mondays.  For some reason every bad mood, undone chore, and any other problem always surfaces on a Monday.  I woke up to the sight of too many dirty clothes and the sound of my alarm blaring in my ear reminding me that I still need to take care of my registration issues.  Well, I won't get into the mundane and unpleasant details of my day, but all that you need to know is that its Tuesday, my laundry is almost dry, my classes are finally chosen, and my mood has significantly improved.  TGI Tuesday...

Morning Has Broken

Like the city outside my window, I took my time coming to life this morning, each of my senses slowly awakening to new sounds, smells, and sensations as time slowly crept forward.  I could hear sirens down the street, cars revving to life in the parking lot and laughter outside my window as the faint smell of cigarettes began to tickle my nose.  Apparently Jihye and I forgot to close the window... but are either of us going to get up? Not a chance.  Besides, I'm beginning to like these sounds outside my window and I'd take this over a cellphone alarm any day... but maybe I could do without the loud delivery trucks.

As I slowly return to consciousness I see a faint orange glow from behind my eyelids and begin to slowly open my eyes to a brightly lit room.  Oops... its not the morning... its more like the early afternoon.  Oh well, even though its technically the first day of classes, I still haven't been able to register for them yet (Note to self: maybe trying to register for classes today would be a productive use of my time...)

With my left hand I begin to reach for my glasses, but instead of just feeling plastic underneath my finger tips, a stronger sensation grabs my attention... Pain.  Oh right, my left hand is temporarily out of commission. Yesterday a group of us decided that it would be a good idea to go ice skating.  Maybe I should have stayed behind.  I have never been a good skater and yesterday proved it.  I fell... hard.  After getting up (with help) I realized that my wrist was beginning to swell. Wonderful. Why is it that every time I get hurt it's never at home? Anyway, after debating whether or not to go to the hospital, the receptionist called a taxi for us and Jonas, Toby, Karolis, and I made our way to the hospital where all of one nurse spoke English.  After a few hours of finding ways to entertain ourselves, I find out that my hand is thankfully not broken, but its sprained and will be better in 7 to 10 days.  I was glad to hear this news because I was getting weary of the iCast the guys were joking about fashioning for me. 

Anyway, after putting my glasses on with my RIGHT hand, I can now see that the swelling in my wrist and gone down somewhat, thank goodness. Hopefully I will be able to grip things again soon, but now onto more important things... like learning how to shower with one hand.

It Can Take Your Breath Away

So yesterday I had a chance to really see the city of Pecs (and for my non-hungarian speaking friends, it's pronounced "pay-ch").  My mentor, Palma, and I walked through the city down countless streets and visited my academic center, the Faculty of Humanities, the arkad (mall), and the new public library: Tudaskozpont.  But my favorite part of Pecs? Easily the city center.  

As you can tell, I did not take this picture... I keep forgetting to bring my camera.  Anyway, from the city center stems streets that take you past dozens of stores and restaurants.  The streets themselves are even beautiful: white, uneven stone walkways that give the city its character.  I asked my mentor how old the stone was and she said that the white stones weren't as old as the black stones that you can still find at the surface of the street in some areas (she never gave me an actual age, but I having a feeling that her definition of old is much greater than mine).  

We also walked by the theater in Pecs, which of course I also found breathtaking...

Palma was telling me about how she and her friends have a goal to see at least one performance a month this year, but she also said that it could get pretty expensive.  So I asked her how expensive it could get, to which she replied "about 2000 forints for the best seats."  2000 forints is a little over 10 dollars.... This is so unfair. I should just stay here forever. 

But what really got me? The post office: 

This is the post office of Pecs.... let me remind you what MY post office looks like:

There is really no comparison here.  I just can't fathom how something as simple as a post office can look this amazing.  Everything in Pecs is more beautiful than I could have imagined. Yeah, its settled... I'm not leaving.

The Swing of Things...

Hungary.... Day 4

I'm finally beginning to understand the overall European college culture: Party at night, sleep during the day, go to classes when you find time.  Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration, but its something like that. Anywho, let me explain what you've missed in my past two days as an American exchange student:

On Monday night I went out with the Spanish exchange students to the club in my academic building... yes you read it correctly, a club, and it was perhaps the strangest club I've been to.  Apparently its modeled after a coal mine and to me it looked like I was inside a wigwam.  Everyone there was smoking and dancing to Hungarian "party" music (which is full of screechy violins) and drinking heavily.  You were basically incapacitated the entire time while people shoved you out of the way while they passed.  I wasn't a huge fan.  On top of that, we arrived there around 2 in the morning which is about 2 hours past my normal bedtime.  It was interesting to say the least, but an experience to remember... and I plan on just remembering it because I don't think I can handle it again, haha. 

Last night was much more my style.  My roommate's mentor came and we hung out in the common room together talking and drinking, then down the hall we heard voices and left the common room to go see what was going on.  Apparently more students had arrived and we quickly joined them, then more drinking, laughing, and yelling ensued.  Everyone is very nice and inquisitive about other cultures here and it's a big party when a lot of Erasmus students get together.  

Today all of the Erasmus students went to our official orientation where we learned about Pecs and everything that we needed to know about classes and paperwork.  I also discovered that I am the only American here... wonderful.  However, being the only American has its perks: apparently a lot of people want to talk to me because the want to hear "proper" English.  Also, I don't know if other people have noticed this yet, but I seem to be the English translator between the different languages; like if my south korean roommate says something in english to my polish roommate who can't understand the word because of the korean accent, I can usually say the word out loud and then my polish roommate can understand the word (sorry if that was complicated).  

I also found out recently that I have to do a presentation on the USA to the other Erasmus students, and because I am the only American student I have to do it all by myself! My roommate, Jihye said that she would help me though so I will probably be using her help, especially when I have to make an American dish.  Apparently the American students last year made Jungle Juice... needless to say I will not be doing that.  My question is: what foods are strictly American?  Hopefully I won't be the first country to go!  

Overall I'm finally starting to get into the swing of things, thank goodness.