Budapest-ilicious-ness

I'm baaaaaack. Once again, I apologize for the long hiatus. I wish I had a legitimate excuse, but the only one I have is that the extreme heat has caused equally extreme laziness. I'll get into that later.

This post is going to focus on the amazingness that is Budapest, Hungary. I had the pleasure of going last weekend. Honestly, if you would have asked me a year or so ago where Hungary was on a map, or what its capital was, I probably would have said "who cares". What I'm realizing now is that eastern Europe (non-EU countries) are totally getting the shaft. If you don't know Budapest, you should. It's worth knowing.

We left on a Saturday morning at 7 am. It was a girls trip. A Canadian, a Brit, and some Americans. It was my first time on a inter-country train. Motion censored glass doors...how fancy! Here's a pic...everyone was sleepy:)


The country side of Austria and Hungary was rolling hills...similar to what you would see in Wisconsin i think. Yet the little towns we passed on the way were what really struck me. It was one of those "where the F in the world am I?" moments.

When we got to the train station, I was in dire need of water. I walked over to the snack stand, and pointed to the water. The lady with heinous blue eyeliner handed me the water and said "300". Confusion, attempted sign language, and frustration led to a pissed off Hungarian worker and one frightened American. Finally I just gave her 2 euro and left the scene before she killed me...the exchange just needed to end. At this point I was thinking that Hungarian people are scary and have little tolerance for English-speaking tourists (luckily, I am proven wrong). We didn't realize that Hungary wasn't in the EU and actually had their own currency. Luckily, there was a currency exchange in the station. What does 30 euro get you? I think about 6500 forint. I had a 5000 bill. I know its only like 20 bucks but it felt...ballin'!

This is Morgen and Linda with their 10,000 bills.

Budapest was beautiful. I'm not going to list a bunch of adjectives because that's dumb. The weather was hot and sunny, making the city look its best. Enjoy my pictures on Picasa:

Budapest

If you haven't noticed, I like lists. So I am going to list some things that I did/noticed/saw/etc in Budapest:

-I tried my very first Shandy, aka Gosser Zitron, at an outdoor cafe in Budapest. It's beer and lemonade mixed together essentially. It was good, but would have been better cold. But that's just Europe for you.


-We saw a lot of monks. Using cell phones.

-FUN FACT: Budapest is split in two. One side of the river is Buda and the other side is Pest. COOOOOOL!!

-Fashion street is fashionable, thank god. If you're gonna call a street 'fashion street' you have to live up to those expectations.

-They like lions and burger king. yeah.

-At the risk of sounding like a 5 year old, I kind of re-awakened the childhood dream of getting married in a castle when I saw THIS-->


-We opted out of taking a tram up the hill. We decided to hike. It was worth it.

-Gelato is so good. But I already knew this. What isn't good is dealing with their currency. It's hard to think of small purchases in terms of "thousands". Stress was caused over paying/splitting bills.

-Morgen likes big hats.

-There was a gay pride parade. Budapest ain't no San Francisco. The riot police were out in large numbers and streets were shut down.

-We visited the famous Hungarian baths. Budapest is built over natural springs, so it has these pools with natural water that is holistic. Hungarian men show off their 'bodies' in speedos, though I would have rather not seen some of what I saw.


So I am too lazy to write all the details about everything...hence this list is ending. Budapest is great and I would suggest seeing it for yourself if you ever get the opportunity. The girls who I went there with were great, and it definitely brought us closer together. Twas a success if I ever knew one!

T

Lost and Found in Translation

I've been in the fast line for the past five days so I haven't had ANY time to update this thing, my apologies. I am indeed alive and doing well. Honestly, the past week has probably been one of the best in my life.

All the expectations I had for this program have been surpassed. The city, the people, the food, the lifestyle, has all been so fun to be a part of.

I will start by saying that this program feels a bit like summer camp, but in the best sense possible. I'll give you a run-down of the week:

MONDAY: Woke up and went down to the lobby to meet some people for the train (U-Bahn is what it is called here). The station is quite close, and it's about a 20 minute ride to the University. This was the early morning ride of many.

Once we get to school, first thing on the agenda is breakfast. We get 2 rolls of bread, and a cup of coffee or tea. Apparently Americans are the only ones who eat substantial food in the morning. Though waking up early sucks, I actually enjoy going to breakfast with everyone because it has become a time when we discuss the events of the night before. It is also funny to see who is hung over, who got home at 6 in the morning, who made asses of themselves the night before. Breakfast of shame.

On Monday, we started with an opening ceremony, where a band played and the staff spoke about the program...you get the idea. After a tour of the school, I had class. First day=fun day. Musical chairs may have been played. Tacky? Yes. Fun? Definitely. We have 4 professors for one class, who switch off teaching days intermittently. They have all been great so far and the class is a great experience. Having students from all parts of the globe in one classroom has been eye-opening. Everyone has something to offer (Did you know that in Spain you can show a student ID at McDonald's and get discounts?) Anyways, class has been good, and we have it everyday M-F 9-noon. At noon, we get lunch...a huge upgrade from the prison meal we get at the beginning of the day.

Monday night we had the opening party at a restaurant called Shiraz. The moment we stepped in the door, everyone was given shots of some frozen raspberry drink. This was a moment when I realized that this program was going to be veeery fun. Everyone mingled and got to know each other more. As the sun went down, we headed over to Ride Club....a somewhat Eurotrash bar. It was the funniest night ever. Flashback to 7th grade dance circles (someone showcases their moves in the center), and that's what they throw down in Europe. Ukrainian girls dance like they are possessed by some higher force. As the night went on and drinks kept coming....everyone went wild and had fun. Best way to end the first day of the program.

TUESDAY: Real class began. It was fine. The professor was Polish and funny, and everyone was hungover so that was a topic for conversation. That evening was nice and we just went out for dinner at a hole in the wall place. WARNING: if you order pepperoni pizza in Vienna, this is what you get:




WEDNESDAY: Best day so far! Class was fine, then afterwords some of us went climbing on this Flak tower, which is pretty much a giant tower that was used by Austria in World War II. It was 120 km tall...which is however many feet (?). When we first arrived, we couldn't believe how tall it really was. Joubin (one of the leaders) decided to set up a competition: team USA vs team everywhere else. You got points for how high you could climb. Since USA was feeling a little nervous, some of us decided to walk across the street to find a bar and have a beer and a shot. We ended up going into this adorable little restaurant and ordered a delicious german beer called Franzikaner and a shot of god knows what. It was a great way to start the rest of the day....and was a bit of liquid courage. Here's a pic:



Anyway, we went back to the tower to take on our fellow Ukrainians, Portuguese, Croatians, etc. It was so much fun watching everyone climb, here's a video of Ashley from Nebraska who kicked all the girls (and some guys) asses...




Here's a pic of my showcasing my less than impressive climbing skills:



Anyways, the day was a great time. That night we went to an Austrian "heuriger". If you are ever in Austria, I highly suggest visiting one. They are old-fashioned places which serve you wine that they make (Vienna is one of the only big cities to produce wine within city limits), traditional food, and some great live music. The whole gang went and we watched the Espana/Germany game on a projector outside. This place was beautiful...you can see it in my picasa pictures. Here is a video of an impromptu dance I recorded...

Cute right?

Aftw

After the heuriger, we went over to club LOCO for kareoke night. Enough said. Fun stuff.

THURSDAY: The same routine for the day, except this day we added on our second class in the afternoon...another 3 hours. Definitely a damper in the week. Worst of all, the class was extremely boring and my Hungarian professor is painful to sit through. At the end of the day, I went to a great Vegetarian restaurant with some friends. I was surprised at how delicious their food was. I thought I was staying in, but my roommate (who is a 24 yr old Hungarian student) convinced me to go out with her for a while. We ended up having drinks with two of her professors! One of them was a 35 yr old Spanish guy (who was gorgeous) and I thought about suggesting he teach at Madison next year. I remember laughing thinking that 3 weeks ago I was lounging around in La Grange, and now here I am with some Hungarian girl and her Spanish professor having drinks in freaking Austria. Weird. I tried to keep up with the intellect, but who really knows. My roommate is awesome though and I'm glad we went out together.

FRIDAY: Today after class, we went to the Belvedere Palace. It was beautiful. My feet hurt now. I'm waking up at 5:45 tomorrow to catch a 7 am train to Budapest, Hungary. What a life.

Miss you all. I'll update sometime next week...there's some crazy stuff on the schedule...but you'll just have to wait and see!

Picasa pics:

VIENNA

LOVE,

T

Au Revoir Paris, Guten Tag Wien!

My transition from Paris to Vienna has been great. The morning I left Paris, it was storming (thunder, lightening, heavy rainfall)...so the flight had more turbulence than I've ever experienced. I literally was gripping onto my seat, and there were screaming people behind me which wasn't helping the situation. Luckily, it only lasted about 15 minutes or so. But I'm not gonna lie, I may have said a prayer.

I want to mention the flight experience with FlyNikki. We are seriously getting shafted in the US with our plane service. I've never felt so welcome on a plane! The flight attendants were beautiful women who wore bright pink tops and short skirts! They even wore high heels, pink lipstick, and pink berets! When I walked on the flight, the plane was playing Kid Rock's "All Summer Long" loudly. I felt like I was supposed to be heading to Vegas or something. They had the best service I ever experienced on a plane. So including the awful turbulence, it was a memorable flight.

I arrived at Wombat's hostel in Vienna. This hostel was super unique. When I first walked in, I saw a giant common room with a huge couch, a pool table, and this massive "chill spot" which is pretty much a big elevated cushion with a million pillows. There were people lying all over the place, clearly exhausted from the heat or the night before. This hostel was much bigger than the one in Paris, and they were much more English-friendly and hospitable.

I rode solo most of the day, grabbing food and walking around Vienna by myself. Later on I met my roommates, 2 Aussies and a German.

The best part of this hostel is called the WomBar. It's a public bar located in the basement of the hostel! Upon arrival, they give you a coupon for a free drink. When my roommates disappeared, I was left alone and hadn't really met anyone in the daytime. So, I mustered up some courage and decided to go to the bar by myself and hope for the best. Best decision I ever made! I had a blast. The spain/paraguay game was on, and everyone was drinking and having a good time. I met backpackers and travelers from all over, especially the United States and Australia. A group of girls from CA (and a girl from Hinsdale!) were very nice and we hung out the entire night.

One thing that I am learning on this trip is that you have to forget about your insecurities with talking to strangers. Yes, you feel kind of stupid for a minute or so, but it's a hell of a lot more fun than sitting by yourself in the room. Especially when you're a solo traveler, I am always relieved when I meet people who are so willing to invite me along.

Today I moved into Haus Erasmus, where I'll be living the next couple weeks. After I unpacked, I decided to get out and really see Vienna. I can't even describe how much I fell in love with this city. It's beautiful, clean, part urban/part country, picturesque, unique. My pictures are nice, but you really cannot grasp how shockingly nice it is. Normally you expect big cities to be somewhat grimy and gritty, but with nice architecture, museums, etc. But Vienna, it was like walking into a meticulously-kept home where the owners treat their guests like they've known them forever.

Paris was outstanding, but after coming to Vienna there are certain things that I look back on (solely as a tourist) in Paris that make it harder to truly love. Paris reminds me of New York. They are nice people, but not overly hospitable. I didn't live there long enough to judge, but from what I experienced, the service was downright terrible. Andrew and I waited 40 minutes for a check one evening (after asking 3 times for it). It's a much colder culture. But Vienna reminded me of a small town where everyone is pleasant and friendly. First off, they speak perfect english and they are extremely nice. I was lost earlier today, and a women LITERALLY walked me two blocks and told me which U-bahn(train) to take back. I told her not to, but she insisted because I was alone without a map (speaking of which, I'm an idiot for forgetting a map when I explore by myself). When i went to a cafe for lunch, the service reminded me of America where they are very attentive, and I appreciate that.

Tonight, everyone in the program met up in the lobby to walk around town. It was a great chance for introductions. People are from EVERYWHERE! A decent amount of Americans, Ukraine, Croatia, Canada, Spain, China, Japan, etc. It was really nice and I can tell we will have a great time as a group. Once back in the haus, a couple of us had some beers up in the "game room" and got to know each other further. Most people were jet-lagged, so the night ended pretty early. But so far, I feel really great about the whole thing. Tomorrow we officially start with an opening ceremony in the morning. I am looking forward to all the fun activities that await!

Here is a great video for what happens at midnight in Paris...




And here is an awkward mini-tour of my room....don't make fun of me...




Happy 4th of July from Vienna,

T

Tara Tries Not Being an Idiot

First and foremost, I am proud to say that I have not lost anything or have had anything stolen. Knock on wood. That's not to say I haven't had my brightest moments. Yesterday is a great example of my of "series of unfortunate events".

I decided to wake up early and take a day trip to Versailles, King Louis the XIV ridiculous palace which is about 40 minutes outside of the city by train. While his people starved and died in the city, Louis created a massive, lavish estate...he clearly was compensating for something. I read that he had serious erectile dysfunction concerns (really though), so maybe he actually was compensating! For whatever reason, it was insanely beautiful.

Anyways, Andrew had given me good instructions for how to go about getting to Versailles. Take the subway to Austerlitz, hop on the RER line C until Versailles RG. Simple? Not for me. I hopped on the RER line C...and ended up on the train for an hour and a half. The RER line C splits in two like a fork in the road, Train A heads for Versailles and Train B heads for...not Versailles. I ended up in 'Not Versailles'. What should have been a 40 minute train ride because a two hour trip from hell. By the way, the train was a steambox with no air conditioning in 90 degree weather. FAIL.

When I got to Versailles, I walked the premises with some Australian girls I met on the train (they made the same mistake that I did, so our mutual frustration made us friends). I had recently purchased new sneakers that morning so that my feet wouldn't hurt with all the walking around. However, I still managed to get blisters because the shoes were new and not broken in. FAIL.

On my way back to the hostel, I stopped in Subway because I was starving for a cheap meal. I took it to go, so that I could eat it in the common room of the hostel. When I was buzzed in (you have to get buzzed in to enter the hostel) I somehow managed to open the door on my face (?), if that is humanly possible. It hurt and I laughed along with some other people in the room. FAIL.

I proceed to walk over to the table to eat, where I trip over a chair. Seriously? My feet were aching so I wasn't being careful. FAIL.

Then I FINALLY am seated and think nothing else can go wrong. I open up my bottle of sprite, only to have the whole thing explode all over the table. While I was slightly embarrassed, I was more upset that half of my sprite would not be in my belly. FAIL.

I was absolutely exhausted from the day, so I decided to go nap. My clothes were slightly sweaty, so I thoughtlessly changed in my room without shutting the shades of the window. After I was dressed, I looked outside across to the other building, where a man was standing in the window smiling and waving. I was too tired to care, but quickly closed the shade. FAIL.

I managed to survive the rest of the evening just fine. SUCCESS.

Paris

Check out the photos!


Enjoy! I'll post next from Austria tomorrow!

T

First Thoughts

Hello all!

I haven't updated this yet because I found out that my hostel does not have wifi, a bummer indeed. But McDonald's saved the day!

I suppose I should back-track and give you a run-down of what I have been doing. Scariest moment I've had so far is getting off the plane. I was utterly disoriented and confused because 1) I did not sleep a wink the entire red eye flight (Mom, I told you I should have taken a sedative!) 2) I can't understand French AT ALL. Learning that Sortie means "exit" was my greatest revelation. Once I actually figured out how to hail a cab, all was well.

I checked in at the Bastille Hostel around 10 am. It was packed with non-English speaking college-aged people. I was a little surprised because I thought there would be a stronger American population there. There are a lot of Asians, South Americans, Eastern Europeans, etc.

I am in love with the neighborhood that the Hostel is located. It's in the Bastille district, from what I hear is an up and coming hipster location. There are cafes and stores literally everywhere. Very cool.

The first night me and Andrew went out for Indian food. It was delicious. But by 9 I was nearly passing out, so I went back to the hostel and crashed like a brick. Best sleep I have ever had--on the worst bed I have ever had.


This is all very basic, and I'm missing a lot, but overall I'm having an amazing time. I'll end on my first impressions:
1) Parisians are indeed cold. However, on occasion I find an extra-friendly one who restores my confidence in all of them.
2)I found out that "breakfast" in Paris means a single baguette and a cup of tea/coffee. Thank god I packed FiberOne bars.
3) Dad, I hate to tell you this, but not ALL french food is good. I had the worst salad and steak I've probably ever had. It was cheap. I bet I could have gotten a better steak at Chiles. I think that French food is good, but you need to pay up for it.
4) The Mona Lisa was great, but I enjoyed watching people look at it more so than actually looking at it. It was a "manergerie"...french for zoo. No matter what country they come from, every tourist pushes to the front so they can film/get a picture of it...do they really need to remember what it looks like? Buy a print. Google image it. HELLO.
5) The french are a million times more stylish than Americans. The sidewalk is like a runway for these people.
6) Smoking actually looks cool here. It's like the Marlboro-man effect, but with good-looking french people. I haven't caved though, so don't worry Mom and Dad.
7) The city is downright stunning. We've had beautiful weather every day...and the sun doesn't set until 10 pm. It's surreal.

I'm almost out of juice on my comp, so this is ending!

Kristina, I have not broken down and cried yet. YET.

Love you all! Pictures to come soon of places I've been/people I've met!

T

Welcome!

Hello everyone! By everyone I mean my mother, who will most likely be my only follower. I just set this blog up and am learning the ropes, so hopefully it will make sense once I get acquainted with it. Anyways, I wanted to do a blog for a couple of reasons:

1) Avoiding repetitive emails. You can't argue with efficiency.
2) Posting pictures and putting up some of my Flip Videos. I want to use my technology to the fullest! It will give you a more extensive idea of what I'm up to.
3) Reminding my parents that I am indeed alive, and that I was not taken into the eastern European sex trade.
4) Telling you all the wonderful food I am eating so that you will inevitably become jealous.
5) Giving me something to look back on when the trip ends, because anyone who knows me knows that I am rapidly approaching Alzheimer's.

I'll try my best to update it frequently and keep it interesting! Don't worry, I am not interested in giving you a history lesson.

I don't have a phone, so if you want to contact me I'd suggest via email at tarashannon821@gmail.com or you can find me on skype. Feel free to respond to my posts as well!

Off to Paris tomorrow, au revoir!