Budapest!

Dobry den!

I am back from a three-day stint in Budapest, Hungary and it was an excellent adventure! I took a 7 am train on Friday morning with no expectations for the city.... after living in Prague, I didn't feel like any other Eastern European capital could compare. I am in love with Budapest though...its a sprawling city across two sides of a river (Buda and Pest) with a great art collections and museums, ancient monuments, friendly people, good food, and a much more laid-back nightlife. I think the best adjective to describe the city would be eclectic. I feel like wherever I went or whatever I did my thoughts were "really? things/places/food/people like this actually exist?"

I have friends from school who are studying in Budapest, but elected to stay in a wonderful little hostel outside the city called Backpack Guesthouse with some other students in my program. It is what I imagine a commune in 1970s Northern California would be like...bright and colorful with a communal kitchen, outdoor garden, tv and game room, and lots of pet cats. The characters we encountered were colorful to say the least, but it was definitely an experience. The backyard even had a large, authentic Mongolian tent (called a Yurt I believe) that two Mongolian guests built when they were staying there last year. Some of the kids tried to sleep in the hammocks in the Yurt, but it wasn't quite warm enough to do that.

I did a lot of sightseeing (and getting lost) around the big castle and hill in the Buda area and some of the museums and baths on the Pest side. Budapest was built on a collection of hot springs, so there are public baths (kind of like giant outdoor hot tubs) dating back to the ancient civilizations that you can go relax in and get massages, enjoy the sauna, etc. After being cold for a month, relaxing in the hot water felt like heaven. I had a hard time leaving!

All in all it was a great weekend and a great first travel experience! I hope everyone enjoyed Dad's 50th birthday and I was really sad to miss it! The pictures look great though!

I have also accepted an internship with CNN international in Hong Kong for the summer so I guess I won't be living stateside for quite awhile...can't wait!

Na schledanou!