Female Solo Travel

Alright, so this is a topic I have been thinking about for a while now. I am constantly bombarded with questions and comments from people because I am doing so much travelling alone. So, I'm going to share my thoughts on the matter! Fasten your seatbelts people, because it's about to get real.

Travelling alone is not that big of a deal. I know that probably sounds crazy, but it's true. I have found that when I travel someplace new I normally spend the first day wandering. In fact, I generally get lost. ON PURPOSE. When I told my Becoming a Scholar students about this at Bluffton, they all were shocked and had pretty similar questions: "Aren't you afraid?" "What if you are abducted?" These questions are still following me to Hungary. My students always seem genuinely sad for me when they realize I am travelling alone. I am frequently asked if anyone will be with me, and when I reply that I'll be alone, they generally say, "Oh, that's too bad." Other students have mentioned that they are afraid to fly to a different country alone. I'm always asked whether or not being alone in a big city frightens me.

The answer isn't terribly complicated. I love to travel. I love meeting new people, seeing new places, experiencing a new culture, and if I am alone while doing these things, it isn't the end of the world. Travelling alone has its perks. When travelling alone, you can take your time when observing new places and you can absorb more about a culture or place. You can make your own decisions about where to go, what to see, whether or not something is worth the entrance fee, and no one will be hurt or angry. If I want to sleep in until noon, that's my decision. If I want to wake up at 7:30am, I can do that without making anyone else grumpy. My choices are my own, and it is a liberating feeling.

As to being afraid, for the most part I feel very comfortable. The great thing about big cities is that there are so many people that no one really cares what you are doing. However, I would be a liar if I said I am never afraid or uncomfortable. There were times in Vienna when it was getting late and I did not feel safe walking alone. Simple answer? Don't go walking around alone late at night. There are other precautions that I take as well. I always inform my family of my plans, and usually tell people here in Hungary as well. I pay attention to my intuition, and if I feel uncomfortable I get out of the situation. I've also found that acting confident not only helps me feel confident, but also gives of the impression that I know what I'm doing. In Vienna I had multiple people asking me for directions to various landmarks, so either I look approachable or knowledgeable (or both). And, best of all, I have never been in a situation so far that I felt in danger.

The fact that travelling alone is such a big deal for women is a sad commentary on society. I realize there are aspects of travelling alone that make it frightening for both genders (not knowing the language, possibilities of getting lost, etc.), but that it is considered even more dangerous for women is depressing and a clear sign that something needs to change. I know I'm not the first person to express these thoughts and ideas-- there are entire blogs dedicated to female solo travel-- but how many times will I have to fend off questions like the ones mentioned above? Why must women be pressured to stay in one place out of fear?

In conclusion, I would also like to mention that I think it is important for people to step outside of their comfort zone. When I push myself beyond what I thought I could do, I learn more about myself and grow as a person. Travel is a fantastic opportunity to grow, to learn about other people, and to open your eyes to what the world is like from a different perspective. It's a way to gain confidence, to learn how to budget time and money, and to make new friends. I would say it is completely worth it. So, although I may viewed as unusual and foolhardy, I refuse to let fear (my own or anyone else's) hold me back.

Budapest Day Trip

Szilvi and I posing after the concert

This weekend I went on another day trip to Budapest! Szilvi and Lajos are part of a choir at their church and had a concert in Budapest. They were kind enough to invite me along, and I leaped at the opportunity to return to Hungary's capital.

The choir left early on Sunday morning (at 5:45), so I spent the night at Szilvi's house. She made Mexican food for dinner, and it was delicious! We watched YouTube videos and enjoyed each others company until midnight, and then went to bed. I woke up at 4:30, got ready for the day, and then we were off! The bus ride was uneventful, so after a few hours we arrived safely in Budapest. The choir performed at Buda Castle in the National History Museum.  They sounded fantastic!

Matthias Church 

After the performance, we walked around the Buda part of the city. We saw where the Hungarian head of government (I think he is called a prime minister, but I'm not positive... sorry!), and there was a changing of the guards while we were there. Then, we went towards Matthias Church and Fisherman's Bastion. They are so beautiful and offer such amazing views of the city! We went to eat lunch at a self serve cafe, and it was delicious. Then, we walked back towards the bus and went home.

Fisherman's Bastion

Okay, so I think Budapest is incredible, and I'm going to try and explain why I feel that way. First of all, the city itself is unbelievably lovely. The architecture is stunning. Secondly, there is so much history there. Yesterday while we were walking around Lajos pointed out a building that the US occupied for a long time after the World Wars, and you could see the bullet holes (or maybe the damage was caused by a bomb blast) in the walls. The history is right there staring you in the face if you pay attention. The third reason I love Budapest is the topography. The Buda half of the city is really hilly, while the Pest side is quite flat. There is also a river, which adds to the atmosphere; basically there's a lot of variety and something to interest everyone! Budapest also has an atmosphere that I find different from other capital cities I have been too. I don't know how to describe it except to say that the city feels safe, is clean, the people seem friendly, and I thoroughly enjoy myself every time I visit.

Another Picture of Matthias Church 

The view of Parliament from Buda Castle 

Hungarian Food

Stuffed Cabbage 

This past week I have been talking with the 9 KNY students about food. Why, you may ask? Well, they have an English exam at the end of May which will determine whether or not they can stay in the bilingual program or not, and one of the categories is food.  We have discussed British food, American food, and Hungarian food, but a few days ago the students surprised Aman (my British co-worker) and me by telling us a few of Hungary's more unusual foods.


Before I discuss these foods which are quite strange to Americans and Brits alike, let me just say that a lot of food in Hungary is quite enjoyable. Everyone has heard of goulash (at least I hope you have), which originated in Hungary, and there are many other food which I really like, including stuffed cabbage and chicken paprikash.  Buzzfeed Food even did an article about Hungarian food called "33 Hungarian Foods the Whole World Should Know and Love" which one of my students shared with me (If you would like to read it, here's the link: http://www.buzzfeed.com/anitabadejo/hungarian-foods-the-world-should-know ). Although there are common Hungarian foods that are still a bit odd to my American tastebuds, like soups made out of fruit, I still haven't tasted anything that I couldn't eat.


Getting back to the story, my students decided to bring up more unusual Hungarian foods for the enjoyment of Aman's and my reaction, and we did not disappoint. Here are some of the foods they told us about:

1. Some Hungarian will occasionally eat fat on toast instead of butter. One of the students also mentioned that some of the older generation will put sugar or paprika powder on the fat. I was told that this tradition started because families didn't have much money, so they would use fat instead of butter of margarine. 
2. Hungarians have a day when the family gets together and they kill a pig. They then make the pork into bacon, sausage, etc., but some Hungarians also eat parts of the pig that are not eaten in American, like the pig's ear, tail, and legs.  I think they also use pigs blood in some sort of recipe, but I'm not sure what recipe. 
3. There is another meal where they eat the genitalia of a rooster. Hungarian also will eat the lower leg of a chicken, the chicken's neck, and the head of a chicken. 

So, to my American friends, these all probably sound a bit strange and unappetising.  I personally haven't tried any of these foods yet, but I would probably try them if the opportunity arose. They have to taste alright for people to still be eating them, right?

On the other hand, some American foods seemed really gross to my 9 KNY students. First, they thought gravy looked really disgusting.  I find this amusing since I don't know anyone who dislikes gravy, but maybe if I make it for them they will change their mind. The students also did not like the idea of shepherd's pie, quiche, or chicken pot pie, and thought all three looked inedible.  They also think stuffing looks unappetizing.

I think discussing food with my students has been extremely entertaining and educational for both sides. There were a lot of horrified looks and laughter, and I personally had a great time. It's been fun learning about the cultural differences between Hungarians and Americans, and I look forward to learning more!

Vienna

I did not have to work from May 1st to May 7th, so I took advantage of the break to travel to Vienna. I left early on Saturday morning, took the bus to Békéscsaba, then a train from Békéscsaba to Budapest, and finally a train from Budapest to Vienna. Overall it was a little less than 7 hours of travel time, and very inexpensive, especially compared to train prices in Western Europe! The trip was fairly uneventful, except that from Budapest to Vienna I had to sit on the floor; they sold more tickets than there were seats, so I sat on the stairs in front of the exit with a group of boys from England.

I arrived at around two in the afternoon, and immediately did something equal parts embarrassing and entertaining. There was a taxi queue outside the train station, so I walked up to one of the cars and asked if they could take me to Wombat's City Hostel. Much to my chagrin and amusement, the car was NOT A TAXI! He had parked in the taxi queue, but somehow I managed to choose the only car that wasn't a taxi! When I realized my mistake, I said "Really? Well that's embarrassing," and started to laugh. So, I decided to take the metro instead. The metro was uneventful and it only took 15 minutes to go from the train station to my hostel.

I checked into the hostel, dropped off my luggage in my room (they had lockers in each room, so all of my belongings were secure), and took off to explore Vienna. My hostel was in the Naschmarkt area of the city, which was advertised as a sort of farmers market, so I decided to begin my explorations there.  Much to my disappointment, there weren't any fresh fruits or vegetables; instead, there were used clothes that were on the ground and looked fairly dingy and unclean. And, to make things even more excited, a man peed on the street right next to me. How weird is that?!

Next, I took off in the general direction of the city centre. However, on my way I saw the dome of Karskirche, and decided to wander in that direction. I meandered for 3 hours around Vienna without looking at a map, decided I was hungry, found a restaurant, and then used the restaurant's free wifi to figure out how to get back to my hostel.  I arrived back at the hostel with no problems, and met my roommates. The other three girls who were staying with me were all from different parts of the world. Ali, a 30 year old, was born in Puerto Rico, moved to LA when she was 12, and was in the middle of a six month solo backpacking trip through Europe. The other two girls didn't tell me how old there were, but seemed close to my age. One of the girls was from Korea and the other was from the Philippines. They were nice enough, but the Korean girl woke up every morning between 6:30 and 7:00, and was very loud, and then returned late each night at around midnight and would turn on all the lights; as you can imagine, I found this irritating, but it wasn't a huge deal. Excluding my noisy roommate and the spotty wifi, Wombat's City Hostel was extremely clean, the staff was pleasant, and it was inexpensive, so I would highly recommend it to anyone travelling to Vienna.

St. Stephen's Cathedral

On the second day, Sunday, I started off my morning by walking to the city centre and attending mass at St. Stephen's Cathedral. The cathedral itself is quite lovely, but going to mass there was incredible. The mass itself lasted two hours because there was a string section, choir, a professional soloists who performed mass parts from Hayden's Mass in a Time of War, which incidentally the choirs at Bluffton sang my sophomore year.  The accoustics in the cathedral were amazing, the voices were sublime, and I had a lovely time. After mass was over, I spent some time looking around the cathedral and taking pictures before returning to the city centre. Much to my disappointment, most of Vienna is closed on Sunday's because they are observing the sabbath, so I spent a few hours wandering around the city centre window shopping. there was a souvenir shop open, and since it was colder and windier than I had expected, I bought a scarf. For lunch I stopped to eat a bratwurst from a street vendor, and it was delicious!

Secession Building

Next, I headed back to my hostel to drop off a few things before walking to the Secession Building, which looks interesting with its gold dome, but was vastly disappointing. This building is a modern art museum. I personally don't enjoy modern art much, so it wasn't really enjoyable to me, especially since one of the exhibits was a bunch of insolation that had been cut out into capital letters and then nailed to a wall. There was also an exhibit that contained pictures of plaster feet. The best part of the Secession building was the Beethoven Frieze, which is a fresco created by Gustav Klimt that narrates Beethoven's 9th Symphony.

Karlskirche

My next stop was Karlskirche. This church was incredible! It is so stunning from the outside, but the inside is even more amazing! There is a small museum section that contains religious art and objects, as well a photography of the church, and then there was the church itself.  The dome is beautiful, and the whole place had lovely artwork and exquisite detail. I personally found this church more appealing than St. Stephen's cathedral because of how light and lovely it is, but I enjoyed both considerably.

I took a selfie in front of Schönbrunn Palace 

On Monday, my third day in Vienna, I went to Schönbrunn Palace.  This palace is where the Habsburg's spent their summers.  The palace itself is beautiful, ornate, and quite large, but the gardens were so extensive it was amazing. They include the first zoo, a maze, numerous fountains, and the Gloriette. Schönbrunn Palace was my favorite part of Vienna by far.  

Inside the Belvedere

After visiting Schönbrunn, I went to find the Hunderwasserhaus (a crazy building which appears to have no straight lines in the entire place) before going to the Belvedere. The Belvedere is another palace, although it wasn't inhabited by the royal family- it was built by Prince Eugen who was a general.  Like the Louvre, the Belvedere is now an art museum. I enjoyed looking at the art, but I also spent a substantial amount of time enjoying the palace itself and its extensive gardens. Unfortunately I only had time to go the the Upper Belvedere, but I still enjoyed myself thoroughly.  

Hunderwasserhaus

On Tuesday morning, I woke up early, took the metro to the train station, and went home. I was tired, but happy with my trip. So, I went to a new country, explored a city, saw a lot of beautiful places, and had a great time. It was difficult to settle down into working after vacation, but it was nice to see the students and teachers again. 

I also have started to finalize plans for this summer! In the beginning of July I will go with Szilvia to Poland, visiting Krakow, Auschwitz, an old salt mine, and some other interesting things in that area. At the end of  July, I will return to Rome to meet my Aunt Mary! This time I will be able to see the Sistine Chapel since they won't be electing a pope, so that's really exciting! We also might take a few day trips, so that will be fun. 

Finally, in August my parents and younger sister will meet me in Ireland. I am so thrilled to see my family! 

Those are my upcoming trips, and I will do my best to start blogging more about Hungarian culture and my life here. Ta-ta for now!  

Easter and other tales

The longer I am in Hungary, the more I appreciate certain things, and the more I miss certain aspects of life in the US. I miss my family, and I really miss being able to understand people. I'm still trying to learn Hungarian, and failing miserably.  But, life goes on, and here's what has happened recently.

Over Easter break, I spent most of my time sleeping, cleaning, and reading.  I read the Anne of Green Gables series, which was one of my favorite series growing up. It was nice to reminisce! Then, on Easter Sunday I went to Békéscsaba to spend the day with Szilvia and Lajos. It was quite nice! Szilvie made wonderful food and the company was superb. On my way to Békéscsaba I met a nice lady on the bus. I moved over so she could sit, and after she spoke to me for a while in Hungarian (which I didn't understand), she asked me a question. The question contained the word "magyar" in it (that means Hungarian for my non-Hungarian friends), and I replied by saying "Nem ertem. Amerikai vagyok" (which means I don't understand. I'm an American.). She began to laugh, said something in Hungarian, and then said IN ENGLISH, "Good girl." My day was made! She then helped me to buy my next ticket from Gyula to Békéscsaba, so I really appreciated it.

I am now on another break, from May 1st to May 7th. Tomorrow two of the classes, 13B and 12A, have a graduation ceremony. Then, on May 5th-7th, they will take their written exams. They also take speaking exams at the beginning of June, but in the month in between they no longer have to go to school. There will be optional study sessions for them, but that's it. I do find it interesting that they students have a graduation before they take their exams. When I asked students about it, they just shrugged and said they weren't sure. Oh well, I hope all of my students pass with flying colors! I'm glad that these students are almost done. I know that it is such a relief to reach the end of high school, and they all seem thrilled to be finished with this portion of their academic career.  It will also be nice to have a few free periods, and I'm planning to use them to learn Hungarian and help out with study sessions.

For the rest of my break, I'm planning to go to Vienna! I'm really excited; it looks like a beautiful city. I'll hopefully have many stories to share when I get back.

Dancing, an Orange Truck, and a New Country

I'm sorry that I haven't written in a while! Let me catch you up on life in Hungary.

Three weeks ago, I was invited to Gyula to watch a traditional Hungarian folk dance concert. The teacher who invited me, Olga, had a daughter dancing in the concert. This was my first interaction with Hungarian dancing, and it was so much fun! I enjoyed the folk music, and the dancing was really interesting.  The dancers stomped their feet and slapped their thighs at different points in the dance, and it added a really interesting rhythmic aspect to the music and dancing. Olga's friends also gave me a tour of Gyula, which was nice of them, and then I went home.

The next few weeks were pretty low key for me. I didn't travel, and not much happened at school.  However, last weekend I went to the mall in Békéscsaba to window shop and attempt to entertain myself.  I made it without any issues, and it was nice to get out of my apartment.

Inside the Cathedral in Szeged

This past week is when everything started to get interesting. I've still been waiting for all of my visa paperwork to be processed, and I received a letter telling me to travel to Szeged to retrieve my residence card. Szeged is around 2 hours away from Sarkad and I needed someone who spoke Hungarian to take me, so poor Szilvia had to drive me all the way there. We had to go on a Wednesday or Thursday between 1pm and 4pm, and were supposed to arrive at least an hour before they closed, so we left school early on Wednesday. We picked up the card with minimal hassle, and then walked around the city. Szilvie went to university in Szeged, so she could show me some cool places and reminisce about her time there. I was annoyed we had to travel that far to pick up the card, but Szeged was lovely and the company superb, so I had a nice time.

Trying on the firefighter uniform

Then, on Thursday, one of my students (Ancsi)  invited me to visit the fire station in Sarkad. The firefighters in Sarkad are volunteers, so it was really nice of them to take time to show me around.

Driving the truck!

The firetruck in Sarkad is from Germany and is orange! Apparently it is the only orange firetruck in Hungary, so that was really neat. The firefighters took me for a ride in the truck and let me try on one of their uniforms. It was really heavy and warm.  I also got to use the hose they use to put out fires. It was pretty heavy and the water pressure was really strong.



Then they let me drive the truck! Like all the vehicles I've encountered in Europe, it was a stick shift, so I had to remember how to drive a manual vehicle, which was entertaining. I couldn't stop smiling once I was driving around the parking lot.

It was so much fun! Ancsi's family was so nice, and I was so glad she offered to show me her father's job.



Then, to top off the exciting week, I left early on Saturday morning (around 5:30), to go to Romania! Szilvie, her husband Lajos, Lajos' cousin Tibi, and two of Tibi's friends were going to the Bihar mountains in Romania for a hiking trip, and invited me to accompany them. I of course was thrilled to see Romania, and thought that hiking sounded really fun.

Some of the lovely crocuses

Once we arrived, the views were incredible. There were crocus blossoms everywhere, and it was beautiful. We ended up hiking around 14 km and reached an altitude  near 1600 km. When I agreed to go with them, I definitely overestimated how well my joints would hold up with all that exercise. I ended up having to walk pretty slow and take a lot of breaks, which was frustrating and a bit embarrassing, but they were all really nice about it. My knees were not happy with all of that walking, and as we got higher there was some fairly deep snow that I kept sinking in and it made it more difficult for all of us. The weather was nice when we arrived, but it started to rain about halfway through our hike, so we ended up being a bit cold and wet. It was pretty exhausting, but it was a great feeling once we were finished and made it back to the vehicles! I'm really glad that Szilvia invited me even though I was so slow and sore, and I can look back now and laugh at how tired and frustrated I was, not to mention that the scenery was more than worth all of the sore joints and muscles. Plus, I got two new stamps in my passport, which is always exciting to me.

This next weekend I will hopefully travel to Debrecen where the school's men's volleyball team will play in a tournament. Debrecen is also supposed to be an interesting city with a lot to do, so I'm glad I can support my students and see more of Hungary.

I'm feeling 22...

That's right, as of March 1st I'm 22 years old! And yes, I quoted Taylor Swift.  Despite how much I despise Taylor Swift, alluding to her song seemed entirely too appropriate here to let my dislike dissuade me from using her lyrics!

A birthday gift from a few students in 10C

I spent my 22nd birthday with Szilvia and her husband, Lajos, in Békéscsaba and Gyula.  I went to their house in Békéscsaba. They gave me beautiful flowers, a delicious lunch, and, best of all, I was able to spend the day in their delightful company! They were so kind and hospitable, and I feel so blessed to have met them during my time in Sarkad! Lajos had to work, so Szilvia and I went to the Csaba Center (the mall in Békéscsaba) to change my dollars to forints and shop.  We ended up in the bookstore, which I'm sure isn't a surprise to all of my friends back home! Once Lajos was done working, we went to Gyula. We looked at the castle and world clock, walked by the river, and ate at the most adorable confectioners shop; it includes a little museum in the back that shows the tools used when it first opened 100 years ago.  All in all, it was a lovely day.






 Saturday was Women's Day, and in Hungary it is celebrated by giving women  flowers, so I received flowers from a few of my students!   It was so sweet, and is just another example of how kind and welcoming they have been.

Flowers for Women's Day

More flowers for Women's Day!

Unfortunately I spent most of this weekend with a migraine, so I was unable to go on any new adventures, but I am already starting to plan for next weekend! I'm debating between returning to Budapest for the weekend, taking a train to Vienna, or flying to Belgium! I found a flight to Belgium for only $82 (roundtrip!), so that is the direction I am leaning towards at the moment.  I'm sure that wherever I end up, it will be fantastic.