Today is my 201st day in Hungary. I would have posted a great 'I've been here for 200 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!' post yesterday, but I didn't think to check how long I've been here until all of my exchange student friends started posting about it. Oops? I did a big emotional post not too long ago, so I think it's a bit too soon to get weepy again.
That being said, I still pretty much feel the same :)
It's kind of like being a senior all over again; you don't really know what the homework is, everyone is getting super nostalgic, and I know I'm excited for no identifiable reason. Also, did anybody else get that feeling in their last couple months of highschool, like time is standing still but suddenly another week has gone by? And you really want the school year to be over and to get to graduation but also you can't imagine your big cliche high school experience being over and you're sure you're going to trip and face-plant walking across the stage?
I don't know, I kinda feel like that. Except I'm gonna trip at the airport trying to run to my parents with two luggages and a carry on instead of while accepting my diploma. The TSA will have no idea that I am in fact bring a dangerous weapon into the country. That weapon is me. My body is the weapon.It is dangerous. I am eager. And clumsy. So is my writing style. You get the picture.
~Sorry for the lack of a coherent and thought provoking post! I have a lot on my plate with this big presentation coming up, and there's influenza outbreaks left and right. It's hard to stay on a sleep schedule when after you've been sick and sleeping at odd hours for a couple days.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Return Flights Are Like Good Chocolate, Bitter But Sweet
Coming back home to Debrecen after Rotary events is usually great; I'm so happy to sleep in my own bed, see my school friends, and eat Eva's cooking. But coming back from language camp wasn't that way at all.
Language camp ended about a week ago. This time around everyone was sick, but we were all so so happy. I love my Hungarian friends, but they can't fully get your experience like a community of exchange students can, and after a long couple months nothing beats kicking back with some homies from your home country.
Even though camp was great, I was still excited to get back home. It was really bittersweet and awkward though. As we were boarding the bus to the train station after our last breakfast together, we all kind of realized that we had passed one of the major benchmarks. It was always in the back of my mind, and I'm sure many of the other exchange students' minds, that the second language camp meant we would have to leave soon. I guess it just always seemed like it was part of the distant future, like graduation or filling out job applications. You know it'll happen someday, but today is just never the day until suddenly it is.
When you arrive in your host country the timeline is usually something like: get adjusted to school and family, make it to the travel ban, and get through Christmas. That's all I could think about. Now I'm done with camp, we all realized the only milestone left is Euro Tour in May. Then we have to leave. Where did the time go! I only have four-ish months till I'm back in the States. Talking about this with my friends at camp made me--and I'm sure many other people--feel super weird. I can only describe the feeling as homesickness. I know, homesickness is normal and expected. There's really nothing weird about it. The weird thing is that I don't really know what--or where--I'm homesick for.
It's no news to me that I've become really attached to my Hungarian life. The difficult thing is that my Hungarian life and my States life are different. Just the other week my friends and I were talking about how we've been having weird dreams. Things like our biological families speaking our host language, or our host families being in our houses in our home countries. And it's not just a one time one student thing. I have polled a lot of my exchange friends, and it turns out a lot of people are having dreams reconciling parts of their lives from both countries almost every night. I don't think it's a coincidence.
Talking about our dreams took a turn for the dramatic when we realized that we couldn't remember a lot of things about our host countries (sidenote: it might have just been my fault, I have mentioned it first and incited slight hysteria). Some of it was just little things: the directions to our high school, what we usually ate for dinner, the Netflix password...
But, there are also huge things that have been forgotten. Personally, I feel really guilty about it. I realized I've kind of forgotten what people look like or sound like. For example, I was trying to describe Erick to someone the other day, but ended up having to look up a picture to show them (sidenote: sorry baby brother, you know I love you). It's not like I couldn't recognize them if I saw them on the street, but it's still nerve wracking to know you only have a general idea of what the people you've lived with for seventeen years look like. Eventually the guilt builds up and you start to feel a little homesick, at least I have been, which I think is a natural response. When you feel bad about something you tend to obsess over it.
There's really no kind way to say it, but I kind of forget sometimes that I have a life outside of Hungary. I've been so content over the last six months (sidenote: yikes) that time passed and I didn't really remember I had stuff to do and people to keep in touch with in the States. Sometimes it feels like I only message my parents when something goes wrong or I need help. (sidenote: and I'm really sorry for that you guys. It's not on a purpose I promise). But, ever since I got my return flight information during camp, it's all I can think about. I'll leave from Budapest at 5:30 in the morning I think, and arrive in the States at 6:00 pm the same day. I'm so excited to go back, and I feel like I could leave this second. I also cannot believe it's really happening.
On June 28th I'm going to leave my family. On June 28th I'm also going to return to my family.
And, I'm sure the second I get back it's going to feel like all of this was one big dream. I'm already having a hard time believing I got this lucky.
(sidenote: I just wanted to end this blog post with puszi for everyone that I haven't kept up with. I said it wouldn't happen, but it did and I'm sorry. My affection for everyone in the States has not diminished though, and I promise to break out my mad Hungarian cooking skills and catch up with you the moment I'm back :) )
Language camp ended about a week ago. This time around everyone was sick, but we were all so so happy. I love my Hungarian friends, but they can't fully get your experience like a community of exchange students can, and after a long couple months nothing beats kicking back with some homies from your home country.
Even though camp was great, I was still excited to get back home. It was really bittersweet and awkward though. As we were boarding the bus to the train station after our last breakfast together, we all kind of realized that we had passed one of the major benchmarks. It was always in the back of my mind, and I'm sure many of the other exchange students' minds, that the second language camp meant we would have to leave soon. I guess it just always seemed like it was part of the distant future, like graduation or filling out job applications. You know it'll happen someday, but today is just never the day until suddenly it is.
When you arrive in your host country the timeline is usually something like: get adjusted to school and family, make it to the travel ban, and get through Christmas. That's all I could think about. Now I'm done with camp, we all realized the only milestone left is Euro Tour in May. Then we have to leave. Where did the time go! I only have four-ish months till I'm back in the States. Talking about this with my friends at camp made me--and I'm sure many other people--feel super weird. I can only describe the feeling as homesickness. I know, homesickness is normal and expected. There's really nothing weird about it. The weird thing is that I don't really know what--or where--I'm homesick for.
It's no news to me that I've become really attached to my Hungarian life. The difficult thing is that my Hungarian life and my States life are different. Just the other week my friends and I were talking about how we've been having weird dreams. Things like our biological families speaking our host language, or our host families being in our houses in our home countries. And it's not just a one time one student thing. I have polled a lot of my exchange friends, and it turns out a lot of people are having dreams reconciling parts of their lives from both countries almost every night. I don't think it's a coincidence.
Talking about our dreams took a turn for the dramatic when we realized that we couldn't remember a lot of things about our host countries (sidenote: it might have just been my fault, I have mentioned it first and incited slight hysteria). Some of it was just little things: the directions to our high school, what we usually ate for dinner, the Netflix password...
But, there are also huge things that have been forgotten. Personally, I feel really guilty about it. I realized I've kind of forgotten what people look like or sound like. For example, I was trying to describe Erick to someone the other day, but ended up having to look up a picture to show them (sidenote: sorry baby brother, you know I love you). It's not like I couldn't recognize them if I saw them on the street, but it's still nerve wracking to know you only have a general idea of what the people you've lived with for seventeen years look like. Eventually the guilt builds up and you start to feel a little homesick, at least I have been, which I think is a natural response. When you feel bad about something you tend to obsess over it.
There's really no kind way to say it, but I kind of forget sometimes that I have a life outside of Hungary. I've been so content over the last six months (sidenote: yikes) that time passed and I didn't really remember I had stuff to do and people to keep in touch with in the States. Sometimes it feels like I only message my parents when something goes wrong or I need help. (sidenote: and I'm really sorry for that you guys. It's not on a purpose I promise). But, ever since I got my return flight information during camp, it's all I can think about. I'll leave from Budapest at 5:30 in the morning I think, and arrive in the States at 6:00 pm the same day. I'm so excited to go back, and I feel like I could leave this second. I also cannot believe it's really happening.
On June 28th I'm going to leave my family. On June 28th I'm also going to return to my family.
And, I'm sure the second I get back it's going to feel like all of this was one big dream. I'm already having a hard time believing I got this lucky.
(sidenote: I just wanted to end this blog post with puszi for everyone that I haven't kept up with. I said it wouldn't happen, but it did and I'm sorry. My affection for everyone in the States has not diminished though, and I promise to break out my mad Hungarian cooking skills and catch up with you the moment I'm back :) )
Friday, February 13, 2015
And this little exchanger had roast pork...
If you're squeamish or are triggered by blood and stuff, I would stop reading. We took a bunch of photos and I want to post them, but I don't want anyone to faint or anything. Overall the Hungarians were really impressed by how un-prissy we were. In one of the photos we're holding hooves we just drank palinka out of, and they said they didn't junk they could get normal teens to do that.
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
No Choking...While Speaking To Strangers
On Sunday, I was riding the train back from Budapest by myself. Not gonna lie, I was kind of extremely nervous. Riding to Budapest is a piece of cake; the main station, Nyugati, is the last stop. There's no where for the train to go after it so you have to get off. Riding back to Debrecen though, is a little harder. My stop is called Nagyallomas. Every stop is called Nagyallomas. Nagyallomas means Big Train Station. Lucky for me though, Debrecen is a college town (actually really similar to Chambana! It's almost like I never left home, just everyone started speaking a different language) so when we hit my stop there's a massive exodus. So, all in all, the train is not so bad.
Anyway, this trip was special! Or, maybe more awkward but cool. Like everywhere else, there are ticket inspectors on the train in Hungary. They look at your student card and your ticket to make sure you are meant to have the student discount, make sure you got on the Inter-City instead of the plain train, etc. Also like everywhere else, there's mistakes and people who don't want to pay. It used to be you could get out of an inspector snafu by speaking English. Unfortunately for the sneaky people of the world, inspectors are getting smart and learning, or bringing translators with them. In cases where they don't bring English speaking buddies with them, they recruit from the pool of passengers.
Guess who finally got recruited.
I didn't have to sign up on a website or make a skill tape or anything!
The ticket inspector knew I spoke English because I have a weird student card and had to tell him I'm an exchange student. When he got to a college student that didn't speak Hungarian, he asked a couple people near him to help, then came up the aisle towards me. I tried in vain to pretend I was engrossed in Wuthering Heights instead of gawking at the pair like the rest of the train.
Of course I told him I'd try to help, but I don't speak the best Hungarian. It was a pretty easy translation to be honest:
"Ma'am you're on the wrong train. This one costs more."
"No I will not pay it is their mistake not mine."
"O nem akkar penz"
"Ez 800ft tobb"
"It's 800ft more. It's not so much. You should just pay."
"No! I am a student, money does not grow on the trees. I will not pay"
"O nem akkar penz"
etc.
etc.
etc.
Now, I'm noticing that I said she doesn't want money instead of she doesn't want to pay, which might explain the weird look on the guy's face. Mostly it was like, ten minutes of 'you must pay' 'I won't pay' "she won't pay' 'she has to' Even though I messed up most of it, I was super proud at the time, and I still am. After a long day, or if I've been switching between all day, it's difficult to get anything out. But, now I can say I was able to help translate between people, so ha! I'm making progress, even if it's taking kind of an oblong, crooked path.
Anyway, this trip was special! Or, maybe more awkward but cool. Like everywhere else, there are ticket inspectors on the train in Hungary. They look at your student card and your ticket to make sure you are meant to have the student discount, make sure you got on the Inter-City instead of the plain train, etc. Also like everywhere else, there's mistakes and people who don't want to pay. It used to be you could get out of an inspector snafu by speaking English. Unfortunately for the sneaky people of the world, inspectors are getting smart and learning, or bringing translators with them. In cases where they don't bring English speaking buddies with them, they recruit from the pool of passengers.
Guess who finally got recruited.
I didn't have to sign up on a website or make a skill tape or anything!
The ticket inspector knew I spoke English because I have a weird student card and had to tell him I'm an exchange student. When he got to a college student that didn't speak Hungarian, he asked a couple people near him to help, then came up the aisle towards me. I tried in vain to pretend I was engrossed in Wuthering Heights instead of gawking at the pair like the rest of the train.
Of course I told him I'd try to help, but I don't speak the best Hungarian. It was a pretty easy translation to be honest:
"Ma'am you're on the wrong train. This one costs more."
"No I will not pay it is their mistake not mine."
"O nem akkar penz"
"Ez 800ft tobb"
"It's 800ft more. It's not so much. You should just pay."
"No! I am a student, money does not grow on the trees. I will not pay"
"O nem akkar penz"
etc.
etc.
etc.
Now, I'm noticing that I said she doesn't want money instead of she doesn't want to pay, which might explain the weird look on the guy's face. Mostly it was like, ten minutes of 'you must pay' 'I won't pay' "she won't pay' 'she has to' Even though I messed up most of it, I was super proud at the time, and I still am. After a long day, or if I've been switching between all day, it's difficult to get anything out. But, now I can say I was able to help translate between people, so ha! I'm making progress, even if it's taking kind of an oblong, crooked path.
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