Arrival

Okay so I wrote an entire blog post after arriving in my new flat (AH!) yesterday and thought I saved it as a draft to finish later but apparently it has vanished into the depths of the internet. In that post, I started off with a sarcastic joke that after seven days in Hungary I have transformed into a whole new person (commence eye-roll) and other travel-related clichés. But the more I think about it, perhaps it’s a tiny bit true? I find myself feeling absolutely giddy, an adjective that has never once been used to describe me. I have been raving to anyone that will listen about how much I am loving Hungary, despite all my earlier reservations. And I certainly had a lot of them. For one, I am the only program teacher in my small town of 18,000 people. I know no one here and the amount of English speakers is vastly lower than a large city like Budapest. But, much to my own surprise, I love it. I love my flat (despite it’s strange toaster oven/hot plate combination), I love the view of the mountains alongside the Danube, I love the huge, regal buildings of Budapest and the cozy, colorful homes of Göd. “Carlyn,” you might be saying, “It has been a mere eight days since you stepped onto Hungarian soil, of course you’re going to be excited and happy right now.” But for those of you that know me well, even that is a miracle in of itself. It’s ironic that in a country famous for its pessimism, I have become (somewhat of) an optimist.

Right now I’m far too lazy to write out a transcript of the past eight days so here are some highlights:

• Accidentally dropped my carry-on luggage down an escalator in the Istanbul airport and performed the best poker face imaginable as I picked it up and walked away.
• Battled with a luggage cart machine and embarrassed myself because I don’t know what any of this money looks like.
• Found the courage to try my Hungarian out on a shopkeeper with the phrase “I don’t speak Hungarian,” only to be misunderstood. Soul-crushing irony.
• Learned all about Hungarian culture in our orientation classes.
• Fell in love with goulash. (Seriously, I’ve had it three times this week.)
• Partied at the famous Budapest ruin bars. (Watch out for the pálinka.)
• Met my contact person at my school. (The person responsible for helping me with anything and everything.) She has been a humongous help and has gone far beyond what’s expected of her in order to make me feel at home and comfortable!
• Braved Hungarian bureaucracy with a brutal six-hour wait to apply for my residency papers.

Things I have not done:

• Unpack. Like at all.

Last but not least here are some pictures because let’s be honest, that’s the best part.

Viszontlátásra!