If at first
you don't succeed, try, try, try again. Words that were taught to me, when I
was a young girl, in a reading class. Until this very moment, I believed that these words had come originally from the mouth of my teacher herself, but alas, it was from the author W.E. Hickson. Either way, those words can be applied to
many different aspects of life, rather than just reading.
I have finally made it! My journey began, once again, in Calgary. This time I was on a flight to Amsterdam where I was surprisingly given no troubles at all. The only question asked of me was if I was carrying maple syrup in my bags. Once I entered the Hungarian airport, anxiety started to make an appearance. I picked up my bags, from the baggage claim, and made my way outside the arrivals doors to see no border officers to be found. I immediately saw Anett and all of my fears vanished. I had finally reached my destination.
Hungary is the most szép (Hungarian word for beautiful) country. I absolutely love it here! The city of Budapest has such fascinating architecture and exciting life that exudes the streets. I could walk around Budapest for hours and enjoy every single minute of it. I live in a beautiful town outside of Budapest called Balatonfüred, right on the Lake Balaton.
Hungary is the most szép (Hungarian word for beautiful) country. I absolutely love it here! The city of Budapest has such fascinating architecture and exciting life that exudes the streets. I could walk around Budapest for hours and enjoy every single minute of it. I live in a beautiful town outside of Budapest called Balatonfüred, right on the Lake Balaton.
My host family are the most wonderful people I have ever
encountered. They are so welcoming and kind and are willing to do anything for
me. They have eagerly brought me into their home and made me a part of their
family. They spoil me with ice cream and treats on the daily! That alone makes
me love them! There is a high chance that I will be coming back wearing jeans
five sizes bigger than my original jean size. Stay tuned for that image...
Sophie and Vincent are literally the sweetest little
chillens you will ever meet! They are so happy and full of life. And when I
say, 'full of life', I mean they can be quite wild at times, but I absolutely
love it. They are so much fun to play with. Our favourite things to do are to play
Jenga (building many castles and
fortresses) and enjoying a good round of the Frozen board game, where Sophie seems to dominate every time we
play. I also can’t forget to add that their favourite songs to constantly
listen to are: "All About That Bass" by Meghan Trainer, as well as,
“Gangnam Style" by that random Korean guy (forgive me for my laziness in
searching for his actual name.. but does anyone actually know his name in the
first place? my bet is no).
We then have Ava and Istvan. Both are family members of Anett and Lorand. Ava is such a kind woman. She does not speak much English, but she is absolutely a sweetheart. She always seems to think that I am cold, but the weather here is already intensely warm for me, so no jackets ever accompany my outfits. Ava also is a wonderful cook! If I had a bigger stomach, I would eat her food in dubiously large amounts! Istvan speaks pretty well when it comes to his English. Our friendship consists of me saying stuff and him laughing at me. I am under the impression that he thinks I'm quite the odd duck. For instance, he finds it hilarious when I say, "yes please", when they ask if I would like to go somewhere with them. He also likes to laugh at the fact that I cannot drive a manual car and I also eat small little meals about 5 times a day instead of two big meals a day like they do in Hungary. I feel like a comedian, it is rather quite funny!
So where do I start in describing my first full week in Hungary? I don't even know where to begin! My first day I was able to go sightseeing with Anett and her brother, Istvan. I instantly fell in love with the city of Budapest. I was able to tour around the Castle and see many alluring streets and sites within the city. Throughout the week I got to spend time with my precious host family, as well as walk around Balatonfüred and get to know my new home. My favourite thing to do is to spend time sitting along Lake Balaton as I watch my little friends, the ducks, swim and swarm by my feet. Oh yeah... and eat ice cream. The kind ice cream boy always likes to give me more gelato than the rest of the customers... it's probably because I'm his most loyal customer, or perhaps he pities me for the fact that no one in the shops along the street understand me when I speak. One or the other, I'm getting extra ice cream, and that's good enough for me.
So where do I start in describing my first full week in Hungary? I don't even know where to begin! My first day I was able to go sightseeing with Anett and her brother, Istvan. I instantly fell in love with the city of Budapest. I was able to tour around the Castle and see many alluring streets and sites within the city. Throughout the week I got to spend time with my precious host family, as well as walk around Balatonfüred and get to know my new home. My favourite thing to do is to spend time sitting along Lake Balaton as I watch my little friends, the ducks, swim and swarm by my feet. Oh yeah... and eat ice cream. The kind ice cream boy always likes to give me more gelato than the rest of the customers... it's probably because I'm his most loyal customer, or perhaps he pities me for the fact that no one in the shops along the street understand me when I speak. One or the other, I'm getting extra ice cream, and that's good enough for me.
Now let's get off the topic of ice cream, because I know
that I am probably making all of you, at home, drool over your keyboards. So to update you all, my first week in Hungary was a success. I ended up with the
best host family I could ever ask for and I cannot wait to get to know everyone even better. And maybe understand what they are saying a little better as well..
Here are a few pictures to satisfy your taste buds.
