Budapest, Visegrád, Komárno,Vienna, and Fertőd: Now to Houston

I leave for the airport in just a few hours. I'm now reminded of the painful disadvantage of travel: you end up leaving pieces of your heart on the other side of the world, so no matter where you are, contentedness is difficult because there will always be people you love who are far away. After three months, I feel like I have a second family here in Hungary, and I know that I'll miss them when I'm back in the States. I think I'll miss Hungary too: the sounds of the language, the colors of the flag, the food, the music, the castles, the hospitality of the people . . . . .

I know I haven't written lately, but that's because I've been incredibly busy! After I last wrote, we headed to Balaton for a couple of days, From Balaton, we went to Budapest, where Eszter, Hanga, Attila, and I stayed for two weeks. István and the older girls headed to Transylvania for a week to attend a camp where they learned traditional Hungarian songs, dances, and hand-work. Juju just got out of bed to watch me write, and she said to tell you that they didn't have any friends on the first day, but then they made friends. Anyway, during that week, I was able to take off some time to explore Budapest on my own. Hanga and I also took a trip to the zoo. After their time in Transylvania, the girls came back to Budapest, and we spent the next week in that region. One day, István, the girls, and I took a trip to a medieval castle in a nearby town called Visegrád. It was the site of a famous medieval treaty between Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. On the way to Visegrád, we stopped in another small town, rode a train, and had lunch at a Serbian restaurant. I had no idea that so many kinds of sausages existed, but they were delicious!

Then, on our way back from Budapest on Friday, we stopped in Komárn/Komárno, which is a Hungarian town, mostly located in Slovokia. I didn't get a Slovokian passport stamp because it's in the Schengen Zone, but I did get to try Slovokian food (it's very similar to Hungarian food), and walk around the village. Saturday involved a family trip to Vienna where we saw the St. Stephen's Cathedral and took a ride in a horse drawn carriage. We passed the location of Mozert's first concert, as well as the house he lived in. Liszt, Mozert, Hayden—this Hungarian/Austrian region has produced so many classical musicians! Also in Vienna, Saci and I tried Zucker cake. Yum!

Sunday meant a trip to a man-made lake in Austria where went swimming. We were surrounded by the Austrian hills, and it was absolutely gorgeous. In the middle of the lake, there was a platform with three levels of diving boards, and the older girls and I swam out to it. Juju and I jumped off the highest level! I think I was as frightened as she was, but we jumped off together (it was very wide). Then, last night, we took a trip to Fertőd where István had a rotary club meeting. We were able to see the outside of the beautiful Esterházy Palace (the inside was closed on Mondays). Oh! We also saw the Esterházy castle in Austria before we went swimming on Sunday. I guess that means I've seen all three of the Esterházy estates. (In case you're wondering, the Esterházy was a noble family during the middle ages, and Habsburg and Austrio-Hungarian Empires.)

I have hundreds of pictures from the last three weeks, so it's painful to pick so few, but here's a taste:

The Hungarian Parliament Building

The Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest. I toured the synagogue as well as a museum called the House of Terror. Both were difficult to see and warrant more commentary than I can provide here.

Hanga got to see the sloth up close!

I had to post this picture of Attila because he was such a baby when I arrived, and now he's a little boy! Since I've been here, he learned to walk (and run!). He also learned his first English words/phrases: all done, bless you, thank you, what's that. He also sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and a couple of Hungarian songs. I can hardly believe he was such a baby when I arrived!

In Budapest, I was able to meet up with a LeTourneau friend! He was on a mission trip teaching English at a camp in Hungary. This picture was taken from a tower at the St. Steven (Istvan) Cathedral in Budapest.

The sunflowers have grown so much this summer!

In Komárno, a Hungarin town in Slovokia

 Visegrád: Medieval Castle!

I'm afraid to say that Juju was very naughty. I normally avoid punitive measures, but I resorted to putting her in the stocks.

Right before we rode a carriage in Vienna (also, in front of St. Stephen's in Vienna)

The girls found tadpoles at the lake. I found tiny leeches :( Thankfully, I didn't notice the leeches till we were leaving, so I had a great time!

After the lake visit, Juju decided that she really wanted curly hair, so Saci and I braided it into 19 braids before bed. At the time, I  didn't notice Attila and Hanga's presence, but apparently it takes 4 of us to braid hair! Also, it looks like Hanga is braiding her Barbie's hair too!

The 19 braids of Juju . . .

Just playing at a palace!

The Esterházy Palace at night

A rainbow we saw last night: a reminder that God's promises are the same no matter where in the world people may be

As you can probably tell, my time here has been very full! I'd better finish this post because everyone else is asleep, and I have to leave in about three hours. In the next week or two, however, I plan on posting one or two more posts with reflections and trip highlights. My time in Hungary has been such an adventure, and I'm sorry to see it end so soon. Life is full of seasons, however, and perhaps I'll be able to return. With the Cseke family here, Hungary won't seem like a foreign country in the future; it will seem more like a second home.