Goodbye Europe & Hello USA

Thank you Europe for showing me so much this semester. I still have a lot to reflect on and know that upon returning to the states I will see how this program has truly shaped me. I will miss your historical buildings, your fabulous food, your cheap airline costs and the many cultures to experience. Budapest, I will definitely miss your low cost of living, your Hungarian wines, and the wide range of places to eat. Most importantly, I will miss the people that you have introduced me to, from those on my program to the Hungarians I have met. Those individuals are what made my semester enjoyable.

The one thing I am taking away from my academic studies this semester is the importance of using problem solving, games, and manipulatives and the importance of finding a balance between different student interactions within each of my future lessons. I am also taking away the experience of teaching English to refugees and hearing some of their experiences. Lastly, I am personally taking back more confidence than I arrived with. I can't fully explain from what this confidence was formed and how it will change me, but I know I will see a difference back in the states. I'm also looking forward to seeing what other changes have occurred in me this semester that I have not yet noticed.

One of the hardest parts of this semester was the language barrier. I had been told that many people speak English here and that I would be able to get by just fine with speaking English. While that was basically true, I felt bad requiring others to speak a language that they may not feel comfortable with. Hence, I avoiding speaking to people that I didn't know if they spoke English. There were many times though that I hated not being able to speak Hungarian and have a small conversation with someone. I did take a short language course, but it moved through things to fast for me to become comfortable actually using it. I really only used and understood numbers, greetings, some foods, "thank you", "sorry/excuse me", and "I don't speak Hungarian". So yes I could get by, but never did I feel comfortable with this. I will forever be grateful for speaking English, the language used upon travelers and I am looking forward to being able to speak English more freely in the states.

I am greatly looking forward to being back in the United States. I've been told that I will greatly miss this semester and I am sure aspects of it I will, but I am looking forward to going home more than I have heard others speak of. It has been an adventurous, challenging, and enriching semester. Despite the fun times I have had and the great people that I have met, I'm ready to be back home surrounded by my family, faith family, and CSB/SJU community. Goodbyes are hard though and I have had to do many this week. First I said goodbye to the three very thoughtful women that I taught English to. They gave me an enriching experience that I will never forget. Next I said goodbye to the ICFB group that were so welcoming to Olivia and I. ICFB welcomed Olivia and I with open arms and continued to remind how God has worked in my life. I will be praying for all them as they continue their studies and work, especially Bernie and Sion who gave birth to a beautiful new daughter on Thursday. Lastly I said goodbye to the many people who I meant on this program. Some of them I know I will see again, but others I will probably never see again. Olivia and I got shakes on Thursday at the same place that we got waffles at and started our strong friendship at in the beginning of the semester. Then Julia, Rose, Olivia, Steffi, Haley, and I hung out together at Rose, Olivia, & Steffi's place. It was a great evening to spend together one last time. I pray that everyone has safe travels home and I hope to keep in touch with many of the wonderful individuals that have touched my heart this semester. While these goodbyes are always tough, it is time for me to be back home.

Szia later Europe & Budapest. Hello Minnesota,

Ashley

 *Notice: Szia means bye in Hungarian but sounds like "see ya".

Amsterdam

My first impression of Amsterdam was "bikes, canals, and cute apartment buildings, oh my!" I adore the look of these apartment buildings - they are just too cute. The inside of the shops also seem super modern which I like, but it definitely gives a less historical feel to the city compared to other Europeans city I have visited. I was surprised to see though that some people have their apartments on the street level so people walking by can see right into their apartment. I don't think I would like that at all.

After arriving in the airport and making my way towards the train station that is basically in the airport, I bought tickets for the train and headed into the city center. This was by far the easiest place that I have been to to get into the city center! Upon by arrival in the city center, I wondered around the streets, specifically in the Haarlemmerstraat and Lindengracht Markt, before grabbing "lunch" at The Pancake Backery. I had Autumn Poffertjes which consisted of mini pancakes (poffertjes) with poached pears, cranberry compote, and cinnamon ice cream. Delicious. 

After the Pancake Backery, I went to Mass in Dutch at a church near by. After Mass I had about an hour before the Anne Frank house. I stopped and picked up some stroopwaffles and then went to Dam Square and Begijnhof. Dam Sqaure had way too many people for my liking so I left very quickly. Begijnhof was very cool. I took a picture of the text given so I didn't have to rewrite it all: 

I think my favorite part of this was how much you really did escape from the city busyness. I also walked into a free Cheese Museum for about 5 minutes because I had some spare time. The cheese that I sampled had incredible flavor. 

Finally, I arrived at the Anne Frank House, basically the main reason for my visit. I wasn't allowed to take pictures of anything in the house but I did snap one picture of four pictures of Anne at the exhibit at the end and I took a picture by the sign at the front of the house. It was incredible to see where she hid and have a better idea of what she experienced. It was bigger than I had realized but still small obviously, especially the bedrooms. I was impressed with how real it felt, like it didn't feel like this happened like 80 years ago. I was so glad that I was able to experience this and I will never forget what the Frank family and all other Jews during this time went through.

Also, I noticed this morning that NBC posted this article about how the Frank family was found (http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/new-study-casts-doubt-theory-anne-frank-was-betrayed-n697431). This was brought up to us at the Anne Frank House during the presentation at the beginning how it is unknown how they were found but I hadn't realized this was new information! How cool!

After taking a picture at the I Amsterdam sign, I walked around and looked at some of the light festival figures that were being showcased in December. At this point I was getting very hungry, so I found a burger place to eat. I then had about an hour to spare before catching a train back to the airport. I wondered around some more streets and used some of the Euros I had at a juice bar, which seem quite popular in Europe. Finally arriving back at the airport, I was greatly impressed by the security of this place compared to other European airports. First, they had the metal decorators that we have in the states. Secondly, they picked up on the metal on my bracelets (that's a first!). 

Overall, Amsterdam was a great city and I am so glad I made this short little visit. Through this experience of traveling alone, I realized while traveling alone can be quite relaxing, I also greatly missed having a travel and photography buddy. Now after a long day and short night's rest, I am on my way home. :) 

Past Three Weeks

Below you will find rose-bud-thorns from my last three weeks in Budapest. A post about Amsterdam and a final post about my study abroad experience will happen later this weekend. Please pray for safe travels as I travel to Amsterdam and home this weekend.

Rose:
• Our Hungarian culture class saw Our Class, a play about Polish and Jewish classmates during the Holocaust. It was kind-of depressing and none of us had realized how depressing and violent it was going to be until we were sitting there watching it. But I'm still putting this as a rose because it was very interesting to watch (and a cultural experience).

• Olivia and I had a delicious dinner with a Hungarian who we meet through ICFB. We ate cordon bleu with plums on the inside with a side of salad and mashed potatoes. Olivia had made an Oreo cheesecake for dessert and then we finished the evening by playing a game of Pictionary together.

• I taught a lesson on division rules to an English-speaking math class at a Hungarian school for Practicum. We ran out of time to do everything we wanted because of some language barrier difficulties, but I thought the lesson went well and we think the students had fun with all the games we incorporated into the lesson.

• I made some math origami one afternoon at a workshop my program hosted.

• I saw Moana in 3D (in English) the day it came out in Hungary. I may or may not have cried it was so good. I also am in love with soundtrack and yesterday I shared on FB this really cool video of a mash-up of one of the songs in 24 different languages.

• The first Saturday of December a few of us from the program and one of the student coordinators visited a few spots in Budapest. First we saw some of the graves of the older Hungarian leaders. Then we went and saw this hidden church in the middle of the city: This church was built during the communist time, so in order for it not to be seen it was built with apartment buildings all around it. It has now turned into a gym. Our student coordinator told the guy at the desk that we were Americans looking at gym memberships and were wondering if we could look around. The guy at the desk did not care at all, so off we went to look at this gym that used to be a church. The only cool thing we saw was the courtyard from inside. We couldn't see the ceiling of the old church because their was a class in that room.

• There are so many Christmas markets here in Budapest. Haley and I went to one two Saturday evenings ago and enjoyed sipping some Apple Tea while looking at all the possible Christmas gifts.

• Two Thursdays ago I took my last final and was completely done with all classes. Since no one in my program had class on Friday, we went out as a group Thursday evening. It was fun to be with the group in a fun atmosphere like that. We spent a good amount of time giving teacher superlatives to everyone since almost all of us are going to be teachers. A few that I got include most likely to become a principal, most likely to marry a teacher, and most organized teacher. This last one should come as no surprise though. ;)

• Olivia and I saw the Nutcracker at the Opera House on Saturday. The performance, costume, and set pieces were all stunning and perfect for the Christmas season.

• Christmas spirit is surely in the air. On Saturday, I sang in the carol service that happened after Mass. It was fun, but very cold. I was at the church from 3 to 7 and I couldn't feel my toes as I walked home. Then on Tuesday, a group of us from ICFB had a charity Christmas concert where we sang many Christmas carols and all the money raised was donated to Preemptive Love, an organization that are helping people within war zones.

• On Sunday and Monday, Lydia & Logan, my cousin and her boyfriend, were in Budapest. On Monday, we were planning on going to Vienna for the day, but last minute decided to stay in Budapest. I had a wonderful day with them here in the Budapest. We met up a cute breakfast café and then did some sightseeing. I showed them the Central Market, Gellért Hill, Buda Castle, and Fisherman's Bastion. We ate dinner at a Christmas Market and then met up with some of my friends in the program at Szimpla and this other unnamed bar that has drinks at a low price. Lastly, we finished up the evening by eating these delicious sandwiches at Meat and Sauce. This place dips the whole sandwich in a sauce. It was so good. They headed off to Italy Tuesday morning and I'm excited to hear about the rest of their adventures at Christmas.

Shoes by the Danube as memorial of those died in the Holocaust

• On Wednesday I went to Gellért Baths. This was the only time that I went to the baths and it was an enjoyable experience. Later in the afternoon, my friends and I went to the Invisible Exhibit. This exhibit places you in complete darkness and then you are guided through my a blind person. We also learned a little bit about braille. It was a very interesting experience and something I will never forget.

• Thursday morning I went ice skating with my roommate Jane. It was fun, but I definitely would have enjoyed it more if I had ice skates instead of hockey skates. I can skate so much better in ice skates.

Bud:
• Being Home - Thanks to my parents moving to a new house in May/June, I was told I have a nice to-do list for when I get back. Exactly what I will need. :)

• I'm greatly looking forward to the Anne Frank house tomorrow!

Thorn: 
• Goodbyes are hard. More on that later this weekend though.