Vízilabda

Vízilabda means water polo in Hungarian. The Hungarian team has won the gold medal in the Olympics 3 times (Athens, Sydney, and Beijing) and are the current World Champions, so the people here are rightfully proud of their team. I had never been to a water polo match, or really even thought much about the sport at all, but when we were told the US team was coming to Hungary a bunch of us from Fulbright decided we wanted to go. The match we went to was held in a town called Szolnok about halfway between Bekescsaba and Budapest. Even though the US team got beat pretty badly, we had a great time and it was really fun to see something that the Hungarian crowd got really into.

Before I let you enjoy the pictures of the match, I just want to say a couple funny things that occur at Hungarian events. The first is that when people here clap at any sort of event (this happened at the Opera too) they end up all clapping in rhythm with each other. In the US we all just clap willy-nilly, but not here. It may start out willy-nilly but before long, everyone is in-sync with each other. It is a mystery to me how this happens, but it makes me laugh every time. The second thing is that even though we were at a Hungarian sporting event, they still played all the usual American "pump you up" music. This was especially disconcerting as we were getting our butts kicked and had to listen to "we will rock you."

 National Anthems

 Start of the game

 Deflecting a goal

 This is the best player on Hungary's team, so pretty much the best water polo player in the whole world

 Not such a bad view.... ;)

well....we had a good time anyways

Fulbright Friday #4

This Fulbright Friday actually started for me on Thursday. Annamaria invited Brittany and I to see Tchaikovsky's Onegin at the Budapest Opera House. This was the first ballet I can remember going to and I have to say that any other ballets in my future will have a hard time measuring up! I have seen the Opera House from the outside and have been inside the main lobby, but this was my first time into the stage area and it was incredibly beautiful. The ballet itself was also beautiful; the dancers were fantastic and the sets were wonderful. All in all, it was a really great experience!

 Ceiling of Budapest Opera House

 The Opera House is a stunning building

 Curtain call of the ballet

On the actual Fulbright Friday, we went to the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Budapest. The Academy of Sciences is actually a big library that has a great collection of old and rare books. During the tour, we got to see some of their very special collection. The first special collection we got to see was the Oriental collection which had books from ancient Asia and Tibet. Most of the books were handwritten because they were made before engraving and printing were options. The drawings in these books were incredible. We couldn't handle these books because they were too fragile, but being able to be around them was pretty special.

 

After the Oriental Collection, we went to another room where more one of a kind books were on display. In this room we got to see a text from the 2nd century Rome that was written on an actual piece of wood. It was some sort of trade agreement between merchants, but not enough of the original wood fragment remained to tell exactly what it was about.

Another text that was really special was a page of the Gutenberg Bible. The person who owned this copy of the Bible bought it for $50,000 and then took it apart page by page and sold each of them for $50. The Academy only had 1 page, but we could handle it and touch it which was pretty amazing.

 
 In the midst of all these ancient and very special texts, the newest one we saw really caught my attention. It was a post card from the mid-1900's, written on birch bark. This text was so impactful to me because it was written by someone in the Soviet Gulag to his family. The inmates in the Gulag had no paper so they had to use what they could to communicate home. The text is also in Russian because the inmates were forced to write in Russian so the guards could read their letters to ensure they weren't sending secrets home.

After we had the tour of the Academy we got to eat lunch in the restaurant, The Academy Club. This restaurant is ultra-exclusive. You have to be a member of the Academy to eat there. Lunch was amazing: a 4-course meal, different wines with every course, exceptional service. It was definitely the nicest restaurant I have ever been to. The inside of the restaurant itself was also gorgeous and there were big windows looking out over the Danube, the Chain Bridge, and Buda Castle so the view was great.

The Disznótor

Fulbright is supposed to be about learning about and experiencing a new and different culture and I can whole-heartedly say that participating in a disznótor has expanded my cultural horizons! When I started out on this adventure 7 months ago, if you would have asked me if I would ever attend, much less enjoy, a disznótor, my answer would have been an emphatic NO. How times have changed.  For those who don't speak Hungarian, disznótor translates roughly to "pig killing." Those of you who know me, know any sort of event that involves the killing of an animal is the last place you would usually find me. However, let me explain a little bit about Hungary and the culture before we get down to the nitty-gritty. Pork meat and sausage are really important cultural foods in Hungary. Sort of like when people from outside the US think hamburgers and hot dogs when they think of American food, I will forever associate pork and sausage with Hungary.  Many families in smaller towns throughout Hungary raise and kill pigs for themselves and others, just like they have done for many, many years.  Usually a family will kill 1 or 2 pigs every year for themselves and that provides them with pork meat for the entire year. Many families also have their own individual recipes for sausage that they are very proud of. I think sausage is perhaps a little more important in my town because of the famous Sausage Festival in Bekescsaba every year. I suppose when you live 10 minutes away from a town that is famous because of its sausage you become pretty good at making your own.

I can hear some of you saying some variation of "Alaina, I can't believe you went to this! You don't even eat pork and you hate animal slaughter!" and let me assure you, 7 months ago I would have agreed with you. Here, however, things are different - my ethical reasons against eating pork in the US don't stand up here in Bekes. For a start, these pigs have pretty natural lives; they live in an area where they can move around and go inside and outside at will. They also are killed in a very humane and swift way. And the last thing is, there is no waste. Unlike in the US, the people here use almost every bit of the pig. So, the animal has an actual life, dies a humane death, and is completely used for human consumption - there isn't really anything there for me to complain about.

 On that note, since this post is about a pig killing, there are some photos below of the process.  I don't think anything is too bad, but just be warned before going further.

The day started at 7 AM when the men killed the pig. This was the only part of the day where I wasn't around. Even though I knew the death would be quick, I just couldn't make myself watch. My friend came down from Budapest and he was there for the killing. He said it was done by electric shock and was all over in under 5 seconds.

Once they brought the pig back to the house we were at, the actual process began. They started with letting all the blood out of the pig, which I didn't see because I was in the house with the other ladies. They use the blood to make a special dish, cooked with onions, which is consumed at lunch. Before you ask, I did not try this as the whole concept of eating blood freaks me out a lot. I have been told it is really delicious, but I will leave that up to someone else to verify.

 When the blood is all cooked and ready to eat

I made it outside when they were removing the hair from the pig. First they char the skin with a huge blow torch and then scrape and brush the top layers off. This process is repeated a few times on each side until all the hair and top layers of skin are gone. I should also add this is when I had my first palinka shot of the day, probably around 7:40 AM. Apparently disznótors and palinka go together! 

Disznótor experts....and Galen and I

 Totally clean pig, ready for butchering

 After they were satisfied the pig was properly cleaned, they began butchering it. The first part was taking out all of the internal organs. They only organs they threw away was the digestive tract - all of the rest of them they kept to make "hurka" which I will tell you more about later.


Once the organs were out, Loci started taking apart the pig into the various cuts of meat. Incidentally, removing the organs was surprisingly easy; I guess I always thought there was more holding the insides in, but there really isn't, which is a little unsettling. I was pretty proud of myself because I could identify all the different cuts of meat: ham, pork loin, pork ribs, pork shoulder, etc.

Loci (or Lotsi for English speakers) starting the butchering process

 Once the entire pig was broken down, which happened much faster than I thought, we started making sausage. Most of the pig on this day was being used for sausage, but there were some cuts of meat that we kept separate.

 These pictures explain why pig killings are always done in winter. They let the meat sit out on tables while they finish butchering. Clearly, that would be impossible in the summer months because of the heat and bugs, but in the winter is it just fine.

Sausage making was pretty straight forward. They cut up the meat into smaller pieces, which were fed through a grinder a few times along with a lot of garlic.

 Cutting the meat into smaller pieces and grinding the first time

 Galen mastering pig killing!

Then they mixed in some seasonings and spices and made big meatballs.At this point, they actually started to put the sausage in the casing. They put the meatballs through the grinder one more time and as the meat came out, it was pumped into a casing made from intestines that had been cleaned and bought at a local butcher shop.

 Meatballs and finished product. And of course beer :) 

Sausage

Hurka

Hurka looks like sausage, but it isn't, because it isn't made with actual meat. Instead they use the organs and other various spare parts of the pig mixed with rice. Again, many people have told me this is really good, but I am not going to try it.

I think this is called "head cheese" although I have no idea why because there is nothing "cheese-like" about it. Its pretty much a mixture of all the really spare parts that are mixed together with seasoning the put into a huge casing.

They even boil the fat to make lard and cracklings

 Lunch...where everyone got to eat the fruits of their labor except me

Videos from the Christmas trip

Just some videos of various things on our Christmas trip

Boca do Inferno in Cascais

Surprise wave in Cascais

More waves in Cascais

New Years Eve Concert #1

New Years Eve Concert #2

NYE Fireworks

Top of a hill in Park Guell overlooking Barcelona 

Christmas, Sunshine, Tapas, and Sangria

I am going to apologize in advance because this post is probably going to be pretty long. I have so much to talk about and so many pictures to share, because the two weeks of Christmas Break were some of my favorite weeks of this year and also of my whole life! It all started when my friend, Katie, arrived from the US on Dec 23rd. I was so excited to see her and spend some time with her. The first night we went to a Christmas market in Budapest and walking down to the Danube river and along the river. It was so great to see her and catch up for real, face-to-face, not face-to-Skype. The next day we toured around the city a little more, and then headed back to Békés for the Christmas Eve celebration.

Katie and I at the Christmas market behind St. Stephen's Cathedral

 Katie on the Chain Bridge

 Me on the Chain Bridge

The Chain Bridge all lit up at night

Chain Bridge and Buda Castle

We spent Christmas Eve at the D. Nagy family's house and it was a wonderful time. We ate great, homemade, traditional Hungarian Christmas food (yummm stuffed cabbage, I am going to miss that!) and opened presents. Katie brought over a bunch of American and Michigan presents like, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Hershey's Kisses, maple syrup, Michigan jams, and a Michigan ornament and glass. It was great to be able to share a little bit of home with the D. Nagy family! And they loved the candy and maple syrup so that was great also :) The next day we headed over to Nora's mom's house for another Christmas dinner. Again we had a fantastic time and Katie got to meet more of my new Hungarian family. The Christmas of 2013 was a Christmas I will always remember as one of the best Christmas' I have ever had. We had such a great time from start to finish.

 Christmas Eve!

 the D. Nagy family and me

On December 26th, Katie and I took off and flew to Barcelona for the start of the rest of our Christmas vacation. I have always wanted to visit Spain and knew as soon as I found out I was coming to Hungary this year that it was one place I was absolutely going to visit. I am happy to say it did not disappoint! We spent two days in Barcelona visiting Park Güell and Sagrada Familia on the first day and the Parc de Montjuic and Barcelona Beach on the second. Everything we saw was amazing. Park Güell was so beautiful and the mosiac tile work by Antoni Gaudi was stunning. Sagrada Familia, also designed by Gaudi, was equally as stunning. I admit, I have always wondered why the church isn't finished being built and why it could possibly be taking as long as it is, but now I totally understand. Gaudi's vision for the church is so intricate and precise that I am happy the current builders are taking their time to execute it the way he wanted.  The sheer size of the church is impressive, but the inside is breath-taking. Gaudi designed the church to resemble a forest on the inside and it absolutely does. Completing the whole experience, is the incredible light that shines through the stained glass windows. The outside of the church is equally as beautiful. The Nativity Facade tells the story of the birth of Jesus and the Passion Facade represents his passion. The Nativity Facade is much more detailed and intricate with many smaller moments carved into the walls. The Passion Facade has less statues but they are just as impressive and powerful.

 Park Güell

 the Salamander at Park Güell

 Katie and I at Park Güell

 Looking down at the entrance to Park Güell and out toward the ocean

 Looking at the entrance to Park Güell from the ground

 Passion Facade of Sagrada Familia

 Passion Facade of Sagrada Familia

Nativity Facade

  Light from the stained glass windows

 Inside of Sagrada Familia

 Parc de Citudella

Parc de Montjuic was beautiful. We took the Funicular up to the old fortress which gave us some spectacular views of the city of Barcelona and the ocean. After coming down, we wandered through the beautiful gardens and made our way back toward the city. Later that day we also went to Barcelona Beach. Even though it was sunny, it was too cold to do anything but wade in the water, so we sat on the sand and just enjoyed the sunshine.

 view of Barcelona from the Funicular on the way up to Montjuic

 Top of the fortress

 the harbor and city beyond

 In the gardens at Montjuic

  In the gardens at Montjuic

  In the gardens at Montjuic

  In the gardens at Montjuic

getting my feet wet at Barcelona Beach

The next place we went was Seville where we met up with Lucia. Lucia stayed with Katie last summer for a couple weeks and it was so fantastic to see her again. Sevilla was great. We visited the Seville Cathedral, which is home to Christopher Columbus' tomb, and climbed to the top of the bell tower which had great views overlooking the entire town. We also visited the Plaza de Espana. The Plaza de Espana is gorgeous and has different sitting areas for all of the provinces of Spain. While we were there we also got an impromptu concert from a college men's choir.  The second day we were in Sevilla we got on a train and went to Cordoba. Cordoba is best known for its Mosque-Cathedral which is truly incredible to see. This site changed hands several times during the Crusades beginning as a Christian church, then becoming a Muslim mosque for several hundred years, before ultimately becoming Christian in the 1200's. Cordoba is also known for its flowers and orange trees. Almost every street had orange trees on both sides (even in December you could smell them) and there were baskets of flowers hanging everywhere. I am sure in the spring and the summer when the flowers are in full bloom it is really beautiful and smells amazing! One of the things I will remember forever about Seville and Cordoba was eating so many delicious tapas. It seems like we had tapas for every meal which was absolutely wonderful. It was really helpful to have Lucia there because she could tell us what was good and do some translating for us when necessary :)

 Christopher Columbus' tomb

 looking down on the orange grove inside the cathedral from the bell tower

 Seville from the bell tower. The big circle is the bull fighting ring

 Plaza de Espana

 Plaza de Espana

 Plaza de Espana

 Tapas!!

 college choir

Lucia lives in Albacete so we had to get our picture here

From Seville, we left for Lisbon, Portugal on New Years Eve. Upon arriving in Lisbon we discovered the apartment we were staying in was right next to the main square where all the New Years Eve activities took place. It was pretty much like staying right next to Times Square in New York. Katie and I went down to the square to watch some of the concerts and then came back to the apartment to watch the fireworks from the balcony. After the fireworks we went back down to the square for more concerts. Even though the singing was all in Portuguese, it was awesome to be a part of the huge crowd of people celebrating 2014.

 The square where the New Years festivities were

Fireworks on NYE

The next day we took a train to the city of Cascais. Cascais sits right on the coast and is known for the Boca do Inferno, a circular rock formation that looks like a raging water inferno when the waves crash into it. The day we went it was really windy, which turned out to be great because we got to see some huge waves. That night we went to a traditional Portuguese Fado restaurant. We decided to splurge and go to Casa de Linhares considered to be one of the best Fado restaurants in the city. We were definitely not disappointed as it was a fantastic evening!  The restaurant was in the old house of a very rich man, so the room we were in had an old stone floor and walls and a great ambiance which only got better when the singers came out to sing and the lights were dimmed. Fado is a special type of singing that originated in Portugal. Although Fado songs can be about a lot of topics, they are always sad. We were told ahead of time that when the people are singing it is a solemn event and that we should not talk or laugh. Even though we couldn't understand the words of the songs, the feeling came through in the singer's voice and movements. And by the way, all the singers had incredible voices!

 Cascais

 Cascais

 Cascais

 Boca do Inferno

 Boca do Inferno

 Cascais

 

Katie and I outside the Fado restaurant

Katie left the next day to fly home which was really sad. At that moment, the next 7 1/2 months until I flew back to the US had never seemed so far away. I spent the rest of that day visiting different places in Lisbon since we hadn't seen much of the city. I went to Belem Tower, Jeronimos Monastery, and the Coach Museum.

 Belem Tower

 Jeronimos Monastery

 Jeronimos Monastery

 Jeronimos Monastery

 Tomb of Vasco de Gama at Jeronimos Monastery

 Coach Museum - housed coaches of the Portuguese royal family from as far back as the 1600's

The next day I flew to Madrid where I spent about 24 hours. I arrive in Madrid pretty early in the morning so I had the entire afternoon to do some sightseeing. The hostel I stayed at was in a great location so I walked to the Plaza del Sol, Plaza Mayor and the cathedral.  I also went to the Museo Nacional de Prado, the most famous art museum in Madrid, where a man gave me his ticket so I got in for free!  That night I met some Fulbright friends for dinner. They were also on a Christmas trip and we happened to be in Madrid at the same time. I didn't love Madrid as much as I loved the other places but that was mainly because it rained almost the entire time I was there and by that point in the trip, I was ready to be back home in Bekes. I feel bad because Madrid gets kind of a bum-rap in my mind. I am sure had it been sunny and not at the tail-end of the trip, I would have loved it too. As it is, when people ask me what my favorite part of the trip was I honestly cannot choose one place. Every time I start to say "I liked _________ the best," I think about how awesome another place was and I can't choose.

 In Plaza del Sol - this marks the exact center of Spain

 Plaza Mayor

 Plaza Mayor

 Palace in Madrid

 Palace in Madrid

Cathedral in Madrid