// Finally getting this post out on the last day of March…I’m nothing if not a procrastinator.

// I have to say…March is one of those months I’m rather ambivalent about, especially now that my spring break tends to be in April. Growing up in the Rocky Mountains, March was always kind of a gross month. It’s been pretty gorgeous here in Budapest, though!

// Speaking of…spring is here! I love winter so much, but European springs are what springs are made of.

// I took part in the Women’s March here in Budapest. I’ve read so many mixed reviews of the march and what it means and why people loved/hated it, but I will say that it was a great day, at least here in Budapest. A long line of women, men, immigrants, and natives all made a human chain across the Chain Bridge. If nothing else, I felt inspired by the people I met/was with and hopeful about the future, if only for a few hours.

// I had a horrible attack of the flu this year, in the middle of a month-long cold (thank you, January and February) and I thought I might die. Not dramatic at all. Of course, I got sick just a few days before we were going to Stockholm…so it ended up being a slower weekend than planned. Still a good one, though!

// As a result of said illness, I’ve been to the doctor several times in the past few months. I went to a pricey foreign doctor who was useless–and then when I mentioned this to the vice-principal at school, she suddenly swept me off to her doctor (who happens to be next door to the school…so much more convenient, although the language barrier is a thing). I was already feeling better and didn’t want to go to the doctor, but…I guess that’s now how it works!

// Along these lines, I am so not okay with the Hungarians and their casual approach to nudity. I find it refreshing but at the same time, I just cannot get used to it. I go to the same gym as my boss and let’s just say, having a conversation with your boss when she’s casually topless is a true test of my awkwardness.

// Before The Illness really struck, E and I went to a cooking class at Chef Parade here in Budapest. I gifted him a French cooking class for Christmas (mostly because they were making a French version of mac’n’cheese, his favorite) and it was fun, informative, and delicious! Our main goal was to learn a new dish we could incorporate into our lives, and the chicken we made was tasty, easy, and healthy(ish).

// Two weeks until spring break! We are going to…drumroll please…Macedonia! I’m having a really hard time finding anything about this little country, so hit me up if you’ve been with some advice! It looks really beautiful, and I’m pretty excited.

source

// My sister is coming to visit in May! To say I’m thrilled would be an understatement. She’s never been to Europe! My list is huge and too ambitious for when she visits…but I have faith.

this remains my favorite photo of my dear sister.

// The kids are dabbing. All day everyday. It’s simultaneously adorable, hilarious…and annoying. Is it really necessary to dab to the A-B-Cs, children?! It’s probably most annoying when they’re supposed to be working and they do it behind my back, thinking I won’t catch them and that it’s a great joke. Silly things…don’t you know, I will always catch you??!

// So far the travels in 2017 have been the year of the S–first Sweden in February, and Serbia in March!

// We took a night train to Belgrade, Serbia, to meet our friends (the same ones we went to Slovakia with last autumn) and although the city is kind of crumbling, it’s–there’s no other word for it–cool. There was a hip little bar/wine spot/cafe/restaurant/shop around every corner. You’ll find everything from flowers to WWII weapons to dinosaurs at the fortress, to give you an example of the funkiness. I also loved the food…I mean, cheese pie? Sounds weird, but trust me, it’s amazing.

Your turn! What’s your current status?!

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When we first moved to Budapest, I could not stop comparing it to my beloved Prague. Even though I wrote a whole post about how Budapest is not the next Prague (and that’s a good thing!), I was doing that thing I hate: falling into the comparison trap.

As time passed, I learned it wasn’t Budapest itself I was having trouble adjusting to necessarily–it was things like my job, a flat that kept falling apart, a gray winter, visa issues. The longer I’ve lived in Budapest–and now that it’s past the one year mark, I’ve lived here longer than I lived in Prague!–the more I’ve come to love it, flaws and all.

I recently decided to renew my contract, which means that E and I will be staying in Budapest for at least one more school year! To celebrate, here are 18 photos to make you fall for Budapest, too–and hopefully get your butt over here, already!

Parliament at night = glorious goulash Ria, Ria, Hungaria! Gelato + pretty building means you’re sold now, right?   probably my favorite statue in Budapest the castle in the park by our flat. NOW I’ve got ya!  Ruin pub  The incomparable Fisherman’s Bastion  the Danube gets icy in the winteralso Christmastime here is fantastic.

Danube views Chain Bridge & castle, of course!

So, when are you buying your tickets??

Linking up with Wanderful Wednesday. 

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Truthfully, I almost forgot we’ve been here a  year–luckily I have this blog to remind me ;). When we were living in Prague, I was practically counting down the days until I hit that big milestone, and here, it almost passed me by.

It’s interesting to read back and see the differences between my two years abroad. In Prague, I fell for the city instantly, while it took longer for me to feel as affectionate towards Budapest. I adored my job in Prague; and here, it took me a few more tries to find a job I really enjoyed. Living abroad was still a novelty in Prague, and I gushed about everything; in Budapest, the reality of living far away in a foreign culture caught up with me.

It’s also fun to go back and see the beginning of Budapest–from the gloomy days of last January, to a July spent entirely on the road, to one of the best Octobers on record, to a holiday season spent here in the city.

As it’s hit one year, I’ve decided to end the “By the Numbers” posts. While I do enjoy writing these, to help me keep track of whatever has happened in each month, I’m looking forward to finding new ways to recap my time here.

So, I give you my last By the Numbers post–and it’s a good one to end on, because it’s…

TWELVE MONTHS IN BUDAPEST: BY THE NUMBERS

THREE DAYS in Germany to see the Christmas markets–and see our friends, who were there for their honeymoon! We saw them in Frankfurt AND in Nuremberg. Spoiled!

TWO DAYS celebrating Christmas in Budapest–just the two of us, and with friends!

ONE NIGHT seeing the Christmas Carol in musical form. One of my students (a second-grader) was in it, and got me and E tickets to see him perform as a gift. Awesome, right? He did so well and I was so impressed–and gave him a free pass for all the times I had to ask him to stop singing for the love of all that is holy in the middle of class ;). I mean, he was practicing!

FOUR successful homemade cinnamon rolls for Christmas. E said they were the best he’s ever had…but he may be slightly biased, no?

ONE EVENING at the Nutcracker in the Opera House! We snagged some super cheap tickets at the last minute. It was definitely the nose bleed section–we couldn’t even use the gorgeous marble steps and had to take a back entrance, haha–but it still a great night out! It doesn’t quite feel like the holidays without the Nutcracker.

ONE WEEK staycation in Budapest for Christmas! I was worried I would regret not traveling for Christmas and New Year’s…but I didn’t.

SEVERAL stunning sunsets snapped when I’m just getting home to our place after work.

LOTS OF TIME making our place even cozier. I’m obsessed with this random house decoration I found in Germany.

TWO HOURS meeting a fellow blogger, Natalie, for coffee! I love when I people I’ve connected with online visit my city…and vice versa. She definitely has me considering South Africa for my next big trip!

THREE HOURS having coffee at the beautiful New York Café, supposedly the “most beautiful café in the world.” It’s definitely fancy (and pricey!).

TEN freezing days. It’s been so cold here–the coldest it’s been in years–and I’m kind of loving it! The Danube even had ice floes…excuse my crappy photo but I couldn’t resist snapping one.

ONE big snowstorm–finally! Sadly after Christmas but…I’ll take it.

How was your month? 

Eleven Months in Budapest // Ten Months in Budapest // Nine Months in Budapest // Eight Months in Budapest // Seven Months in Budapest // Six Months in Budapest // Five Months in Budapest // Four Months in Budapest // Three Months in Budapest // Two Months in Budapest // One Month in Budapest // Three Months on the Road // Twelve Months in Prague

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The eleventh month has been a whirlwind, in the best kind of way–because it’s almost Christmas!

Eleven Months in Budapest: By the Numbers

ONE NIGHT in the little town of Eger, Hungary! We had to visit their little Christmas market while we were there, of course.

FIVE (ish) glasses of wine in the cellars Eger’s Valley of Beautiful Women, aka Hungary’s wine country. The cellars are right next to each other so you just walk in-between, sampling as you go.

FOUR visits to the local Christmas markets so far, not counting the smaller ones in parks I’ve randomly stumbled upon. And it’s just the beginning!!

TWO (very light) dustings of snow. Can you see it?

SEVERAL (more than I’d care to admit) hilariously awkward interactions with co-workers this month. I’m not sure what my deal is right now, but pretty much every time I’ve spoken with a Hungarian adult lately, and it’s turned weird quickly. This one made me laugh, mostly because it was in response to a long email of mine asking about fifteen questions.

THREE HOURS celebrating Friendsgiving with some friends and a co-worker of mine. Of course I only took a picture of the flowers our friend gifted us, but it was a great night and E, the main cook of the event, did a spectacular job!

LONG DAYS working at my job. In some ways, this is the best time of year to be a teacher: fun Christmas lessons, gifts from the kids, a decorated school, happy people. In other ways, it’s also the worst: kids are insanely hyped up with excitement and sugar, the schedule is a mess, a lot of teachers/students are sick, and there is so much going on that it begins to feel stressful.

This kid has some big wishes from Santa: including laser vision. 

MANY DAYS where the temperature is getting truly cold (cold enough, I think, for snow, so let me just ask: where is it?!??) but this also means the coziness is going off the charts.

THREE Christmas-themed donuts from our new favorite donut shop, the Donut Library (please excuse my horrid phone picture…).

ONE jury-rigged Christmas tree in our flat! (Aka a bunch of branches that we shoved into a bucket, that E wrapped to look festive).

TWO HOURS at a festive trivia night, which needed holiday outfits, of course (okay, I’m not particularly festive in plaid, but it was a Scottish bar so I still earned some points).

Ten Months in Budapest // Nine Months in Budapest // Eight Months in Budapest // Seven Months in Budapest // Six Months in Budapest // Five Months in Budapest // Four Months in Budapest // Three Months in Budapest // Two Months in Budapest // One Month in Budapest // Three Months on the Road // Twelve Months in Prague

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So, I enlisted my husband to help me. We have this travel game we play, where one of us will say two locations, and the other has to choose which one they want to visit most. As you can imagine, this game doesn’t really have an ending, and it’s not black-and-white, so I came down to two choices: Prague or Budapest.

It might be cheating to write about 24 hours in the current city I’m living in, but I haven’t given Budapest much love on this blog yet, so I couldn’t resist!

(For more about Prague: 5 Day Trips from Prague, a Prague Bucket List, A Guide to Teaching English in Prague, and my Love Affair with Praha).

24 HOURS IN BUDAPEST

The first thing you must do is hit up Deryne Bisztro for breakfast. It’s a bit out of the way but so worth it.

After breakfast, take a walk up Castle Hill and head to Fisherman’s Bastion for the best views of the city you’ll be exploring for the next 24 hours!

Visit the Matthias Church, since you’re right there after all. It’s gorgeous.

Head to a fancy café for lunch/coffee. I love the Alexandria Bookstore on Andrassy avenue, but the New York Café is billed as the most beautiful cafe in the world if you’re up for the prices that go along with that tagline. If you’re not in the mood for fancy, head to Ruszwurm, supposedly the oldest café in the city, and conveniently right next to Matthias Church and Fisherman’s Bastion.

Take the metro to Varosliget (City Park) and walk through, making sure to visit the Vajdahunyad Castle.

At the other end of the park, hop into the Szechenyi Baths for a relaxing soak and spa treatments. There are tons of other baths in the city, like Gellert Baths and Rudas, but Szechenyi is literally in an old palace. How could you go wrong?

After a soak, head back to your hotel/Airbnb for a quick clean up. Then…

Head to DiVino Wine Bar for pre-dinner glass of Hungarian wine–spoiler alert, it’s delicious–and a gorgeous view of St. Stephen’s Basilica.

Walk along the Danube to see the Budapest skyline showing off at night, especially the Chain Bridge.

Eat a late dinner at Menza for traditional Hungarian with a twist.

Save some energy for at least one ruin pub! Ruin pubs are one of my favorite things about Budapest. Szimpla is the most famous, and a must, if only to sit in the bath tub. My favorite is Anker’t. Here’s a list of more here. Most of the pubs are close to each other, in the 7th district, so it’s easy to hop between them.

Budapest turns all the lights out at midnight, but really the party is just getting started, so you can stay out all night if you want. My teacher schedule usually has me in bed by midnight, so I’m not an expert, but try out Doboz–a ruin pub and a club in one!

Go home, knowing that 24 hours in Budapest was just enough to leave you wanting more.

Have you been to Budapest? What would you squeeze into these 24 hours, if you could?

The post 24 Hours in Budapest appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

The first six months in Budapest were very difficult for me–unexpectedly so–and I couldn’t drum up enthusiasm to come back. Living here for six months before leaving again didn’t give us a lot of time to develop that much attachment, and add in the fact that we were moving to a new neighborhood that I was unsure of AND I would be starting yet another new job…this new beginning didn’t bring the excitement of adventure I usually feel.

It was one of the few times in my life where staying somewhere (in this case, America) was sounding more appealing than going. Seeing all of our friends and family members made it even harder to leave.

A few months after returning, though, and I’m so grateful I gave Budapest another chance. I love my job, I love our place, I love the city, I love the exploring we’ve been able to do, I love that we are making new social connections, and we’re at the tail end of one of the most glorious autumns of my life.

One thing that really struck me recently is how much it’s starting to feel like home here, both the city and our flat. I never thought I would feel “at home” in a city where I don’t speak 95% of the language–but I do.

E and I apparently had an unspoken agreement when we moved in that we would really settle into this apartment–and that included buying things we haven’t had the inclination for in years. We never discussed any of it–usually any purchase that isn’t a strict necessity has been heavily debated in the past few years–we just did it. We bought it. Stuff like cozy blankets and actual kitchen supplies and candles.

I seriously cannot stop buying candles.

What’s funny about all this is that just recently I realized that we are only in this place, and I’m only in this job, until June. Of course, the chances are good that we could stay another year–or even longer–but it’s only official until the end of this school year. Either we stay, we have to find a way to squeeze in my beloved kitchen scale (…who am I?), or we leave our already furnished place more well-equipped than before.

I can’t imagine staying here, or anywhere, really–settling anywhere has always been a vague “someday” sort of thing, or a fun way to dream about living in my ultimate places…but as I light one of my many candles and eat some amazing soup E made in our functioning kitchen, I also wonder if maybe this could be home.

And maybe I’m ready for a home, more than I ever thought I could be.

Crazier things have happened.

The post Maybe This Could Be Home appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

I have to say, and I might have said this before (but I don’t think so, I checked!) but month ten has been my favorite month of living here so far.

Why don’t I tell you all about it? I can tell you’re on the edge of your seat ;).

TEN MONTHS IN BUDAPEST: BY THE NUMBERS

48 HOURS in Slovakia. We drove four hours on a Friday after work to the town of Poprad. While Poprad is nice, the highlights of the trip were surely the mountains, the drive back through stunning leaves, and the awesome company!

SEVEN DAYS in Slovenia. I will never get over this country.

THREE DAYS at Lake Bled.

ONE MORNING at Lake Bohinj.

TWO DAYS in Ljubljana.

ONE AFTERNOON at Predjama Castle. This castle might win the award for my favorite, just like this month did.

ONE DAY TRIP to the Mediterranean coast at Piran!

ONE NIGHT at a lovely homestay in the Soča Valley.

SIX HOURS exploring the Brda wine region with an amazing local guide (who was also our host for the homestay).

ONE LAST BAKE for the Bake-Off Bake Along!

MANY MINUTES soaking up every bit of the most amazing fall I can remember.

COUNTLESS MOMENTS of hilarity and fun with my students. These moments, often few and far between in the chaos, make it all worth it.

Nine Months in Budapest // Eight Months in Budapest // Seven Months in Budapest // Six Months in Budapest // Five Months in Budapest // Four Months in Budapest // Three Months in Budapest // Two Months in Budapest // One Month in Budapest // Three Months on the Road // Twelve Months in Prague

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I am feeling more at home in Budapest than ever, despite continued challenges. I can’t believe that in a few short months, I’ll have been here for one year. Love it!

NINE MONTHS IN BUDAPEST: BY THE NUMBERS

ONE WEEKEND at Oktoberfest! I admit that I had never felt very motivated to get to Oktoberfest, but when several friends from overseas (and one of our friends who just moved to Frankfurt) decided to go, we couldn’t miss the chance. It was SO MUCH FUN although also a wild event.

A QUICK STOPOVER in the lovely Salzburg!

FOUR MORE BAKES for the Bake Off Bake Along. Most of these one didn’t go great, except for my beautiful cake. It’s still be a fun challenge!

MANY HOURS soaking up fall here in Pest.

ONE EVENING celebrating our first anniversary. Still can’t believe we’ve been married for one year.

ONE DAY at the zoo with the kids.

THREE DELIVERIES of groceries. I feel like it’s cheating to get groceries delivered but we recently discovered our nearby market does that here and it’s amazzzzing. It’s like Christmas every time it comes!

FIVE NIGHTS (at least) eating this awesome butternut squash soup made by my awesome husband.

ONE MORNING at the local farmer’s market. Obviously I had one item I was specifically looking for…all the gourds.

TWO HOURS at the chimney cake festival at the nearby castle in the park.

THREE HOURS at Sunday brunch with some girls! One of these days I’ll remember to take pictures of the actual people in my life. They exist. I swear.

ONE WORKING SATURDAY at my school’s Harvest Fest! One of Hungary’s worst customs, in my opinion, is working Saturdays. Working Saturdays are make-up days for holidays. I.e., if the holiday is a Tuesday and you also get that Monday off, you have to make it up on a Saturday. THE WORST. At least it didn’t feel like a real work day with the festival.

How was your month??

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When we moved to Budapest last January, we lived in a pretty primo location right by the river and the Parliament building. In June, I quit my old job and got a new one, which meant that we had to move to a new place and a new area of the city.

I had no love for our tiny, barely functional flat, but I was disappointed to leave the ‘hood. I mean, my commute included walking by this every day!

(Not to mention it was close to the river, great restaurants, and well-centered in the city.)

While I immediately loved our new flat, I wasn’t sure about our new neighborhood at first. However, now that I know the transit links, have explored the area more, and have gotten spoiled with my 10-minute walk to work, I’m quite happy here!

The best part about the area is that we are very close to Budapest’s City Park, or Varosliget. This park is kind of equivalent to New York’s Central Park–it has a zoo, famous baths, an ice-skating ring in winter, and…a castle!

The first time I found it was a surprise–I had no idea it was there–but now I visit it often, because it’s fall and I need frequent park walks, and it also happens to hold almost weekly festivals. This weekend was the Kürtőskalács, or chimney cake, festival (known as trdelník in CZ!).

After a walk with some friends to get us some cakes, I came home and made another cake for this week’s Bake Off Bake Along, hosted by Amanda and Ala!

That’s right–this week I finally attempted the showstopper, which is always the biggest and most elaborate of the three bake choices.

While I was technically supposed to make a three-layer cake, I could only manage two…and with just two of us, I think three would have been a bit insane.

It also seemed like a good time to incorporate some fall flavors. You know where I’m going with this…pumpkin.

I attempted to make this Brown Butter Pumpkin Cake, from Amanda herself, but used a cinnamon buttercream, loosely based off of this recipe, to pipe roses.

While I’m not sure cinnamon-colored roses are exactly the best choice, and my piping leaves a bit to be desired, this cake is AMAZING. While I’m one of those people who think cake without frosting is kind of a waste of time, even I don’t even think this cake needs any frosting–it’s that good! Not that the cinnamon buttercream was a hardship to eat.

I’m so happy I finally had a good bake–pastry week and batter week weren’t exactly successful so I’ve been feeling more anxious about baking than I ever thought possible. I even caught myself starting into the oven for way too long just like they do on the show…

I’m in good company.

Next week–desserts! And week 7 already!

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