Regarding skype evenings & Moroccan Hound abroad

It was so warm yesterday, I was only wearing a t-shirt while sitting outside at a cafe. I am in love with this city and it's only going to turn into a mad passion when it truly becomes spring.

However...my hands get SO dry here! I dread each time I come into contact with water and I have literally woken up at an unholy early hour just to reapply hand cream. Unfortunately, this has become my ever-present pain.

So, Wednesday Courtney and I got to talking about then completely finalizing spring break plans. By the way, europe's budget airlines are a. not that cheap as always advertised and b. effin' frustrating!. In any case, I am excited to inform you that I am going to Scotland (woot) to visit Courtney and Elizabeth. Yay for actual plans!

Thursday was a day of struggling with my finance homework, until Eniko told me she knew where I could download the textbook in english online...thank you for russian websites unconcerned with copyrights! That evening, Amandine, a french girl, threw a flat party for a french boy and german boy who both had birthdays. This flat was ....grandiose! Some of the apartments here, seriously, you just have to see these places! You could fit my entire flat about four times into some of these...makes me wish sometimes that I had just showed up to the Domino Hostel and found me some crazy cool place with lots of internationals. But no matter, I am actually very content with my flat and my cozy little room...but there will be no entertaining going on here, haha. I got home early and had an epic instant-messaging night, catching up with everyone all over the place...because when it's 2 am here, EVERYONE in LA is online, haha. Including ex-ex boyfriends with surprising confessions. I really wish I could consolidate the chat windows from gmail, skype and aim all in one place...Steve, I expect you have some solution? j/k :-P

Friday was some more struggles with the finance hw, even with the aid of the book...tough class, y'all. And then a little warm-up at Sarah's (german) even-larger flat before heading to the Living Room for the Mega-Exchange Party, haha, where all of Budapest's exchange students are invited but somehow i get the feeling that they don't all come. This reminds me---if you're drinking, try and not go past your limit to the point that you can't stand and people have to bodily force you to go home...it's no fun for all the rest of us who do the taking care of you. Gah, really bugs me when people don't know their limits or simply don't care.

Saturday I watched Across the Universe with Gaby (slovakian)...this movie...was interesting. The lead is definitely attractive, and the film definitely reinforces my knowledge that the Beatles are genius, but I just want to go home and listen to the ORIGINAL Beatles! There were also very many unnecessary and too-symbolic 'performance' art segments that the editor should have left on the cutting room floor. I also helped with her homework, so for all of you who think I am living a wastrel life abroad...I am doing some good by spreading my english skills, and they are actually in some demand here. Oh...if I could actually be an editor, wow that would rock! (Yes, I realize that my grammar is not always top-notch on this blog, no rebukes please!). At night, while doing extreme renovations on old travel photos via picasa, Sonya, Alaina and I had an epic 1.5 hour skype and wow I hope no censors ever read our ridiculous hyena-laughter-inducing conversation/chat.

Sunday (yesterday) was the amazingly warm day. Sarah and I wandered all over Raday and along Vaci utca, finally stopping at a cafe and enjoying the whiff of spring to come. We also explored various grocery stores/little markets that were amazingly still open, because that night she was having a potluck---my first in Hungary!! Knowing the challenge that lay ahead of me with groceries, I prepared a list of ingredients for approximately 4 or 5 recipes so that I would for sure be able to at least make one. I actually had some surprising success although the list of items I still absolutely cannot find has grown to: risotto, artichoke hearts, fresh basil, buttermilk.

The following may be more appropriate for Moroccan Hound but I'm on a roll here so...the menu was as follows:
Lena (german) with pasta salad, and this spinach pizza-like tart with some goat cheese or bryndza. Basically, the stores here sell these small prepared 'pizza' crusts and she just spread some frozen spinach over it and sprinkled the cheese over and baked...very simple and pretty tasty. Might do it for dinner some time.
Sarah made bruschetta, rosemary potatoes, and bacon-wrapped dates. This last was phenomenally delicious! I don't even like dates, but the salty with the sweet...I don't know, it was a fabulous and simple pairing.
I made tomato/mozzarella couscous, and spinach-mushroom dip with pita chips (again, couldn't find artichokes or fresh basil, haha). The dip was good, but creamier than I like so next time I think less of the cheese/sour cream, more of the spinach.
The actual eating was pretty amusing, because five of us girls (me + all the rest were german) all ate first around 8:30. Sarah and Alexa's roommate, Guillame, had five friends visiting from France, and anyways, all the boys only showed up around 8:30 and proceeded to cook potato latkes (which they insisted were something french, the german girls insisted were something german, and you and I both know are actually totally Jewish! haha) and so they ate on the second round. There was so much food! And although back home I could totally pack away a respectable amount...I still feel full this morning.

I am so glad that the spirit of Moroccan Hound can be found the world over.

Regarding grocery frustrations

I know that I may have given voice to certain issues regarding the grocery stores in previous posts, but I'd really like to broach this subject in greater detail right now. The other night I was going to cook for someone. So, as any self-respecting person would, I wanted to cook something I was familiar with, good at, and that seemed stylish, sophisticated, while not being overly complicated. This is actually rather sticky to begin with as I am a cook who likes to try new recipes all the time, and I don't have a particular set arsenal that I turn to when trying to impress. You, my moroccan hound compatriates, should know, as we always experiment and if something doesn't work out, whatever. But I would like to think that I am a capable cook.
However, first I need the goddamn ingredients!!!
Haha. So this dilemma is further complicated by Hungarian grocery stores which either don't carry what I am looking for, or you have to go to some combination of 3 or 4 stores to get everything (and I either don't have the time or don't know the proper combination), or even if they have it---good luck reading the label in Hungarian.
For example, I went through some possibilities:
Fish--not possible, as there is no fresh fish to be found in Hungary, the country is landlocked. Theoretically I could buy a family size pack of frozen mystery fish and choke on it for the next month but I don't think our freezer even has room for this.
Meat--The grand market closes at 5 (6 some days). If you have class before then, you're out of luck. I have yet to even see beef in a normal grocery store, and they're often out of chicken other than some chicken legs. Pork is plentiful, all there is is effin' pork, haha.
Green beans (for our fave, gujerati style)--I found some in a Match, but when I went on my grocery expedition on Monday, to a SPAR which my roommates recommended as the one place I might find a larger selection or variety of products, there were some kind of yellow beans? but no green ones. SPAR did turn out to be the one place I have found goat cheese, although questionably sealed, and also parmesan cheese (oh, how i have missed thee). Usually, the cheese selection is rather limited--the usual, kind of bland, Hungarian cheese is called Trappista and that you can find anywhere. Upon occasion I have come across emmentaler, gouda and camembert. And although this SPAR did have the 'gourmet' presence of carrying goat cheese, they did not have risotto (which I have seen somewhere else, dammit!). So the risotto idea i had was out.

Finally I settled upon pasta carbonara. After all, it was getting late and this is an easy plus damn tasty meal. Eggs check, pasta check, parmesan check, black pepper check...ummm...cream? I looked all over the dairy aisle, proceeded to text three different people for them to look up the word in hungarian, only to ultimately find it some other place entirely. Apparently I was this close to buying sour cream.

Given some perspective, I must say that I am glad to be in a place near eastern european food as I can't find any in LA (and it's too much of a pain to drive to the Valley). However, for my daily diet I really don't buy kapusta and herring much, and some wider variety would be SOOOOOO appreciated.
Anyways, consider yourselves all very lucky that you can buy and cook ANYTHING you want whenever.
Oh, there are plenty of 'poppy seed cakes' here, minus the raisins and nuts, and I love that! And there are the chocolate croissant style pastries, similar to the Israeli rugelach, and they sell those in bakeries right inside the metro so every time I ride it I have the hardest time walking straight by.
Basically, I'm going to have to look up some hungarian cookbook and learn to really, really love paprika as my only seasoning.

Other news:

Last night there was another esn party at the Irish Cat but I got bored (same people, same music, blah blah) so I figured I'd rather try my chances on skype to see if any of my friends around the world were around (success!! so glad I caught you, Kate!). On the way home, however, I waited for the bus, and then it just rode straight past. Rather unfortunate. Another woman who was waiting, who was hungarian with a crazy floppy hat, got pretty flustered, but so we both ended up walking home together. This was kind of amusing as I walked faster than her but I wasn't sure about the etiquette and whether I was allowed to completely leave her behind so I'd periodically slow down until my new companion and I parted ways.
Also, someone recently turned me on to Ben Harper and I have to express amazement at this horrible lapse in my musical awareness! I have a feeling that BH may turn out to be my next great love after Stevie Wonder :-D
In my Decision Methods class today we did one of those 'personality' quizzes, "are you a maximizer or a satisficer?" I am smack dab in the middle, baby, adapting my behavior case by case. Twas funny though, one of the questions was: you treat relationships like clothing, expecting to try many before you find the perfect fit. Do I?...anyways, rhetorical, don't answer that.

Regarding space

So after years of living with my family, and then 2.5 years with the coolest roommates in LA, I find that I have had extremely good fortune with my living arrangements to date. Removing myself from those situations, initially on the Prague-Israel trip and now in Budapest, I have had the opportunity for introspection and I find that I really NEED SPACE. I cannot be with someone ALWAYS; I need to be free to do my own thing without always answering to someone's queries of 'where were you' or agreeing to their brazen statements that they will accompany me to wherever I go. I am simply not used to having the same person always near me and am used to having friends in different circles. Even with my closest friends, we are not together constantly and I think we all have this sense of independence and need for a bit of separation--for which, I thank you sincerely!
So what I am getting at: someone here--in fact--right in this very flat, does not understand this concept. The situation is becoming dire and I am this close to having a very awkward conversation. Truly, I don't quite know how to go about it because I have no desire to sever any connections...but this is just too much. I mean, I am all for inviting everyone along, etc., but bliiiiiiiiiiiiin, do we have to do everything together?! Last night I simply couldn't take it and engaged in Operation Sneak Out.
Some of you may call me cold for this attitude, but so be it. I have come to terms with my need for space and one way or another, I will get it. Hopefully without burning any bridges.
Oh, I did already have the rather awkward conversation about not-sharing food. Generally, I am all for cooking with someone and so on, but that someone has to be a. able to cook themselves and not merely propose "oh, do you want to cook for us both?", and b. ok with eating more than just hot dogs+pasta (and not express shock upon seeing green beans, broccoli, soy sauce, calzones, etc. for the first time). In other words, I refuse to be her cook. In reference to my earlier comments--I am not at all averse to teaching someone how to cook, but they have to have some semblance of a desire to learn, which I see no evidence of.

Whew. That was a load off. I apologize for the general complaining-tone of this post.
In other news: we went to Pink Cadillac, an italian restaurant on Raday utca, in a group of 16 or 17 erasmus students...and boy, were we international. Representing were: Italy, France, Netherlands, Canada, Russia, and Germany. Later in the night, after another stop at the ever-classic Szimpla, we went to Szoda Cafe. This place was so perfect for the night: upstairs, a regular bar; downstairs, instead of the usual 'cellar' it was what I can only call a 'bunker.' At the very end of the bunker was a teensy dance floor, and the playlist was exclusively 80's and 90's, and not just the standards like Billie Jean or Ice Ice Baby but songs that I truly haven't heard since they were first on the radio. Great fun!
Saturday, 5 of us girls went to Rudas Baths. Like Kiraly, these are turkish with a main central pool underneath a dome with multi-colored skylights or holes. However, it's bigger, nicer and on weekends it's mixed. They also throw parties at weekend nights--(who's with me?!). I could really get used to the bathing lifestyle, if only I could afford it. But now that I have seen all the ones I've wanted to, I'm holding off until someone comes to visit me.
It's been bloooooody freezing these last few days. And of all the times to go flat-hopping, we chose last night. Utterly bundled up, cradling our bottles of wine, we went around town from Ferenciek tere to Ferenc Korut for a polish vodka tasting party (haha) to Blaha Luzha for a flat party.
Oh, I must say, many of the apartment buildings here (not mine) are incredibly stately and also damn creepy. At night, the hallways are completely unlit unless you happen to find the button on the wall, and they have the wrought iron-lattice work rails to the staircases. There are also the old elevators with the outer and inner doors. Once you get into the apartment----ooooh la la, they are very nice! High ceilings, big windows, parquet(sp?) floors. Tis nice, very very nice.

Assorted Miscellanea:
1. Our flat operates entirely without paper towels. Good for the environment, bad for whatever object is nearby when I eat an orange.
2. In case you're not on facebook, I have uploaded photos to http://picasaweb.google.com/Lenav09
One album is what I took, and the rest I've been stealing from my friends as my camera is still broken.
3. here's a tasty, easy marinade for chicken in case you're interested in a variation on the basic chicken legs: soy sauce + honey + olive oil + powdered ginger + powdered garlic + pepper.
4. I can understand spoken Croatian. Easier to understand than spoken polish, which they rattle off soooo fast.
5. You guys should go on skype to chat with me, or on gmail chat. I think Courtney will soon get sick of my always pestering her online. For reference: I am 9 hours ahead of LA, 7 of Chicago, 6 of New York/Florida, 1 of Edinburgh and 8 hours behind Canberra.
5. The best thing on The Office since Dwight's "where is the clitoris": (season 3, Episode A BeniHana Christmas) Michael, on his breakup with Carol-"how did you push away the bad thoughts? like maybe the real reason they left was maybe there were things they wanted you to do...in bed...that were foreign,and scary, and not that you didn't want to try them. some wine might have helped."

Hahaha.

Regarding the last week

Hello all,
so as Courtney has informed me, I have not posted in a long time. Given my proclivity for checking your blogs, I guess she is correct. But not altogether much has happened.

Monday I had my finance class for the first time. This class is no joke (so all of you ardent students back home...hope this makes you feel better). The professor is truly intimidating---long unbrushed hair in a ponytail, a mustache, a mole with a hair growing out of it...oh, and did I mention it's a 'she?' Plus, she's rattling off financial equations to type into excel as we miserably search the unfamiliar hungarian keyboards for the ^ or the * or the shift button. Rather a trying experience, but ultimately I hope it will prove useful. That night the ESN organized a hungarian dinner, which was at a restaurant called Paprika. It had the fake-cabin look to it, not a style of decor particularly to my taste. There were, however, various dead animals hanging about the room--I suppose in a further attempt at authenticity. I had the goulash, it was ok. For some reason, for most of my life, I was under the impression that goulash was a stew and it is in fact a soup. I prefer my version of misunderstanding.
Then it was to Morrison's (again) for the monday before 11pm 3 beer special. Rather unmemorable and I am swearing off drinking beer here. The wine is cheaper and tastier (and more effective). Course, if my new french friends were to hear me say that, they would look at me with all the snobbishness one can imagine and proclaim it blasphemy.
Tuesday, more class, yada yada. Wednesday, more class, and then at night there was a Carnival party at some disco that the ESN rented out just for the Erasmus students. Course, carnival ended over a week ago so... a bit late. I had no costume, but as I am a halloween-baby, I never back down from such an opportunity. In prior years, when potential guests told me they didn't want to come to my halloween party because they had no costume (and I would always promise penalties if they were not in costume) then i would suggest they simply take their bedsheet and create a toga. Well, to all of those who I said that to, I apologize---it is harder than it looks.
However, the internet does provide many suggestions, and I was particularly amused by a british-narrated tutorial on youtube. In the end, I enlisted the aid of my flatmate and together we fashioned something passable (using a number of safety pins in the process). However, might I suggest that if you are wearing something held together by safety pins, don't run helter-skelter after the bus because that is the reason you will have some unexplained bloody scratches down your leg the next morning.

Yesterday (Thursday), my environmental management class was screening El Dorado, a documentary on the proposed plan for the largest gold mine project in the EU to be built in Romania, at Rosia Montana. Only four of us showed up (I must admit, I was merely tempted by the prospect of viewing something on a screen larger than my mini-labtop). Anyways, it was interesting and had interviews with locals both in support and utterly against the project. I was particularly amused by the comment by Gold Corp's rep, when he said that the project would ultimately be of greater benefit to the environment. And of a swedish rep to evaluate the environmental impact of the project, who said something along the lines of 'of course, after the project, Gold Corp should leave the environment as it was previously, or something very close to.' Hah, as though after leveling an entire mountain and creating a quarry 9 km in circumference, the environment will be better off of remotely similar to how it was.


Immediately afterwards I had an invitation to a movie night at another californian's, J-. She found a video store with english-language dvd's near andrassy so a number of us showed up and watched Reign Over Me. Adam Sandler's latest definitely reminds me of Jim Carrey's attempts to go serious, and I approve. Course the film elicited some serious waterworks on my part. It was fantastic watching a movie with popcorn and people, and although I am sooooo grateful to Courtney for introducing me to VideoLemon (where i can find The Office), I am looking forward to more real movie nights. And then it was back to School Club b/c A-'s friends wanted to go there. Seriously, we need to start exploring new places with better music.

Today some of us went to Terror Haza, the former headquarters of the Arrow Cross and
subsequently the Soviet police org's with whatever particular acronym they were using at the time. It was a very sleek exhibit and very high-tech. All the exhibitions were designed nicely with striking music and lighting. You wind up with practically a book in explanations of the history by the time you're done but more explanations for the actual items on display would have been useful. Also, despite the fact that I liked the museum and recommend going there, I don't know that it really carries across the real shocking impact of the atrocities that went on in there. I feel like too many people didn't pick up and read the explanations and simply don't understand or care to understand. There was, however, a really uncomfortable and painful video of a meeting between former female inmates with their former female guard (filmed sometime in the 1990's). They are all old women now, but they were expressing their hurt, and their fear and resentment towards the guard, as she merely shrugged them off and feigned ignorance of her misdeeds. I don't know why but it left an impression.

And we have dinner plans tonight with the french and i guess the italians too (so guess where we're going...to italian! in all my experience, the italian's like their food SO much that they never eat anything else, haha.) Course, the reservation is for 9:30 which means my stomach was caving in on me and I cheated with a bit of food. But, like on Courtney's recent post, I don't know what's up, but the pants just don't fit no more. I need to get a belt. (Woot. no complaints, hah)

Alrighty, much love to you all and I will endeavor to lead a more interesting life, haha.

Regarding an immersion in eurotrash

So last night, a few of us who hadn't gone to Szeged decided to check out that jazz place I had seen earlier, before going out dancing. Turns out Spinoza is actually more of a restaurant (but complete with an old man playing the piano) so we were about to head to the very safe choice that is Szimpla, but saw some boys carrying an amp into the cellar right below. The place was called Lampas, and it was your typical smoke-filled cellar with an assortment of rickety chairs/stools/couches. The wine was cheap so we stayed and the endeavor was not wasted---the band played jazz! (Don't shoot me, I am absolutely clueless about all types of classifications to various types of music. All I can say is when I like it or I don't, and...I liked it).

Then, my seasoned budapest buddies (they had already been here one semester (from Germany)) took us to Dokk Cafe. This would turn out to be my first true immersion in the stereotypical european disco. The cafe is actually located in a mall, and although all the stores are locked up, all the cafes/restaurants/bars are open, and young people are wandering all over. It's kind of like your average mall where the young kids go trolling for members of the opposite sex, only completely dispensing with any pretense at another activity like shopping. And some of the kids were YOUNG! As my camera is shot, I can only attempt to give you a mental image with some key words: crop tops; miniskirts; extreme highlights; stick straight, fried hair; boys with mullets (but the spiky european/oriental kind, not the down-south kind); boys who take the term metrosexual to whole new heights of meaning and somehow act affronted when you don't respond to their attempts at grinding up to you; lots of product working to make those mullets spiky; sparkles; tight shirts with designer labels; gobs of makeup. The music was surprisingly not trance, but rather an uninspired mix of american rap, with some very obscure rap songs thrown in that no one in america has heard, I guarantee. My personal favorite was when the entire dance floor erupted in song to a dance number which had the refrain, "I want to wish you a happy birthday."
Needless to say, this night ended early. But I have an interesting image branded in my mind.

Oh, I must uphold the belief that rap songs from the nineties are still completely viable for dancing to, and I heartily thank Ice Cub for 'You can do it' and Freak Nasty for 'Da Dip.'


Good night and good luck

P.s. I just taught someone how to bake chicken. In other words, how to put foil in a pan, turn on the oven, salt/pepper the chicken, place inside and check later. I think that parents need to take their job of raising children more seriously and I thank mine for teaching me about the oven and the stove. (And of course, for everything else as I like to think that I'm not a half-bad kid --insert angel smiley face).

Regarding classes, my legal status, and etc.

This post will have lots of assorted miscellanea....as per usual, I suppose.

Class update: As we are no longer allowed to change our courses, and more importantly, the university is no longer allowed to change the schedule, I do believe I can finally make public my planned routine of studies.
Monday 1:10 to 4:10 International Corporate Financial Management (i think this will be for realz)
Tuesday 11:20-2:30 Corporate Environmental Management (so topical these days ;-p )
2:50 - 5:50 Retailing management (ummm...)
Wed. 11:20-2:30 Decision Methods (will make me think more creatively, surprisingly interesting)
2:50-5:50 International Business Marketing (what it says in the title)

Also, in case it interested you're to know, our exchange student group is rather well-mixed. There are something like 45 germans, 30 french, 10 american (6 from usc alone), and then 1-3 from everywhere else, and around 220 total. This is of course only within the business/erasmus exchange program. The other usc students who are in BP are with an american-only group, I believe. I am of course way glad to be meeting people from all over--it makes for some interesting, albeit not always coherent, conversations.

Legality Update: So as we u.s. citizen students were not required to apply for a visa back home, we are required to get a residence permit in Budapest. However, doing so necessitates bussing to way out somewhere in Buda (across from a Tesco!), getting a number, waiting an hour, gesturing with increasing frustration at a non-english speaking clerk, and being told to go pay AT THE POST OFFICE FOR SOME PURPOSELESS STAMP THAT COSTS $102. And then coming back to wait in line and do it all again.
I would just like to bring up a few qualms I have with this situation: A. Why, in an office that deals with foreigners, can they only speak Hungarian or have directions up in Hungarian? B. What possible purpose could a fee stamp serve?
In any case, the mission was aborted as I don't just go around carrying loads of cash on me. That, and i can be around for 90 days and i'll be traveling, so mayhaps....
Otherwise, the university has JUST informed us that there will be a day that they outsource the process to the campus and only Americans and a few other lucky folks can get their residency there. Thanks for the timely notice.

Other activities of note: I checked out the Holocaust Museum which is within walking distance of my apartment (immediately following my failure with the residency permit, so perhaps I had it in me to really depress myself that day). It's a very high-tech exhibition, and definitely takes some time to get through and read everything/see everything. It was completely deserted when I went but then again, most of the tourist spots here are barren as it is winter. Although the sun comes out and I'm getting glimpses of how fantastic spring is going to be here.
Yesterday some of us girls went to the Kiraly Baths, which are Turkish baths that were built in 1570. Guys and girls get different days that they're allowed to go. It's a way smaller place than Szecheniy and with a completely different atmosphere: these are indoor with one large skylit dome covering a large-ish faintly sulphuric smelling pool. There are only 3 or 4 other small pools with varying degrees of temperature and dry and wet saunas. It's pretty dim inside, and definitely a unique space/experience.
Today a few of us went to the first annual Mangalica Festival(read: sausage festival) at the Vajdahunyad Castle in City Park (near Hero's Square and Szecheniy baths). It was an absolute crush of people but it was interesting and we tried some intriguing food (though please don't ask me to name it). And in case you were wondering, yes they were selling these.

And in case you were wondering, yes, we are still going out at night. Too often, because despite the cheapness of the drinks, the frequency makes the endeavor rather expensive. Time to cozy up to some boys at the bar (i kid, i kid).
Unfortunately, in terms of after-partying dining options, you are basically left with only kebabs (which they call 'gyros' but they're more like shawerma than greek-style, as I've mentioned previously). I don't actually get them on my way home, but I think that after a few weeks I'll really start craving Denny's or some other american diner food.

Now for quick newsbites:
1. it was lightly raining the other day and my boots were slick. I skinned my knee. I feel like I'm 13 years old.
2. You should see me when I go grocery shopping--after paying, I must strategically place all my purchases into my backpack and hope that there's room for the last two yogurts. It would be a little weird walking home and just having two yogurts in my hand.
3. I am starting to see too much of certain people. I need space. Go do your own thing!
4. This past week I've been a magnet for much too attractive and hard to resist boys who either don't speak any english at all (hungarians) or are way too full of themselves and prefer not to speak (french). Not that i'm complaining but I suddenly miss american boys. Celibacy is depressing.
5. Have i mentioned that they really speak very little (to no) english here?! And that pronunciation of hungarian is next to impossible?! Even the words I do know, they don't understand me when I say them.
6. My camera balked on me today. I fear it may be the end, unless I find some Canon representative with good english (i fear that's asking too much). And, sadly, there is even no reason for it--i snapped some photos, all good, pressed the off button and bam---'lens error. restart camera.' I wasn't aware that cameras could be restarted...? So, although I had a picture of pig's feet from the festival that I'm sure you would want to see, sadly, it is no more.
7. There is a whole world of opportunity in the metro underpasses.
8. A large number of the exchangers went to Szeged for the weekend, essentially to indulge in more drinking for an exorbitant price. We are instead checking out that jazz cafe I found earlier in the week...seems promising.
9. I cooked again, this time thinking that the oven would prove less of a challenge. How wrong I was! Turning on the oven involves scissors and a match and absolutely no measurement device for the temperature. But never fear, the food turned out.

Cheers and best wishes!

Regarding szecheniy baths, wandering alone, first classes and all around love for this bloody wonderful city

More recounting of my days:
Sunday February 3rd, I went with other xchangers to Szecheniy Baths...which was absolutely fantastic! I mean, THIS is what it means to go to a spa! Not just a regular old sauna or pool--these baths are beautiful and I will stop gushing and rather provide you with a photo.Afterwards, I lucked out more with 'golubzi'--a Slovakian girl I met, G-, had food that her parents brought from the weekend and she invited me to dinner, and they called it 'polninaya kopusta' = 'stuffed cabbage.' She also has tons of downloaded American movies, so we can have movie nights and I won't go through cinema withdrawal!

Monday Feb. 4th I didn't have classes so I went to the Great Synagogue and then wandered around that area. It's so nice walking around alone because I don't feel responsible to anyone for leading them into random areas that they're not interested in or that I know nothing about. On my ambling around I discovered a jazz bar I want to check out, an Indian grocery if ever I need fancy spices, and I got a new can opener! I also went to Hosok Tere (Hero's Square)--another of the 1896-built monuments that along with Andrassy avenue is part of a world heritage site. And across from it was a Gloria Jeans...umm, wtf?! There's not even many in the U.S., what the heck is this coffee shop doing in Budapest?! (For those who don't know, I worked at GJ in high school). Of course, by Hungarian standards, it's way expensive here.

Tuesday Feb. 5th I had my first classes. Regarding the organizational system of the university here...let's just say you have to be damn tolerant. And for those of you who wish to complain about getting D-Clearance at USC...never complain again! At least when they post the schedule it doesn't change on you, even after classes start! Yesterday morning I checked my schedule, and it was all good for Tues, Wed and Thurs. By Monday evening, one of the classes was split in two, with one lecture meeting on Monday morning now. Umm? Thanks for the notice? So I switched something again. Then today between classes I just happened to chance upon a stray poster saying that my afternoon class was cancelled this week and moved to Mondays. So anyways, suffice to say that the class schedule here is a very fluid thing for the beginning days. Once I am positive that they will stop changing on me, I will post about my schedule.
Either way, the classes are mostly full of exchange students and a few Hungarians who are trying to improve their english. I think the classes will be the easiest for the Americans, and we're rather desired when groups are organizing for group projects.
After classes, I finally met my Tandem partner at a tea house. On Raday utca (right near the uni) there are a ton of restaurants, bars, coffee shops, etc--and this tea house. We sat in a cushioned area on the ground where we had to take our shoes off and the tea selection was rather extensive. T-, my tandem partner, is really friendly and we're meeting him later tonight at a nearby irish pub with the other exchangers. Speaking of...I have soooo many Generous and Kind Helpers: Eniko and David, my roommates; T-, my tandem partner; G-, a friend of a friend from Israel who I haven't met yet but he has offered his help; and S-, the b/f of my friend at usc's sister who has given me numerous suggestions on where to go in BP. Many thanks to all of them :-)
I forgot to say---the underpasses aren't quite so simple to navigate. Although presumably each is only with four streets leading out, when you go underground there are like 9 exits, for different directions, for the middle of the road if there's a tram, etc. Also, the smoking indoors is really getting to me! The laundry machines here are way tooooooooooooooooo small to be able to do washes quickly and conveniently, but my clothes always reek of smoke! Also, the laundry machines here can't ever really get just cold water, hope my stuff doesn't shrink, haha.

Also...I really love it here! Like, really. Indescribable feeling.

Anyways, this has been a rather bland post but since no one reads this thing, I don't care.
Cheers folks

Regarding a future roommate, recent events and answers to certain questions

Right, well, onwards and upwards, ey. For a recounting of the last few days. Essentially they consisted of meetings at cafes, exploring the Castle area and going out. I'm getting more and more oriented (I am such a dork, I really love maps), and I've also wandered via Vaci Utca which I suppose is the 'Michigan Avenue' style street...expensive shops, the like. At the university the ESN had a group of Hungarian folk dancers perform (lots of thigh-slapping and hand-clapping) and the younger dancers were so adorable. While there I met a girl from St. Petersburg, Y-, and we've been exploring museums together. She needed a room still, and David's friend was no longer going to come, so she is moving in on Monday. It'll be nice having someone else from the uni so we can go places together, plus I get to practice my russian with her. I'm fairly decent with the language I'd say, but my skills are put to shame when talking to someone who doesn't understand all my american-word insertions, and does understand all my wrong conjugations, haha.

Museum Update: Y- and I walked across the Chain Bridge and took the funicular up to Castle Hill (take a tip--just take the bus, the funicular is very unmemorable). We checked out the Hungarian National Gallery and the Budapest History Museum. Comments regarding the former: 1. generally, the women were way more attractive in the paintings than they are in say...English or Italian paintings. 2. 'Japanese Woman' by Szekely (1871) is most definitely not a Japanese woman but a rubenesque caucasian in a Japanese setting. 3. On the third floor there is a huge statue that I can only describe as a 'corpse king'---very, very creepy. 4. There was an exhibit of Gypsy artists, Tomas Peli was ok. Accompanying all their paintings were excerpts of the artists bio's and they were universally unfortunate. Regarding the latter: I definitely dug it! We thought we had covered all the floors until we saw the basement-level one that wound through the royal cellars! Then we went in search of the Labyrinths (a network of caves underneath the castle area) but for the life of me we could not find the entrance that supposedly exists near the castle.

Bar Update: Monoklub (bad, only techno and not lively), and Szilvuple is ok. I haven't run into any cover so far, only coatcheck costs. I'm coming to the realization that most of the bars are in cellars or basements. I will be astonished if I find a rooftop bar (oh the days of the parties on the Tropicana roof, ey squeasel? haha). Of course this means a permanent fog of smoke, and all my clothes reek of it. Cha Cha Cha, despite the supposed implications of it's name, plays what else but more techno, haha. Already, there is the exchange community so when you go somewhere you run into the same people. There was a flat party last night prior to going out, and it was just like at SC, immensely crowded. But where in LA, dps would shut it down at 12, here, it goes until 1 am when everyone migrates to a club and parties till 4. Anyways, I think I've had too much of this going out, this past week. I'm ready for some routine. Who woulda thought, haha

My adventures with the Kitchen - After the museums, I invited Y- for dinner because I decided I could not go on living off of simple sandwiches. Although, I must say that this sparse diet combined with the amount of walking I'm doing is doing wonders for losing weight. We're going to the Szechenyi Baths today and I don't even mind getting into a bathing suit. Anyways, now that I have cooked something, I actually feel like I live in this apartment, but it was not without it's trials. Eniko and David were gone so I had to go exploring for all the appropriate implements, and then Y- and I had experiments with lighting the gas stove. The frying pan I found started smoking like mad, and I was so glad there was no fire alarm because I would have been utterly lost. Then I engaged in a long and arduous battle with the can opener. I believe that this can opener and I cannot coexist in this apartment with any kind of harmony and I must take steps to rectify the situation. I really effing hate that thing!

In response: Squeasel, to your demands that I "turn on the "come hither" charm up to FULL blast"...I simply don't know if I can do it. Or if I want to do it, lol. Perhaps more wine needs to be involved. In fact, I was contemplating this and Courtney, despite your belief that I am super social, I think it would be so much easier if I were the archetypal American--loud, dumbfounded at everything I see and full of cliches (sorority/blonde), because the Europeans LOVE that! On the other hand, some of the Hungarians think we're all like that regardless of what we do, and I DON'T love that. (Don't get me wrong, it is still very evident that I am American).
As for dress--it's not all that cold, so yea gloves, scarf, coat but nothing like your preparations in Connecticut. Also, there's always a coat check area that you're obliged to use. They don't dress any particular way, but all girls wear nice boots. Many hungarians could inadvertently put most of LA's hipsters to shame. Oh, this does remind me of what I wanted to say---long hair on guys is bad! Really, I've seen way too many greaseballs with slicked-back long hair, a la the russian mafia types in Val Kilmer's The Saint, and a fair number of ponytail + goattee fools. Sorry, just had to rant a bit on that.

Assorted Miscellanea:
1. I recall the movie Kontroll, where the guy basically lived in the Hungarian metro system...but now that I see it with all the underpasses that have shops and food and bathrooms--well I guess it's possible. Weird movie though.
2. There are tons of night buses and they are always PACKED. Score again for public transport.

I think that's it for now, folks. Cheers