Hungary Postcard

Hungary Journal

{December 14th, 2016} 

I couldn't forget what the people in Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport were speaking! They spoke in a weird accent that Ben and I have never heard before. I asked Ben what the official language for Hungary is, and he told me that it was Hungarian, or Magyar, as Hungarian’s called it. Magyar was one of the most common “Non-Indo-European languages” in Europe. Anyways, as we walked by Castle Hill, I heard Hungarian people beside me speaking Hungarian, and so I walked up to them, with full of tension and asked them to teach me Hungarian. They, fortunately, were kind people, and so they taught us “Hi!” (Szia, pronounced- “see ya!”), and “Nice to meet you!” (örvendek, pronounced- “oar van deck”). Later on, I asked them, “What are your values?” They told us that they believed in strong family values. They also expected friends to share personal details with each other. Castle Hill was a great place, filled with Gothic arches, eighteenth-century Baroque houses, and cobblestone street! I enjoyed it, and so did Benjamin! He was so delighted by our visit, that he actually said, “If I could come back here, I will definitely bring my future family!” Later on, we went to the 5-star hotel that we booked in Budapest.

{December 15th, 2016} 

After we woke up, we walked down an alley and met a few teens who looked like they were enjoying a game of handball. Vishnu and I jogged over to them, and asked if we could ask them a few questions about what they were playing! We wanted to know what they would think of handball from a Hungarian perspective. They answered us, “We don't think Hungarians came up with any sports. But they are especially good in swimming, gymnastics, and handball!” The reason that they are good at these sports is not because of their body types or anything, but it's the strategy and the way they are trained to play these sports! These teens also told me that even in the Olympics, the training and strategies told by their coaches, is also how they win matches! No wonder! Back to what we were doing, we also played a bit of handball with them!

{December 15th, 2016} 

After that, we went to the Groupama Aréna to watch a soccer game. The game was so intense and exciting! All the players were highly skilled! Hungarians are good at soccer. They have a respectable soccer history. They had won three Olympic titles, finished runners-up in the 1938 and 1954 FIFA World Cups, and got third place in the 1964 UEFA European Football Championship! After the game finished, we went to the Budapest International Airport for departure. We will miss the beauty of Hungary! Our plane departed at 15:20 and arrived (at Kiev, Ukraine) at about 18:00. After we arrived, we went to “Intercontinental Kyiv” (a 5-star hotel that we booked) and that’s exactly how we finished our day.

Malta Journal

{December 12th, 2016}

Valletta is one of the most beautiful cities we’ve visited! Valletta is renowned for its harmonious collection of the baroque architecture. A bit of head up here: Baroque architecture is filling forcing military fortresses and profound channels circle its edge, impressive-looking church arches, and really luxuriously splendid green wooden overhangs. As we walked around the streets, we saw the il-Beltin, the residents of the city that still follow their old tradition of looking down from their balconies at the streets of Valletta.

{December 13th, 2016 }

Today, we woke up lately, so we decided to go to the Rubino restaurant to eat our lunch. Vishnu ate a lampuki pie and I ate the Maltese cuisine. Maltese cuisine was a mix of Maltese and Mediterranean cooking. Lampuki pie is a sort of fish pie with English cooking, with some Arabic flavors and some Italian verve.

{December 13th, 2016}

We both woke up with happiness, fully aware that today, the people of Malta would celebrate their republic day. Their republic day is on the thirteenth of December. This happened when Malta went from being a Commonwealth realm into a republic. As Sir Anthony Mamo became the first president of Malta, the British Monarch gave up being the head of state. At least, this was what we heard from the small lecture a parent gave to her son. Then, We took the taxi from Valletta to the Malta International Airport at Luqa LQA 4000, Malta, After that, we departed at 14:25 and we arrived in Budapest, Hungary at 19:05. This was how our day ended.