TO BUDAPEST AND BACK AGAIN BY TRAIN --- November 3-5th

Reflections....Musings on a Monday morning train.....

Right now our train has paused in Balatonfured. Budapest lies two hours behind us. Memories of our wonderful weekend away to the city warm our hearts on this damp, grey November morning. Budapest was beautiful! Our young hosts were so hospitable, taking us gladly into their family circle with such kindness and love. Now just two more hours and we should be back again to our flat in Tapolca. One more month and we'll be flying home to Canada!

So who are we? And what are we doing here in Hungary as another winter season steals in upon us?

Most tourists left these parts long ago. Lake Balaton is too cold for swimming now. Bikeways no longer beckon as they did on the warm, summer days. Sidewalk cafes are closing for another year. But still we are here!

We are two mostly-retired teachers from British Columbia, Canada. On September 8th we left our homeland and family to travel to Eastern Europe. We flew Vancouver to London and on to Budapest where our Canadian friend met us and whisked us off by van to our new home in the charming town of Tapolca. We had travelled before to places like Hawaii, Japan and Burma. But this was our first trip to Europe and our first time to leave home for so long. We had come to teach English and we planned to stay for the full three months allowed to tourists in Hungary.

Our first day in Tapolca was Monday, September 10th. The welcome was very warm as temperatures hovered near 33 degrees C. We were quickly introduced to our new home and community. It was a quaint and charming place. But to dwell in a gated house with ornate iron bars on our kitchen windows was a new experience for us. We soon realized that we must never venture far without our full set of keys.

Our ground-level apartment was lovely--clean, cool and comfortable with two toilets, one full bathroom, one bedroom and a huge living room perfect for hosting our English classes. But then there was the kitchen with its small sink, short counter, mini-fridge and two- burner electric hot plate--- all much more "compact" than my kitchen in Canada where I enjoy the luxury of a full-size electric range with oven; a dishwasher; microwave; large fridge and freezer and lots of counter space. In time our tiny hot-plate was replaced by a small gas range with oven. I was thrilled! Now I could really bake and make more than stove top cookies for our students. But then I tried lighting our new gas burner and soon discovered that matches didn't work so well. So my husband bought us a long lighter, and presto -- we were in business---most days! Other times my stove is determined to be self-willed and tempermental and stretches my patience very thin. At present two burners light well. or sometimes just one.  The others are off duty at present so I find myself often being a creative cook and using our toaster as another source of heat and cooking space.

Then there was the laundry room next door to our flat. Here we discovered a small sink and miniature washing machine with a very long two-hour cycle. With no dryer available we have learned to use a laundry rack which we move from room to room and often outdoors on sunny days. The extra heavy jeans and towels are draped over chairs, and shirts and nighties we sometimes suspend from our living room lights. It's a new way of interior decorating! Everything, everywhere does eventually dry in its time!

In so many ways we soon learned that life moves slower in Hungary. We take time to wash and dry our clothes...we take time to walk to the shops or farmers market for fresh produce and bread almost every day. We tote home miniature 1 kg. bags of flour and sugar and huge bottles of purified water. We now know where to buy the best pizza, yogurt and somloi galuska. We stroll often past city hall, past the bus depot, along the main street bordered by beds of bright pansies... down to the mill pond and fountain in the center of town. This is our favourite "retreat"---a peaceful place to relax and reflect on our new life here in Tapolca. Here we often sit and peruse our maps and plan our next trips to other villages like Sumeg, Keszethy and Heviz. We are always glad when the names are short and easily pronounced. Too often we find tongue-twisters like Szabadbattyan or Szekesfehervar. How then do we explain to the ticket agent or bus driver where we really want to go?!

This past weekend we finally made it back to the bustling city of Budapest where we first set foot on Hungarian soil some two months ago. These have been months of many adjustments and many new adventures...and several spells of homesickness too. They have been days of discovery as we worked with our students, teaching adults, teens and children much about English and about our Canadian homeland. We are well-seasoned Canadian citizens, proud of our heritage and excited about returning home soon. Yet we also sense some sadness creeping in as we think about our departure...for our roots have begun to grow deep into European soil and our hearts have been warmed by the love and generosity of so many of our new Hungarian friends.

The train moves on now, gathering speed as it goes. And life moves on too. We look back and are so grateful for this opportunity to live and serve here. We look ahead and wonder when we will be back again to embrace the simplicity and beauty of this amazing land with its wonderful people.

This Christmas season, with life moving at a slower pace, I've decided to take time to again write Christmas cards. It's a tradition that I used to love but had somehow lost as our lives in Canada got busier and e-mailing seemed easier. But now I want to step back in time again.

I bought the cards this weekend in Budapest. They are cards featuring a collection of candles burning brightly. Cards with a greeting written in Hungarian! The Scripture references on the cards are familiar to me; the Hungarian script not so! But we have Hungarian friends now and they have interpreted for us. Thus we know that the message of our cards is simply this: "Immanuel...God with us!" For sure this is the message of hope and life that we desire to share with our friends everywhere as another lovely Advent Season approaches.