Fathers and Daughters

Two months, two daughters in Europe.

A year ago, I was her father. Robyn and I were tutoring her in the ways of being a productive camp counselor, a self-sufficient community member suddenly dedicating her happiness to others on an island just off of Washington State. We lived out of teepees.

Yesterday, though, Michal and I were friends. I was the tour guide, she and her boyfriend Clark were the tourists, stopping in Budapest just long enough to catch their breath on a whirlwind seven-week post-graduation tour if Europe. Things are different now. We can toast her mother, of sorts, and Four Winds with palinka and stories.

They had they fair share of stories and adventures getting here. Midnight ticket collectors in Croatia, demanding 60 euros each, on the spot, because Eurail passes aren’t good in Slovenia or Croatia. They battled my Romanian “…and I almost died!” stories tit-for-tat.

Thursday, a late arrival to Keleti from Venice. A schnazzy new hostel, just down the street, catering to the artsy type. Laundry, lunch, the usual logistics. Then Szechenyi bath and the exquisite uncertainty of Hungary’s favored relaxative. I gave the usual, less-than-definitive history of Hungary in the shadow of the heroes that ring Hosoktere. Dinner, Fisherman’s bastion, then a nightcap above the blustery Corvinteto.

Friday, they met me at my office. After lunch and a long spiral up to the views at the crest of St. Istvan’s Bazilika, I sent them off the Terror Museum and Synagogue. Come quitting time, we raced back to Keleti, as all trips to train stations in Hungary must necessarily be rushed. We hurled their bags onto the rain, just seconds before it slowly rolled to Vienna. Hugs and handshakes were rushed, but firm.

I rather liked the company, as fleeting as it was. Michal’s off to Stanford come fall. Clark to Indiana. If he liked his taste of Hungary enough, and they said they certainly did, he could be plodding through Hungarian languages classes in just 6 weeks…

A Week at Work

Week two down. Successfully moved into a new room and tackled two projects: the monitoring mechanism and now a summary of India's case law surrounding Freedom of Information. Sweet! So who are the cast of characters running around this place?

Julia’s a really friendly world-traveller who’ll be finishing up law school in Amsterdam next fall. After time at Georgia Tech, she peace corps-ed for two years in Africa. She never really took to liking Columbia, but has good stories. We invited her to the Children’s Railroad with us and she watched Pirates III with the ladies. I feel a little guilty about not inviting her totally into my trove of friends so far, but I’d feel bad if I gave her all the answers and didn’t let her explore and learn on her own, too.

Ira has a Russian wife who’ll be joining him next week. He’s a Yale guy, smart as snot but a little dry at first. Pest seems hardly an adventure for him, he’s spent a lot of time in Russia and the Stans.

Eszter’s my boss, of sorts, who I met for the first time yesterday. She was in New York and Panama for two weeks, but I think I’m really going to like her. A Hungarian raised in-part in Peru, she has a infectious enthusiasm and optimism that makes her a little rare around these parts.

Reka’s a more typical Hungarian, proclaiming to be tired with Budapest, an expert at pretending to be gruff. I can read through her sarcasm, though, and I’m quite convinced that she’s thoroughly charmed with my Hungarian, as most of the natives are.

And Zaza’s the head-boss around here. He’s Georgian – the former Russian republic, of course, not a Hot-lanta suburb. He’s got a great laugh and seems well-organized. This week he’s in Brussels. Next week it will be London.

Roommate Janos and conversing at astonishing rates. Today we discussed Wisconsin and where he used to live. I brought out the ole Wisconsin State Highway map, and he pointed a few blocks down Szinyei Street.

And thanks to a random facebook connection, I weaseled my way into the company of a fun group of Hungarians last night. Viktoria had worked at Wisconsin Dells last summer, that was reason enough for a Facebook friendship. When she came to Budapest to visit a half-dozen or so Dells co-workers, she invited me along. It became a downright international party, complete with a Pole, a Mexican, two Koreans and I. There was a surprising comfort to a random facebook friendship. Perhaps it was Viktoria’s finely-tuned Missouri accent that soothed me.

Back to the grind. Well, either the daily grind or conversations with Julia about wack theories like how cold cucumber soup could actually be delicious...