Personal Blog

Growing up in Hungary you're going to expect certain things. For example, everyone is going to be sour all the time. If you're in the service industry people treat you badly, bus drivers are kings of their rides and they shout at you for whatever. Stairs everywhere. You need to keep an eye on your stuff at all times. So even though I'm on the same continent, I still managed to experience a couple of culture shocks. Let's start with trains. I've travelled a lot on trains in Hungary, because I would make the journey between Szeged and Budapest at least once a month to see my mum. I was used to stairs starting at my knees, and keeping my luggage in my sights at all times. Imagine my surprise when there were no stairs on the train from Glasgow, and there was a luggage rack next to the door for my monster suitcase! I had to leave it there, which I found pretty scary. I was compelled to check it every other minute. Of course, I was the only one doing that. There w

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, and the temperature was possibly even going over 20. On my way to the bus stop I looked towards the meadow on my right, and spotted a brown creature grazing in the grass. I got out my camera, and used the powerful zoom on it to make sure. A deer! She was so lovely, though I couldn't catch a picture of her with her head raised, she was so busy eating. When she stopped, she jumped over a fence, all elegant and graceful, and disappeared from sight. I really felt that I live in the country in that moment. After that I stopped at the co-op, and got two small bags of grapes. They are cheaper if you buy in a bigger portion, but I didn't want to carry so much around. I ate one bag on the bus to Ambleside. It was an open top, and I could finally make use of it, as the weather was turning sunny. I took a few pictures as well. I decided to go to Ambleside, because it looked like a bigger place. I also wanted to get a nice blanket for

On my way to Grasmere I had to go through Keswick. From the bus I spotted a nice pedestrian street, which had quite a number of tourists milling about, so I decided to make that the destination for my first excursion. The opportunity presented itself on my first day off. I got a quite expensive ticket on the bus, and walked up to the top floor on it. The view there was breathtaking, and I couldn't believe that this was actually where I was going to live for the foreseeable future. The bus took its time, winding around the roads. When another bus appeared coming the opposite way on a very narrow part of the road, I wasn't sure how they could possibly fit. As if they were the knight's bus in Harry Potter, they still made it work. In Keswick I got off at the main bus station. It is possible to change buses there to go to a number of different destinations. I decided to just follow the crowd. I did have two goals in mind. To buy some more warm clothing, and to get a

I woke up to my mum warning me to take my medication. We had a small breakfast in the breakfast room. It wasn't the best, and the coffee ran out fast, but it was something. There was another guy there, who was on his way to Canada. He had been living there for a while. He also left with the airport transfer we used. We did make it to the airport fast, but I misunderstood the woman when I checked my bag in. She told me that I could get in at B2 after 6:30. I thought she meant the security, so we sat down and mum had another coffee. I got through security fast, but had to wait a lot for passport check. I got talking with a British guy in line, and it was good to pass the time. I had to wait for the plane. I chatted with a Chinese girl, who was studying economics in Glasgow, and was returning from a holiday in Austria and Hungary. We ended up taking off half an hour late. On the plane I felt pretty scared. I had the middle seat, so I concentrated on talking with

After all of my things were moved to Szeged, I couldn't stay in Budapest anymore. I spent two nights at home, my last two nights for who knows how long. It was difficult. I kept thinking of all the things I was leaving behind, and found it difficult to think of all the things waiting for me there. It felt like saying goodbye forever. However, when I moved to Budapest I thought it was for good too. I thought I'd make my home there, get married, have kids. None of that happened. Maybe the UK isn't for forever either. I can't say though. I had so many long term plans in my life, and none turned out the way I expected. I've decided to stick to short term goals. I got a new suitcase and a new backpack. My old suitcase was too small, my backpack too big. I also got some money to take with me. We went with mum to the station in a taxi. He let us out in front of it, and getting the suitcase over the fancy stone pavement was a struggle. Who ever thought of putt

January I finished my event planning course. There was first a sort of practice oral test, then a real one. I got a 5 for my real one, so now I have a paper that says I can plan events. I don't know if I'll ever use it, but you never know. The practice test was funny, because there wasn't anyone in the room after we got our question and could work on it. I didn't need my papers, however, because it was about analysing a source. For the real test I really wanted the first question. I used to be very good at always pulling the number that I wanted, and I relied on that. As so it happens, I did it again! I got home pretty early, and in the afternoon got a call from RTL Klub TV station, that I was selected for a small part in "Budapest Day and Night". I got a contract and everything, and they were paying me some money for every worked day. Not a lot, but actually more than my salary. The first shooting was in January. The filming went okay, though I co

I wrote a big blog post about losing weight, but not only that happened this year. January I left my position at Avaya. It was weird, because I've never been fired before. Though they took me back as a contractor, it's still an unstable position, though what position is really stable? However, it also meant losing some benefits, and that I would never get a raise in the new position. Not that I ever got a significant raise during my time at the company, or since working really, there was still hope though. Not to talk about bonuses. Who gets bonuses in this day and age anyway? Or at least an amount that actually matters? So I actually spent most of January at home. I had a bit of an accident, and dropped an old TV stand on my right foot. I think I bruised the bone, though I never went to a doctor. I had a hard time standing on it for a while, and couldn't wear heels. February Started off well. I held my first party in my new home. I cooked, and baked cooki