The final days of an experience of a lifetime!

And as the title clearly says, i'm in my last few days here and it's so hard to believe.

Bittersweet moment is the best word for this. So instead of a few paragraphs I made a list of things I'll miss and not miss... (inspired by my cousin jacob)

What I will miss from Budapest
1. A store with what you need is right around the corner
2. Bars, Clubs, pubs
3. Cheap but tasty drinks
4. The people i met here (aside from UNH)
5. Gyros
6. capability to travel so frequently
7. my apartment/ and roomie :)
8. homeless man 1, and homeless man 2 (aka One leg Greg)
9. international classes
10. The language
11. Chicken paprika
12. Walking around in the beauty of Budapest every single day

What I will not miss from Budapest
1. Little dog who yipps not barks (all day long)
2. Poverty levels and visuals here (won't go into detail)
3. corporate finance
4. Not being able to communicate what you need.
5. our washer withthe spin cycle of an airplane jet

Hanging around the city

I had my dear friend Kimberly come visit me in mid november which was a blast. Having one of your best friends here is unreal! This whole time I kept saying to myself "Damn, me and my girls would have way too much fun hear!" we would go crazy. So basically that's what I finally got to do!

I gave the usual tour and took her to our favorite bars and clubs. She ha a lot of fun and really enjoyed budapest and vienna (took her there since its an easy 3hr trip).

Christmas markets were everywhere so luckily she was here and had an a easy time finding souvenirs.

Other than that school got extremely busy. They LOVE group projects in an international school (obviously) so it was fun keep up with 5 different projects with 5 different nationalities. But, at the same time, it was really great meeting them and having a class with so many different opinions and outlooks on the subject (as opposed to the arrogant UNH honor roll students chiming in every few seconds back at home)

We, of course, took advantage of our weekends during the last few weeks here. We really really needed to relieve all that stress!

Prague, Czech Republic

After the weekend in France with my parents I headed off to Prague with Caitlin and Hannah. It's about a 7 hour train ride, not so fun but way better than a 7 hour flight.

Prague was incredible, every time I visit another city or country I immediately see myself coming back in the future, it was just that great of a place to be!

The cobble stoned streets, colorful apartments/building aligning the streets, everyone out and about on the streets. What I liked most was that it wasn't all city life there, there was a lot more GREEN here than in budapest, so that was so nice to see especially cause it was fall time when we went.

At night was went to this great restaurant and had something we found out to be "milk beer" or to them "Mleko Beer" a lot of locals drink it. And it was delicious, it's a darker beer and its 3/4 foam from the beer, and you're supposed to chug, and it was so smooth and easy to chug and a lot of fun. All of us couldn't chug the whole mug but it was worth a shot for three 20 yr old girls! Here's what it looks like.

After we went to this place called the Beer Museum and found out it had 30 beers on tap! I tried a blueberry beer (my personal favorite), a cherry beer, honey brewed beer, and some kind of darker beer. All were extremely delicious!

So then we went back to our hostel and set the alarm early enough to get a head start. We were told to go to this breakfast place called Bohemia Bagels. Heaven was back on earth! We missed bagels and cream cheese and bacon egg cheese sandwiches, oh man were we happy walking out of that place.

We got a lot, pretty much ALL, of our sight seeing done in one day, we saw the astronomical clock

 very cool to see, there was a man up top sounding the trumpets, and tons of people were gathered around.

Also they had their version/imitation of the eiffel tower which was strange!

Here are some of the highlights of the trip, pictures tell it all! It was worth every freezing second spent outside!

Mom and Dad visit!

So shortly after Peter left Budapest, I was graced with my parents presence! Of course right when they got here it was pouring rain and cold, oh and the airlines lost my parent's luggage... not a good start.

The second day things were looking up, they got both of their suitcases and we were off to explore Budapest together! Except  had midterm...so THEY were off to explore budapest while I studied *ugh*

I did get to show them around my city and go site seeing for a bit. We all had a great time and my mom made the best home cooked meals! My favorite part was having them at night time here, I was never alone :)

Then we were off to Paris, France! So exciting, I was really looking forward to this. And I have to say I was not disappointed! It was so cool to see everything you have seen in pictures and on TV and experience it in real life! I loved ALMOST everything, I expected November to be a bit more quiet then summer days. However, not the case...Tourists everywhere, lines for hours, and really pricey foods. But overall worth being able to see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur, Moulin Rouge (outside of it haha) and Versaille. I couldn't stop taking pictures.

Peter came to visit!

Last weekend Peter came to visit. I was so anxious all night and all morning heading to the airport to pick him up! It was amazing to see him, I have to admit it was so strange at first? Even though I was right next to him is didn't feel real, it was weird. But naturally things were back to what they always were except 100 times better. Every day I took him site seeing, to places even I haven't gone to yet! It made me realized how little I have explored the city I live in. I had traveled every weekend up until he came.

Anyways, I loved having someone to always be with me and walk around with me. I felt so happy and safe to have him with me at all times. I think his favorite place in Budapest was the St. Stephens Basilica. Which is a beautiful place...

We also went to Gellert Hill which is a quick hiking trip but you get to see all of the Pest side, its awesome.

We had the perfect time together out here, it was so much harder to leave him again. I can't even describe how nice it was to have someone here with me, it made my experience that much more memorable :)

Too much beer and Too much beauty!

Too much beer:

So my first, and hopefully not last, experience at Oktoberfest was pretty damn chaotic. I don't really have full sentences for this duration of time, but maybe some metaphors, quick phrases and adjectives will help. Here it goes...Loud, intrusive, overwhelming, 1-liter beer, boobs, resting revelers, UNH crew representing, cheers!, German lyrics ha, meat and bread, big-ass pretzels, too many Euros spent, Foreign friends, lots of good memories (that I remember) hehe oopsie!

Too much beauty:
My roommate and I spent two days in Vienna and I fell in love. If I could combine Vienna's lifestyle/architecture/atmosphere with Budapest's nightlife I would surely make some arrangements to stay out here. Vienna's atmosphere was indescribable to me. I may be exaggerating but I just absolutely felt amazing experiencing this culture. Landscaping is unheard of over there and the Gardens are to-die-for, 100s of acres of land to take in. I plan to go back with a few friends in December, apparently there is a lot of festivals for Christmas time and what not, it must be beautiful to see. Can't wait for another perfect excursion to Vienna, and hopefully another trip when i'm older!

This weekend I will be staying in Budapest to greet my boyfriend at the Budapest Airport! I beyond ecstatic about this. Not to mention my parents will be visiting at the end of October. Oh and not to mention my best friend Kim will be visiting mid-November! I am to blessed to have friends and family who I love coming to visit me. I can't live without them! I wish more could visit, if only I were here for longer ;) I know my cousins Mel and Jacob would be here in a heartbeat!

That's all, will probably be updating this once Peter leaves, and I have a feeling my mood is going to be QUITE different unfortunately. But still so thankful he's coming at all!

love,
jess

Happy 1 month anniversary to my arrival in Budapest!

Well it was September 18th, but still I can't believe 1/4 of my study abroad experience is over, nutso butso. I'm still enjoying classes, however now that I'm mostly in the apartment or at school getting down a solid routine, days are flying by and classes seem to be more and more interesting, except for Corporate Finance. This class makes me nauseous haha but I think I can put up with it.

This weekend is oktoberfest! yippee! I have to say I'm a bit nervous! luckily I will be going with a lot of other from my group, there's a good 15-20 of us going, it's gonna be crazy fun! I can't wait to write about it to give you all the details of the trip.

Also, since I have been home so much I am CRAVING some good food haha, nothing I make myself is satisfying :/ Can't wait for  Mamma to get out here and cook :) Sorry Mom, I know its vacation but I'm giving you a place to live haha.

I'm missing.. Zucchini Bread, mom's Chili, Nana's Chicken and Dumplings, Apple Cream Pie, Apple crisp, honey bunches of oats, peanut butter (only found at ONE store that is pretty far away from me), salad bar at UNH, American-Chinese food haha, etc...

Other than food, I miss using a car to get around, my friends to go out with at night, not having a 6hr difference between your loved ones! the list goes on.

I  do love it out here, I just wish a few things were here, i will survive though :) 

Backpack, fresh notebooks, and new kicks. Must be the 1st day of school!

So yes, Sept 13th came and I have finally started classes here at Corvinus University of Budapest. And.I.Love.Them! It is taught in English but there are students from Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Mexico, Hungary and more! My first professor's english was very easy to understand, and second professor..not so much, but you can make out most of it.

These classes get so interesting because the foreigners talk about the US in a completely different view from when UNH students are taught. Professors use us as a lot of examples and will ask the US students to elaborate on a cultural difference (e.g. greetings, we hug, whereas hugging is too intimate for Hungarians, yet they give each other two kisses on the cheek). I like hearing what others think of America, even if most of the time it is negative haha. The students are vocally active in the class to say the least, it is a little intimidating I won't lie, but I guess it will give me motivation to be a bit more vocal within a classroom. Typically, I would take the participation grade as a hit, and try to make up for it in projects, tests, or homework. I am not as confident, even after 14 years of school, as I want to/should be in class :-/

On the second day of classes, I went into Corporate Finance, basically anything with the word finance i hate haha, but it's a WSBE requirement blah blah blah, so I gotta suck it up. I also had Film and History today, which was awful, I hated it and plan to drop it. Luckily all of the dance and aerial classes I have taken at unh, I was about 12 credits ahead, so dropping this course (which does not count for any general education requirement) won't hurt a bit :)

Now that classes have started, I can just foresee this semester FLYING by. This weekend we are heading to Lake Balaton again, next is Munich for Oktober fest :D, the following weekend Allie and I are heading to Vienna, then  Peter comes to visit!!!! The end of October my parents are coming for 4 days and then we head to Paris for 4 days! Holy Moly, where are my weekends going? It's crazy to think about haha.

Anyways, another day of classes tomorrow then off to Balaton with my UNHers until Sat.

Jeanine Jolin Stephen

My beautiful baby cousin was born just a few days ago, and all I want is to be home to meet her! Family events as big as this one makes me extremely homesick. I woke up to a message from my mother speaking of her and my family's visit to see our new addition to the family. Missing home a lot right now. But best of luck to my amazing Cousins Mel and Jacob and congrats on another perfect daughter.

Can't wait to see you all in December! Seems so far away!

Wein, Bor, Vin, Vino, WINE!

10th Annual Hungarian Wine Festival

15 countries, 220 winemakers, and over 5,000 wines!

It was probably one of the more cultured events I have participated in while here. Not that Hard Cider at Szimpla and Cinnamon-Orange Tequila shots don't make me a well rounded woman... Just kidding.

But I tried some good wines and some got so good wines. I did manage to buy two bottles as gifts, hopefully they will like it! It's hard being young and inexperienced buying wine, but I think this helped expand my knowledge and I think both of the wines I chose will suffice, my wallet sure thinks so!

I tasted about 10 different types of wine ( Sweet Red Wine, Sweet White Wine, Cabernet Sauvignon, Rose, and Eger Bikaver)

"While not considered one of the world’s more refined wines, Egri Bikavér is one of Hungary’s most famous exports.Translated as “Bull’s Blood of Eger,” (a wine growing region of Northern Hungary)"

Yea, the Bikaver wasn't my favorite, but I had to at least try a glass, its obviously a red wine that is a mixture at least 3 of the following 13 different grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Kadarka, Kekfrankos, Blauer Portugieser, Cabernet Franc, Menoire, Pinot Noir, Syran, Turan, Blauburger, Biborkadarka, and Zweigelt. 

Here are some girls enjoying a nice glass of wine :)

Overall, a quality experience. It is nice to have new and exciting things to do in Budapest. No traveling expenses involved, no planning, etc. It was a beautiful night and the walk was enjoyable. I'm glad we had a good group who went.

Tomorrow brings Corvinus University Orientation. I'm back and forth with school starting. I get really excited to actually be taking classes over here and having a routine down. But then again, it's a foreign country, and it's very different from good ole UNH. But I'll keep my head up and go into it with an open mind. I'm ready for something new and different.

My School: Corvinus University of Budapest 2011

That's all for now! Szia!

Bummin

I miss this day, my going away cookout.

It's rare to have ALL of my loved ones in one place at the same time.

Never thought I would be saying how much I miss my brothers. I wish I could have seen Danny play football this year. And I want to be drinking some Blue Moon's in Maine with Corey and our friends. They are both going to be embarrassed by this post, but oh well! Love you both :)

Oh and miss Britt, my best friend from french class way back when, I miss you dearly! It's hard to realize how much I took our friendship for granted, I just need me some well spent britty time to catch up on everything and laugh about absolutely nothing! 

Morrison's, nuff said.

Mondays at Morrison's, is always a good time.

Tequila shots, are deadly haha. Especially at Morrison's (A great bar here in Budapest, plays American dance music and has cheap shots and 3 free beers on mondays with a small fee of 500 forints as a cover charge, that's about $2.50... i'm ok with that) because they serve it up with a slice of orange with cinnamon sprinkled on top, soooooogoooood!

Anyways, pretty much all of the UNHers where there last night. I didn't get to do my usual karaoke, but i'm sure it's a good thing. I scream so loud into that microphone thinking no one can really hear me but they can, awesome... haha

I got to skype with Peter after the bar and it was so great to talk to him! He is always there when I need him, I couldn't ask for a better guy :) 

That's all, today will be spent on Margaret Island, a few metro stops away from my apartment, after Croatia I need to start running again. It's so calm and beautiful on the island is makes my run enjoyable! (which isn't always the case as much as I do like to run) Here's is a good shot of what I get to see there...

Isn't it great!

Gotta go start my day!

Love you all!

Croatia, Croatia, Croatia

SUCCESS! We had a successful first excursion out here. Myself, Allie, JP and Chris planned this trip to Croatia a few weeks back for Sept 1st-4th. Amazing place to see. We stayed on the island of Bol, and had rented this beautiful apartment (props to JP for finding it). This was our view from the front door, I misplaced the pictures from the balcony, that overlooked the ocean... yea the ocean, perfect setting.

It's covered with mountains and beautiful white stoned building and surrounded by the Adriatic Sea, off of the Mediterranean Sea. Ugh, it was paradise, more of a vacationing area, but still worth the trip. The beaches were the best part, I could lay on those pebble dusted beaches ALL day, and if you know me, I tend to burn and get very fidgety. too answer your thoughts, I did not get a sunburn, rare! Anyways, any time on the beach past noon there was a relaxing breeze which picked up later as the day continued, but oh my goodness it felt GREAT.

Allie and I decided to be adventurous and splurge on a intro course to windsurfing. Cause come on, how many times do you get to say you've gone wind surfing on the Mediterranean Sea in Croatia!

There we are! It was pretty easy to pick up, and we went in the morning so the wind was very tamed, good for beginners!

Nightlife was pretty dull, but that was ok, we have plenty of that back in Budapest. But each night we went out and bought 2-3 drinks each, which ended up being kind of expensive, but WHEN IN CROATIA!

Per usual, I got homesick. Everything I do reminds me of home or the people i love. So, as cheesy as this next part will sound it is the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Since a good portion of my summer was spent with Peter, we had a lot of amazing times at our lake houses and what not. So being at the beach and watching the sunset and moon rise, reminded me of him and how much I would love to be experiencing it with him. He always makes my nights 100 times better now matter what we are doing. I am so lucky to have him and to be able to experience some of this with him when he come to visit in October!!! Count down... 32 more days! I'm ecstatic!

Also, missing the UNH lifestyle, hope all is well over there.

More posts to come!

Becoming a so-called "local", or my attempt

Since I am living here I need to learn the subway, bus, and train systems. I need to shop for food and drinks and living accessories (pillow, sheets, towels, etc.) Luckily, we made an trip to ikea and bought some home necessities! The subways and metro lines are super easy to use, I was a bit nervous as first, but it is just like Boston. You look to see what the last stop is, then make sure your destination is on the way, and hop right on! Fortunately, the program I am out here with has helped us with purchasing student metro passes, which is good for 30 days, and I believe I paid $30 US dollars, so it's a pretty good deal. I use the metro EVERY day and multiple times, and all I do is flash the student ID and metro ticket to get in, although most of the time no one checks but it's better to have it on you at all times.


As far as food shopping goes, holy moly, the farmer's market style shopping area next to my school is overwhelming.

it's huge, it's foreign, and it's fast pace, you need to know your shit.

Anyways, I saw it as a fun experience. Allie (my roommate) and I tried to buy some meat or chicken for dinner, complete fail. We had no idea what was pork of chicken. There were pigs feets and chicken hearts, livers and brains, it was awful haha. We will stick to our boneless chicken from Tesco (aka Shaw's supermarket). Other than the meats there are huge vegetable and fruit stands, now those are fun! I bought vegetables for a week or more for like 3 bucks, not to shabby. Back in the US (although I didn't shop often for food) I think you can buy a carton of blackberries for $3.00? Although it is a fun experience going food shopping and experimenting with cooking for the first time at my apartment, I do miss SO many different meals back in the states.

Feel free to mail me some..

1. Mom's macaroons

2. Kraft mac and cheese

3. steak tips!

4. Peet's Coffee, made every morning thanks to my parents, coffee isn't the same, *big sigh...*

5. Maddie's breakfasts (where I worked in the states, breakfast and lunch is amazing there)

So Croatia posts are coming next. I know these are pretty boring. Mostly created for the family cause they would ask these types of things, you know hows the city life, what kinds of foods are you buying, etc.

Sending my love to my family and friends! Miss you all very veryyyy much, emphasis on "very much" hehe.

Szia!

Budapesht

Szia! Greetings from the city of Budapest, Hungary!

It's been almost 2 and a half weeks since I've arrived in Budapest, Hungary for my semester abroad. Fortunately for you all I decided to start blogging about my experiences :)
Budapest has been an incredibly hard adjustment, I won't lie. It's super hot and humid, pretty damn loud, and very busy (living on the Pest side of the Danube river is more city life, compared to Buda which is very history and calm and beautiful). My apartment is next to a busy street with cars beeping and sirens go off left and right, but hey I always said I would like to live in Boston, this was a preview of it I suppose. So initially I was miserable here just the fact that I couldn't even get comfortable in the place I am going to be living in for 4 month, it was unsettling and I cried (quite frequently). I gave this city a very slim chance of acceptance and labeled it as a negative experience. In addition to this negative Nancy, I was extremely homesick. I wanted my bed back, my family back, my friends back, and definitely my boyfriend back. Summer is a hard time to leave everything, I wasn't at school, I wasn't in my independent mode. I was with my family and boyfriend almost every day this summer, and friends were just a short drive away. How can that possibly be easy to leave? It's such a comforting routine.

Anyways, putting 2 and a half weeks behind me I think it is safe to say I still get homesick but Budapest is growing on me and life here is getting more and more interesting every day.