MyGFRadventures

Seattle July 2010

2010-07-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

So this post deserves a little background story.

1) My Air Tran flight from New Orleans to Flint got extremely screwed up in Atlanta and was rerouted, by choice, to Chicago, where I stayed with my Cousin Matt. (Matt was on a romantic weekend with his girlfriend at the time. Thus, I was dubbed DuPree.)
2) After a long weekend, which was preceded by a week of doing taxes for free in Nawlins' St. Bernard Parish, I finally arrived back to Law School without the luggage. (Thanks mom and dad for picking it up.)
3) For my troubles Air Tran gave me two business-class tickets to anywhere in the continental U.S. So I invited Matt to Seattle and decided to wear nothing but my GFR shirts for 4 days.

(Matt and I overlooking Pike Place's view of the Puget Sound.)

(Getting my obligatory traveling haircut. This was at Sergios. He even gave us free beers.)

(Celebrating my pilgrimage to the 1st Fraternal Order of Eagles' club.)

Bondir la Coupure Veinte Diez (Nawlins and Chicago)

2010-03-15T19:58:00.001-07:00

(Taking a little break with fellow law students after a long day of doing tax work in New Orleans' St. Bernard Parish.)

(A new St. Patty's Day Tradition: Getting a haircut in Chicago's Wrigleyville.)

(My cousin Matt and I at Chicago's CroBar for Will I Am's Afterparty spin session. You can imagine that the GFR shirt stood-out for the private bash.)

Chicago: February 2010

2010-02-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

(My law school friend Kevin and I outside of Chicago's beloved Wrigley Field. We went down for a law school internship fair and came back with a great GFR photo. )

GFR 2009: Chesaning Michigan

2010-01-29T22:39:00.001-08:00

(Rachel and Ben at his first GFR (August, 2009).

(My cousins Matt and Brett and I at GFR 2009.)

(Mom, Dad, Rachel and I at GFR 2009.)

My first trip to Louisiana

2010-01-29T22:32:00.000-08:00

(My beloved time in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana -- aka Cajun Country -- in December 2009.)

(Uncle G, Ridge and I in New Orleans for New Years Eve 2010.)

From Alexander the Great to Serbian Kings

2009-08-12T04:08:00.001-07:00

This might be my last post. or at least second to last I am nearing the end of this magical journey and little more than two days from landing in Detroit.

First let me take you back to Monday night, when I ended staying with Thessaloniki with a few friends. It was a fun city with lots of history and character. The nighttime scene was chilled at local pubs, but exciting because I was eating Greek food and drinking some Uzo. We then went on a boat ride in the Aegean Sea, where we could dance in the middle of the harbor until 6 a.m. (Of Course we didn't stay out until the sunrise, but the possibility made it seem even cooler.)

At 10 a.m. I took a 4 hour train ride north to Skopje, the capital of Macedonia. As I arrived to this small country I was thinking how I had originally planned to go to Bulgaria and how I wanted to be in Sofia, but I soon changed my mind after I learned more about the country and city's history.

Skopje is home to Mother Theresa and the city prides its native daughter with a square and statues. Macedonia is home to Alexander the Great and the country prides about one of the world's strongest leaders. The city also has a tragic history that dates back to July 1963, when a massive earthquake damaged the beautiful city and as one artist wrote "The clock stopped turning."

Nevertheless, this poor country remains its character and I spent about 5 hours walking through the old fortress, the stone bridge, old town, which included a massive market and buildings centuries old. It also included a Monsoon which forced me to quickly leave the fortress and bunker down in a pub with a French girl and two men from Poland and Bosnia.

I eventually made it back to near the train station and found a random restaurant along the way. The food was amazing (Beef Stroganoff) and I knew it was a good place when the woman at the luggage counter saw my reciept and looked astonished that I found the little treasure. "Great place. Just great place." she said.

I left the town at 10:20, which was about 1.5 hours late. But I met a friend from Iceland and we ended up talking till about 1 a.m. about how his country is neutral and how the U.S.A. is of course not. We laughed (well he didn't really laugh) when the Serbian border security didn't know where his country was and took his passport for 30 minutes. And after passing out till 8, we are now in Serbia's capital, Belgrade.

Anyway, this has been an incredible journey and I am excited to see beautiful Belgrade before heading back to Budapest tomorrow.

Greece is Great

2009-08-10T05:50:00.000-07:00

I left Wein less than 36 hours ago and spent an eternity in Istanbul with one of my best friends, Demirhan. The day and a half in Turkey was once again beautiful and a reunion of brotherhood. He was there waiting for me at the airport and we immediatly started laughing and recalling our times in Michigan and my last trip to Turkiye five years ago.

(I immediatly started to think about myself now compared to now. Back in 2004 I thought was smarter, but now I know more than before. Back then I wanted to see tackle the world that I don't know about; today I want to improve the world that have in my hands by seeing the places I have not.)

Demirhan and I are both going through similar changes in our lives. He is about to quit his great engineering job and will be moving to Berlin in the fall to get his MBA; I quit my great journalism job in June and now head to law school in one week.

(Aegean Sea)

I think we both seemed much older than the last time, just as we did in 2005, when we compared ourselves to the day he left in 2001. And just like in 2005, I didn't cry like I did in 2001 but I know that we will see each other again. I hope to travel to Berlin next March over spring break and he has even talked about coming to the U.S. in a future summer to see all of his family and friends.

So our stay included him treating me out to some great Turkish cuisine, touring famous sites on both the Asia and Europe side of Istanbul and laughing endlessly. We visited the Bosphorous again on Sunday and the XXX Palace, which included seeing Moses' stick, Prophet David's sword, and Mohammed's footprint and beard. (Pretty Cool stuff. I don't think I have ever seen a man made object that is 4000 years old.)

I was going to stay another night, but he had to work all day on Monday and I didn't want to take a day train for 15 hours when I could take a night train for 12 and arrive to Thessalonki at 9 a.m. this morning. The train cost me 40 dollars despite having a rail pass through the Balkans, which kind of sucked. But it was good cause it would have cost 120 without the pass I had bought in June and I was lucky to get my own two bedroom cabin.

I had plenty to read and I bought both "Yes Man" "Vicky and Christy Barcelona" from a bootlegger in Istanbul and Demirhan gave me "The Reader." I figure I will watch them over the next few nights as I expect to take 1-3 more night trains back to Budapest.

Anyway, I wrote the first half of the post on the train right before I arrived the Greek Border. Here is the second half about my experiences in Thessalonki.

After watching Reader, sleeping for about eight hours and being woken up at both the Turkish and Greek border by passport people with masks (to prevent SARS, Swine Flu and whatever else), I finally arrived to Thessa around 10 a.m. local time and toured the city. IT is currently 4 p.m. local time and met with a pair of Turkish girls and a Greek guy after visiting the childhood home of Ataturk, the founder of Turkiye. We have been traveling throughout the city and are at a coffee shop drinking the Greek's national drink, a Frapp like a frappochino.

Living the Last Leg

2009-08-08T01:01:00.001-07:00

I finally at the last leg of my adventures in Europe, which means a few things.

1: It means I have left my teaching career behind, which I will get into in a little bit.
2: I am getting closer and closer to law school and spending thousands of dollars of endless hours of sleeping.
3: It means I am a few days from coming home and seeing my family, friends and my godson Ben.

So the last hours in Tallos were incredible and extremely sad. The village sent me off with an extravagant Goulash bash - my fourth since arriving in Slovakia. The food was great as usual and then gifts started pouring in. The vice mayor gave me some parnaphelia from the village and other friends gave me music, liquor and of course lots of hugs. Another gift I received, which I will treasure, is a book with the students photos. The tears even began after dinner with my parents saying they would miss me and that they wanted to apologize for not knowing English. I told them the next day that you don't know to share a common language when you have love.

(Z and I at the Goulash Finale)

Waking up Friday morning was a difficult task knowing I would once again be leaving my home away from home. My father, accompanied by Darina, took me to the train station in Galanta where I met my friend Ridge and his host mother Suza. As the train pulled up tears starting flowing. I said goodbye to my sister first and then to Tomi and my mother and father. Both mom and dad started crying almost instantly and I soon followed suit. And then tears started rolling down Tomi's face so I gave one last hug and promised that I'd be back. I was extremely sad but comforted with the notion that this was love.

(One Final Goodbye)

And then Ridge and I were off for Wien (Vienna) for the night. Wien is a beautiful city on the western edge in Austria. Situated on the Duna (Danube), Wien is the nation's capital and first of the country's rich culture. It has beautiful architecture, thousands of people posing as the nation's beloved son, Mozart, and the feel of Western Europe.

(With a Mozart Protege in Wien)

We arrived at our hostel at 3 p.m. and spent four hours walking throughout the city. This included a stop on the Duna beach for a Becks lime, pictures with Mozart look a likes and the customary stop in the most beautiful church the city has to offer.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time there with the only drawback being that I had to wake up at 7 for my next trip: Instanbul to see my brother, Demirhan.

Last Days Are Lovely

2009-08-06T05:27:00.001-07:00

My teaching journey is coming to an end and I am pretty bummed out that I will be leaving beautiful Tallos in less than 24 hours. My host family has been remarkable and the community has been very heartwarming. Its amazing that I left Michigan six weeks ago and now I am less than 10 days from arriving back to the Great Lake State.

(Class at the Castle)

Last week, like the past, has been pretty packed. When I arrived back to Prague, we went to the local soccer match to see Tallos take on a rival community. It was a great game, but we lost in the final 20 seconds of stoppage time. (The community was pretty upset until Tuesday.) On Monday, I visited the Tallos Castle with some of my students and then spent the afternoon at the Gabčíkovo Dam, which was constructed in 1977 between Czechoslovakia and Hungary to prevent floods. It also is a hydro plant for the local area. Later in the evening, we traveled to Ridge's pad for Goulash Party 3. And that night my massive head cold started. I basically had a mild fever and was massively congested until this afternoon, but everyone's great spirits kept me going strong.

On Tuesday I had class and our family had Ridge's family over for dinner for Fish soup. And not to be outdone, Ridge and I hosted our families and other friends on Wednesday for a good ole dinner. That included his famous Jambalya; my grandmother's mac and cheese; jalapeno cheese cornbread and coleslaw. This all fed about 15 people. (We made cheesecake too, but I managed to burn it.)

(Dinner for the Fams)

And today is my last day in Tallos. I have been told that they are making a large party, which includes Goulash for about 40 people. I imagine there will be spirits and during class the children were acting funny, so perhaps they will have some homemade gifts.

P.S. I made a video that I hope to upload soon. I think you will all find it pretty amusing.

Now I am off to Vienna tomorrow with Ridge and then To Turkiye on Saturday to visit Demirhan. (It has been five years!)

Prague: No Plan? No Problem!

2009-08-03T04:57:00.000-07:00

I spent last weekend in the Czech Republic visiting a place I now consider one of the most wonderful cities I have ever been too. (Yep, Prague is right up there with Edinburgh, Istanbul and Gary, Indiana.) The city remains intact and displays a beautiful castle, gorgeous cathedrals and of course every American's favorite -- never ending cobblestone streets.

(Ridge and I in Old Town)

We arrived early Friday evening and after checking into the Hostel, we spent the first night doing some sighting near Old Town, a few other squares and checking out a local pub before retiring around 1 a.m.. Ridge and I woke up early the next morning and started trekking at about 7:45 a.m. We didn't really have a plan, but wanted to get through as much as possible.

Our day, which included trips to the castle; taking beautiful photos along the Charles Bridge; becoming annoyed by how rude some people from Seattle and California were; and having a few beers along the way. The city espouses exactly what you imagine an old European city to be like. It has character, history, and of course being known as the 'Beer Capital of the World' doesn't hurt.

(Touring Along the Vltava River)

We also encountered a wedding at an old church in Vysehrad, known as the Castle on the Heights" and on the opposite side of the Vltava River from Prague Castle; joined our other eight friends for dinner and a bar crawl that ended at about 3 a.m.; and took in some of the local flavor by venturing outside of the downtown area.

One thing that stood out for me was how many Americans were in the city. I hadn't seen so many since I left Michigan in late June. The city was full of English speaking people and of course a few dumb tourists too.

(My Favorite Tourist: A German With a Michigan-oriented Shirt)

This upcoming week is my last in Tallos before I head to Vienna on Friday afternoon and then to Turkey on Saturday and make my way back to Budapest. (Yes, I plan on taking a bit of the old Orient Express.)

Marc

The Great, Grand and Future travels

2009-07-30T15:20:00.000-07:00

So here we are in my 5th week abroad and 4th teaching English. The second village has been a little more difficult than the previous, but also just as rewarding.

Let's start with a little of the bad. My first class is with 4-10 year-olds and one 12-year-old. I have a student, who I have dubbed Spike, who is a handful, but pretty damn funny. The 12-year-old, Patrick, is a nuisance so I kicked him out and started making him come to the older class, where he belongs. In the early class we are learning basics like months, days of the week, colors and today we learned clothes.

(Stars of 1st class)

In my second class, I have the challenge of having teenagers who speak English but really want to be teenagers -- meaning they don't care to listen. I think I have found a happy medium by teaching them a little and allowing them to play games. I also have compete against one another. Basically we have an decathalon going on between the "Whiskeys" and "Beers." (Beers are winning 3-2.)

And my third class involves adults, who have spent the week teaching me about the Slovakian educational system and the history of their Hungarian culture. (Yes, the animosity toward the Slovak culture rings loud here.) I asked my friend Dorinna yesterday "why do you dislike Slovaks so much" and she said "they hated us first and they don't want us speaking our native language because of a post WW2 map." I said it sounds like a familiar story of most arguments, "They hate us, so we hate them." (With that said I truly do feel for them. After a thousand years, they are forced to learn a new language because of political boundaries.) In this class we also are reading portions of Obama's inaugaration speech. They are quite surprised on some of the things he says and also find other parts comical. They are also bored about the topic.. (Go Figure!)

(Night class. See a Trend?)

The house life is going great. I have taught my family Michigan Rummy and my parents and brother and I are getting into some competitive games. We have spent this week a little more laid back with more family time and after my evening class I visit the "Laguna," a neighborhood bar.

Yesterday I visited Gyor with Darina and my Louisianan friend Ridge. The city is one of Hungary's most-populated and about one-hour drive from my home village. Today we went to see some caverns underneath the small Carpathains, which was pretty cool and amusing for the family. (Ridge and I were pretty sarcastic and I urged the tour guide to fist pump me twice.!) And tonight went to another Goulash party with family and friends. As expected, it was amazingly great.

(Darina and I in Gyor)

Tomorrow I head to Prague with about 10 other volunteers. I hadn't planned on going to the beautiful city -- home of some of the greatest beer -- when I left the U.S. last month, but the cheap opportunity complemented by being with friends influenced me to go. So I'll be in the "golden city " when July ring into August.

The Ridge and Rehm Show: Chilling with the Slovaks

2009-07-27T08:37:00.000-07:00

Another weekend has passed by and again I have visited areas of beauty that I only dreamt in my past dreams.

First, last Friday night my friend Ridge and I were treated to bowling Slovakia style. This included a lot of drinking and me calling it a night after about 2.5 hours. I woke up the next day a bit more tired than usual, but felt much better as I arrived to Bratislava. (I also had a usual American pick-me-upper at noon, when we visited Mickey D’s for lunch.)

(just hugging ole Napoleon)

Bratislava was a beautiful city along the Danube. It included historical sites, embassies, old churches like St. Michael’s Cathedral and of course a castle. My host family and some of their closest friends took me in the village van, which is a nine person cargo vehicle. Anyway, I enjoyed Slovakia’s city and their ability to teach me about their country’s rich past.

Later on Saturday night, their family friends had us over for a Goulash Party. This meal was one of the most wonderful I had tasted since arriving to Europe. The father, Atilla, cooked the meal for about 3.5 hours in an iron pot over a fire. The meat was so tender and the vegetables added a tremendous amount to the pot.

(Atilla's Famous Goulash)

On Sunday we went to Esztergom, Hungary, where we visited a large cathedral. This place was built high up on the hill and was hope to the graves of many cardinals and took pride in Pop John Paul II’s visit in the mid 1990s. It was a beautiful day looking down on the border city, which was split into half when Slovakia was formed.

Following our visit to church, the family drove Ridge and I to a wine festival that included about 30 from around central Europe, a bunch of food, local dancers and musicians. My dad treated Ridge and I to about 10 tastings and it is an understatement that we were feeling on cloud 9. (By the Way: The chardonnay was really good.)

And if you want to see anymore photos, here dozens more on facebook. (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?cropsuccess&id=2341990#/profile.php?id=2341990&v=photos)

Take care,
Marc

Tallos is "All In The Family"

2009-07-24T07:29:00.000-07:00

So here's some updates from my last few days in Slovakia.

My second village is pretty much a culture shock, but it more like my hometown than Z-town. It is a rural village and while I teach three classes here too; they are completely different. The first class includes children from 4-10 and the attention span is a bit shorter, but we are having fun incorporating lessons and games. The second class is teenagers who speak pretty good English and we are doing small assignments and games to practice our English. Yesterday we played a game where you must think of an English word with the the last letter of the previous word just said. (E.G. Chair; Rabbit; tomato; Ocean; etc.) We also grabbed partners and wrote sentences about the other person's shoes. (Where the shoe was made? How did they receive it? What new one would they like? etc.)

(Activities with Students)

I also have benefited from having my friend Ridge close by. We have been doing activities daily. This included climbing the foothills of the Alps and going to local lake when it was 100 the other day. The lake excursion included jumping off the old tire swing into the crystal blue water.

This weekend we are heading to Bratislava and then to a Goulash Party and back to Hungary on Sunday to see some historical sites.

And finally: I wanted to say a little bit more about my host family. The food has been great and I benefit from Tomy speaking pretty good English. We joke around a lot and watch Wresting -- he is a big fan of WWE - the Tour de France and play lots of Rummy. The family, especially Grandma, is understanding how much I love spicey food. (This resulted into me getting my own jalapeno paprika the other day.) (Yummy) I also spent part of today watching my host sister at her dance recital. You can bet that I was her biggest fan.

(Touring with Family and Ridge)

On another side note, I have been having weird dreams again. This includes me chilling out with Obama in D.C. before a big speech and stuff about law school.

Marc

Goodbye Hungary; Hello Slovakia

2009-07-20T14:48:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is doing well. I just arrived to my second village, Tallos (Tomalsviko) Slovakia. But I'll get into that later.

First, my send off was phenomenal. My second host family took me to the train station, where I met with other volunteers before heading to Komarno, Slovakia. My host brother Willie actually started crying when we got out of the car and his mom e-mailed me today, telling me that he cried for about an hour after I left. That also delayed lunch for the family, which was surprising cause Willy usually is the first one at the table. (Awww. Kind of luck me at age 11. Wait, kind of like me now.)

Anyway, it was pretty hard to leave, but I was happy to see my friends and to tackle a new chapter. I also was comforted with the notion that I'll be visiting my family in Ztown again in the future.

And finally that I would receiving my GFR shirt again. You probably heard but I lost it in Budapest. (I have my hunches about how it got lost, but there are no accusations.) Anyway, I am pretty excited that Nancy spent the 20 bucks to mail it and I will once again be living vicariously through this shirt -- though it doesn't really change much. :)

So we arrived to Komarno at close to on-time and we were greeted by a member of Parliament, an interpreter and a bunch of hospitality. We were treated to dinner on the first day and lunch the second; enjoyed a free weekend stay in a 4 star hostel (which is like a 1 star hotel, but better than what I could have expected); and we met with the vice-mayor and I was interviewed by the local news. (The local reporter was probably prompted by my question about "What are your priorities and your specific agenda?)

Anyway, we had a great time and we're all meeting up in two weeks in Prague to tackle another country. (I also got an extra bonus by my friend Ridge (from Louisiana) being in a neighboring village. Our host families are teaming up during the next few weeks.)

So my host family picked me up at 10:30 Sunday morning and we made the 50 minute drive to their hometown, which is about 40 miles east of Slovakia's capital, Bratislava. The town name is officially Tomalsviko, but they call it Tallos because this is the Hungarian part of Slovakia, where most people are of Hungarian heritage, but are no longer in that country because of redistricting following wars in the 20th century.

1st let me tell you that they are as heartwarming as my first family. These next few weeks will be a bit more difficult considering I am in a village of 1500 and no one in my family is fluent in English. With that said, I look forward to the change of pace and my host borther Tomas (13) speaks pretty good English, which means we can talk about 70 percent of the time. His parents (Karol (Dad) and Hajnalka (mom) do not and his nine year old sister (Hajnika) doesn't, but we're already having fun. (WE've enjoyed rummy and other Hungarian card games and just visiting as we talk about history.)

They live near downtown, which is pretty small, and have a pretty big house, which also is home of their grandmother. While they do not have a car, they have high-speed internet and a 50 inch flat screen TV. (It was pretty cool watching the Tour de France yesterday and bits of the British Open. They've also been gracious to turn the TV on English.)

They also have a mini farm. Like my other families, they grow a lot of their own fruits and vegetables. But unlike my other family they have an even larger garden and they have pigs, which they actually sell in the Winter. They also have a small river at the end of their property.

I actually start teaching on Tuesday, so I hope to give you more updates after that.

Take care and thanks again for everyone who sent me a birthday wish. It was fantastic.

Marc

Contrasting my two homes

2009-07-16T16:25:00.002-07:00

Some Hungarian and U.S. Comparisons.

Showers: Their shower head is usually at waste level and they take it off the connector. While most U.S. showers have this capability, we just leave it up top and usually waste more water.)

Recycle: There isn't a weekly recycle pick up. But there is a random place you can them in.

Roads: There is no shoulder and as expected the cars are much smaller.

Food: They have their traditional food, but a lot of it diverse unlike other ethnic food like Thai or Mexican that is all pretty much similar to most Americans.

Drinks: They drink like the Gewirtz family. (Enough said)

School Buildings: Many are old are from Soviet Days. (Meaning Cold Winters and Hot Summers)

School Buses: They don't exist.

Bus System: Every town has a bus system that allows people to go from villages to cities. And while most people have cars, they may not always us them. (With that said, car pooling is unthinkable.)

Parties: They are usually just with family. It is not common to invite friends over for a huge BBQ.
Women: Diverse and of course beautiful

Milk Container: It can come in plastic bag and there is no plastic jug. However, they do have cardboard box.
WW2: Is not just thought of as the war, but how it was at home.

Garden: Everyone has one. Even if you live in city you have a 20 by 10 garden with at least 20 different things.

Golf: It really lacks.

Ice: Its pretty much a hot commodity. (Get it? Hot? Ice?.) Anyway, they don't really have it anywhere in my hometown. Ice machines are expensive and while they have home ice we all know that can be hard to prepare for 4 or more.

Culture: They celebrate their history and heritage. I believe U.S. takes pride in history, while most people don't have relatives who lived in the part pre of 1900. I also think the U.S. heritage isn't that large mostly due to it being so young.

When I'm 25. . . .

2009-07-16T15:56:00.000-07:00

So Its my last day teaching in Hungary and boy have I been showered with gifts. (Certainly it doesn't hurt that I also happen to be turning 25 on the same day.) Let me just give a quick sum up: five wonka like candy bars; four bottles of Palinka that is similar in price to Greg Goose; tons of books on Hungary, Ztown and one that tells me about Jesus; clothes; and a few bags of other stuff that I have yet to figure out what it exactly is.

This last week in Ztown has been similar to the rest, where I've spent days in surrounding towns. This week's trips included visiting a 12th century church; another city the size of Grand Rapids, where we went to the cathedral and I was blessed with the sounds of the loudest pipes I had ever heard before walking on ancient Roman ruins that were built shortly after the death of Christ.

I also spent an afternoon swimming at a local water park and was invited to a Garden Party, which is basically their version of the all-American BBQ. This included more Palinka and beer complemented by the pastime favorite -- grilled paprika chicken. We also played the game 33, which is similar to 21 but you have teams and there isn't any contact. (Needless to say, the father of the house (Istvan) and I took the crown.

Yesterday, I also spent time at an old fortress that abutted the Hungarian Highlands just below the Austrian Alps. And today we went back to Lake Balaton where I was happy-go-lucky to see my first host parents (Rita and Chaba) they surprised me, which pretty much made my day. We walked around and took pictures near the lake and by a winery and laughter and a bit of sadness was included. I've missed them but have also enjoyed my second stop.

(Lake Balaton with first two host families)

My second host family has a beautiful home in the hills outside of downtown Ztown. The view from their balcony looks down at a valley that my host father says is "perfect for cross country skiing." It also invites the Deep Space adventurer as just about any star that is available to see. (The other day we were pretty sure we had an eye level view of Mars and that MIR passed us by.)

I have been lucky with not only having a great first family that displayed the same kindness of my own, but another that is willing to teach me as much as I can ask. (And you all know that I can ask a lot of questions.) This family suprised me in class today with a massive cake that spelled out 25 and my host brothers, Peter and Willy, and host sister, Vicky, sang "When I'm 25." (Like the Beatles "When I'm 64)

(A Very Happy 25th!)

And finally, the class has been more rewarding than I could have imagined. My advanced students have been able to teach me the Hungarian way of life and what it means to live in different generations. (The one that was under total Soviet control and another that hasn't.) Some say the former live was better in some ways, like knowing you would make ends meet; overall most say the ability to choose what you want has been worth the risk. (Of course this is much more complicated than I can write.)

This week's class lessons consumed of playing games like hang man and pictionary, learning how to order food in restaurant and playing "Pop Pong," while practicing English. In my intermediate class, which was filled with adults, I answered the ever common-question of, "What is Obama like, what kind of president is he, and what will he do," with a lesson on reading "I have a Dream" by MLK and another on reading Obama's inaugaration speech. While this was difficult for them, they understand most of it and were surprised that a president of the USA would apologize for our past mistakes. And while they weren't surprised, they admitted they don't have optimistic leaders like the U.S. They say we don't have someone saying, "While we have made mistakes and while we are in this crisis; we can do better and we will do better. We will do this together and it is our responsibility not the leader's responsibility to make us all better."

(Last Day of Class)

Ljubljana is Simply Lovely

2009-07-13T05:29:00.000-07:00

So I had a pretty crazy weekend in ljubljana, Slovenia. If you haven't heard of the city, don't worry. It isn't really the most popular for American tourists. There are only about 250,000 people there and Slovenia is one of the smallest countries in Europe.

(Slovenian Alps from train window)

With that said, it is one of the best places in Europe. The city is one of the few, if not the only, capital in Europe to not have been destroyed during WW1 and WW2. That characteristic makes it one of the most charming.

So I finished class on Friday and hopped on a 5 p.m. train due west. A total of 10 of us made the 5 hour hour ride, which was delayed, including stoppage at the border and us having to take a bus since the track was being fixed in one area.

(On the bright side: It also included being in the beautiful ALPS:)

We actually stayed in the city for less than 36 hours, but they were pretty fun-filled. On our train ride, we met some French students, Pierre-Jean and Elise, who were on their way back form Budapest to Ljubjana, where they have been studying for the past year. Our new friends offered to show us the city on Saturday so we got a free tour guide with some amazing people. This included going along the Ljubljanica River, touring the city's castle and getting great deals on food and booze.

(Group Photo from atop Ljubjana Castle with French friends on the right)

During the evening hours we met them up at a local pub and was escorted by them and another new friend, Zala, who my friend Yan and I had met a pub earlier in the day. (So, we basically spent the night hanging out with locals at their favorite dive bars/pubs/dance clubs.)

(Cheers with our new friends)

After about 4 hour of sleep for the second straight night, everyone woke up around 7:30 a.m. on Sunday and we headed back to Hungary.

When I arrived back on Sunday I said goodbye to my first home family, the Czotter family, who are taking their annual family vacation to Lake Balaton. It was a pretty sad leaving them, but I was thankful for having met them.

My second host family in Z-town includes a mother Chilla, who is an English teacher; Gabor, who is a captain of a ship and spends part of the year abroad in Europe (he is also fluent in English; daughter Vicky (13); son William (11); son Peter (9). The young children are wonderful singers and I will hopefully be able to upload some footage of them singing the Beatles.

On an entirely different note. I have been having some pretty interesting dreams lately. Last night I dreamt that my Grandpa Rehmann was in his living room and we were chatting about my travels in Europe. He told me he just wanted to stop in and say hello, but only had a temporary "get out of Heaven" card. (haha) I also dreamt that I was about four years ahead and my nephew, Ben, along with cousins, Blake, Addison, Natalie and William were all walking up to Natalie's family's restaurant in Chesaning. Ben was super excited because I promised him a Root Beer Float.

Take care,
Marc

Global Coverage

2009-07-10T03:15:00.001-07:00

So you probably knew that this was going to be a very diplomatic trip for me as I hoped to repair ties with the Hungarian nation that may have been broken during the Bush administration.

Here is proof.

First third is about Learning Enterprises, the organization I am with.
The 2nd third is about me.
The last segment is about Obama and my take on his first six months.

http://zalaihirlap.hu/legfrissebb_hirek/20090709_amerikai_tanar

Semi-Charmed Life

2009-07-09T03:52:00.000-07:00

Let me sum up the past few days: exhausting and exhilarating.

1st: Lets go back to Sunday.

I woke exhausted from the late 4th of July bash and after eating an enormous 2-course meal I took a nap, which prompted my host family to take picture after picture. (They thought I was hungover and maybe I was. They drink like Jim and Mary Ellen))

We then went to Sumeg Castle, a beautiful fortress built during the 12th century to first fend off the Ottoman Empire and then later used to fend off the Austrian Empire. We then went to some random winery named after some guy named Viktor. Apparently everyone, which includes a chosen few, who know him, call him Uncle Viktor and ask for the Chardonnay. After that we went to Hevis and walked around the thermal baths, which average around 95 degrees, and finally drove back through the countryside back to Ztown.

(A big Family Photo)

(Sumeg Castle)

2nd: The week started with a new set of classes. The first two are beginner/intermediate students while the third are very advanced. For example, I spent the first few days in the first two classes teaching common hotel terms and kitchen words; I spent the first few days in the advanced class analyzing Benjamin Button, talking about the Vietnam War and comparing Hungary to U.S. (Examples include coffee being smaller/you must pay for to use toilets/cars are much smaller and they drive much more recklessly/they known almost every country in the world and location/the government is not as energy efficient/ government does not give as much incentives for small businesses/ beer is cheaper.

(What The Hell Does Michael Jackson mean when he says "Man In The Mirror."

3rd. I have spent the week visiting the local train station, which the U.S. bombed in WW2; touring the local museum; going back to Heviz and seeing Lake Balaton and keszthely at sunset; and going to a local bar that resembles the usual suspects at Dave's Bar in Chesaning. (Jean Gewirtz was somewhere to be found.) My trip to Lake Balaton was with a group of brothers my age and as we arrived to the sparkling waters I felt the same excitement I always had as a child going up to Lake Huron. Then again that sensation may have been because we were jamming to "Semi-Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind and "One Week" by Barenaked Ladies.

(Lake Balaton's Beautiful Sunset)

And finally, this weekend I head Ljubljana, Slovenia, with other volunteers to learn about one of the smallest nation's in Europe. (Thanks Amanda Allen. Your e-mail form the Washington Post influenced a bunch of us to check a place GWBush once called "A Little Slice of Heaven."

Fast Times at ZTown High

2009-07-07T07:33:00.000-07:00

So the first weekend with my first host family was pretty much a blast.
After getting my haircut on Friday afternoon and scaring the heck out of the hair dresser cause she thought I was upset, I finished up class for the week and ate another amazing dinner with flavored pork, rice and a bunch of other spices.

Rita, the two younger daughters, and I then headed over the Thomas household. (I call it this because there is big Thomas (dad) and lil Thomas (son). As soon as I arrived we started practicing archery. Big Thomas is an avid fan of the sport and well known in the area. Lil Thomas appears to be headed into his father's footsteps. They showed me the proper technique while I made a fool out of myself. (By The way, on my last and 50th shot, I hit a perfect bullseye.) Big Thomas told me that Hungarians from hundreds of years ago would practice from their young age until they shot about 1 million arrows and was finally considered a man.

LiL Thomas the Archer

With the Thomas'

Bullseye!

After practicing the arrow technique and some vicious thing with a string, we went inside for some homemade honey flavored palinka and to discuss about Canada. (Big Thomas studied there for two months a few years ago.) Oh yeah, and to make the story a little crazier, some random neighbor name Thomas also came over to show his special skills, which also included pounding down drinks.

Later Friday night, Emese took me to Club Disco, where they don't play disco but call it that for some odd reason. The actual name as Club Atlantis and it was like any American club. We arrived before 11 so the girls could get in free. It was $5 for guys. Since it was slow I introduced them to paper football. Yep, for about 1 hour the guys played a drinking game to paper football as more dancers shuffled in. The night ended with me doing some moonwalk; random people saying "Are you American?"; and me waking up a drunk for a photo. I stumbled home at about 3:00.

Learning Paper Football

(Club Disco with Emese and her boyfriend, Christian)

(Random People)

4th of July:
It was a (Franscesca) Doozy. We woke up and ate breakfast before eating a monster lunch at noon and soon after picked up Alison for her best 4th of July ever. (Alison is fellow volunteer who wanted to celebrate the 4th with us.) We then went to the Open Air Museum, a famous reenactment area of town that recreated villages from the 15th century or before. (This included what I called John Edwards' father's mill.) And then we came back and feasted on some classic 4th of July/Americana BBQ. They invited their friend Chilla and her two boys over; grandma and grandpa watched from the porch as we ate outside; and all the thomas' and their families joined in later in the night. It included the following montage of Palinka and of course margarita, wine, beer, and some other liquors of this native land.

(The John Edwards Dynasty)

Czaba and I grilling

Alison, Czaba and I drinking Palinka 3

1st Week in Ztown

2009-07-06T13:57:00.001-07:00

So outside of basketball camps during high school and tutoring for inner city DC students during the school year, I’ve never been a teacher.

Sure, I respect all those teacher’s who help nurture the world’s future, but I never really felt the rush to join the club. With that said, this experience — thousands of miles away from home and closer to Americans in Iraq than Indiana — has allowed me to try some different tactics out. Thanks Learning Enterprises! (So you baby boomer teachers just looking for getting that pension. Enlighten us all and try something different. I am pretty certain that my colleagues in LE have some smashing ideas.)

But first let me give you a little background: I believe I am the only one in our program who is teaching in a city. Yep, whopping Zalaegerszeg (Z-town) is home to 60,000 jovial, open-hearted individuals. The ironic thing about being in Z-town is that my hometown in Michigan is home to 2500 people, so a cowtown would be more like home.

So, with that said, I have been fortunate enough to teach nearly 70 people so far. My classes are divided into three classes a day (10:00-11:30; 1:00-2:30; and 5:00-6:30) and each week I get new students, although many are coming back this week. My estimation is that I will have taught nearly 100 by the end of next week.

And now to some of my highlights from the first week. In my first advanced class — students who are capable of visiting any English speaking country and make a living — we spent the first day learning about the Civil Rights Movement, Vietnam and the 2008 presidential election. Later in the week we figured out what Zac Brown really means when he sings the song “Chicken Fried” and we ended the week with a 4th of July tradition, ordering some ice cream under the blue sky. (And yes some even donned colors of Old Glory.)

In my beginner classes we spent the first days learning the weather wheel, where we used construction paper to make our own wheel to include the months of the year; the seasons; and pictures that complement each respective choice. We also spent time discussing our family tree. I have attached a photo of my mother’s side of the family.

And now for things I am most proud of since entering eastern Europe.
1. I have yet to buy bottled water. Yep, tap water is more than efficient in Hungary.
2. Making a full fledge 4th of July dinner for family. It included good ole inside-outside burgers; cole slaw; brownies; baked beans; jalapeno cornbread; and of course some Margaritas for our nation’s largest minority and those who live to sit outside with some sour’d tequila on a Saturday afternoon. (This dinner talk, which until the early hours of the morning, including them teaching me about their holidays, customs and love for Hungarian culture.)
3. As I tell my classes that I enjoy a good beer and the Hungarian hospitality, they offer me gifts daily. That has included homemade Palinka, which I shall share will Ridge on our excursion to Slovenia, homemade dishes from various mothers, homemade jam from the cutest 11-year-old ever and a plethora of paprika.
4. And teaching students a fistpump. (Please Fox News do not call them terrorists fistpumps.)
5. Getting interviewed by local press and getting a more than awkward look when I told them that my previous profession was as a journalism in Washington D.C.

Hello! (Like Hawaiians, Hungarians say it for both hello and goodbye.)
Marc

An Eclectic Round of Photos

2009-07-03T07:42:00.001-07:00

(View of My Hometown from way above)

(Thanking local historian who makes crafts and weapons from 10th century)

(Teaching Family by showing Gewirtz Family Tree)

(Advanced Students after Ice Cream)

(Pre-Hungarian Haircut)

(Post-Hungarian Haircut: Nancy is Happy)

Zalaegerzeg Is As Hungarian As Paprika

2009-07-03T06:06:00.000-07:00

So the beauty of Hungary's western tier just keeps increasing the incredometer.
The food of course remains its amazing self and the people continue to be more gracious than the conductor on the evening
METRO train heading to "FRAN_CONNIA_ SPRINGFIELD! The Last STop on the Blue Liiine."

On Wednesday evening, I had drinks with the vice mayor, a close friend of my host family, and we talked about foreign policy, the current economic situation in the U.S. and abroad and the respective histories of our governments. It was a fantastic conversation to have with an active politician, who is pressing an environmental agenda while coping with the realities of constituency still reeling from the effects of the former Soviet Union. Everyone wants to know if I know anything about Obama and how he is liked by Americans. (Dear CQ: Thanks again for Politics in America.

It is a great publication and I imagine you will be getting thousands of orders from Hungarians in the coming weeks.) (Dear Greg Giroux: I am spit out so many of your stats that locals are beginning to call me 'the doctor.'"

Other funny and interesting things from this week.
1a. I got my first Hungarian haircut. What do you think?
1b. I called my host father Czaba (JABA) and he looks at me, screams and smiles and says "no. no. its Chewbacca.)
2. Listening to Van Halen on the way to school.
3.The way the former Soviet buildings look and how the downtown is more artistic and away from that depressing look.
4. They have small cars like the former Polish Palishka (P?)
5. Today we learned the chorus to Don Mclean "American Pie" and yesterday the advanced students learned the entire meaning of Zac Brown's "Chicken Fried."
6. I have been given free lunch, various liquors, jam and other assortments special to Zaleageszeg.

7. A lot of people smoke in central and eastern Europe. I mean a lot.

8. We went to local historical site, where they make tools and crafts from 1000 years ago. It was pretty amazing seeing the tool and meet the people behind the preservation. (See photos attached.)

9. My family and almost everything other family in the city has a huge garden. Then again my host family says there garden is small in comparison to garden's of those who live in villages.

Tomorrow's 4th of July Festivities include:
Springstein, Mellencamp, CCR
-cole slaw; inside-out burgers; cornbread; Margaritas (I know not American); and baked beans.

Everything is a Hungarian Treat

2009-07-01T03:06:00.000-07:00

1st: The host family is wonderful. The father (Czaba) and I have been chatting about music and it appears we have similar taste. We discuss about Seger, Springstein and ACDC, and he has given me some local flavor. (This bond has been born also because he doesn’t speak English and I don’t speak Hungarian.

2nd: My host mom (Rita) is probably one the nicest people I have ever met. So far she has introduced me to the Hungarian cuisine (see photos), and the people. This includes meeting historians and having an interpreter, a meeting today with members of the city council, who are expecting my arrival so I can discuss American politics (On another note, she asked me to give my Obama impression to my entire adult class.); and made arrangements for me to travel to other local treasures.

3rd: The three daughters are also nice and their eldest daughter, Emese, has taken me around town and offered to take me out with her friends this weekend. So far it has been pretty interesting watching the 12 and 13 year-old daughters listen to rap music and MTV religously. Are cultures really are close.)

On the classroom front, it has been pretty exhilarating, entertaining, and a learnable experience. They engulf American information like a sea gull taking in food on a beach. (No alka Seltzer though.) The children want to know music and adults want to know politics.

My students have offered to take me out for beer; invited me to ride jet ski; brought in food; asked me if they can take me out for a beer; asked if they can host me for dinner; taken me out for lunch; asked me if they can take me out for a beer; and laughed at and with me.

Overall, I am learning that their culture is similar to America, with the only difference being that they still have resemblance of an old communist culture. In a city park hangs a statue of the former Vietnam leader and the classrooms, as my sometimes interpreter Gabriel said "is a bit of old Soviet Union, 'cold in winters, hot in summers.'" (see attached photo)

And finally, the biggest news in Hungary is Michael Jackson. Yep, every other song on the radio and MTV is of The King of Pop, which prompted Rita to ask (sarcastically) yesterday, 'who is this Michael Jackson man?' (Jokes like that make me feel right at home.)

Budapest at Night

2009-06-29T06:40:00.000-07:00

(My Budapest GFR Adventure)

(Atop Hill overlooking Budapest with friends)

(Budapest at Night)

(Cheers!)

(Menu at Communist tourist pizza place)

Arriving to Zalaegerzeg Hungary

2009-06-29T06:10:00.000-07:00

It was pretty amazing seeing two people, who I knew nothing about, never conversed with, waiting for me off the train stop. It was also pretty cool finding out that I am the only one teaching inan actual city. The remaining people went to rural villages as small as 30 people. I am in metropolis Zalaegerzeg, a city roughly the same as Saginaw, Michigan with 60,000 and like Michigan it has experienced its share of hardships. (In just the last few years the technology manufacturing company, where my host family dad works, has went form 8,000 to 2,0000.

I met the mom (Rita, who is about same height and shoe size as Nancy) and eldest daughter (Emese), and they drove me to their house, where their friend, an english teacher in Hungarian schools, was there to help. At the house dad (Csaba) and the other two daughters (Anna Agi) were also waiting. We laughed and joked and we ate meat pancakes, similar to perogies but lighter before they were topped with great cheese sauce.

Highlights include the following:

4:00 train station pickup
4:08: Arrive home
4:36: first shot of palinka (Hungarian liquor that is a mix of everything and 80 proof)
4:44: Father dubs me drinking buddy

Dinner was fantastic. The run this morning was much needed. I had a Hungarian history lesson over some wine and they have proposed visiting a waterpark. I proposed a party Saturday night to celebrate July 4th. And eldest daughter asked if I want to go to parties on Friday and Saturday night to meet other locals.

I have three classes at a local community center.
10-11:30 (Beginner)
1-2:30 (Intermediate/advanced)
5-6:30 (I believe beginner)

Other highlights include:
9:00 a.m. today: Laundry is done but not dried and I need my boxers so my host mother ironed my clean boxers.
Dad was professional volleyball player and won the Hungarian Cup in the early 90s, which is pretty cool. Its like me being with Scottie Pippen 15 years later. )Yep, he's a big deal.

Anyway, more photos will follow of their house, school and students.

Budapest Bridge

2009-06-27T08:51:00.001-07:00

Day two

2009-06-27T00:59:00.001-07:00

Day Two:

Majestic Budapest is living up to be just that. Yesterday, I woke up and ran along the beautiful Danube. Today I did the same and the sights are just getting better and better.

Yesterday morning, we went to the House of Terror Museum, which shows the horrific lifestyle Hungary went through during the Stalin Regime. We then walked down, what I thought was embassy row and went to a Hungarian Bath. There were probably about 1,000 people spread out in 15 saunas, 20 pools, and 20 hot tubs. It was almost as relaxing as sipping on Manhattan on 720 S. Front Street with Rob and Nancy.

Oh yeah, the food here is pretty good too. If you like paprika, this is the place to be. If you like stews or a Jack Hamilton medley of food, then this is your place too.

Finally, last evening, we headed out to another local pub before going dancing on Margeret Island, a green gem in the Danube that is full of dance clubs.

Marc

Day Two: Shocking News

2009-06-26T00:32:00.002-07:00

After a fun night out on town, which included a nightcap on my 35th hour up, I got a much needed six hours of sleep.

Yep, I am pretty revved up to tour the town: I woke up at eight and had myself a nice run along the Danube. But then I looked at CNN.com and once again it has let me down as "Billie Jean is Not my Lover" mastermind Michael Jackson passed away.

Needless to say, Budapest jukebox's will be filled with a lot of Free Willy soundtrack.

Beginning of Day two:

2009-06-26T00:32:00.001-07:00

From Chesaning to Budapest: Day 1

2009-06-25T12:27:00.000-07:00

The trip over to Budapest ended being OK. Mom and Dad dropped me outside of Detroit Metro at 3 p.m. and I was through security by 3:20. Despite my flight to Newark being delayed by 20 minutes, I still arrived in plenty of time and was able to watch some vintage Larry King figuring out what happened to South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. (I'm so glad my parents went with the C spelling.)

My flight from Newark to Paris was similar to my first flight. I didn't have someone sitting

in the middle seat. (I had window seats for both and it was great seeing NYC and then Paris. Also, I put to use a tip I once read in a travel blog once about ordering vegetarian food gets you a better meal. That certainly was the case on this flight.

The only drawback is that I didn't fall sleep much. It was basically my fault with having some work to do. I also got to catch up on some movies: "New in Town" with Renee; "Confessions of a Shopaholic;" and some movie with Kiera Knightly and the British actress who was in the film on Andy Warhol. (She's blonde if that helps)... I'm pretty proud of all three. I wish I could have fit in College Trip with Martin Lawrence and Ravon.

And then I arrived to France. Yep, I flew over the Evil Tower -- the only visible icon from my plane window -- and had about 50 minutes to get from one end of the airport, check in and brush my teeth. It turned out that I had plenty of time. Our flight was delayed and cancelled due to a "malfunction" -- whatever that means.

So instead of getting into Budapest at 3 p.m. local time I am now writing this from the sky hoping to land by 6:30. Oh yeah, I must point out a few interesting happenings during the 3.5 hour layoff.

1: A guy yelling at the airlines early on was a spitting image of Jim Moran. You know, that firebrand congressman from Alexandria. I was going to get a picture of him but being up 25 hours straight and his anger mirroring Moran convinced me to stop.

2: I ended being the second to last person to get on the next flight to Budapest. If I had missed it, I may have been in that airport another three hours or overnight.

3: Being the second to last person put me in 4A. Yep, I took (don't mind the change in verbs. I am now typing this in my hostel) taking business class from Paris to Budapest. That trip r included cheap champagne and I had a beer during the 80 minute flight.

Bon Voyage!

Marc

P.S. Hungary has some sweet suprises. 1: Budapest appears to have running trails. 2: A concert with Limp Bisket is happening next weekend. (I guess Fred Durst faith and all that noookie talk still works over here.)

Past GFR Photos

2009-06-11T10:17:00.001-07:00

(Todd's 26th BDay: Saying Goodbye to friend Matt, Arlington, Va, USA, June 2009)

(Obama Inauguration: Lincoln Memorial Celebration with Megan, Washington, DC, USA, January 2009)

(Las Vegas Eagles Club with family, Las Vegas, NV, USA, April 2008)

(Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, NY, USA, March 2008)

(House Party with roommate Kristina, Arlington, VA, USA, January 2008)

(Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI, USA, December 2007)

(Camp Randall with L, Madison, WI, USA, August 2007)

(Imitating Ali and Liston, Baltimore, MD, USA, March 2007)

(Easter Eve 2006 with High School Friends, Chesaning, MI, USA, April 2006)

(National Cathedral, Washington, DC, USA, March 2006)

(Drinking beer with Sister Rachel and Brother-in-law Aaron, Orland0, FL, USA, March 2006)