When we arrived in Hungary, it seemed like we had plenty of time. Four and a half months felt  like eons — we  believed it would enable us to explore Hungary and take some side trips, and still leave us time in Debrecen to experience and be part of the everyday life of the University…

Well, it wasn’t just a dream…it actually happened.  I met my friends from junior year abroad in Fribourg, Switzerland. Some friendships shrivel if you neglect them…others are the kind that you can pick up where you left off, even if the last time you met was more than 30 years ago.  On the first night,…

Aside from visiting our cousins, we were also in Budapest because we had tickets for a dance performance this past Sunday afternoon.  The Experidance show, Gypsies of Nagyida, was based on a  semi-comic poem by Janos Aranyi, written as a parody of the war stories of the struggle for independence between the Austians and Hungarians,…

We spent the weekend in Budapest at my cousin’s apartment.  On Saturday, Bernard and I went to the Terror House…it is located on one of Budapest’s most beautiful boulevards, at Andrassy Utca 60.  Terror House was the headquarters of AVO-the Hungarian secret police; and it is telling that it was located in the center of…

I spent my junior year abroad in Fribourg, Switzerland.  Georgetown had an exchange program at the university and there were twenty-five of us there, as well as a large contingent from Providence College and from LaSalle University. It was a transformative year for me.  In addition to living and studying there, I traveled a lot…

Last week we went to Veszprem, Hungary for America Week.  This was a week of panels, presentations, and other events celebrating Hungarian-American relations (although we could only attend Thursday and Friday because of my teaching responsibilities).  The event was originally organized last year by a Fulbrighter from Nazareth College, NY who was teaching American philosophy…

Have a great day. Marcsi

We were invited to my friend Annamaria’s house earlier this week for dinner.  The original plans were to attend a Gergely Borganyi piano concert at the Liszt Music Academy in Budapest–my cousins Rita and Bandi were going to join us.  Unfortunately, Borganyi had to cancel because of illness.  Annamaria prepared a “typically” Hungarian dinner for…

On the first day of our Fulbright orientation,  a Hungarian woman  did a brief introduction to the cultural differences between Americans and Hungarians.  Perhaps we were jet-lagged, perhaps she, for the sake of being thought-provoking, laid it on a bit thick; either way, some of us were more than a little peeved at what we…

Sometimes good news comes from the most surprising places.  Take, for example, the article here.  I kind of like the idea of a horse who is “short” and “kind of ugly” becoming an unlikely winner.  Have a great day! Thanks for tuning in and best regards, Marcsi