A Letter To My Love

Dearest Switzerland,

I owe you an apology. Over the last three months, we've been spending a lot of time together, and honestly I started to take you for granted. You've been nothing but good to me since we first met in early January. That first week in Lugano was magical. I will forever cherish how special you made my 21st birthday. Our first weekend together was one for the books. Skiing Zermatt was hands down one of the best experiences of my life. You certainly inherited Mother Nature's best traits. 

Since then however, we've drawn apart. I take full blame. I started seeing other countries. First it was Italy, drawing me in with its delicious food. Then Germany with its endless supply of beer. Then England and its irresistible accent. Ireland stole my heart. I celebrated Valentine's Day with France. I went on a second date with Italy, who continued to woo me, this time with pesto. Belgium made me the world's best breakfast. Hungary was a cheap date. I gave Germany a second go. Prague and I really hit it off. Italy was determined to show me the wonders of Rome last weekend. 

I realize this isn't the best apology, but rather a list of my recent conquests. Keep reading. 

It had been over two months since our marvelous weekend together in Zermatt. Honestly, I was slightly bitter you wouldn't show me the Matterhorn, but I now realize you were simply playing hard to get. We had only just met, you weren't ready for that type of commitment. Clearly, I wasn't either. 

I realized that despite how long we've known each other now, we hadn't spent quality time together in quite a while. This weekend changed everything. Italy was practically begging me to visit Cinque Terre. Frankly, Italy was getting a little too clingy. Instead, I stayed with you. It was just the two of us and you showed me the world.

My journey to Interlaken was beautiful. You continue to teach me that it's the journey, not the destination. We were finally starting to click, and Friday you proved that. 

I woke up early Friday morning excited for my journey ahead to Jungfrau, the top of Europe. With stops in Lauterbrunnen Valley and Kleine Scheidegg, I was already blown away. Jungfraujoch took the cake. Words cannot describe your beauty, Switzerland.

Getting to Jungfraujoch required a simple train ride. Getting to it's peak at Mönchsjochhütte however, was not. You challenged me and I accepted. After an hour hike up the mountain, I made it. It's there that I fell in love with you all over again. I enjoyed a terrific lunch and one of the most beautiful views in the world.

Just when I thought the day couldn't get any better, you did this:

Thank you, Switzerland. While our time together is coming to an end in a few short weeks, I want you to know how great you are. I promise to come back and visit you, if you promise to be nicer to my wallet. 

With love,

Con amore,

Mit liebe,

Avec amour,

Bijan

Budapest: A Tale of Two Cities

We started our second spring break in Budapest. We arrived in the late afternoon on Friday, hungry in Hungary after our overnight train from Lugano. We made our way to an authentic Hungarian restaurant suggested to us at our hostel. I tried Hungarian beer and potatoes with a thick garlic cream sauce. After a delicious and very filling lunch, we explored the city a bit. The currency in Hungary is heavily inflated. One US Dollar is the equivalent of 220 Hungarian forints. With that, we treated ourselves while in Budapest. During our explorations, we came across a Doctor Fish shop, and treated ourselves to fish pedicures. I was hesitant at first, the idea of fish eating at my feet was not my idea of a good time. After watching a few of the others try it however, I had to give it a go. It was surprisingly relaxing and my feet felt refreshingly smooth afterwards. It was a 3000 forints (13 USD) well spent. That evening we ate like kings at a fancy all you can eat and drink restaurant.

Buda on the left, Pest on the right.

Budapest is a city split in two, Buda and Pest. At first, I thought this was a joke. It's not, Buda is the residential side of the city and Pest is the city. On Saturday, Madison and I took a tour through the city. At the start of the tour, our guide wished us all a Happy Ladies Day. Before we left the guide asked us if we had any questions. I wasn't familiar with "Ladies Day" and made the mistake of asking what it was. Upon asking I immediately got glares from every girl on the tour. Madison and I were the only Americans on the tour, and apparently the only ones unaware of the holiday. I was under the impression the holiday was of Hungarian culture, but quickly learned that our guide was referring to International Women's Day. I was rather embarrassed, but somehow avoided harm from the mass of European women who put me on their hit list.

During the tour we explored Pest and made our way to Buda. The tour offered incredible insight into a city I knew very little about. We made stops at St. Stephen's Basilica, the Chain Bridge, Buda Castle, and the Fisherman's Bastion, among other important spots.

Hungarian Parliament Building

We learned of the influences Hungarians have made on the world, including but not limited to the rubik's cube, Shrek, and Yoda's dialect. We learned that Jedi Master Yoda's script was not originally considered alien-like, so the producers translated his script to Hungarian, and then back to English. We also made a stop at Buda Castle where Katy Perry filmed her music video Firework.

Buda Castle

Following our tour, Madison and I had a long list of Hungarian foods we wanted to try. First on our list was Langos, a pizza of sorts made on fried potato bread and topped with sour cream, cheese, and your choice of toppings. We stopped at the Central Market Hall, the largest and oldest indoor market in Budapest, where we had our first taste of this Hungarian delight. From what I experienced, Hungarian food was very heavy. I left each meal feeling as though I had  eaten Thanksgiving dinner. Frankly, I found it difficult to be hungry in Hungary. After the market, we met back up with the rest of the group, who had spent their day exploring the city on a beer bike. We ended the night at the ruin bar, Szimpla. The bar was huge, with several floors and was built around the ruins of Budapest.

One of the highlights of the trip to Budapest was our visit to the Széchenyi Hungarian Bath on Sunday. Upon arrival, I was surprised to see it looked like a glorified pool. A few of us, myself included, started to think we were scammed and had wasted our money. It wasn't until we got in the baths that we realized our money was well spent. Upon stepping foot in the water, there was immediate relief. The gigantic natural hot tubs were just what the doctor ordered. We spent several hours relaxing before catching our late night train to Berlin.

I have no clue when I'll return to Budapest. Hungary was the first country I have visited with no prior exposure to the language and was my first trip to Eastern Europe. While I would have loved to spend more time there, new adventures were ahead in Berlin. Viszlát, Hungary!