Photographic Proof that We're Actually in Budapest

Hello all,

From time to time I would like to take a break from the field excursion posts and write about other personal experiences on my adventure in Budapest. These may be stories, posts from trips I may go on, pictures, or maybe even just a simple reflection. I think it is obvious that anytime one enters an experience that is clearly unknown to them they will have lots of thoughts and opinions on what is going on. The hard part is trying to collect all the stuff going on in our lives right now and make it into a coherent and interesting blog post. Any idiot can make a blog (clearly), but I hope to be able to give you as clear of a picture as possible of what is going on over here and how myself and the group is handling it.

  

             So for this first installment I would like to simply post some of the pictures I’ve taken so far and under each one I will provide a description about the photo. Hope you enjoy!

             On our first trip we went to the beautiful Lake Balaton located just a couple hours outside of the city.
            The greenery and architecture were one of a kind, and it was our first chance to see what the rural
             parts of Hungary are like.

                   UNH student Peter "Tito" Wasiuk is unable to control his excitement for the day's festivities.

                     This is the entrance to the Abbey we visited located right next to the lake. The abbey was built hundreds of years ago, and has survived two world wars and the Soviet occupation. It is one of a kind, and the architecture inside the church is breath-taking.

                   Inside the church/abbey there are amazing displays honoring different saints and religious figures.Instead of just having stained glass like in an American style church, this church had statues, organs, and other displays that really grabbed one's attention. Its beauty and uniqueness make it essentially the opposite of Saint Micheal's church back home.

                      In this photo, an unnamed student is seen "picking a winner" from the nose of the last king of the Aurtrian-Hungarian empire. This picture is sure to answer the question, "Have the students matured at all since arriving in Europe?"

                     The view of the lake from the hill that the abbey sits atop of. The lake is very unique and is one of the top vacation destinations in all of Hungary.

                                     In this photo some monks are seen doing some monk things.

               This is the epicenter of the now infamous "red sludge" disaster in Western Hungary. A damn collapsed releasing tons of red nuclear waste into the surrounding communities. The damage was catastrophic in some areas, and many families lost their homes. Cleanup is still going on almost a year later, and the lingering affects of the disaster are still unclear.

                         This is Saint Stephen's Basilica located in the heart of Budapest. It is one of the most famous buildings in Western Europe, and it is named after the first king of the Hungarian Empire, Saint Stephen. The King's mummified hand is on display inside the church, despite the fact that he's been dead for almost a thousand years. During the night the Basilica is in the heart of one of the more "happening" areas of the entire society. Believe it or not local Hungarian youth can be seen doing "hoodrat" things such as drinking beer and wine on the front steps of the sacred church! It is truly a surreal sight, and unlike anything you would ever expect to see at a church in America.