Winter is Upon Us!

I had the privilege to travel to Budapest and reunite with our other YAGM volunteers for Thanksgiving and, what a wonderful time it was! We went to a famous bath house and a fun Christmas market, we climbed up Gellert Hill for a fabulous view of Budapest at night, we cooked all day Friday to provide a fantastic dinner for ten people (followed by Holden Evening Vespers) and we woke up to freezing weather and a fresh blanket of snow over everything on Saturday morning.

All our time was spent among friends, whether we were reminiscing on our finer Thanksgiving memories, discussing our work or contemplating the stark differences between life in the US and life in Central Europe. It was a much needed time of reflection, rest, and renewal.

After a wonderful Thanksgiving meeting in Budapest, I returned to Lučenec on the first day of Advent to find winter in full swing. The streets were covered in snow, Christmas decorations were popping up here and there and many plans for Mikulaš (St. Nick’s Day) and Christmas programs were being made.

Right now I am helping prepare for a program in Cinobaňa that consists of two Christmas songs and two Roma dances. It has been fun to be a part of the planning and I was asked to play the piano for one of the pieces (My mother would be proud)! Don’t worry… I only need one finger to play the song, but still - I am learning the whole thing by ear and, when performance day comes around, 20 or so small kiddos will be depending on that one-finger song!


Above:The view of Budapest from Gellert Hill at night. Above right: A tree newly covered in snow in a local park.