... And We're Off!

So I am happy to report that the fall semester has FINALLY started! The public policy program is a one-year master's program. Semesters are short- fall runs September 25 through December 15 (exams included), spring is approximately January 9 through end of March, and then we have three and a half months to write a thesis. It is a 40-credit program, with 34 credits divided between the fall and spring semesters, plus a 6-credit thesis. Of the 34 taught credits, 22 are mandatory and 12 are electives, and of the 12 electives, you can take 6 in a particular "stream" and they will give you a specialization in that area on your diploma.

How that all breaks down for me then: instead of taking 17 credits each semester, I will take 19 this semester and 11 in spring, since I am getting 6 credits transfered from the public administration graduate courses I took last year at FIU. Therefore:

Fall- 19 credits
Required: Policy analysis (6)
Macroeconomics (3)
Qualitative methods (2)
Academic writing (not for credit- what a rip-off!)
Electives: Rural development (2)
Corruption (2)
Macroeconomics and public finance (4)
Low-intermediate Hungarian (not for credit)

Spring- 11 credits
Required: Microeconomics (3)
Quantitative methods (2)
Comparative political institutions (4)
Ethics and public policy (2)
Academic writing (0)
No electives

Now about the streams: in the public policy department your choices are fiscal decentralization, international public policy and media and telecommunications. My original thought was to do the international stream, since my interests are in the international arena, etc. etc. Upon closer look at the courses offered in each stream, however, I found I was more drawn to the fiscal decentralization stream, which is very heavy in economics. "Fiscal decentralization" is much more of a niche than "international public policy" and I think will be more useful to me in the long run (especially since my undergraduate degree is in international relations).

CEU is supposed to be modeled after a U.S. graduate institute, but there are many things they do quite differently here:
1. All classes are offered during the day. There are no night classes (after 5pm), which makes it really hard to take classes offered by other departments (political science, international relations, etc.) because they always overlap with the required courses from your own department, since there are only 8 hours per day during which classes are offered.
2. The schedule rotates, so this week I don't have classes on Thursday (or Friday, but I won't have class at all this semester on Friday, continuing my college career RECORD of never sitting in a classroom on a Friday. It's wonderful!), but next week I do have class on Thursday morning. This means you must always check your schedule to see what class you have and at what time.
3. Depending on how many credits the course is worth, you have class either once a week or twice a week, and the meetings are either single sessions (one hour forty minutes) or double sessions (three hours and forty minutes!).
4. They are not so big on exams here but very big on presentations- I already have two presentations scheduled for next week.
5. Textbooks are very expensive here (because many of the materials come from the U.S. and to have them shipped to Hungary costs an arm and a leg), so as a general rule they don't use them. They prefer readers, which are a compilation of articles from various sources. Most of the readers are 1-2 inches thick and cost 15-25 USD, which is very reasonable.
6. Several of my professors are a bit wild about powerpoint, and will send you the slides prior to class so that you can print them out and make notes right onto the slides. Most of the material they cover is actually on the slides, so for some students that is great (means you don't have to take notes) but for people like me who actually like to take notes, it can be a bit annoying to have all the material already printed in front of me.

All this talk about school... now it's time to get back to studying!

Rotaract Conference in Slovenia

I am back from an exciting weekend in Slovenia, where I was part of a Europe-wide Rotaract conference attended by 110 Rotaractors from 12 different countries. What is Rotaract? It's basically Rotary for people ages 18 to 30- a sort of "prep" for becoming Rotarians. From the Rotary International website, I quote: "Through the Rotaract program, young adults not only augment their knowledge and skills, but they also address the physical and social needs of their communities while promoting international understanding and peace through a framework of friendship and service."

Four Budapest Rotaractors traveled to Slovenia for the conference, and kindly invited me and another Ambassadorial Scholar to attend as well. We left Budapest at 5pm on Thursday afternoon, and arrived in Celje, Slovenia at 11pm that evening. From the time of our arrival to our departure from Celje on Sunday at noon, we had a jam-packed weekend full of tours of the capital city Ljubljana and the country's oldest brewery (Union), many shared meals and of course nights out on the town. I love to play dress-up so Saturday night's formal gala was a lot of fun (pictures to follow!).

Slovenia is a very interesting country. It is very beautiful, with rolling green hills and milder weather than Budapest since they are further south. Slovenia has a certain quaintness about it- the entire country is only slightly more than 2 million people (the size of the city of Budapest); the capital Lubjlana has a population of around 250,000 people and is Slovenia's largest city. The prices are slightly lower than in Hungary, and you can pay in both local currency and the Euro (though they haven't technically adopted the Euro yet, so you can't take Euros out at any ATM but they are accepted everywhere... weird).

You can view more pictures from Slovenia here.

As beautiful as Slovenia was, by the end of the trip I was ready to come back to Budapest. It felt good to come "home."

An update on the "protests": I finally went by the Parliament on Monday to see for myself what is going on. In the morning there were plenty of tents on the front lawn of the Parliament but only about 30-40 ppl standing around. By 7pm the crowd had definitely grown, and someone was speaking to the crowd using a microphone (don't ask me what he was saying though!), with around 150-200 gathered. The entrepreneurs have turned this into an opportunity and are selling Hungarian flags and hot food- they seemed to be doing a pretty good business. There were police everywhere, but it seems like now that the police know what is going on they are more than in control of the situation. The Prime Minister seems pretty adamant about staying on, but God forbid if someone should die in the violence, I am positive he will resign. But other than the first two nights of the protests, which were fairly "violent," the "protests" have been very controlled. Outside of the area of the Parliament and the square where the state-owned radio headquarters are located (which happens to be where the American Embassy is located as well!), the city is operating on a normal schedule and I can assure you that I am perfectly safe.

Clashes in Budapest

There is a huge political scandal brewing here in Budapest involving the newly re-elected Hungarian Prime Minister. A tape was leaked on which the PM says his socialist government told lies in order to win the election, and that hundreds of "tricks" were used to save the economy from total collapse. Apparently over the past few years the Hungarian government has massively overspent (I think without the knowledge and/or authorization of the Hungarian people) and is now dealing with a huge budget deficit, which will prevent them from introducing the Euro here in 2007 as originally planned, or in 2008, 2009, 2010 or 2011 as was the back-up plan. At the very earliest the Euro can be introduced in 2012, assuming Hungary complies with the financial provisions necessary. Prices are rising and economists are warning of tough financial times ahead.

Rumors are the PM himself leaked the tape in order to showcase the need for tough reforms in relation to the upcoming mayorial and other local government elections. Protestors have been at the Parliament for the past two days demanding the PM's resignation, however. My host father said protests like this have not happened in Hungary in over ten years, since the fall of communism in the early 1990s. Police used tear gas and water cannons last night against protestors, who looted the state-owned television and news offices. I was out last night with friends completely oblivious to what was happening, and my host mom breathed a huge sigh of relief when I arrived home safe. It was only when I saw the protests live on television and read the news this morning that I realized what was going on. Check out http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5358546.stm.

My university is only a few blocks from the Parliament and my host dad said police will be out today checking passports and IDs to keep people away from the area who shouldn't be there. Will keep you posted!

Crazy Europe Stories

You would think that some crazy things would have happened to me here in Hungary so far. When you don't speak the local language seemingly harmless events can easily turn in to fiascos- for example, you go into a store asking for lip gloss and they think you want diapers. Hand signals get involved and soon everyone is rolling on the floor laughing, having long given up on the lip gloss. When I was in Bolivia there were plenty of "crazy Bolivia stories," like when another Rotary Youth Exchange student and I got on the right bus to go home... but went in the wrong direction, and ended up at the foot of the mountain in this dirt parking lot and had no clue where we were or where we needed to go to get the heeeeeeeeeeeck out of there. Or there was the time some little kids tried to rob me in the market and when I felt a little hand in my pocket I spun around, ripping the pocket nearly completely off the pants, but money, cell phone, etc. still in tact. Or the time we got Chinese food in La Paz and found fingernails and other such "specimens" in the food. I could go on and on.

Here in Hungary, however, things are surprisingly tame. It's definitely Europe- toilets and sinks are in separate rooms and because apartments are small, sometimes the refrigerator is in the hallway instead of in the kitchen- but it does not feel as foreign to me as Bolivia did. Many of my "crazy Bolivia stories" were a result of sticking out like a sore thumb, a problem luckily I don't have here in Budapest. In fact, I am mistaken ALL THE TIME for a Hungarian. People stop and ask me directions on the street, and when I am with other Americans the Hungarians have turned to me (thinking I was Hungarian) to serve as the intermediary/interpreter. It's quite funny, actually.

My host parents have hosted ten foreign students over the years and have mastered the use of hand signals and getting messages across in Hungarian to people who don't speak Hungarian. They have great senses of humor and often make jokes- for example, suggesting I pour vodka down my throat when I was sick or calling chocolates "medicine" for this illness of another. We were filling out forms today which required full names, so we were talking about our middle names. My host mom's middle name is Magdalena or something like that, which my host dad translated as MacDonald. So when I had to guess what his middle name was, I said Burger King. I thought he was going to fall out of his chair he was laughing so hard. The moment was made that much more funny when my host mom was sitting there saying, "I don't get it, I don't get it" and we had to explain it to her... and then we all laughed again when she finally got it and almost fell out of her own chair. Good times.

In other news, another Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar and I have been invited to attend an all-Europe Rotaract conference next weekend in Slovenia. We will be traveling with 3 Hungarians from one of the Budapest Rotaract clubs. The conference includes tours of the local area and discussions on Europe-wide Rotaract activities and events. We are excited because approximately one hundred and twenty Rotaracters from all over Europe are expected to attend.

On Monday I am meeting with the four other Ambassadorial Scholars from the U.S. who are also attending the Central European University. We will have our first official "Ambassadorial Scholars" meeting to discuss the possibility of a joint service project. Some ideas on the table are to collaborate with the Budapest City Rotaract Club on a area clean-up day or a project to sponsor Roma (gypsy) children to attend institutes of higher education. Roughly 10-15% of the Hungarian population is Roma and they are heavily discriminated against. The Budapest City Rotaract Club has already received a sizeable grant to undertake one aspect of the project and the club will be developing proposals to seek matching grants and additional funding.

That's it from here. I've included in this post a few pictures of my host cousins from last weekend, as well as a picture of a little park by Margaret Bridge. In the background you can see the Parliment. We have having lovely indian summer-like weather and it's been clear and beautiful this whole past week.

Hope to hear from you soon!

The Statue Park

Every Budapest tour guide and information aimed at tourists advertises Szoborpark (Statue Park in English), what Lonely Planet calls the "socialist Disneyland," a collection of three dozen busts, statues and plaques from the Communist era. I think most Americans from my generation have somewhat of a fascination with Communism. Our American History classes are dominated by this topic, which perhaps we can connect with better than the American Revolution of the late 18th century, for example, since we were alive to witness the end of the Cold War.

One of the first touristy things I did in Budapest, therefore, was visit the Statue Park, along with two American guys and a German. It is situated just outside the city, so you can either take a train and two buses or go by car. We opted to go by car. There are basically no signs to direct you, and even as you approach the park there is no sign or arrow to draw you in. Anyway, admission was 600 HUF per person (approximately 3 USD) and each statue has a plaque telling you what it is, though most give the description of "Communist-era statue" or something equally informative. You can also buy a book that describes the statues in more depth, which also tells you where they were located in Budapest, etc. There were very few tourists there and we were pretty disappointed overall- mostly because it's too small. The guy from Germany said they have regular parks in Germany which feature statues from the Communist era which are much larger and more exciting- and they're free.

My Hungarain host parents have not gone and will not go to see the Statue Park. A Hungarian friend told me that Communism ended so long ago that it was practically forgotten. It seems that most Hungarians have no desire to see the Statue Park, having seen so many of the statues every day of their lives during an era that is over. People say that Hungarians are typically fairly pessimistic but from what I have seen these past few weeks, they seem eager to move forward in this new era, to see improvements in the economy and their country.

First Week at CEU

I am pleased to report that I have survived my first week at CEU (Central European University). Naah, it wasn't that bad. We actually have two full weeks of "orientation" prior to the start of classes, so I really should say that I survived my first week of orientation at CEU. It's been an amazingly productive week; in the past four days time I have received my CEU identification card and temporary Hungarian student ID, received my CEU-issued medical insurance card, set up my CEU email account, taken the required computer proficiency courses and registered my address with the approriate Hungarian authorities.

A little about CEU: CEU is a U.S.-style graduate institution located in downtown Budapest. The university has only been around for the past 15 years or so, and the public policy program is two years old. The physical university is comprised of four connected buildings, one of which is more than 200 years old. There are dark, narrow, spiral staircases, underground passageways, terraces and gardens, and likely a few more surprises yet to be discovered. There are 29 students in the public policy program, the majority coming from the U.S. (1/4) and Romania (40% or so). There are a handful of students from Pakistan (1), Latvia (1), Bulgaria (1) and Georgia (1), and two students are Hungarian. It is a very interesting mix and undoubtedly will make for an interesting year.

Next week, after each professor from the public policy department presents his/her course (overview of the material, etc.) we will actually register for classes. Students are expected to take 17 credits in fall and winter semesters and complete their 6-credit thesis during the spring term. It seems to be an intense curriculum for such a short-time period (fall semester runs from end of September to mid-December, winter from 2nd week of January to end of March, and spring during April and May).

More news and photos this weekend!

K

New York Times Article on Budapest

Last weekend there was a very interesting (and surprisingly accurate) article in the New York Times about Budapest. The article was in the September 3, 2006 edition, Travel section and is entitled "Journeys: Budapest Is Stealing Some of Prague's Spotlight," by Rick Lymant. You can access the article online at http://travel2.nytimes.com/2006/09/03/travel/03journey.html?ex=1158033600&en=ce883527502e8a36&ei=5070&emc=eta1.

Happy reading!

Becoming a Millionaire

You would think scoring a 98 out of 100 on my Hungarian final exam would be the highlight of my week. Don't let me fail to mention that carrying on a dialogue in class and actually having a real conversation in a restaurant in Budapest are two completely separate issues, of course.

Or perhaps at the top of my list would be going to the famous thermal baths at Szechenyi, cited by the Lonely Planet as the largest medicinal bath extant in Europe (my impressions: the buildings which house the baths are extremely old, and by that I mean that they are decaying).

I also got internet in my room this week- definitely a close runner-up to our winner. In order for my host dad to get up early in the morning, he goes to bed between 8 and 9pm. The internet is in his room... so... after 8 or so I was being cut off each night. You can imagine how disturbing this was to me :) No... but in all seriousness, with school starting just around the corner and lots of papers and whatnot to be written, I needed to get the internet in my room so I could get late-night work done. Very happy.

But no, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls. Drum-roll please.... the highlight of my week was... BECOMING A MILLIONAIRE! Yes, that is correct. My Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship is dispersed in two payments. Calm yourself down, my scholarship is NOT worth a million dollars. Keep reading! Miraculously, when I arrived in Budapest in August my host counselor had my first payment waiting for me, in the form of a check from the Rotary office in Zurich. Wonderful... except that no bank in this ENTIRE CITY (!) would cash it. Apparently checks are like... no good in Hungary. So I had to send the check back and have Rotary wire the money. I withdrew money from my U.S. bank account when I first arrived, in order to pay for my language school. I was hit with a hefty 10 USD ATM fee (!)- so I decided NOT to do that again and just wait for the wire. So for two weeks I lived on a small loan from my host parents. As of Friday, I was down to my last 1800 forints (about 9 U.S. dollars!). Trust me, desperate times. Anyway, so the point of this story is that the wire finally came through and as of this afternoon, my bank account showed a balance of more than 1,000,000 forints... which officially makes me a millionaire.

Language School... Beszelsz Magyarul?

So far in Hungary my daily life is consumed by trying to learn Hungarian. During the week a typical day goes as follows:

7:00 am- Wake up. Shower and get dressed. Have breakfast.
8:20am- Leave house to catch 8:32am commuter rail into city.
8:55am- Arrive at Margaret Bridge, walk to language school.
9:00am- Language school begins. We start with exercises to refresh our memories about what we supposedly learned the day before, and then go into new material. This picture shows my teacher (in the front with the beige sweater) and the other students. It came out a bit dark and blurry- I am hoping my camera did not get water damage at the fireworks.
10:30am- Break. We make coffee and tea in kitchen at language school and sit around and chat... in English, German, Spanish- basically, anything except Hungarian!
10:45- Break is over, and we are back into the heavy Hungarian. When our teacher asks us to make up sentences and we come up with things like "I do not speak Hungarian" and "Hungarian is hard," she makes us come up with even more sentences! It appears she believes in the principle of positive thinking... though I myself am not yet convinced.
12:15pm- We get our homework assignments for the next class and head out. Normally I will go into Budapest with one of the other students and get something to eat (we are on a mission to find the best CHEAP eatteries in Budapest!) and take care of whatever we have to take care of- getting our bank accounts straightened out, cell phone, post office, etc. This mainly involves a lot of walking around the city and trying our very best not to get lost (he he).
4-6:00pm- Jump on the commuter rail and head home. I found an English language library and use the hour daily on the train to get some great reading in.
4:30-6:30pm- Arrive home, have dinner, do my homework with my host father and "study" by trying to have an understandable conversation (in Hungarian) with my host parents. Check email, watch the news.
7:00pm- A Hungarian soap opera that my host dad loves comes on at 7pm, so we all sit and watch that. At this point I understand very very little (since it is in Hungarian) but I have managed to understand that it is about a hospital here in Budapest.
9:00- You would be amazed how totally exhausting it is to try and carry on for 12-14 hours straight in an unknown foreign language. By 9pm I am totally exhausted and usually lay down to watch TV, read, etc.

Two events this week are tied as the high points: first, I finally figured out how to work the window blinds. Sounds like a simple task but for some reason they really tripped me up. I somehow communicated to my host mom that I had no clue how to work them and she showed me. Definitely an accomplishment! More importantly, this week I had my first real conversation on the street ENTIRELY in Hungarian. I stopped a Hungarian on the street, asked directions and actually understood his response. I was so impressed with myself! A close runner-up for highlight of the week is the multiple times I was mistaken for a Hungarian. I went to the bank with a fellow American; he was trying to explain that his internet banking was not working but the lady did not understand him and she turned to me asking for clarification. Ha! As I was trying to get out "nem beszelek magarul" she figured out that I was not Hungarian.

The weather this past week was quite cold- people were wearing sweaters, jackets and an occassional scarf and they were selling hats and gloves on the street. This coming week is supposed to be warmer. The weather this weekend is beautiful so I will go tomorrow morning and walk around Margaret Island, a popular place to lounge, swim, walk and run, etc.