it's random moments when i realize how much i love it here.
-parliament runs. during the frustrationg of midterms, my roomate and i decide
d to blow off steam by running. to run to parliament and back is a little over a mile for us, so it works perfectly. even as negative as we'd get with our midterms, it was amazing to be able to just run down the street a bit and see this gorgeous building all lit up at night, and then be able to look over the river and see the lights reflecting on the danube. blowing off some steam and realizing that the work is worth the opportunity of living in such a cool city makes these runs like no other.-szechenyi baths by night. okay, the prospect of going to outdoor baths at night in the freezing cold in a bikini
soundss absolutely horrifying and insane, i'll admit. but stepping out into the courtyard, you see this gorgeous yellow building surrounding you. the steam rises up from the thermally heated baths creating such a cool effect. on the first of the three outdoor baths has tons of jets shooting up where people just stand and enjoy the massage. in the middle of it, theres a whirlpool area that gets going incredibly flast - a blast as long as you're careful to not run over the children. in the middle there is a big pool for swimming thats freezing cold, which i always avoid. the third is the warmest, and is full of people just sitting and enjoying it. old men sit around playing chess on boards in the water. inside there are more mineral baths and the hottest sauna known to man. the baths never fail to be a refreshing and gorgeous experience.
- the sunset on the danube. it was a gorgeous day friday, and we had just walked along vaci utca, a big pedestrian shopping street. we decided to head over to the river to wait for the tram, and the view was absolutely gorgeous. the clouds gave the city a cool effect and the sun was starting to cast colors over the city. looking over to buda you can see the fisherman's bastion, castle hill, parliament, and other amazing sites.
- the grand ma
rket. i am so lucky to have this place right next door to my university, so i can run in to grab a quick peice of fruit or lunch between classes (or who am i kidding, a pastry.) stands are chock full or fresh fruit, strudels and pastries are hot from the oven, raw meat is well.... raw. upstairs are stand selling hot gyros, langos, stuffed cabbage, along with every kind of hungarian souvenir anyone could possibly ever want. i have stands that i frequent, and the people who work at them like challenging me to order and pay entirely in hungarian now. they used to use engish to tell me prices, but no more of that pampering for me. they think it's cute that i try i think.-the fisherman's bastion at night. i still hadn't been, but saturday night i headed
over with a couple of the boys to take in the view. the bastion is in buda, and is a terrace overlooking the river. during the middle ages, fishermen were responsible for defending the wall, now it's just a gorgeous site. at night it's absolutely breathtaking, as i can imagine it is during the day. it's frustrating taking pictures, since the camera does it absolutely no justice. it's full of staircases that lead to small castles with arches where you can look over the river from. the whole thing feels as if you're in a fairy tale. the tour groups have left for the day, and the whole thing is quiet and almost churchlike as everyone is taking in the view.regardless of the inevitable stresses of school, this is a pretty amazing place to be coping with them :-)
<3 ali
more pictures- including the halloween party we hosted (which i feel wasn't nearly as wild as my parents :-P)
http://tulane.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2067541&l=04b19&id=2808002
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