Boldog Karácsonyt

Boldog Karácsonyt! Merry Christmas day one. And it snowed :)

just a small town girl living in a crazy world

So first off I completely fail at updating my blog more often, and to be honest if Jessie hadn't asked me too I'm not sure if I would be.
So since fall break: Thanksgiving, Rihanna, Vienna and now its Christmas time.
Thanksgiving. To help me feel better my host family made a thanksgiving meal for me. It was so good. And I was completely thankful for it. We had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy. It was so nice.
After Thanksgiving came the Rihanna concert. One I wasn't a huge fan of her but the opportunity to be able to say I saw her in concert in Budapest is just awesome! Plus going to her concert and watching her perform. It was SOOOO good! One of the best I have ever been too. Hearing her live made me love her even more.
The day after the Rihanna concert the Rotary Exchange Students got to travel to Vienna and see the city, I love getting the whole group together. The short-term students from South Africa joined us. Vienna was so pretty all decorated for Christmas. Plus there was a forever 21 so I finally did some shopping. it was much needed!
Then this leads to Christmas time. I got to skype with all the wonderful people of Camp Union last weekend and it was really good to be able to talk to them again. Plus Chris allowed me, aka the computer, to sit on Santa's lap. That was really fun. But one bad thing about December.. (maybe more then one) we have NO snow. I hate snow, expect for Christmas. I love a white Christmas.. but we are like the only town in Hungary with no snow. This winter has actually been kinda warm. Shocking. They say its cause I'm here. Oh well. Second bad thing, I got to deal with customs. I can officially say I have made history in Hungary. I am the first exchange student here who has ever had to deal with customs. But luckily I'm a good persuader and I got my box for free.
So Christmas here is celebrated differently. Santa Clause has already visited us. He comes on the sixth of December and fills your boots which are placed by the window seal. Then on the 24th baby Jesus comes and sets up the tree and delivers the presents. Thats when they open up their gifts. (so technically today is Christmas eve) And then unlike our one day of Christmas, they celebrate the 24,25,and 26. So after the holiday season and my ski trip in Austria I will post more. Have a Merry Christmas!

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2642675479658.127356.1638747479&type=1

here's my pictures from December :)
enjoy
xoxo,
Madi

Little miss I'll get tough, don't you worry about me anymore.

oh wow, its been awhile since ive posted on here. Sorry about that. Okay so where to start. Venice.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2305116560896.120654.1638747479&type=1&l=6013a5513e

 

thats my album of all my pictures from there, so feel free to check them out :)

 

Ok. Venice was AWESOME! The food, the people, the atmosphere. everything! So we arrived to the St. Mark's Sq at around 9:30 Saturday morning. I hung out with Maggie the whole time. She's from Michigan. The first thing we did was go and eat. We were so hungry. So we found us some good pizza. And good it was. A sterotype you always hear is that they dip everything in olive oil. Well its true. And pizza and olive oil is really good together. I just had cheese. (shocker) We then walked around, shopped and snacked at a lot of little cafes. I bought Christmas presents and a early birthday present for me. Later that night we ate at like a little restaurant. They say it's the best around but we didn't know that and just walked in cause we saw they had ravioli. So when we get in there are only two tables and one of them is taken so we sat at the other one. We started talking to this couple beside. Let me tell you it's a small world!!

So the lady was from Kenya. She moved to the states when she just graduated high school. Her college? Kent State University. Where my dad went. So that was really cool. But that's not all. She moved to Florida and became a rotarian. She was her area's youth exchange officer for Rotary. So not only are we here through rotary we meet someone who was part of this from florida. I thought it was cool. She was super nice and everything.! So then that was a summary of my trip to Venice. Because then we left to go home and arrived 5 hours early in Budapest. So we all hung out in McDonalds. :)

 

After Venice there was nothing big until my birthday! The 29. Also the beginning of fall break. So for my birthday we had Pasta Suta. Which is forreal the best. Then nutella cake! It was yummy. :) [i got my package from Tammy Gump] So then Sunday , the 30, was my moms birthday. We had a house party at Sonja's house. It was fun. Then I came home and skyped with my parents. Plus on the bright side my mom got her card in time for her birthday. The day before, talk about perfect timing :) (also, the day of our time change)

 

So fall break:

Monday: (a holiday -- day of the dead) We went to the forest and walked 9 km. And it was really pretty. It was fun. But it killed my knee that is for sure. Then later that night I enjoyed a bubble bath and watched a movie. Pretty relaxing.

Tuesday: (a holiday -- All Saints Day) Everything is closed on this day so we didn't do anything. But later at night it's a tradition to go to the grave of your loved ones and put candles and flowers and just a remembering day. It was a beautiful sight. We went just after the sun went down and all the candles were lit and it was really cool. So the cemetaries here are kinda similar to ours. The bodies are burried under the ground and then there is like a memorial thing on top of them. So it looks like they are burried above, but they arn't. I asked.

Wednesday: Everyone went back to work so me and Dori decided to go shop. We didn't buy much. Just hair color and nail polish. Then we went and saw Paranormal 3. It scared me. But then again everything scares me... So yeah. All I know is there will have to be a fourth after that ending :D So when we got home we colored some of our hair. Dori now has red (bright red) in her hair. and mine is the underneath. The dark red I get back home anyhow. So nothing really new for me. Oh I also got my gifts from mom and The Penny's and then Uncle Jeff's card.

Thursday: By 730 am we were up and out of the door on our way to Budapest to stay the night with Sari. It was so much fun! Budapest is really incredible and SO beautiful. Also they have starbucks :D Later that night we went and hung out with Murilo who is from Brazil.

Friday: When we finally woke up we went to Starbucks where I got my White Chocolate Mocha. :D and then we went to a sweet shop. It was really cool. Then we were on our way home.

Saturday: During the morning we just chilled and then at night we went out to a pub with a whole bunch of friends. Me and Dori sang karaoke. We were really good , X factor worthy?

And this leads me to today.. Sunday. Right now its 12:32 pm. Sunday is my skype day. Today is also the day my dad arrives in Japan for two weeks. I like sundays. They are relaxing and after this week I need it.

 

So me; I've decided that if my parents were to move here I could live here forever. (with visits back to the states). I'm homesick. But its become so natural to me and I dont think it will ever truly leave. But its to the point where Im okay. Like its like when the McRib leaves mcdonalds. You just go on with your life knowing that it will be back soon but you always cant wait till that moment comes. But in the mean time you just gotta live. So thats how I am. and I think its an okay thing. Not a bad thing.

 

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2348361681997.121988.1638747479&type=1&l=57489c496e

 

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2372040473952.122789.1638747479&type=1&l=85024d1362

 

check out my picture albums :)

I will try to write soon.

 

xoxo,

Madi

 

well hi there.

So it has been awhile since I've posted. Sorry about that. But don't worry I'm still alive.
Well the weather here has gotten cold, in the 40s (F), and the metric system is the hardest, most confusing thing itself besides the language.
So with that said, I of course have gotten my usual fall cold. But here when you get a cold you get to miss school :) so it is TOTALLY worth it. So today, I am relaxing at home alone.

The last time I posted was when I just got back home from the lake. Well then to catch you up; I survived missing homecoming, and giving my presentation here. So that is a pretty good sign I would say. Not much has happen though. I tried water polo, hated it, so I didn't go back. But it's okay I was HORRIBLE! sports and me don't ever seem to get along. Oh well.
The school has a sports competition here and the other day it was "dodgeball" . But totally different so here is how I will explain it.
Picture this:
So you only have one ball.
Each team picks a captain and the captain goes behind the other team and can hit them from behind.
When a person gets out they join the captain behind the opponets. and when everyone is out the captain comes onto the court. They have two lives. Once they get hit twice the other team wins.
Sounds simple but kinda hard. Not gonna lie.
On Sunday I skyped with my parents. I miss them so much. buttttt
Other then that nothing exciting in my life. I go to Italy in two days. SO EXCITED!
Sorry this was kinda boring but I haven't had much to share.

love,
madison

im happy :)

**welll i had this long post about how great Hungary is. My internet closed and now I have to retype it. Not to thrilled about it but here I go.
So on thursday morning at 7 me mom and dodo set off to the budapest/ lake balaton. Dodo and I slept on the way there. When we arrived we went to the doctors then went to the Plaza. We ate lunch at KFC. I had chicken and french fries. I ordered a water without gas and had to chug it so we could fill it with kinley. I swear that stuff is the best! We then decided to shop a little bit. I bought myself a shirt and thought about starting Christmas shopping. So I have bought a few gifts now. We then decided to go to the outlet mall. Thats were our "exciting" adventures begin. I was trying on a sweater and when I went to convert the price I couldn't find my iphone. So mom and I went a panic rush throughout the entire outlet mall. I was having a panic attack. shocker. So when we get back to the first spot I look all over and stand up to see it lying on the shelf where my hoody was. oops! Well mom said she was going to kill me, but I said that was okay because we found it :) relief! So then we finally head off to the LAKE! I was so excited but exhausted so Dodo and I slept the way there also. When we arrived we unpacked the house and Dodo and I headed down to the harbor. We stuck our feet in the water and just walked to pier. It was so nice! When mom caught up with us we just relaxed a little more. We then ate dinner at the restaurant/hotel. I had pizza, ham and cheese. That's where we also decided to keep the kinley bottles. So I had to hide them from the waitor so he wouldn't take them. After dinner Dodo and I headed up to the upstairs and watched Charlie Mcdonald. We decided to create our own webshow on youtube :) We'll start this week.When we finally went back home we saw a frog and a HUGE bug. We were so loud! haha. When we returned home we watched this love show and the Hungarian Big Brother. We got bored so decided to play Bieber, a card game. Then went to bed. Friday morning we woke up to dad and zeno being there also. We went sailing first thing and then came back to have white pig, my new favorite meal. We then relaxed a bit and caught up with Balazs's family that night. They're a lot of fun! :) From Friday we gained a tea bottle and a tonic water bottle :) On Saturday we headed to other villages around the lake. We saw a cathedral that is one of the oldest in Europe. It was so beautiful words couldn't describe it. When we got back to our village I relaxed and played with zeno. Later that night we went and played poker. Dodo and I kicked BUTT! :) Today we woke up. Packed the house then traveled home. Had white pig for lunch and that leads me to my video call home.

It was good. I didn't cry because I am no longer homesick. I feel home here. Bellefontaine hasn't changed. The football team sucks and people are stressing about homecoming. Why have the stress when it isn't worth it? It's cold and rainy. Yeah I wouldn't mind some of that weather here but I know once we get it I won't want it anymore. In October I will go to Venice, ITALY! Every girls dream and God is letting me live it. In December I'm going to see Rihanna then celebrate the New Years in Austria. That's a lot cooler then Ohio. I miss everyone of course. But I'm glad my mom told me I wasn't allowed to go home and I needed this weekend to see it. The only stress I have here is learning a language. And I feel having an awesome family and a dog helps out that part a LOT! So here is what you've been waiting to hear. I'm Happy :)

one day at a time

This post might be pointless. But this blog isn't completely just for people to be updated on my life. It's for me. I hate writing in a journal and I love the internet so this is kinda like my journal. I'm not a huge private person so I don't really care if you know what I'm feeling. So if this offends you in anyway I don't mean it personally. I just want to show my true feelings and I'm set on doing that.

So Hungary has gotten better. I've made friends, well I think I have. I've gone to a party and I've watched more movies. So that's good. Plus I can count to ten.
But I'm still homesick. People say to stop talking to my parents. But if i don't hear from them I have panic attacks. They're keeping me sane and I need them more then anything right now. I miss my hugs on a daily basis, I miss my mom laying on the couch and me laying on her lap, I miss her playing with my hair. I miss my dad coming into my room at night saying goodnight. I always looked forward to that, even when I was upset with him. And I've been pathetic, but he's done it for as long as I remember, and I still wait for it everynight and everynight I get let down because I don't hear it.
Right now, if I was offered to go home. I wouldn't turn it down. I miss my friends, yeah of course. But I don't care if I don't see them if I go home as long as I have my family beside me. Sorry guys, not trying to be harsh but yeah.
I had a dream the other night. It was awful. I was at home, outside on the deck. Lillie was playing fetch with the blue tire and Zola was hiding under the table. It was so realistic and I feel like it's happened. Dad was grilling steak and we were sitting at the table under the sun. I woke up and swore I was at home. And then I heard hungarian and knew I wasn't. I lost it.
This dream has occured to me twice now. And you can't control dreams. So I don't know what to do. I'm lost for words at this situatuion. They said with you're exchange you will learn to appreciate America. I realized I do. So I've learned my lesson. What now?

peanut butter

They love Peter Pan ;)

So I have been in Hungary for two weeks and one day. I've had my very lows, lows, okay, and goods. No greats yet, but I'm still being patient. I live in Miskolc, pronunciation : mishkolts, yeah I was far off on that. I have learned to count to ten, began learning my colors, order my turkey sandwhich with no lettuce and tomatoe and to add mayo :), say hello (formal and nonformal), and say yes and no. There are other things of course but that is the main. I have learned the 's' makes a 'sh' sound and the 'sz' is the 'ss' sound. VERY complicated let me tell you. Not something I will get use to quickly. But when I do not sure how easy it will be to turn it back to the American way.
British English,now that is way harder to understand then almost anything! It is so different! Yeah I knew we spoke "American" but when everyone elses language is British English then you begin to realize they are NOTHING alike. It is legit crazy!
For my English class (with class 2) I taught them slang. It was really hard to come up with "slang" words cause I use them everyday. It's not "slang" to me. When you say soda to them, it means the carbonated water, which by the way is gross!
I still have homesickness. This morning was really hard. I had a very realistic dream last night and I was home, with my family and everything. Getting ready for some steak out on the deck. So simple and so common I didn't think anything of it. Woke up, thought I was back in America. Heard Hungarian, and the real world hit me like a wrecking ball. Didn't cry (very proud of myself). I mighta actually smiled to myself. Not sure if for good or bad. But maybe for a little bit of both.
I'm starting to become more comfortable with it here. I talk more to my family, and I'm starting to not feel like a burden. I don't think I ever was, nor did they put it off that way. I just know what it's like to have someone you don't know or know anything about live with you. It's awkward and hard. I make jokes, and talk more with them. They ask me about my day and it's starting to get better.
(except) The stomach aches have kicked in. I've bloated up like a balloon and just don't feel good. My American Mom told me that I shouldn't go to the doctors unless dying, so I insisted to not go. My Hungarian Mom called anyhow to see what I should take. They said two weeks is the time the food digestion starts to kick in and its perfectly normal. He gave me bloating pills and a medicine I have to take everytime I eat so it won't upset my belly. So that is what I am now taking. The water system here is also different so along with the stress that comes along comes the usual acne! yay, wonderful teen things! Gotta love it! Sike!
Culture shock. Not sure how to describe it but I'm pretty sure I'm suffering from it. Hungary is kinda like taking a step back in time. It's kinda cool actually. At the same time it's on of those you've got to be kiding me moments. Ha! Not in a bad way of course! With Hungary having the older buildings and travel styles it really opens your eyes. I love the way a simple building looks. They just always find a way to take your breath away. (And) The art , its undescribable. Everyone and everything is artistic and creative. It is so cool! On the walls of the sides of building are paintings. I haven't taken pictures of them yet, but I will be sure to and post them later!

  

 Books! I'm still me, so I still read. I brought my kindle with me so I am able to get books off of that. I read The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven. I always heard it was such a good book, but I was always skeptical to read it. Yeah, I know exactly where it took place, and after reading it, I know some of the people in the book. That's really crazy. I understand how 47 is a scary road to drive on because it freaks me out at night. I needed that book though. Before I left the States I was becoming a huge Christian. I was so scared it would leave me the minuet I left the country. And for awhile I think it escaped my mind. When I bought the book Tuesday night I thought : 1. I know where this crash happened so I should read it to bring me back home a little. and 2. I need to get back to Christ ASAP.. Well for one it made me realize how lucky I am to be on this exchange and to have everyone support me on this. I've been a pain about it to. I'm not really the easiest person to get a long with, some call me stubborn, but I say its just part of my genes. :) This book was a must need read for me and I am so glad I did. I couldn't put it down. So now that I've finished it I will begin to the Help once I find it.. Ha, but anyhow.
I think I have posted almost everything important. If i forgot it will be posted later :P
Well , I will try to get some sleep.

I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. ⁵ For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— ⁶ God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. ⁷ Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.
1 Corinthians 1:3-7
God Bless.
Goodnight :)


My weekend in Debrecen. --The Americans minus 6 or so.




The fountain in my town :) BEAUTIFUL




Gotta love older buildings :)



My Exchange Friends-- We had a make up party
From left: Jessica Siebert (Germany) Maggie Smith (Michigan) Me (Ohio) and Kyle Hicks (Canada)

love,
madi

someone give me an amen

So yesterday I posted how things were going, but I forgot pictures! What's a blog with out those?! haha and I need to post you my schedule also. Important things that I can't forget!

Schedule:
Mondays: Civilization, History, English, Chemistry, English, Choir
Tuesday: History, English, Biology, Math, Math, Physics,  History
Wednesday: Civilization, English, Literature, English, History, P.E, Physics
Thursday: Math, Philosophy, Literature, Civilization, History, English, English
Friday: Math, Literature, English, History, English, Class Teacher

Pictures:

arriving in Hungary

First day

Making crepes

McDonalds :) *no sweet tea

Coming home from Budapest

FLARP!

So i have been in Hungary for a week exactly. Homesickness has occured and so has jetlag. Those are two negatives that kept me down for the first few days. It didn't help that I started school the next day and I learned quickly that Europeans arn't the most friendliest people to be new to. Not only do I not know the language that everyone speaks not many people wanted to befriend me anytime soon. Thursday overall was terrible. I was so tired and no one except Dori, Barbi and Gabor would talk to me. Then Friday came and homesickness hit like a wrecking ball. I wanted to be at the football game, with my friends, speaking english, and most of all with my family. I swore I would make it three weeks before I missed anything. I thought wrong. I made it only two days. This Friday night was the first Friday I had spent at home in forever and it was awful. I skyped with Kendall as she was getting ready to go to the high school for the first game. I tried so hard not to cry, and if you ask me, I only shed a few tears and was pretty proud of myself. I had survived three days in europe and as far as I was concerned that was enough. So saturday I skyped my family. They were celebrating David's birthday so the Guajardo's were there also. I didn't want to cry, but i bawled like a big baby and begged my mom to let me come home. I miss everything and everyone so much. She said no. Ha so I'm still here. But Sunday was better because I went to Budapest with my class ( 36 students and makes up the junior class) and i made my first friend! I was so happy. This brings us to Wednesday. School has gone a lot better. People talk to me. I am going to join a dance class when my knee heals up. AND with my knee being hurt I didn't have to run during gym. So maybe it will get better. Who knows? But i do know american's are more acceptive of exchange students and new kids then europeans are. I am thankful for that on one part but wish I had the easy part here. I am living it day by day, and hoping it gets better. My jetlag is finally starting to ware off which is good. All i know is so far, I don't like it when people diss America. Don't do it around the ONLY american here. ha Oh yeah, one of the english teachers just arrived last Monday. He is from Bakersville California. He's my favorite teacher :) But i should go. Write soon. Bye

arrival

hey guys! i will be arriving in Miskolc, Hungary on August 20. Just in time for the independence day! That is when I will begin to post on this. You should begin to follow now though (;