My Bags are packed…I’m ready to go

(Budapest, Sunday) It all comes down to this. After three weeks and six countries we are packing up for the flight in the morning. Before we turn in for the night, we will have one last group dinner at a fun Budapest restaurant. Then it will be time to stuff all the souvenirs in suitcases and pack all the memories in our minds.

Of course, this last day was jam-packed. We started with an 11 am class starting to button-up what we’ve learned about the European Union. By noon we were at the Hungarian Parliament, a beautiful, ornate palace built by the Hapsburgs. This will be the last, great European building we visit on this course. After that, we take the subway back to the hotel and walk around the block to the synagogue.

The Budapest synagogue claims to be the second largest in the world, surpassed only by Temple Emanu-El in New York. The building is a Moorish style structure described as a wonderful catholic church—it is very different from what one would find in the USA. It can hold 3,000 Jewish worshipers at one time, with men downstairs and women on the balconies. Except for the Jewish high holidays, the synagogue never comes close to being that full. Hungary had one million Jews before WWII. There are 80,000 today. The courtyard holds the remains of 3,000 Jews killed by the Nazis and dumped there. It would be difficult to walk away unmoved.

VIENNA WAITS FOR ME

(Vienna, Friday, Saturday) You get extra credit if you recognize the song reference in the title. But Vienna surely did wait for us and it was a magical time. We left at the crack of dawn on Friday and were met at the train station in Vienna by a friend of Dr. Morgan who works for the US Embassy. Our first stop was a briefing at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). We heard from a press person with the organization—a Russian born journalist who had worked for the Reuters news agency in Washington. He was open and presented a worldview. We also heard from a press person with the US mission who gave us the American view.

After that, another treat. We got a briefing from Ambassador Greg Schulte, of the United States Mission to International Organizations in Vienna (UNVIE). Ambassador Schulte fed us lunch on one of the top floors of the mission with a commanding view of Vienna. More importantly, he gave about an hour of his valuable time to answer questions on a wide-range of issues. After that, we were on our own.

While most people caught the next train back to Budapest, a hardy band of eight students—and me—stayed overnight in Vienna. We found a hotel within throwing distance of the famous St. Stephan’s cathedral. We ate schnitzel that was bigger than the dinner plate. And we had a positively magical time in this most European of cities. It’s hard to describe. You must visit. We all arrived back safe and sound and ready to visit Vienna again.

GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD I’M OFF TO JOIN THE CIRCUS

(Budapest, Friday night) If you remember that song, you are older than you think. And if you want to get an accurate perspective on the bi-annual Budapest circus competition you really need to be of a certain age.

The best acts around the world compete here and the winners get contracts from the biggest circuses around the world, including Cirque D' Soleil. The “big top” where it is held is in the city park and had been around for about 150 years. The acts range from jugglers to acrobats to contortionists. There were guys jumping on a seesaw and flying through the air. There were people balancing their weight on one hand while twisting their bodies into inhuman shapes. There was even a comic dog act.

At one point Dr. Morgan turned to me and said, “We’ve seen all this before: it’s the old Ed Sullivan show.” Sure enough, if you are of a certain age you remember old Ed’s “really big shoe” would have members of the Hungarian Circus (who probably defected right after the show) as well as the Moscow State Circus and Chinese Acrobats. They were all there in front of us on Friday night.