Found My Light in Budapest

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

Senior year of high school, as class president, I ended with that quote suggesting to my fellow classmates that they pick something crazy and adventurous in the world and go do it you way. I told them show the world who you are and what you love.

My crazy adventure: BUDAPEST 2011.

I have never in my life thought that such a short period of time could change someone’s life. Specifically, mine. But it sure as hell did. Enough that as I sit on the airplane now, I can’t say I’d mind if I turned right around and we flashed back to August 21^st, and started all over again.

People go through their whole lives wandering trying to figure out who they are and what they want to do. Should they travel? Get a new job? Get married with a new house? Half of the time, they find themselves lost and unsure of how to spend their time, and then its too late. Learning to take advantage of every opportunity given to you is an important lesson that sometimes people skate over thinking they’d know when to accept one if it came. They don’t.

Budapest was my opportunity that I accepted. As unsure as I was, I said eh what the hell this will be crazy nonetheless. I remember not even knowing where Budapest was when I first heard of the program. Then when I got accepted people would say, that’s great! What’s Budapest? I couldn’t help but laugh as I had no idea myself. Now I know that Budapest is the place where I grew faster than I ever had, where my eyes were opened to horrors of history and the aftermath, where I met the nicest people in the world, where I became incredibly independent, and most importantly, Budapest is where I found myself the happiest I have ever been in my life.

I was lucky enough to travel to 10 countries while I was abroad and in each country I found something new to learn. Something about the culture, the people, the history or even the food. The fascination never stopped: especially not in Budapest. Being able to come home from a great vacation and call Budapest home was the coolest thing of all. Being able to walk out my door and have Hero Square, my favorite spot, in my backyard was definitely something awesome. There was no getting bored because there was always something to see or someone to talk to. Budapest has many treasures to be discovered and every single one was worth it. Even if it meant getting lost from Oktogon or the other side of the city.

I am also so grateful to have ended up in Budapest because it is a unique experience compared to what most other students do. Very few chose to study abroad so creating an experience that not many people can say they did was really cool. I loved being in a place that was not a typical study abroad experience because it really left me guessing everyday as to what would happen next.

            One thing to highlight about the experience is the group I came with,. My wonderful JSBPers. People always say that as great as an experience can be, its nothing without the people in it. And man, are they right. This experience would not have been anything close to what it was without the incredible people I got to spend it with. It was literally “Real World: Budapest.” None of us really knew each other coming into it and that was wild. 11 random kids thrown into a foreign city across the world managed to be best friends in a matter of days. We all learned each others’ personalities damn quick and figured out how each of our gears turned. Exploring together, traveling together, enjoying one million gyros and nights out on the town together, we were the perfect match for each other. It still blows my mind to think of how quickly these people became my life and the key players. I cannot picture my life from now on without every single one of you fools in it. You guys are all just the most insane, absurd, hilarious, INCREDIBLE people and I love every single one of you more than words. I could never thank any of you enough for making the experience what it was. You guys are my life at this point. Stuck with me forever.

This has been the most incredible experience for me. Hands down, the best 4 months of my life. I feel more connected to Hungarian history than to American and I truly feel like this place is my home. No one will ever understand how much this program has changed me. I see the world in a completely different way. It has opened my eyes to the incredible treasures and the horrific frights of the world. I see things in a totally different fashion now. I have learned so much about myself and about other people. I have realized what matters and what does not, when to “stop and smell the flowers” and when to keep going to get to the place I want to go. I am not sure I can ever reiterate to anyone how grateful I am for this experience. I love my home in Budapest, and I will never, for one second, forget any of my time here. I’ll leave you with this one idea: Open your mind, take a chance, talk to a stranger and be yourself and oh my places you’ll go. Thank you Budapest, I love you forever and ever, you will always be a home to me. Here is where I have founded my brightest light.

Hugging my favorite place in the city. bye bye Hero Square. bye bye Budapest. see you again soon.