HELLO EUROPE

Part I: Welcome to Budapest

Okay - here it is. The moment you have all been waiting for. After spending one month in Europe we have finally got organised enough to post our first blog entry. And be prepared - it is a long one. We have tried to get you all up to speed on how we have been occupying ourselves. So it started like this: Bol and I arrived in Budapest on August 11 but our luggage unfortunately got sidetracked somewhere in London because of the terrorist scare. But while we didn't have any of our belongings, we were lucky enough to have a wonderful friend Peter to greet us and take us to our accommodation. Peter had a spare apartment, complete with furniture, which he let Bol and I use as our home for our first week in Europe - and every time we returned to Budapest since. For those who don't know, Budapest is divided into two parts with the River Danube running through. One side - Buda - is considered more beautiful with the famous castle (pictured above), many parks and gorgeous residential areas. The other side - Pest - contains most of the city: the businesses, malls and also many apartments. Our flat was in Buda - a very luxurious one bedroom place with a gorgeous view. It instantly felt like home.

The first thing that hit me on arrival in Budapest was the city's beauty. Having never been to a traditional European city before, I was awe struck by the intricate architecture, the castles and historic buildings. Our first week was really spent meandering through the streets of Budapest, catching up with some of Bol's old friends he hadn't seen for 15 years, and in true Bol and Emma style making new friends to share beer with. Our new friends came in the form of a group of 22 Irish lads visiting Budapest for a weekend stag-do. Needless to say more than a few beers were consumed, giving us a very merry Budapest welcome.

During that first week we also went on several daytrips, including a drive to the country with a Varga family friend Miklos. He took us to yet another gorgeous castle with spectacular views extending to Slovakia. All in all it is safe to say that I fell in love with the city of Budapest in that first week and then it was off to our next destination: Austria, where Bol's parents were waiting for us at the train station.

Bol with Peter (left) and brother Gabor, who we would be spending many more nights eating and drinking with

"The Irish lads" top and bottom, who we will be sure to visit next year

A typical street in Budapest

One of the many bridges over the Danube linking Buda with Pest

Bol stands on our apartment balcony

And lies on our apartment couch

The castle about 60km from the city

Miklos and I at the lookout point on the way to the castle

Part II: The Varga Family Road Trip

"Austria to Budapest"

As the train pulled into Austria it is safe to say we were feeling a little anxious. Meeting up with Bol's parents was the first time in five months we had seen any family and so we both felt a little strange. Surreal is probably the best word. After a tearful reunion the four of us were driven into the heart of Vienna to our hotel where birthday presents from my family at home awaited me - and of course a few more tears as I read my belated birthday cards. This was the beginning of what we will always refer to as "The Varga Family Road Trip" - a whirlwind tour of Austria and Hungary. Every day was a different sightseeing tour, a different feast with old friends and free flowing wine. At a conservative guess, Bol and I both managed to put on three kilos in those first two weeks as we were treated to massive breakfasts, lunches and dinners even when we thought we would burst. In both Austria and Hungary the people show their love with food - and these old friends certainly loved the Vargas, and because I was with them they had to love me too. Granted, few of them spoke English and my Hungarian is extremely limited, but I think this only added to their desire to feed me up. Food: the language of love!! Hungarian food is much richer than what we got used to in Asia. It's all about meat, potato, dumplings, cheese and goulash. But when you wake up each day to bread, a range of cheeses, salami and paprika - who's complaining!

To detail exactly what the Varga Family Road Trip consisted of would take me all week, but in brief the itinery for our first two weeks together went a little like this:

- three days in Austria with many day trips including a trip from Vienna to Krems, where Bol used to live and study as a teenager;

- two days in Sopron, which is a very cute, traditional Hungarian town near the border of Austria;

- three days in Csorna, the town where Bol's dad grew up making many daytrips to neighbouring towns and many family friends;

- several days in Gyor where Bol and I made some new friends and went out on their boat;

- a return to Budapest for the "Budapest Parade": a scaled down version of Berlin's Love Parade;

- and many other day trips which as mentioned previously, all included a lot of extremely friendly Hungarians and their wonderfully rich home cooking.

Looking over the city of Vienna

St Stephen's Cathedral - in the heart of Vienna

The Hofburg Palace in Vienna

Top and below: Bol in his old home town of Krems

Bol outside his old apartment in Krems

Bol and his mum Eva outside Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna

We were treated to a horse and cart ride through the grounds of Schobrunn Palace by a friend Edwin

What could be nicer than the Austrian countryside in summer?

Checking out the cobblestoned streets of Sopron

Bol and his dad Balazs outside the family's old shop in Csorna

Bol and Eva during one of our many "burn off today's lunch" walks

Dinner in Csorna with family friends - very typical of the Hungarian hospitality

My first time on a bike in 12 years - and we got to ride through a field of sunflowers!

Enjoying the water in Gyor

I was so excited to see my first stork!

The Budapest Parade

Bol and I dressed up :)

A Varga family reunion in Budapest

Part III: The Wedding

Most of you would have heard me talk about the Hungarian wedding we were to attend. Well, I just had to post some pictures from the night. It started off a little rocky as we all had to walk several kilometres from the pre-drinks location to the church - and with high heels the women were complaining let me tell you! It got to the point where Bol's dad was about to ask the bride and groom if I could join them in the horse and cart for the ride back to the reception. And I'm serious - he wasn't joking. He was about to ask and it took some fast talking to convince him it wasn't appropriate! But once the reception got underway the night went from strength to strength. We all ended up doing traditional Hungarian dances, arms linked and wine in hand. And Bol and I even joined in with the couple dancing - which is an indication that the wine must have been good!

One for ya wallets :)

Balazs and I sample the red

Who's that stud on the dance floor?

With Miklos, Antonia, Balazs, Csaba (the groom) and Eva

Bol and I harrass the bride and groom

Part IIII: A holiday within a holiday

After all the running around we thought we deserved a holiday and so we met up with Bol's uncle and cousin. We all headed a few hours out of Budapest and joined a couple of friends Andrew and Andrea at a holiday house on the river. We spent a relaxing couple of days fishing, eating, drinking and snoozing in the sunshine. And we were actually successful in catching fish - which is very rare for us!

Bol gives Rex Hunt a run for his money

Bol and his uncle Tibi (Balazs's brother) saw the wood for the night's fire

Balazs leads us in a yoga class

The fish cooks over the fire ready to become stock for fish soup

Me, Tibi and Bol

Next stop: Szeged, where Bol's uncle and cousin live for another Varga Family Clan expedition. Bolly will fill you in on the details in a few days. After this mammoth effort, I'm passing him the blog posting responsibility! Bye for now ....