A life goal achieved... kind of.

This past week I went to the doctor's office and was in the process of giving my information to the receptionist when one of my life goals was achieved. Well, kind of.

I've mentioned before that the fact that Jonathan is actually 'Jonathan Masson III' has caused quite a bit of difficulty for me because many of my documents here in France have me listed as 'Kari Masson III'. Note that I said many but not all... so about half the time I wind up having to explain and convince them that I really am me.

This day was no exception.

I explained the American use of III for the third son with the same name and that my husband was a third and sometimes it carried over onto my paperwork. (Then I threw in the punchline about how Jonathan likes to think it's like the French royalty: Louis XIV, Louis XVI... That always gets a laugh.)

The receptionist finally decided that Kari Masson and Kari Masson III were in fact one and the same person. Then we started chatting. She said she detected my petit accent, which I get a lot. She asked how many years ago we'd moved and I said five. Then she asked if I was originally lyonnaise.

It took me a second to figure it out, but in our chatting she had understood that my husband was American and I had moved to the US five years ago, thus picking up a petit accent américain... and wanted to know if I was from this area originally.

Woohoo! Life goal of being asked if I was lyonnaise has been achieved. (Even if she did think I was lyonnaise with a petit accent américain.) Still counts, right?

But don't worry about me getting le big head.... That afternoon I made a lovely French slip. By adding the 'oh' sound at the end of a word, I accidentally asked my dermatologist about preventing curtains (les rideaux) instead of wrinkles (les rides). Oops. :)

Back in France...

Whenever we come back to France, I try to see it through the eyes of a newcomer. Here's what I saw this time...

- Veils and scarves. I've never been anywhere with as many covered women as France - and that includes living in a Muslim country and walking around the neighborhood of Europe's largest mosque.

- Graffiti. I know Budapest has its share (and a few other cities' share) but Lyon looks to me as if it has more.



- Dream-worthy markets. We made a trip downtown for the Sunday market and stocked up on everything beautiful and yummy smelling. I know summer's not over yet, but I couldn't resist. So we came home with watermelon, red peaches, white and yellow nectarines, a sweet Charentais melon, red and yellow bell peppers, fresh garlic... to be eaten with the zucchini, tomatoes, and cucumber from the grandgarden. (I think the carrots are a lost cause.)

- Diversity. I guess this falls under the 'ears of a newcomer' as opposed to the 'eyes', but I was amazed again by how many languages we hear on the bus out to our 'hood and then walking around.

Getting crafty...

Towards the end of our visit to my parents' haz in Budapest, we went into town for the annual Mesterségek Ünnepe... aka the Festival of Folk Arts.

It. was. huge.

I mean massive. Booth after booth of artisans winding all the way up Castle Hill, each one practicing a traditional Hungarian craft. It seemed as if each booth had a unique craft, and many of them had stations where kids could try learn how to do the craft as well. So cool.

So what did we buy? Well, I'd love to tell you - but it would spoil the Christmas surprises for our nieces and nephew! On that note... joyeux anniversaire, Renae!


Weaving baskets


Yup. That would be my parents.


One of the Castle towers


This is just a very small section of the craft fair


Potter showing us how it's done


Wandering Budapest one evening

But now we're back home in Lyon (more on that later) settling back in to the routine... and already looking forward to our next trip to Budapest at Christmas when Chris and Kate will be there too!

Ahoy!

Looks like the best table on the Danube dinner cruise ship, doesn't it? In fact, you might say that if you had your pick of all the tables on the ship - this would be numero uno. (Or number 'egy' as they say in Hungary.)

So how did we score the very best table?



Thanks to this guy.

Even though everyone in line already had tickets for the cruise, some (okay all) felt the need to press in as close as possible the front of the line. We had arrived early, in typical Borders-Masson fashion, and thanks to Dad making a physical barricade we maintained our position as first in line. Jonathan swiftly made his way onto the ship and claimed the absolute best table before anyone else made it on board. Nice work, team.












Castle hill


Queen of the castle?


Do you think they can fly planes under this bridge? Why, yes. Yes I do.

Zoom, zoom, zoom!

At the Red Bull Air Race and International Air Show in Budapest

So here's the skinny. The annual Red Bull Air Race and International Air Show holds its pivotal race in Budapest over the Danube. The obstacle course was designed as a new aviation race that would challenge the ability of the world’s best pilots - not simply speed, but also precision and skill.

It. was. awesome. (And even more awesome, American pilot Michael Goulian won.)

Brennon, Patrick, Brandt, Marti, Steve and Zeke: we thought of you!


Showing off their moves...


Swan dives...




Video we took of one plane flying circles around the other three!


As part of the qualifying round they have fly UNDER the bridge. (And above the water, of course.) Can we zoom in on that?


Oh yes, we can!


Video of one of the planes zooming under the bridge

Watch the Official Red Bull Air Race highlights video. (You may find this to be a bit more polished than our home videos above.)

Eat like a Hungarian!

There are three things you need to know when it comes to Hungarian cuisine:

1) Goulash
Gulyásleves, as the locals call it, is amazing. Think beef stew with a kick. It dates back to the days of cowboys on the The Great Hungarian Plain and was cooked in a cauldron over an open fire. My mom's recipe is very authentic and awesome. Pass the paprika, please.


Paprikash with tiny dumplings, and of course - more peppers!

2) Paprika
The national spice of Hungary! It's all about the paprika in these parts. Sweet, hot, smoked, mild... Hungary is a major source of high-quality paprika. This stuff is way too good to be reserved just for topping deviled eggs.

3) Cold fruit soup
I've mentioned cold cherry soup on here before, but this trip I ventured over into cold peach soup. Seriously, dessert as an appetizer. I'm in!


Cold peach soup, recipe here


What's that? You're asking what other Hungarian treats are on our 'not-to-be-missed' list? Well, since you asked...

Kari: làngos (oh wow - fried dough with melted cheese and ham), Trappista cheese, paprika sausage, Kürtőskalács pastry...

Jonathan: this meal from Grand Market Hall...


...and also chicken paprikash.

Anybody Hungary?

As seen in Budapest...

Budapest ranked as the most livable Central/Eastern European city on EIU's quality of life index. (Good news for my parents.) It attracts over 20 million visitors a year... and two of those are us!

Here are some photos and facts you may not know yet about Hungary's capital. (And if you already knew them - wow. I am impressed.)





Budapest tramways

Did you know that the Hungarian currency is the forint? 1 forint = $0.005246, so if I buy something for 1,000 forints, it costs just over $5. But doesn't it sound better if I say that the gift I bought cost one thousand forints?


Church in Víziváros (Watertown) district


Kavé break!

Did you know that the city of Budapest has the biggest Jewish population in Europe? It also has the second largest synagogue in the world.


Houses on the Danube


Víziváros (Watertown) architecture

Did you know that Víziváros is home to the oldest still standing mosque of the Ottoman Empire along the Danube?


Saint Stephen's


Saint Mom

Did you know that Budapest has 80 geothermal springs and the world's largest thermal water cave system? I'm not exactly sure what that means, but I'm guessing it's related to this.


Queen Ersebet


Fruit stand

Did you know that the Hungarian word for 'fruit' is 'gyümölcs'? Try saying that three times fast!


Parliament building

Did you know that Budapest has the third largest Parliament building in the world?


This one's for you, Emma Rose! (But the ice cream was for me!)




The Danube running through Budapest

Did you know that the Danube is the longest river in the European Union? It was one of the long-standing frontiers of the Roman Empire, and flows through ten countries.

And this is love...

Technically speaking, these are just vitamins. But to me, they represent more.



These are the vitamins my dad laid out on the counter for my mom this morning. He and Jonathan went for a bike ride along the river while mom and I were out walking. But before he left, like every morning, he made sure her vitamins were waiting for her on the kitchen counter.

My mother is perfectly capable of getting her own vitamins, but remembering to get them... Well, let's just say memory isn't her greatest strength. So my dad remembers for her.

The most beautiful part is that he does it every day. Not just the good days, but also the days that are difficult.

Love is a choice that we have to make every day, whether we've been married five years or thirty-two.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7, The Message

BIG CAPITAL LETTERS...

I'm a reasonably intelligent person with a college degree and a good start on a career. However, I felt like a total dum-dum at Burger King in Budapest today.


I had a dupla sajtburger with sült burgonyàk... and Coke Zero.

I walked around the tables of people seated on the terrace and right up to the front door. I know the burger-eating patrons already suspected we were not locals because they'd heard us speaking English and I'd noticed a few curious glances in our direction. But now they had the chance to decide if I was just 'a tourist' or 'one of those dumb tourists'.

I mean it's not that difficult, is it? After all, it's written on a sign in BIG CAPITAL LETTERS right there on the entrance door.



So, uh... HÚZNI. Would that be 'push' or 'pull'?

I guessed wrong. I gave a big ol' shove on the door to BK and it didn't budge. (And to their credit, no one laughed audibly. Not sure I would have been so restrained.)

My something new learned today: huzni means 'pull'.

(Am now up to about 39 words in my Hungarian vocabulary.)

Fotó a nap...

That's Hungarian for 'photo of the day'.

This one was taken in front of an ice cream shop around the corner from St Stephen's Basilica. That's chocolate and mint for me, and chocolate and coffee for my férj.

We stopped for these scoops after a six-mile walking tour of Vizavaros (Water Town) in Budapest. This district is located beneath the castle (which is as cool as it sounds). The main street we walked is Fo utca, which runs from Clark Adam ter up to the old Turkish Kiraly Baths. Then we crossed Margit Bridge and headed back on the other side of the Danube River... punctuated with a stop for ice cream, as seen above.

More updates coming soon!