The following blog post has been inspired by many friends/fellow YAGMs as birthdays have come and gone throughout this year. I thought I would join in the trend and offer this post:

In order to celebrate my 24 years of life thus far, which was recently celebrated this past week, I want to share 24 things I have learned (or am still learning) throughout my time as a YAGM so far. Some of these learnings are about Hungary as a whole and daily life here, learnings connected to the work I do here, and things I have learned about myself in this wild ride. (This blog post ended up being longer than I expected, so buckle up)

1. Lunch is the most important meal of the day and usually consists of 2 courses: soup and an entrée. This is often the largest meal of the day, especially on Sunday afternoons after church (my personal favorite).
2. Meals are always blessed with the saying “jó étvágyat!” meaning approximately “bon apetite!” I have heard this said at shared meals, in the lunchroom at school when a person joins a table of people already eating, or at random times when having a snack. I often get asked what we say to others in English, and when I responded “well, nothing. We just eat.”, they were baffled.
3. Showing love comes in many different forms. Ways I have witnessed being cared for include “Aren’t you cold?” when I am not wearing enough layers or simply “Have you been outside today?” when the weather is too lovely to possibly miss.
4. Getting lost isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I find myself enjoying the days that I have time to wander the city aimlessly, soaking in new areas of Budapest.
5. Always have cash. I still struggle with this very often, and some cafes or shops only accept cash payments. In addition, sharing meals out with others is much easier to do when you have cash readily available.
6. Don’t be shy to attempt to speak the language. This is also something I struggle with and am continuously learning to improve. In my experiences, most Hungarians are excited that you are trying to learn the language in the first place and encourage you to keep learning. The more often you speak, the more practice you get.
7. Grocery shopping is a daily (or almost daily) chore. Back in the states, I was used to grocery shopping once on the weekend or even once every other week.
8. Always pack an extra bag. Whenever I leave the house for the day, I’ve learned to always make sure I pack a canvas bag in my purse or backpack. You really never know when you might need to stop at the store for something or if someone will gift you a stack of books that you now need to take home with you.
9. Hungarians are often friendlier than Americans. Now, I know this is a generalization. The sense that I mean this in is that whenever I am on a walk in the neighborhood or waiting for the bus, strangers will often greet me with a kind “Jó napot!” (“Good day!”) rather than the half-smile (or quick look down to the ground) which I am accustomed to.
10. Changing shoes throughout the day isn’t uncommon. I have seen on a few occasions people wearing comfy shoes for the commute, changing into nicer shoes once they arrive, or even changing out of their shoes into “house shoes”. I am guilty of doing this same thing, but it truly does save the wear and tear on your feet when the days are long and tiring.
11. Ice cream shops close in the winter. This shouldn’t have been a surprise to me, but coming from a state that does not have a “real” winter, it was new.
12. Hungarians like to stick to the 6 main food groups: potatoes, cabbage, meat, poppyseeds, bread, and paprika (with special guest appearances by cheese, cottage cheese, and sour cream) .
13. Always bring a bar of chocolate on a hike. I’ve been on a few hikes so far and after we get through the most difficult part of the hike (usually the uphill part), we have a few pieces of chocolate: for an energy boost and as a celebration.
14. I’ve learned how to be productive in my time alone. For a long time, time alone meant lying in bed, scrolling through social media, and just being lazy, which was not a very effective way of recharging my batteries. I learned to pick up new (or old) hobbies to enjoy my time spent alone. Some of these hobbies include reading, jogging, coloring, journaling, and spending time learning about things that interest me (history of Budapest, Hungarian language, etc.).
15. Clothes dryers are extremely uncommon. We hang dry everything.
16. There are particular stores for particular things. There is a paper store for paper products, a milk store for milk products, and others.
17. Most street names and squares have been renamed in the past 30 years or so following the fall of communism and socialism.
18. Discrimination against Roma people is still prominent today all around Europe and the world. If you would like more information on this, please feel free to reach out to me and I will do my best to explain or to direct you to further resources.
19. In addition to birthdays, Hungarians celebrate an additional day known as “Name Days”. Each day in the calendar year has a name (or a few) associated with that day and if you happen to have that name, there might be a small celebration for you. Sadly, there is no Kendra Day…
20. “Sandwich time”. This was something pointed out to me by Rachel Eskessen that I have found to be proven true. There seems to be this unspoken time of the day where everyone reaches into their bag and pulls out a sandwich to snack on. I can’t explain it, but I’ve watched it happen a number of times.
21. I’ve learned how to deal with being pushed out of my comfort zone. Walks, long talks with friends, and taking a deep breath and enjoying a coffee are a few ways I try to keep myself grounded when it seems everything is new and uncomfortable.
22. I’ve learned how blessed I feel to be here. This city, this country, these people, this work. I am happy here and I am happy to be doing what I am doing.
23. Accompaniment goes both ways. This is a sentence borrowed from my good friend Maren Corliss and I fully agree.
24. God has called me to be here. To be here learning these things, having these experiences, being with these people I appreciate dearly, and walking alongside our siblings.

Thank you for making it all the way through this long list, and keep in mind that I learn new things everyday. As my grandma once told me, “Time spent learning is never time wasted”. I look forward to continuing learning and being pushed out of my comfort zone.

Blessings, peace, and love to you all.