So this weekend made me feel just a bit more "Hungarian" ... our landlord's daughter offered to take us to our local marketplace this Saturday. It was really pretty cool -- lots of fresh produce, flower booths, and butcher shops where you could watch them chop up your poultry to order (including necks, feet, and --surprisingly --gizzards. She said, "I don't think you eat this in the States." I laughed and said, "Oh yes, we do!" See, old-timey Southern culture and Hungarian culture -- not so much different when it comes to food!) . Our favorite, though, was the dairy shop. A family drives in from the country each week with fresh milk and cheese from cows, goat, and sheep. You buy the milk unpasteurized and boil it at home yourself! Sadly, it was sold out, so we didn't get to try that, but the cheese and the sour cream were phenomenal. We'll definitely be regulars there.
Also this weekend, I helped lead worship at Danube with some of the other teachers. While I feel like Calvary Chapel is more of my home church, I do enjoy leading worship at Danube a lot. And after church, I had a pretty cool experience. One of my favorite students turned 17 this week, and her parents devised a plan to help her transition into adulthood. They had some of her teachers and other adults who are close to her come for a surprise party. Her parents' gift was a charm bracelet, so each adult was asked to "adopt" a charm and explain how it represented special qualities in her life, so she can always remember that she has mentors in her life who see all her potential. I thought that was a great idea, and I was pretty honored to be a part of it.
I'm excited about this week, because it's short! This is when the school pays for all the staff to take a retreat at the Word of Life campus here in Hungary. It's beautiful, and it's a great chance to get away for a while. Plus, they actually have Starbucks coffee there. :) I'll be leading worship with Austin and Edit, one of our Hungarian staff. I am really looking forward to it! Hopefully I'll get to post some pictures...