January 10, 2007
Budapest, Hunagry
We made it a point to make worth wile resolutions this year. Cam decided it was time for her to be more selfish. Annie wants to "not give a fuck." Maureen is trying to be less stressed and tense all the time. And so the list goes. Six girls and six resolutions. We see each other practically every day and do every single thing together. It's hard to believe we've only been this girl posse for six weeks; strangers look at us as if we're childhood friends. Therefore, it is easy for us to predict the others' resolutions. Mine is pretty obvious.
"Be more adventurous and...be less of a prude," I declared (well, I whispered the last part).
Everyone just looked amused and gave me their all knowing smirks (I hate those smirks). This was around midnight and by 5 a.m. every single one of us had broken our resolutions. I was the first to go.
As we were walking from bar/club number three, we ran into a group of Italian guys that we had been running into all night. Somehow, the girls ended up keeping pace with our group of Georgian, Canadian, and Hungarian friends while I was surrounded by five leering and jeering, although quite handsome may I add, creeps. I felt like a prized donkey, but I was determined to be my new self.
"I kiss you. Happy New Years. I kiss you."(In my head: OK, no problem there. Been there, done the three kisses on the cheek thing all night. I'm a pro)Repeat five times. *Something inappropriate from one of the Italian stallions* Me: (ponders momentarily and muses the reaction from friends, but before being able to control myself, I blurt out) EXCUSE ME? I have morals, thank you.
Thirteen pairs of eyes roll towards the heavens and I realize that I am the first to break my resolution. Damn it. As we walk towards our new destination, Annie does not hesitate to start the teasing:
"Granny Khush, you have morals, eh?"
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New Years is insane. There is no way to describe it. Everyone is out on the street drinking straight out of champagne and vodka bottles. Firecrackers are sailing past people and we are running behind each other while screaming in the typical girly fashion (even our guys, although they deny it now). We make it to Vorosmarty in time to see the hourglass filled with sand, but leave soon before midnight because the square looks like a battle zone and someone is bound to lose an eye with those stray firecrackers. In Oktogon, a massive concert is raging, but we decide to head towards the water to watch the fireworks with our glasses of mulled wine secured. Thousand of people are teeming the street and every language imaginable is audible. There are no words to describe it except once-in-a-lifetime. Ironically, my birthday this year is incredibly similar to last year's; however, this time, I remember my (albeit, unnecessary) ID.
Last year, Heather, Britt, Annie and I made our way down to Old Town for Margaritas and Mexican food, some shopping in SD, and then back to Carlsbad with the rest of the girls for some dancing. It was a simple, perfect birthday, just like this years. Annie and Cam came back form Paris on the 28th and seven of us crowded into Iguanas for some Margaritas and Mexican food. It felt a little bit like deja vu and a lot like good luck.
Cagri visits and it makes me so happy. He was my very first friend in Turkey, so being able to show him around the city is my way of reciprocating his kindness. He says something along the lines of, "You did more for me in three days than I did for you in four months."
But that is not true. I remember our daily lunches, his efforts to find me the perfect cafe, our search for vcds, books, and music, and his constant quest to make sure I didn't drive myself crazy in Ankara. I love it here so I want him to love it here; showing him around and having him meet my friends is more for myself than it is for him, selfishly enough. Also, his visit reassures my concrete friendships in this city because the girls made it a point to see him everyday and come with us on all of our adventures. They had nothing to gain from his seventy-two hour acquaintance, yet they did it with pleasure. I like to think that this is a sign of a good friend when they show sincerity in meeting your other friends.
Heather comes in three days and I am more nervous than anything else (mostly because the girl drives me mad with her nagging questions of metro tickets and the Budapest card). I warn everyone to make sure that I come off as prudish and pure as possible, which is not hard to pull off, sigh. Then I tell myself to relax; no one changes that much in five months. Besides, we've known each other for thirteen years, and a little travelling will change nothing -- I can't wait to see one of my best friends.
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At this point, I am a little exhausted and ever so optimistic. The reason I have written so much about Christmas (Cagri's visit), my birthday, and New Years is because we had a two week holiday. Work starts up again today and Nino and I are the only ones in the office this morning thus far. As she covers the moot court happenings, I am buried under Country of Origin Information research. The HHC is carrying out research and observation on border guards and their training and handling of asylum seekers both at airports and at the country lines, which I get to sit in on and go to observe some of the time. Secretly, I think my internship is more interesting than the task of responding to overstrung law students asking technical b.s. questions. I still might go to Sarajevo in April because even if I am exhausted, I am not finished. However, I might skip Bosnia for another country, but it is not secured yet, and also, I am not sure I want to tell you the place I am considering.
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