christmas program!

i teach in two elementary schools this year and one of them had a christmas program and invited me to be part of it. so, for the second time in hungary (and in my life) i donned a santa claus suit.

the kids all knew it was me and were overflowing with excitement about their performance in the program.
eniko (enn-ick-ew), the first grade english teacher, arranged their part in the program. as "frosty the snowman" played the children built a snowman on stage. they put on its hat and eyes and nose and mouth and scarf and buttons while having snowball fights and dancing around.

but before we were on stage there was a lot of waiting...

which meant a lot of restless 6 and 7 year olds...

it's traditional in hungary to put up your christmas tree on christmas eve. they don't overdo it with lights and it's rare to see houses decorated with lights. they could use a little help with the method of adding the lights, but it doesn't matter, really... 'cause it still turns out nice. see?here is eniko as she normally looks:

before and after the kids decorated her

some restless kids got curious about the audience and i caught them peeking out before we started

our kiddies were so great! they sang their guts out and danced around with glee. and they were surprisingly patient while waiting for their turn. eniko and i hung out backstage until the end of the program. aren't we adorable??

so, big hit! there were lots of familiar tunes translated into hungarian, lots of christmassy songs and costumes, lots of variety on the stage, including singing, lipsynching, drama, choreographed uh... movements, poetry, and running. the kids had a ball and the parents and friends clapped in rhythm, in true hungarian style. :)

Zrínyi Gimnázium szalagavató bálja

though i haven't worked at ZIG since june 2009, i was invited to their ribbon-pining ceremony and ball for seniors again this year. it's always good to see my former colleagues, but this even was special for another reason.

when i began working at ZIG it took me a while to get to know the students. i took role everyday in every class - aloud - so i would learn the kids' names. i addressed them by name in the halls, too. i loved (most) of them a lot and i really missed that school last year.

the first ball i went to with ZIG kids was in november 2008. i had worked at the school for less than 2 months and NONE of the students i taught were seniors that year. so i went to the ball and ONLY knew the teachers, and i only knew them by sight and voice from the staffroom.

i was lucky enough to be invited to the ball again last year, but since i was working in two other high schools i had a duty to attend one of their balls that night first. i did make it to zrinyi's ball, but i only knew 2 classes of seniors graduating (and to be honest, they weren't my faves).

enter: this year. the kids i got to know and love in my first year of hungary, the ones who taught me hungarian and helped me learn to become a good classroom teacher, the ones who asked me about home and my dog and boyfriends and my opinions of hungary, lotttts of those kids are seniors this year. when i went to THIS ball of all the graduating seniors, i taught like 80%!

there was a time when the students toasted champagne with their teachers and offered cheek kisses. i was surprised and even moved when so many of my former students recognized and made an effort to greet me as well.

in extreme contrast to how i felt at kossuth all year last year, i didn't feel utterly forgotten and unappreciated at zrinyi.

we got dolled up...

we ate...

and we danced... a lot!

we had a ball. ;) (i just HAVE to say that!!)

amsterdam

when you think of amsterdam, you may think of anne frank

(here's her house)

but maybe not chocolate genitalia

but what you should think of is BIKES! they're everywhere!! here's a parking structure built just for bikes... and it's probably full.

when i was in high school i had a penpal, angela, from the netherlands. she came to florida to visit me. eventually, we lost touch but when i went to holland, i looked her up and we met for lunch. great gal!

the other thing i wasn't prepared to experience in amsterdam was the slew of canals!

and they're pretty green up there. here's a tiny car for handicapped people, old people, etc. who can drive it in the bike lanes (which are on like every road, btw). they only go like 35kph, but it's enough... and i want one. i think they're only available in holland, though.

here i am with my friend and host, remy. he's dutch but his english is on a native level. we went on a canal cruise and had an all around good time!

here i am sitting in a stereotype

pot/weed/marijuana is legal in the netherlands. so there are places called "coffee shops" where you can drink and smoke whatever you want.

of course we went in and saw what there was to see...

here's a 'space cake' or brownie made with pot in it

and there's a bar in there

that happens to sell all kinds of weed and weed products

and paraphernalia is also available

we went to the heineken experience and saw how they make heineken

in the factory there's a heineken museum as well as tons of football (soccer) junk

here i am in the stinky room with all the vats. we tasted the unfinished beer products and could touch the hops and yeast, etc.

then, of course, free beer!

on tap

here is "the dam" after which the city takes its name

closer... oooh, ahhh

canals, bikes, and celebrations

the narrowest house is 4 stories high, but only as wide as a window!

next time i'm there, i'm going in madame tussaud's

omg, pretty

there was an ice cream BOAT! this guy scooped up whatever you wanted right from his boat to yours. sweeeet!

bikes, bikes, bikes.

it really is quite a beautiful place full of weird stuff...

like the world famous 'red light district'

apparently some people want to make sure everyone knows they're not part of the RLD

(with signs like this)

but some places are unmistakably part of it

there's no shame about the red light district there.

on the contrary, here's a statue of a prostitute.

here are the red lights

it's about 2 streets wide and 3 blocks long

not too big, but makes its impression

pretty girls in the window... for rent. :(

there's no place like amsterdam, that's for sure. i'm glad i went and it's a good place to visit. while i wouldn't like to live there, i'm sure i'll make it back that way again some time. i want to see the only missing stereotype: windmills!