Thirtieth Birthday!

I turned 30 in Hungary. I had a restless night of sleep, with a very heavy heart. I figured something would be planned for me, knowing my gracious hosts. My friend picked me up with a stunning summer bouquet of flowers, and we went back to the house, where his wife and kids were hiding to surprise me! There was a gorgeous assortment of cakes for breakfast, before we had to head out to drop the kids at camp. My hostess often offered me coffee, but learned I prefer cold coffee. She had graciously purchased a few cold coffees for me to have for breakfast, which was the kindest gesture. 

After dropping the kids, his wife and I headed to the town to Tihany. Our first stop was this gorgeous Benedictine abbey overlooking Lake Balaton. We saw a film on the history of the church, and then went inside the church. The first Hungarian king is buried here. After that, we got to walk through the crypt area, as well as a museum on Hungarian papal history as well as an art exhibition. A theme throughout Hungary has been the mixture of church and state, and how often the religious and political were intertwined and abused. Outside the church, we had a simply stunning view overlooking the lake, with the perfect breeze. After a tumultuous night, visiting the abbey and looking at the water provided a much-needed solace for my soul and calmed my heart significantly. 

We exited the exhibits to see a restaurant directly in front of us. We got a table on the most stunning terrace overlooking the lake but shaded from the sun. The day was still enough, that the water looked like a shimmery blanket, just lightly moving and tossing a glimmer of sparkle with the gentlest breeze. My hostess had a lavender coffee and elderflower lemonade and suggested more cake for us :) I had a delightful lavender lemonade paired with a lavender mille feuille cake (layers of a custardy creme between puff pastry). It was a peaceful morning, and an incredible memory to begin 30. 

After finishing our food and drinks, we headed down into the town. We walked by the Paprika house, a small shop lined with paprika (their word for assorted red peppers) hanging inside and outside. The smells inside were incredible. The town center had a lot of touristy shopping, but we continued walking past that to the main Lavender House. Our visit there began with a short film showing the extensive history of lavender, and hos this town had positioned themselves to be the Provence of Eastern Europe. Afterwards, we went into a building with the distillery, as well as the hand-packaging of the various lavender products. Our next stop was a different lavender store, which had the nicest, elegant vibes, with gorgeous furniture and packaging. The entire town had positioned themselves around lavender, and we passed many of the plants along the way through the town. 

We headed back to the house, and then walked to the Veszprem city center for a soup for lunch. Hungarians love their soup, and there were many options at the restaurant. My hostess took a clear veal soup, while I opted for a fruit soup. Fruit soup is a cold soup, and typically the consistency of a cream soup. It could be thought off as a thinner smoothie bowl. This soup was made of blackberries and had these delightful tiny warm cottage cheese dumplings in it as well. 

After our refreshments, we picked the kids up from camp and headed to a friend's house for the evening. There we had the delightful langosh like we had at the beach, except homemade!! They were absolutely incredible. These langosh were about the side of a medium tortilla and are deep fried. The centers are thinner and somewhat crunchy while the edges are thick and soft. The texture is somewhat heavier than a donut, and more reminiscent of a focaccia. I watched the kids expertly take and top their langosh. First, they spread a bit of a grated garlic and oil mixture on the hot langosh. Some of the adults just rubbed a cut garlic clove directly onto it instead. Next, a giant scoop of sour cream was spread across the now garlicy langosh. Many of the kids added a generous helping of shredded cheese as well, but I found stopping at the sour cream layer my nirvana. I asked about a sweet version, as the langosh seemed to me the perfect vehicle for cinnamon sugar. Our host brought a giant jar of Nutella out, and naturally all the middle school boys instead on giant helpings of Nutella on the plain langosh, much to their parents’ consternation! 

Back at home, the evening ended with trying the white wine from the region and receiving the most darling lavender earrings as a present from my kind hostess. I don't know what I expected for 30, or had anticipated the day to look like, but I'm very grateful for all the elements that were part of it. The peace of faith, the calm of water, the excitement of learning about new things and places, the joy of sharing simple homemade meals with a table full of children... so many elements that I value in my life. It was extra special to share it with my hostess. Like me, she also moved continents, just the opposite direction of me. We shared a meal shortly before I left Boston, and I learned a bit more on the struggles she faced moving to a new country with two tiny kids. Her life has had its ups and downs, and it was comforting to share my birthday with someone who understands the weight of struggle. Her generous spirit to warmly welcome me and her kindness in celebrating me on my birthday were an encouragement to the many people in my life who will carry me through this next decade.