seeking positive thoughts to no avail...

I keep trying to sit down and write a blog post, but I'll be honest.
It's been a mentally challenging week and I have very little to say that's positive.

Except that maybe it's a good thing I don't speak Hungarian very well, because I would have some terrible words to say to some people today.
Language barrier = best way to naturally bite your tongue

*~*~*

Nagydobrony, Karpatalja, Ukraine

A couple weeks ago, I was part of a small group of people that traveled to Transcarpathia, Ukraine. This trip was really interesting for me because it offered insight into the village where the three Ukrainian boys grew up. It's always neat to see peoples' roots and see who they've become.


Also interesting, is that this is an area in Ukraine that speaks Hungarian only. There are still some angry people about the Treaty of Trianon, which divided Hungary and gave part of it to Ukraine. Because Ukraine didn't really want them and because Hungarians didn't want to forget who they are, they still speak Hungarian. They also use "Budapest time" instead of Ukraine time, so from one village to the next you can change time. If your train arrives in Transcarpathia at 5:30p, the clocks on the wall will say 4:30p. Pretty interesting stuff and some seriously rooted disgust toward that Treaty.


we stayed in a childrens' house that has over 80 kids. many of these kids are Roma and all are either orphaned, discarded or disabled. This is how two teenage girls would live. Close quarters. it was cute for my one night stay, but I couldn't imagine sharing the space... especially for years on end.


the view from my window. The childrens' house runs a farm in order to provide for itself. Aside from growing their own veggies and fruits, they also have an assortment of meat producers (chickens, cows, pigs) and they even have their own bakery!


Roma boys at one of the schools in the town taking a break from class to pose for pictures :)