Wedding

Even though this didn’t happen in Hungary I still felt that I should post it. I returned home from Hungary on the 11^th of June. The flights went quickly and smoothly as soon as I knew it, I was home and in my own bed. It was a hectic weekend as we had guests staying with us and everyone had to prepare for my friends’ wedding. On Friday I got a spray tan appointment which got darker as the day went on. Not to worry though as the next morning it washed off and gave me a light golden brown colour.  I was thankful that I didn’t have the normal deathly pale look. 

My mum, sister and I went to the hairdressers on Saturday morning.  My hair was curled before pinned to the side in a cute half up do. Hannah had curls in her hair too, but she left her hair down and Mum with naturally curly hair got some hair pinned back and a pink feather fascinator inserted into the side of her hair.

After the hairdressers we returned home and everyone in the house did their makeup, ironed their shirts, put on their dresses and basically run around making sure everything was ready. My mum and my friend Camille had to leave early as they were playing at the ceremony. My dad, sister Hannah, her boyfriend Andrew, Camille's brother Tom and I left not long after.

We arrived at the church and got our photo taken outside the door. It was raining slightly and it was a little bit chilly. I had been used to thirty degree heat for the past few weeks, so it came as a big shock!

We were seated in the church, waiting for the bride to arrive. The ceremony was meant to start at 1pm, but like most weddings the bride always arrives a little late. Just twenty minutes later and the groom John Marc, best man and groomsmen entered from the back door. It would soon be time for the bride to enter. John Buchanan, who conducted the wedding, then told the congregation to stand for the bride.  I smiled as I saw my childhood and long time friend Sarah walking down the aisle with her father. I didn’t get a good look at her because I was sitting near the back but I would see her later.

The ceremony happened and the congregation had to make a promise that they would support John Marc and Sarah during their marriage. The congregation were silent and John said jokingly “You may respond.” I think we weren’t awake for that part! Afterwards the bridal party made their way to the back hall where they signed the marriage document and my mum and Camille played the song 10,000 Reasons by Matt Redman. It’s a lovely tune and has great words as well.

The ceremony was soon over, I couldn’t see properly but apparently the bride and groom stumbled while on their way out of the church. Well it wouldn’t be a wedding if everything went perfectly now, would it? Afterwards there were refreshments served for the guests and it gave me a chance to chat with a lot of people who I had not seen for a while.

The reception was held at the Banff Springs Hotel which had been refurbished. After congratulating Sarah and John Marc we headed to our table for the meal. I was with my sister and her boyfriend, but I was also with my friends as well and made some new friends. I had a few names for our table – the “singles table” (single as in not married) and “the banter table”. We laughed and had interesting conversations while eating delicious food. The wedding favours were a small plastic diamond filled with soapy water. Yes that’s right it was bubbles and they definitely brought out the inner child in us! Afterwards the room was rearranged for the dance and there was a table just off the dance floor with a little card which said: “Love is sweet. Please take a treat.” Then there were jars filled with sweets and I felt like a little kid again going into a sweet shop (which happened very rarely as my mum is a dentist!) It was great though!

There were some traditional Scottish dances and there were times when people just danced to wherever the music took them. My mum thought I was weird.  I was jumping, shaking and dancing all over the place! I just didn't care.

At the end of the wedding dance the guests held hands in a circle around the bride and groom. The band then played ‘Auld Lang Syne’ a traditional Scottish poem by Robert Burns. After this John Marc was lifted up high by the groomsmen for a rendition of ‘For He’s A Jolly Good Fellow’.

After chatting to friends we got into the car and headed for home, tired but glad that we were invited to the wedding and that we enjoyed ourselves. A huge congratulations to John Marc and Sarah - Mr and Mrs Cardno! 

Below are some photographs from the big day:

My sister Hannah, her boyfriend Andrew and I before the wedding

My mum and friend Camille providing the music 

The bride herself - Sarah Cardno (McKenzie)

Mr & Mrs John Marc Cardno

Photo time with the bride 

At the table

Our 'banterful' table!

Friends

I have made so many good friends this year. As teachers it is a very busy and demanding job, however it has been great that I have been able to regularly meet up with some of these fantastic people. I will miss them a lot! But I will definitely come back and visit.

As for students, some of them can be challenging but really sweet. I will miss them and I wish them all the very best for their future.

Enjoy the photos!

Rachel xxx

Sumo wrestling with Betty one of my students :D 

My colleagues and friends Feri and Niki :D They are very good friends of mine and will be for a lifetime! 

 My good friend Viki. She helped me organise the school talent show 'Refi's Got Talent' and she is so funny, sweet and kind! She also visited me when I moved here and made sure that I had food and to helped me with my homesickness! 

School garden selfie with Feri and Niki! 

 Feri and his lovely wife Éva (pronounced Ava). I am so thankful for this sweet couple's friendship! 














Selfie with tenth grade girls! They are from class 10.A. Tenth grade is second year at high school. 

Some classes finish high school at different times, some finish after four years, others are five years and others after six years depending on what class they are in. 

Selfies with one of my ninth grade classes. They are from class 9.KNY. As you can see in the first photo they gave me a lovely white rose :) 

 Selfie with 10.A girls and Lajos (pronounced Lie-osh). His name means Louis in English and he is the bellringer of Refi! 

A last day selfie with Janka and Betty (excuse the sunglasses). Janka is one of my good friends and I'm so glad I got to know her and Betty!

I have a feeling I’m not in Scotland anymore

This quote is a reference from my favourite film of all time: The Wizard of Oz. I used it as my title here, because just as Dorothy landed in Oz on a tornado, I landed in Hungary on an airplane (which wasn't nearly as bumpy a ride).

This country is breathtakingly beautiful, but I have only seen three parts of the country: Lake Balaton, the Borsod Abaúj Zemplén and of course the capital city: Budapest. Which I suppose is a lot more than most people have seen.

I constantly reminded myself that I was in another country. The familiar Doric tongue which I heard almost every day was replaced by a language which is one of the most perplexing, but beautiful languages in the world. 

Sárospatak, the town which I have been living in has been around since the 11^th century and the scenery is breathtaking. The town is surrounded by mountains and just an hour outside the town is an old quarry which is now a stunning Hungarian heritage park. I appreciate that I can just walk outside my door into a park which is surrounded by tall trees, which are covered with leaves now that it is spring. I have appreciated nature a lot more since being here, being quiet and still with God.

There have been times where it’s been really difficult. I’ve felt lonely and isolated, often because of the language barrier. There have been days where I’ve had a difficult day with students, feeling like I wasn’t getting anywhere and I wanted to go home. I missed my family and I missed talking to familiar people. I really wanted a pair of red shiny shoes, tap my heels together and say “There’s no place like home.” If only that worked in real life.

Now just after nine months since arriving, I am getting ready to fly home. There is a huge part of me that doesn’t want to leave this country and its beautiful scenery. Then I realise I can always come back. Hungary isn’t going anywhere. 

Budapest Part 3

On Friday afternoon I arrived and on Sunday afternoon I left Budapest. There are some photographs of my recent trip to Hungary’s beautiful capital: 

The Citadel and Elisabeth bridge (named after Empress Elisabeth of Austria, Queen of Hungary a.k.a Princess Sissi)

Beautiful church near my hotel 

'Corvin Plaza' shopping centre. This was on the same street as my hotel.

Statue of young boys playing outside an old school

Outside the Budapest SportArena - pre-show entertainment and staff with balloons tied to their bodies! 

Ez az a nap! sign outside the arena. It means This is the Day! in Hungarian

Short video of Rend Collective at Ez az a nap!

With two very good friends from OM Hungary - Ilona and István

Taking a Sunday stroll across the Chain Bridge

Golgota Church - I went on Sunday morning and also listen and watch the Sunday services online. The teaching and the worship there is fantastic! 

Ez az a nap!

Every year thousands of Christians from all over Europe and other countries gather together in the Budapest Sport Arena at a concert called Ez az a nap! (This is the day!) They listen to some of the top Christian artists, as well as pastors from different churches in Hungary.

I spent this past weekend in Budapest. I took a replacement rail bus to Szerencs (pronounced Ser-ench) and from there took the Intercity train to the capital’s Keleti railway station. A few metro stops later and I arrived at my hotel in the eighth district of Budapest near a shopping centre called Corvin Plaza. Once I had unpacked and settled, I took the metro back into the city centre and walked along the Danube to a perrfect view of the bridges and the stunning Citadel. I was starting to get hungry so a trip to McDonalds was in order.

I know that I come to Hungary and I should be trying exotic Hungarian foods, not a fast food restaurant which I could go to any time at home. One thing they don’t sell in McDonald’s back home is Turo Rudi McFlurry. For those of you who don’t know what Turo Rudi is, its Hungarian confectionary with sweet cottage cheese covered in chocolate. Put it in ice cream and it’s a heavenly combination! It may sound disgusting, but I promise you it’s not!

The next day I set off for the concert. I took the metro to Puskas Ferenc Stadion and made my way up the steps to Budapest Sport Arena. The ticket office would be open at 1 o’clock so I had some time to kill before then. The time arrived and I asked the woman at the ticket office if I could collect my ticket here. I then was told that if I wanted to collect my ticket I would have to collect it at 2 o’clock as that’s when the Ez az a nap! Ticket office would be open. It was annoying as if I had known that before I would have come an hour later. Not to worry though as I headed off to Burger King just down the street and had a delicious burger there before returning to the arena at 2 o’clock.

There was a slight moment of panic as I had told the woman my name and she was searching frantically for my ticket. I hoped my ticket was there as I had definitely bought one! The confusion was over as she found it, on the envelope it said: Summers Rachel. I may have mentioned this in an earlier blog post but Hungarians use their surname first and first name last. So when I said that my name was Rachel Summers, it was harder for her to find it. The good news was that I got my ticket and waited patiently for the gates to open.

At exactly 2 o’clock the gates opened to a cheering crowd. Our tickets were scanned through a machine and each person was given a 15^th anniversary Ez az a nap! programme. I made my way straight to the Mission Expo and saw my friend István. I gave him a huge hug and was so happy that I was able to see them again. We tried to find my other friend Ilona and eventually she came into the Mission Expo and I gave her a huge hug and greeted her in the Hungarian way – with kisses on both cheeks. I was reunited with both of my friends and it was so good to see them again! I met Ilona and István two years ago when I volunteered at an English camp in Balatonfűzfő. They work with a Christian organisation called OM and they do a fantastic ministry within Hungary. I also met some new friends, including a girl called Morgan from Mississippi who has started working with OM and will be living in Hungary for six months. The Mission Expo lasted for around two hours and I managed to share and invite others to next year’s event for a free pin badge and wristband!

It was soon time to go into the main arena and watch the concert. There were a variety of Hungarian and English speaking bands performing. In between the bands the organiser of the event gave a message from the Bible which was taken from John 4:13-14.* He explained that when his wife was pregnant with their child she became sick and doctors were worried that the baby would be born unhealthy. I’m not sure what the exact problem was as the English subtitles were vague. However, through their belief in God and continued prayers, the baby was born without any problems. His son came up onto the stage: a handsome, healthy seventeen year old boy. Miracles happen all the time and it was incredible to see the living proof of that one miracle.

Before Rend Collective came on stage the different pastors of the churches in Hungary walked onto the stage and we prayed for them, that they would share God’s love with people and that one day there will be revival in Hungary. It was a very touching moment and the whole area fell into silence as they prayed. After this time of prayer the whole arena was crying: Rend Collective! Rend Collective! Then the stage went black and when the lights turned on the group appeared on the stage. Their first song was a version of the ancient Irish hymn ‘Be thou my Vision’ and they had modernised it to ‘You are my Vision’. The whole arena was up singing and dancing. I noticed some people had flags and they were waving them rhythmically. The band played their hit songs: Lighthouse and Build Your Kingdom Here.

In between songs, Gareth, one of the members of the band gave a little message. His mum used to have a stick which she called ‘the stick’. When he was naughty she would hit him with it discipline him. One day little Gareth took the stick, broke it over his legs and cried freedom! Unfortunately it didn’t last long as his mum went out into the garden and came back with a log! Gareth was not free from his mum’s discipline. He used this illustration to say that God is not looking over us with a big stick, but instead when we make mistakes we are forgiven by God and there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8 v. 1-2). After this, Rend Collective finished off with a few more songs which included the fantastic ‘Praise like Fireworks’. It was great to sing and dance and worship God.

I returned to my hotel happy that I had gone to the concert and met my friends.  It was an excellent weekend and definitely a great change of scenery.

I did take some videos and photos on my phone, but they’re not great quality. You can check out better ones on the Ez az a nap! Facebook page. 

You can also find videos of the artists on YouTube, just type in Ez az a nap! 2015.

* Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”