What is American Food?

When you live somewhere else, not only do you learn about that culture, but also you learn about your own.  I realized for some time now that I have a hard time identifying food that is uniquely American.  So I'm asking my friends, or anyone else reading, to comment.  It is interesting that it has taken people from other countries to point out to me what they think is an American dish that is quite different from theirs.  So Anni from Finland thinks that our pies - cherry, apple - are a uniquely American dessert.  I thought maybe french fries, but she says they are from Belgium. Well what do you expect?  I think pizza is probably one of the most commonly eaten foods in the states, but that certainly isn't American.  What is?  Hamburgers and hot dogs come to mind - are they American?  How about fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy?  Another student pointed out that our pancakes are unique.  So does anyone know if that is an American invention  What Hungarians call pancakes, we call crepes - a thin batter with a filling - and often a dessert.  It's nothing like our pancakes.  I wonder if jello is an American invention?  So let me know what is your idea of American food.

Kino Café and Thanksgiving Dinner

On Tuesday (Kedd) I got an email from one of my students that the film department was having a party at the Kino Café, which is attached to the Urania Theatre.  It started at 11 p.m. – wow, past my bedtime.  But I took a nap, set my cell phone alarm, and went to the party.  I saw several of my students there – here’s a photo of Lili and Adam and I at the party.  Thanks for the beer, Adam.  I left after 1 a.m.  Marton told me the next day he left at 3 a.m. and things were still going strong.  Well, too late for the old woman, but I am always warmed by the friendship shown to me by my students, present and former ones, who include me in their festivities. 

Speaking of former students, I was delighted to get an email from another former student, János Berta, whom I met for coffee at the Café Paulus.  I am overwhelmed, that in a country so far from home, I have so many people with whom I can share a drink and conversation. 

And on Thanksgiving Day, despite the horrible events at the University, I was happy to be able to have dinner with my friend and colleague to whom I am indebted for being able to spend the semester in Pecs – Laszlo Tarnay.  What a great dinner for Thanksgiving and such a pleasure to have good company, not be alone on Thanksgiving.   In addition to being a brillant and generous man, Laszlo is a good cook – others will tell you the same.  We had a wonderful Indonesian curry dish and a dessert recipe from his mother (and grandmother’s) cookbook – a chocolate pancake dish.  Wow, this Hungarian speciality is amazing.  Note to friends:  despite all my daily walking – don’t expect me to come home having lost weight (as I did in Morocco).  I am eating too much good food here.

Tragedy at University

Yesterday while I was in class, at another building on campus, a university student shot and killed another student, wounding three others. This was a shock to me as both the town and the country seem safer than the States. It was also a shock to my students, and I am told this is the first ever shooting by a university student in the country. I had just made my post on the globalization of cultural products, and I hate to think that the idea for things like this come from the news reports of simliar incidents elsewhere. Some parts of western culture are not good to import.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2009/1127/1224259546010.html

The Árkád and A Word on Homogenous Culture

I think I have been here long enough to get some idea of how ubiquitous American culture is in this country, and probably others as well.   American music is frequently heard playing in restaurants and shops, and folks I talk to are well acquainted with American movies and movie stars.  They watch American TV shows – and talk about liking Sex in The City.  Do you imagine that they really believe Americans are like those depicted in these shows?  What really strikes me is not so much the presence of American cultural objects – Homer Simpson on the side of a car; Mickey Mouse on a t-shirt – but the absence of Hungarian ones.  I did not notice this quite so much until I began to look for some small items to take back to the states as gifts.  I was having a very difficult time finding anything that is uniquely Hungarian to take back – despite being immersed in a very rich cultural world of sights and tastes.  Beside Hungarian food and drink items that could travel - paprika or palinka – I am having a hard time.  I don’t mean souvenir spoons and plates and coffee cups with a Hungarian flag on them, but normal items that people, not tourists, would use.  When I tried to find a t-shirt or baby clothes with Hungarian written on it, I was stuck by the fact that almost everything was in English.  How can that be?  So many people here do not even speak English, but they are buying clothing stamped with English words.  Even the Christmas ornaments in town are blazoned with “Merry Christmas” not Boldog Karácsonyt.  I pointed this out to my friend, Ági.  After awhile, she, too, began looking for clothing with Hungarian words and remarked that she had not realized that everything was in English.  Well, most of this stuff is now produced in China or Thailand – and I guess these cheaply produced mass market goods are not translated into each country’s native language.  So, I am wondering, if all over the world these goods with English words are in every store.  We are all buying the same products – there is nothing unique about them.  The Árkád (mall) here is like any other mall in any town in the world.  It has the same type of shops, a food court, escalators, an information desk, a parking garage.  You walk in and you are immediately at home.  It is now decorated for Christmas and all the shops are selling Christmas items.  They even have special kiosks in the middle of the mall that have opened in the last few weeks – selling Christmas gift items.  It’s just like the Oak Park Mall at home. Only they are not selling Hickory Farms, they are selling Belgium chocolates.  Here is a video of Christmas (not Karacsonyt) at the mall – the young dancers are dancing and pantomiming to “All I Want for Christmas”   Can you see the decorations in the mall are quite like home – EXCEPT, it did seem out of place to have a gingerbread house with a witch outside (Hansel & Gretel?) in the Christmas setting.  I don’t know that I have seen that in America – at least not connected to Christmas.  It would be more like Santa’s toy shop or elves.

More Shopping

My dear friend Ági took me to the outskirts of the central city to see the shops of Metro and Tesco.  This is a big contrast to my city shopping experiences.  Metro is just like Costco!  At the entrance you have to insert your membership card to get in.  Then you are in a large, warehouse-like store where the products are stacked to the sky.  Ági had taken me shopping so that I could find some small gifts to take back to the States.  Then next stop was Tesco, which is just like Wal-Mart.  I wonder if it also has the same effect.  She was helpful in pointing out food items that were typically Hungarian.  I had seen one item in a restaurant that I wanted for my husband, and she found it for me.  It is a hot sauce – Erős Pista.  Translated it means Big Steve.  I found that so funny because Steve is my brother-in-law’s name that I also bought a jar for him.  I am a terrible shopper and dislike these big stores, not only for what they represent (multinational corporations) but just for the experience which generally leaves me leaving without purchasing anything because I am overwhelmed by the choices.   So I see that there are several completely different ways to shop in Pécs – much the same as in the States, though I do not think we have anything that is really equivalent to the markets here.   

Grocery Shopping in Pécs

Pécs has modern grocery stores – where I buy coffee, sugar, etc.  These are not much different than stores in the states.  The ones I go to are smaller than supermarkets in the U.S. but that may be because I go to the stores around the city center – there are Tescos (the European equivalents of Wal-Marts) on the outskirts of the city.  The products might be different – and the packaging is sometimes different.  For example, you can buy mustard and catsup in tubes that look like toothpaste tubes.  You can buy milk in soft sided containers.  And laundry soap as well.   The check out counter is different.  There are no baggers.  You bag your own groceries and almost everyone carries in the bags that they are going to be using.  But the most significant difference to me is the quantity of items that people buy.  I am sure some people drive to the grocery stores – especially those stores on the outskirts of town – the Tescos.  But I have never seen anyone leave the grocery and get in a car.  People are walking home or getting on the bus with their groceries.  Which means that folks do not buy more than one or two bags of groceries at a time – only what they can carry.  I am the same way.  I buy only what I can put in a bag and stick in my backpack.  It is a different way of shopping and planning meals.  Of course, I am not stocking a big pantry here.  But I have found that I like the idea of thinking – oh, I’ll make cabbage sausage soup this weekend – what do I need to buy for my dinner?   I buy my ingredients, maybe a bottle of wine, (OK definitely a bottle of wine) and that is about it.  Consequently, I shop more frequently here than I do in the states.  And between the grocery and the market – the food is fresher and used up quicker.   A word about bread.  There are so many bakeries in this town.  I buy only fresh bread and in small amounts that I use in a day or two.  Fresh bread is so cheap and so good.  There are also wonderful pastries.  I have tried many.  My favorite is a nutella filled croissant with the tips dipped in chocolate.  Oh, my.  The strudels (retes) are also quite good – especially cherry and apple. 

The Market in Pécs

One of my favorite places in Pécs is the market where I shop for fruits, vegetables, chicken, sausages and flowers.   The large indoor space is a bustling concrete floored hall, furnished with simple tables where a variety of small vendors lay out their produce and products.  The market in Pécs is open every day.  Unlike the supermarket where you pick out all your food and pay at a central location, here you pay each individual seller for his/her products.  It is, at first, daunting to the English speaking tourist.  But I have found everyone friendly, helpful and patient.  I either pick out what I want and hand it to them – or in the case of chicken and meat – point.   Paying can be the most challenging.  This is made easier when the vendor has a calculator and can show me the numbers or can write down the numbers for me.   I love looking at all the fresh produce and have found everything tastes great from the apples to tomatoes to fresh figs.  The fruit and vegetables vendors occupy the middle of the hallway.  The meat and poultry shops are on one side of the building, while fast food grills selling a variety of breads and cooked sausages and meats are on another.  Along one wall are the women who sell sauerkraut and various pickled products.  There is section where people sell flowers, beautiful flower arrangements, and plants.  And there is small section for mushroom sellers.  I am amazed at the large variety of mushrooms sold here – I have never seen some of these mushrooms before.  Going to the market makes me aware of what is in season.  Although you can find some vendors who sell bananas – obviously not a fresh Hungarian product. – the market offerings differ with the passing months.  I remember the first time I saw a fresh fig in the market – wow, my favorite fruit.  And in the coming weeks there were lots of people selling fresh figs.  Then, only one or two.  And finally my last fig purchase was a pathetic looking lot in a small plastic margarine tub sold by an old woman.  Still they were tasty.  This week I see lots of squashes, pumpkins, fresh spinach, and for the first time Brussel sprouts.  So you can pretty much tell what is in season, though you can still buy fruit and veggies that must be shipped in.  Some of the folks who sit in the market selling their wares have only a meager offering in front of them.   These older ladies might have only a dozen or so pears, a couple bags of walnuts, maybe a few dozen eggs to sell.  Others have a much larger variety.  I go to the market with a list and walk around the hallway first to look at the offerings.  Who has the nicest looking apples?  I buy only from the women, not the men vendors.  And I try to buy from the old ladies that only have a few things if they are selling something I want.  It is just such a great experience:  all of the products displayed, the smells, the sounds.  So I buy most of my food items here.  This is a look at the market from my camera tucked into my shirt pocket as I walked around and stopped to buy.  

 

Név Nap - Name Day

Some times I notice small differences in customs that might not be so important, but it strikes as me as interesting.  The wall calendar I bought here had names written on each day – which I did not understand until someone explained name day to me.  I think name day is a very charming idea.  Hungarians celebrate both a birthday (much like Americans) and a name day.  That is, every day of the year is attached to certain names – so all Hungarians named Lászlo have a name day on 27 Június (June) and all those named Lajos have a name day on 19 Augusztus.  Apparently, the birthday is a bigger celebration than the name day.  On your name day you receive greetings and good wishes from your friends and family, maybe a piece of chocolate.  It is an occasion to remember you.  I really like the idea.  Think about it – remembering the birth date of all your friends or colleagues might be difficult.  But, with name day, all you have to remember is your friend’s name – and you automatically have his/her name day.  I wondered if any name was left out, but apparently not all the names are written on these calendars, and indeed even new names are added, though I’m not quite sure how.  So everyone has a name day.  I like the idea – it is not a big fuss – as one student told me he got an SMS (text message) from his mom and relatives on his name day.  By the way, did you know that Hungarians do not have middle names – typically only a first and last name.  Which is written last name first – so Hamilton Dorothy would be my written name. 

 

           

I have taken this photo of the calendar for the month of Február.  On 6 of February I am celebrating my name day.  Dorottya is on the calendar as I hope you can see.  And my real name is Dorothy, so my Hungarian pronunciation would be Dorottya.  Notice to friends and relatives.  

More Hungarian Politics

 

Coming home the other night, I ran across this protest so I took video of the one protest sign.  They were off the main square in front of McDonald's.  I had no idea what they were protesting - all the construction in town!  No one seemed to mind that I was taking their photos.   Today I asked my students what the sign said - basically, these folks are protesting the current government, which seems to be unpopular with just about everyone these days.  The sign says that they've suffered for three years under these liars.  Apparently Haguz is a curse word in Hungarian - so more accurately, the students said it would translate to "lying bastards."   You can see that the group was quite small.

Ballet and American Corners in Pécs

My good luck continues. The weather here is in the 60s – delightfully and unseasonable warm. Sunday night I attended the ballet with my friend, Ági. I had wanted to see the inside of the beautiful theatre building - the National Theatre of Pécs. The performance of Giselle was a modern interpretation that I found very interesting – like Giselle meets West Side Story. Giselle’s jilted boyfriend could easily be a Jet! I forgot my camera, so unfortunately can’t show you video of this charming evening. Here is the outside of the theatre, which is quite beautiful inside as well.

Last night I moderated a film screening for the American Corners in Pécs. The film was Doubt. Very enjoyable evening where I met more great people, particularly a young Hungarian student eager to practice his English. American Corners is a program that exists all over the world to acquaint people in other countries with American culture. The program here in Pécs and the staff are very impressive for their welcoming demeanor and professional programs – including a book and DVD lending library. I was pleased to be invited to participate in their programs. I forgot to ask Zsuzsa, the director, if she was going to have a Thanksgiving dinner – it is coming up. I will very much miss my turkey dinner this year!! Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays – just because of all the food and the family gathering together. If I can not have the family gathering together, at least I might have the food. Pumpkin pie, stuffed turkey, cranberry sauce – oh, my.

I Set Myself on Fire Today

Here is a photo of my burned sweater; you can see the holes and the scorch marks.

I’m generally impatient – so because I have to physically hold the gas knob on my stove in for awhile before it will stay on, I usually hold it with my hip while I try to do something at the same time – chop onions, or get out paprika.  Today, I was heating up my chicken soup and getting out a bowl, when I looked down to see that I was on fire.  It was quite a sight, and had I not been a bit alarmed to see flames jumping from my sweater, or had just had a moment to think, I might have grabbed my camera to capture it.  But here is a video showing how this happened.  

Filézett Pontzhaláyé Tésztával

I had this fish soup with pasta at one of my favorite restaurants.  It has a daily menu with 2 choices - and this sounded good.  When you walk into the restaurant there are 4 tables with 4 chairs each.  It is a place where shopkeepers and workers get a quick lunch.  I only know about it because Levente told Mike and I about it on our visit to Pécs.  If you are sitting at a table, whoever comes in the door will ask to sit with you - since there are so few seats.  So I had ordered and an older Hungarian man came to sit with me.  Good thing - because normally the soup (leves) is served first and then the entree.  This came out at the same time.  So I gestured to him, asking if I was supposed to put the pasta into the soup - and he said igen, yes i was.  But he also stopped me from putting in all of it at once.  This was a declicous, hearty soup and the pasta was great.  A few minutes later, he showed me the jar of spicy paprika sauce that I could stir into my soup - it was so cute the expression on his face that he used to tell me that it was hot.  He made sure that I did not put too much on my spoon.  It was, indeed, very tasty.  I must bring back a jar of that for Mike.

I Get Lucky on My Tour

Pécs is under construction.  Sometimes it seems the whole town is torn up to renovate the buildings and streets in preparation for its designation as the 2010 Cultural Capital of Europe.  Opening ceremonies are in January.  My friend Zoltan told me that the city was giving tours of some of the biggest renovation sights, so I looked at the website and saw that one of the tours was half block from my apartment – the street of Museums, where, not surprisingly, a lot of museums are located.  I met the tour group at the corner where they gave us a nice cup of hot tea.  Amazingly, this young woman recognized me – I had pizza with her, probably 5 years ago, with one of my then students Anna Gereb.  She was Anna’s friend.  That is the only time we met, but she recognized me.  I was stunned at this coincidence.   So Edit was able to translate the architect guide’s comments to me.  How lucky I am!!  She now teaches English in Pécs and was with her brother Attila – you catch a glimpse of them on the video.  Now, warning, this video is not very pretty – we were not allowed inside the buildings they are reconstructing – so you can see the exteriors that are being renovated.  I post them here because I want to remember these when I return.  I think this whole area will be transformed.  It is very ugly now – because the streets are torn up – and the scaffolds are everywhere.  I have been in most of these museums before on previous visits, so I will be interested to see the changes, inside and out. 

 

Hungarian Train Troubles

First let me say – I generally like the Hungarian train system – MAV.  But lately, I’ve had some interesting experiences.  When I was in Budapest 5 weeks ago, there was a train strike.  No trains for one day.  Since I was getting ready to leave the city and my friends, Mandi and Greg, had left the day before, I thought – well, good thing I did not have to get back to work that day.  Then my friend from the US, Susan, and I bought tickets to go to Budapest last week.  The ticket agent at the train station said something about Dombovar in Hungarian, but we did not understand.  When she realized that we did not speak Hungarian, she just handed us our tickets and left it at that.  So we get to the Pécs train station to catch the train to Budapest the next morning, and there are no trains anywhere in sight.  I know something is wrong.  When we asked, they pointed to a row of buses.  Apparently, what the ticket lady told us was that the train station was repairing its tracks and we would have to take a bus to the nearest train station in Dombovar to catch the train!!  O.K. this adds half hour to the trip, no big deal.  And I realize I will have the same situation on my return two days later. 

So I go to catch my train back, and the train isn’t at the platform listed on the departures board.  I finally figure out where to catch my train, board, and figure I am all sent until Dombovar.   About ten minutes after the train departs the Keleti station, it stops.  And it stays stopped.  I have taken this trip before, so I know this is not normal.  Folks are restless.  Finally, a conductor comes through the car to explain.  Luckily, the lady sitting next to me speaks English and tells me our engine has broken down, and we are waiting for them to bring a new engine.  O.K.  Good thing I did not wait to catch a train to get me back just in time to teach my class.  I’m fine.  So, after what seemed a long time, we start moving.  But we only get to the outer Budapest train station – Budapest-Kelenfold – and stop again.  This is a normal stop, but it should be short and it isn’t.  The natives on the train are definitely restless – you don’t need to speak the language to understand.  Frustration sounds the same in every language - really, it does.  Finally, I am told that the second engine also has a problem.  In the end, we are one hour late to Dombovar.   I’m lucky – no connecting trains – just have to catch the bus which is waiting for us.  The young woman across from me has missed her train connection, and what’s more, she was also returning to Budapest that night – just delivering a project – and returning.  Now she will miss the train back as well.   Here is a look at the graffiti on the train tracks that I photographed while waiting for the engine repair – just a little bored I guess.  

Hungarian Politics

Interesting to try to talk to folks about Hungarian politics.  There is a right wing neo-Nazi party, Jobbik.  I’m been asking my students and friends about it after Bill Pryor sent me a link.   Everyone says it is an extreme party that is very nationalistic and is anti-gypsy.  With the economic times the way they are, this has an appeal to some folks, who blame the gypsies for crimes in their areas.  Gypsies also tend to have a lot of children, and I detect a real concern that in the future the Hungarians will be the minority of the population.   My students told me that they do not talk politics – that it is a taboo, because the emotions are so strong that people lose friends and break with relatives over political issues.  So they do not want people to know their political persuasion.  Interesting.  Some view Jobbik as a bunch of crack pots who are extreme, but basically have no real power or threat.  Others see them as a dangerous group that is gaining ground, especially in certain areas.  They apparently dress up in military-like uniforms – these paramilitary groups were banned – but they just changed the name and still do this.  Well, one day in Pécs I came across these posters on the wall in the main shopping area – advertising Jobbik.  Susan and I also saw a poster outside a restaurant/billard parlor in Budapest.  The current government is quite unpopular – blamed for the poor economic times.  Everyone I have spoken to expects the opposition party to win the next election.  But they don’t hold a lot of hope for change, as it seems that each time a different party wins, there really isn't much change.

Sightseeing with Susan in Budapest

Went to Budapest with Susan for a few days.  The weather was dreary, raining most of the time.  We still managed to visit great sights - Heroes' Square and the city park, the castle district and Fisherman's Bastion, Andrassy Ave, the House of Hungarian Art Nouveau and had a dip in the thermal baths at Szechenyi, topped off with a relaxing massage.  We attended a performance by the Budapest Philharmonic at the Hungarian State Opera House, a beautiful historic building designed by Mikós Ybl.  My friend, Judit, met us one night for drinks.  Here are some sights and sounds from our trip.  

View from TV Torney

View from the TV Torney

Susan and I took a bus up to the TV tower in the Mesck Mountains to see the spectacular view of the city and the surrounding countryside.  But when we go to the top of the tower – there was only fog.  The bus comes every two hours, so we had coffee and a bit of food at the café in the TV tower – overlooking this total whiteout.  Here is a very funny view of the spectacular sight.  Also had hot wine by a wood burning stove waiting for the bus to come where we met two friendly Hungarian architecture students who had hiked up to see the view as well.  

Sightseeing with Susan and Remarkable Cucumber Salad

Great to have Susan visit me from Kansas City.  Took her to some of my usual haunts – the market where I shop, the evil Árkád shopping center, wi fi at McDonalds, some restaurants where I eat cheap food.  She explored while I’m teaching class and is finding her way around the city pretty well.  She also had her share of “adventures.”  Her first night in Hungary – we went to a restaurant for dinner.  Susan ordered a cucumber salad to go with her entrée.  Imagine her surprise when the waiter brought out a big plate with 8 large pickles fanned out in a circle.  Susan remarked – well, they were cucumbers at one time.  We toured the early Roman cemetery with burial vaults at the Cella Septichora Visitors’ Center – impressive Roman ruins that are truly amazing and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Toured St. Stephen’s Cathedral, as well as the church in Széchenyi Square that used to be a Turkish mosque and still has much of that time period intact inside and out. When we were in the cathedral, someone began to play the organ and that is the music you hear over the cathedral images.  Agí made us dinner so we could taste some traditional Hungarian items  Lescó, a tasty stew with a tomato-paprika base, Unicom, a Hungarian liquor with 23 herbs, and Dobos tortas, a beautiful layered cake with glaze on top. Here’s a look at some of the city sights.

Balkán Világzenei Fesztivál

My friend and colleague from Kansas City, Susan Lawlor, is visiting me in Pécs.  Last night Susan, Agi and I went to a concert of three bands who played here as part of the East West Balkan Conferences and Festival.  Here is a short sample of the music

More Weird Stuff

It has only been a few days since I posted on my trip to Zagreb, and I received a link to the Zagreb tourist page which featured my post.  I am just amazed at how this all works.   No wonder my Croatian journalist friend does not blog - the whole privacy thing just freaks her out.

Here's the link - Zagreb Tourist Site.