And the winner is. . . .

This is a little comparison between common things found in Hungary and America because (duh) they can be quite different. And sometimes I took the little things for granted living in America (another duh) and then I have noticed some things where I wonder, Why don't we do this in America? One of you, and you know who you are, wanted to know about the quirky European things that they have here, so here you go.

Shopping Carts:
America- They make them so kid friendly and safe when you take the time to find the one that has both ends of the strap fully functional or wrestle with the cart to get it unstuck from the others. They also make them into cars or trucks that the kids can "drive" around the store taking all the things from the bottom shelves without you noticing or make them dual or even TRIPLE seated for those unruly triplets and older kids, but they are both lugs and are quite the workout.

Hungary- First, you have to put in a 100 Forint piece coin into the cart to get it unstuck from the group which makes it so convenient when you have three kids running around the parking lot and you don't have a 100 piece, but you have a 50 piece and bills, so you have to go all the way in the store and then all the way out of the store just to get a cart. They do end up getting their carts back because when you bring the cart back, you connect them together and your coin pops back out and I will need that 100 Forint in the winter time. Also, those dumb wheels. UG! Have you ever been to Ikea and shopped with their all-wheel-turn shopping carts? Yup, I too thought they were fun at first, but they are a pain in the cahoot when it is full of stuff and you are trying to weave between Hungarians as you try to say "Bochatok" in your best non-American accent. Innovative way to get your carts back, but a pain.

Winner: America for sure! I don't even care how many boogers there are on those steering wheels. (Okay, so I totally wipe them first. You caught me.) But they are out of my hair while I shop.

Toilets:
America: Flush is on the side and many places have automatic water, soap, and dryers. LOVE that. And they are big!

Hungary: You cannot fit a double stroller in the bathrooms (WC is what they call them). Don't try. You will get old ladies mad and you can't even turn on the charm because they don't understand you. Smile and wave. The flush is a button on the top. For some reason I REALLY like that. I don't know why, but it seems so sanitary to me. I told you, I don't know why. They flush with gusto too.

Winner: TIE!

Bugs:
America: I felt like you couldn't open a window without a screen on it and you had to strategically open and close the doors so that flies wouldn't come in. Ready... OPEN now SHUT IT SHUT IT SHUT IT QUICK! Good job. Only two flies came in that time! And forget going out at dusk without laods of bug spray. You could quite possible get eaten alive. Fo real.

Hungary: Not that buggy. Yes, there are bugs. Pretty cool ones for that matter, but their windows seldom have screens and you can leave the door open without a screen for hours just for the breeze. Yes, there are mosquitos, but they are nay objectionable in my opinion.

Winner- Hungary!! (finally on the scoreboard)

No-name brands:
America: EVERY major chain has them and they are quite comparible (most of the time) but are more often than not just nice having another choice in the shopping convenience.

Hungary: The big stores have them here too! Surprise surprise! And many times their no-name brand is the only choice, which is neither good or bad in my opionion of being here a week and a half so far. But in two cases so far, they have been a better choice. Funny. not Ha-ha funny, just funny. In Tesco, the BIG British owned Wal-Mart-like store, their Tesco brand is in both Hungarian and English as well, so that makes it great.

Winner: TIE. I would say I was leaning toward Hungry because of the shock value that they actually have it, but it's pretty much the same.

Festivals:
America: I've been to many a festival where there is dancing and crafts and food. Oh the food! You almost ho just for the over-priced delicious fat-full food. Let's face it, we know how to party.

Hungary: We just went to one this weekend and it was pretty much the same, just a different culture. Not surprising was the over-priced delicious fat-full food that they had around every corner and which we bought a lot of, but everything was so new and exciting. I was a little taken aback that we didn't buy any crafts, but then I thought about how a lot of the things there were homemade soaps, t-shirts with 'Budapest' bedazzled everywhere, georgeous dresses, shawls, magnets, jewlry, pottery, and bird calls. Nothing really caught my eye and I figure we'll be here a while and could get most of that stuff for cheaper elsewhere. But the FOOD! It was so great. I had fun trying to speak, too.

winner: TIE! (Just for the fact that it was so fun and new, though nothing beats our 4th of July festivals in Woodland Park Colorado, Rodeos, and Hot Air Balloon Festivals. They both even had the same gross Port-a-Potties...ew.)

Public Traqnsportation:
America: huh? We have buses, I think. Okay, to be completely fair, I heard NYC pubic transport is awesome, but I haven't been there, so the only experience of Public was when we were in Utah and we only had one car and I dropped off Brandon 1/2 mile away from our house so he can take the busses for free with a student card to school and work, so that I can go to school and then my other two jobs where there is no way I could take Public and then I went to go and pick him up at work because it was faster for me to do that than for him to take the Bus home. Oh, and if he missed his bus in the morning, I think he had to wait another 20 minutes for the right bus to campus. Oh and the Metro in DC was tolerable just so that you didn't have to find parking in DC. Fun for the kids, but again, you had to drive forever to get to a metro, then spend a lot of money to travel. eh. Not impressive.

Hungary: They have buses coming every 5 minutes every two blocks. There is a HUGE metro with underground tunnels, a mono rail, and fast trains that can take you from country to country. I haven't ridden the underground metros or the fast trains yet, but I can imagine. woa nelly! We took Public (that's what it is called out here. Public.) to church on Sunday and dispite lugging three kids 15 minutes to the Bus stop, it was very easy. Brandon was pretty nervous on Saturday when we went to the festival since he hadn't been there before, but we were just fine. We didn't understand much, but he could tell enough to get us where we needed to be. FUN! Now if I can only get my kids to not touch the yucky handrails everywhere... I guess I'd rather them hold my hand to be safe than have them touch those things. On the other hand, we did get our Malaria, Typhoid, Polio, Rabies, MMR, Chicken pox, Something-else-pox and more shots before we got here, so lick away! That makes us pretty much Superman, right? The quirky thing about the busses here is that you have to buy these tickets somewhere else and then you get them punched when you get on the buses, metro, or mono rail. You use the same tickets wherever you go. NOW I know where 'bus ticket' and 'train ticket' came from. On our buses the money goes clang clang clang, remember?

winner: Hungary- hands down. (Sorry if you have The Wheels on the Bus in your head now.)

Overall:
Phew! 5 is pleanty right now. Hungary is in the lead so far. I promise pictures ARE coming... More often than not, we find things that are merely different and not so much better or worse than what we know. Just different and that's what makes this place unique and makes it all the while to find those little surprises as we go.