In my language journal #4, I have decided to talk about some of the complex Hungarian prefixes. In Hungarian grammar, prefixes such as "el-", "meg-", "fel-", and "le-" are used to modify verbs, indicating various aspects of action, direction, completion, or intensity. Let me explain the difference between them in more detail. 

• "El-" (Direction, Completeness):

1. 1. • The prefix "el-" typically indicates the direction of movement away from the speaker or the starting point of an action.
      • It can also denote the completion or accomplishment of an action.
      • Example: "Elindulni" (to depart, to start), "Elolvasni" (to read through, to finish reading), "Elhagyni" (to leave behind).

• "Meg-" (Completion, Intensity):

1. 1. • The prefix "meg-" often expresses the completion or thoroughness of an action.
      • It can also indicate intensity or emphasis.
      • Example: "Megcsinálni" (to complete, to finish), "Megvárni" (to wait for complete), "Megért" (to understand thoroughly).

• "Fel-" (Direction, Beginning):

1. 1. • The prefix "fel-" usually indicates the direction of movement upwards or the starting point of an action.
      • It can also denote the beginning or initiation of an action.
      • Example: "Felmenni" (to go up, to climb), "Felébredni" (to wake up), "Felhívni" (to call up, to initiate a call).

• "Le-" (Direction, Completion):

1. • The prefix "le-" typically indicates the direction of movement downwards or completion of an action.
   • It can also denote diminishment or reduction.
   • Example: "Lemenni" (to go down, to descend), "Lecsukni" (to close down, to shut), "Leírni" (to write down, to record).

   These prefixes are highly used in Hungarian grammar and can be added to a wide range of verbs to modify their meanings. I personally sometimes get confused between the usage of "el-" and "meg-". In some cases, "el-'' signifies the completion or achievement of an action. For instance: "Elvégezni a feladatot" (to finish the task) OR "Elérni az álmait" (to achieve one’s dreams). On the other hand, the prefix "meg-" often indicates the completion or thoroughness of an action, or it can emphasize the intensity of the action. Examples include: "Megnézni a filmet" (to watch the movie completely) OR "Megijedni valamitől" (to get scared of something). Most probably you can see how in the above examples these prefixes are similar, and a little bit confusing. I find this topic pretty challenging but at the same time very fascinating!

   For my cultural post #4, I have decided to write and tell you about the Royal Palace in Budapest which is also known as Buda Castle or the Buda Castle Palace. It is a historic palace complex located on the southern tip of Castle Hill in the Castle District of Budapest. It is one of the most iconic landmarks of the city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and simply one of my favorite places in Budapest. 

   First, let me start with some of the important historical facts about the Palace. The history of the Royal Palace dates back to the 13th century when the first royal residence was built on Castle Hill. “Over the centuries, the palace underwent various reconstructions, expansions, and renovations, signifying different architectural styles from Gothic to Baroque to Renaissance” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buda_Castle). Throughout its history, the Royal Palace served as the residence of Hungarian kings and queens, as well as the seat of power for various ruling entities, including the Habsburgs during the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today, it houses several museums, including the Hungarian National Gallery, the Budapest History Museum, and the National Széchényi Library. The Budapest History Museum offers insights into the city’s rich history, from its medieval origins to modern times. There you can explore some archaeological finds, historical artifacts, and interactive exhibits that highlight Budapest’s cultural heritage and evolution over the centuries. The National Széchényi Library which is housed in the eastern wing of the Royal Palace, is Hungary’s largest library and a repository of national treasures. It houses millions of books, manuscripts, maps, and other documents, including rare and historically significant items (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buda_Castle). I have visited the Museum and the Library a few times while I was in Budapest, and I would love to do it again because there are endless things to see, and explore. 

   It is important to mention that the palace has suffered significant damage multiple times in its history, most notably during the sieges of Budapest in World War II. After the war, extensive reconstruction efforts were undertaken to restore the palace to its former glory. Nowadays, the Royal Palace is a major tourist attraction in Budapest. It attracts visitors from around the world to admire its architecture, explore its museums, and enjoy panoramic views of the city from its elevated position on Castle Hill. Also, the palace complex is a venue for various cultural events, including concerts, exhibitions, and festivals, adding to its vibrancy and appeal. The Royal Palace and the Buda hill on which it is located are my one of the most favorite places. I hope you enjoyed learning more about it!

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buda_Castle 

PS. Below you can find a picture of me with the Royal Palace in the background :)

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Zoom recording will be emailed to the professor. 

   In my learning journal #3 I want to reflect a little bit more on my Hungarian grammar learning progress, more specifically on the past tense, in Hungarian - múlt idő. Chapter 4 in MagyarOK A2+ book is completely devoted to the past tense topic even though some of the basic explanations and rules came up earlier in the book. However, I believe that past tense in Hungarian is one of the most challenging grammar topics because of all the verb conjugations,  various cases, and spelling complexities it involves in itself. Now, let’s dive a little deeper into this topic, and new rules that I have learnt in the past couple of weeks:

There are two main ways to form the past tense in Hungarian: definite conjugation and indefinite conjugation.

First, let’s look into the definite conjugation. This type of conjugation is used when the subject and the direct object of the sentence are known and specified.

• To form the past tense for regular verbs, you typically add a suffix to the verb stem according to the specific conjugation pattern. For example:
  • “Szeret” (to love) → “Szeretett” (loved)
  • “Ír” (to write) → “Írt" (wrote)
• Some verbs have irregular conjugations in the past tense, so you need to memorize their forms. For example:
  • “Van” (to be) → “Volt” (was)
  • “Megy” (to go) → “Ment” (went)

Secondly, indefinite conjugation is used when the subject or the direct object of the sentence is not known or specified.

• In indefinite conjugation, you typically add a different set of suffixes to the verb stem. For example:
  • “Szeretni” (to love) → “Szeretett” (loved)
  • “Írni” (to write) → “Írt” (wrote)
• Irregular verbs still have irregular conjugations in the indefinite past tense. For example:
  • “Van” (to be) → “Volt” (was)
  • “Megy” (to go) → “Ment” (went)

Thirdly, it is important to mention that the endings of the past tense forms change based on whether the subject is first, second, or third person, and whether it is singular or plural.

Below are the basic endings for regular past tense conjugation:

• First person singular: -tem/-tem
• Second person singular: -tél/-tél
• Third person singular: -ett/-ott/-ött
• First person plural: -tünk/-tünk
• Second person plural: -tetek/-tetek
• Third person plural: -ttek/-ttek

And for irregular verbs, you need to memorize their specific past tense forms as they don’t follow a regular pattern… That is what I am currently doing. It is a very interesting but at the same time very challenging topic. I hope you enjoyed learning about the past tense in the Hungarian language :) More to come!

   For my cultural post #3, I have decided to write about the Memorial Day of the 1848 Revolution which is celebrated in Budapest on March 15th and is considered one of the big national holidays. While brainstorming the topics I can write about in this post, I realized that, unfortunately, I do not know much history, or background about such an important event in the history of Hungary. So, this made me browse through and read different articles, and webpages that can give me more in-depth information and knowledge regarding this topic. Here is what I learned.

   As I already said, the Memorial Day of the 1848 Revolution refers to one of the most significant events in Hungarian history that commemorates the revolution against the Habsburg monarchy and the fight for independence and freedom, which occurred in 1848 and 1849. “This revolution was part of the wider wave of revolutionary movements that swept across Europe in 1848, often referred to as the ‘Springtime of Nations’” (Wikipedia). Various grievances such as political oppression, social inequality, and economic hardship contributed to and fielded the revolution in Hungary. “Inspired by nationalist and liberal ideals, Hungarians sought greater autonomy from the Austrian Empire, which was ruled by the Habsburgs. The revolution began on March 15, 1848, when a peaceful demonstration in Pest (now part of Budapest) escalated into a full-fledged revolt. The demands of the revolutionaries included the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, civil liberties, and Hungarian independence within a federated Habsburg Empire” (Wikipedia). Unfortunately for Hungarians, the revolution faced stiff opposition from the Habsburg monarchy, which managed to maintain control over its territories. “And despite valiant resistance by Hungarian forces, the revolution was eventually crushed by the combined Austrian and Russian armies. The Hungarian leaders were captured, and many were executed or imprisoned. The defeat of the revolution resulted in the restoration of Austrian control over Hungary and the imposition of repressive policies, including the abolition of the Hungarian Constitution and the suppression of Hungarian culture and language” (Wikipedia).

   Even though this was a very tragic period for the Hungarian nation, the Memorial Day of the 1848 Revolution holds significant importance in Hungarian national consciousness. It serves as a reminder of the Hungarian people’s struggle for freedom and independence and their enduring spirit of resistance against oppression. Various official ceremonies are held across the country, typically beginning with the raising of the Hungarian flag. These ceremonies often take place in prominent public spaces, including squares and government buildings. Luckily enough I was able to be in Budapest on March 15th, 2019 when I witnessed how important the Memorial Day celebration is for the Hungarian nation. Also, different processions and parades are held in cities and towns across Hungary, with participants carrying national flags, banners, and symbols of Hungarian patriotism. As I remember one of the biggest parades was passing through the Parliament and onto the riverside until the Chain Bridge; I enjoyed watching these people, and I felt like I was even a part of such a historic and important event. And of course, families and communities are actively engaged in the celebration, they come together to spend the holiday through social gatherings, picnics, and festive meals. A lot of traditional Hungarian foods and drinks are served on the markets. In my opinion, goulash is the best :)

   I hope you enjoyed reading my cultural post, and that you have learned something new and useful about one of the major Hungarian national holidays - the Memorial Day of the 1848 Revolution! I am going to include a collage of pictures below in which you can see some of the most famous locations in Budapest where the main celebrations took place. 

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungarian_Revolution_of_1848

   In my learning journal #2 I want to reflect a little bit more on my Hungarian grammar learning progress and reflect a little bit on the topics that me and my community partner covered in the first two chapters of the MagyarOK A1-A2 grammar book. There was definitely some repetition in the first couple of chapters such as topics of past tense, nouns, articles, prepositions of place, time, and others. However, there was one particular, very interesting and challenging topic that I would like to write about in this journal. 

   “Érdekel” is the Hungarian verb which translates to English as  “to interest”. Instead of saying “I am interested in it”, Hungarians use this verb to say “it interests me”, “it interests you”, and other forms depending on the subject. In order to use the verb correctly, one needs to know how to form the direct-object pronouns (who does the object interests). In addition to that, one also needs to know which suffixes should be added to the verb, and whether these should be definite or indefinite. I think it is a little bit tough to understand this concept, so let me give you some examples:

First, let’s look at the personal pronouns in both nominative and accusative cases. 

Second, let’s look at the conjugation of the verb “érdekel” (both definitive and indefinite).

Now let’s try to create a sentence.

1. Ő érdekli Polinát. -Polina is interested in him/her/it. 

Even though the sentence starts with the object (him/her/it), the main focus is still on Polina - subject who is interested. 

1. Polina érdekli őt. -He/she/it is interested in Polina. 

The sentence again starts with the object (Polina in this case), however, the focus is still on the subject - he/she/it. 

*If you notice, there is an extra consonant ‘-t’ at the end of ‘Polina’ and ‘ő’in order to objectify the word. 

   This is such a minor detail in Hungarian grammar, however, it is a very challenging concept to understand especially if there is nothing similar in your native language. I hope you enjoyed learning about the Hungarian verb “érdekel”:)

In my cultural post #2 I would like to talk about the Hungarian Parliament which is located in Budapest, on the Danube river. Without any exaggeration I can say that the building of the Hungarian parliament ranks among the World’s most uniquely designed and built parliaments in the World. It is my favorite building in Budapest by far, and whenever I go on a walk in the city center I always make sure that my route goes through the Parliament square. By the way, the picture that I am going to attach to this post was taken by me on one of these walks. 

Here is a brief but very important history of the Hungarian Parliament and its development from one of the official websites. “The Hungarian parliamentary assemblies had no permanent home for centuries and so a competition was held in the 1880s to find an architect to design the building of the  Parliament. The winner was Imre Steindl who designed the massive, neo-Gothic building of the Hungarian Parliament. Construction works began in 1885 and with the involvement of about 1000 people the building was inaugurated in 1896 when Hungary celebrated its 1000th anniversary. The building of the Parliament was fully completed in 1902 and sadly before the date its designer Imre Steindl became blind and died a little after.” (from https://dynamictours.hu/the-hungarian-parliament/)

The Hungarian Parliament is one of the largest parliamentary buildings in the world. Some other important technical details about the building worth keeping in mind are the dimensions. It has a length of 268 meters (879 feet), a width of 118 meters (387 feet), and its dome reaches a height of 96 meters (315 feet). Also, it is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site, along with the Danube embankments and the Buda Castle. The design of the Parliament mixes together various symbols and historical references, reflecting Hungary’s rich history and cultural heritage which, in my opinion, is one of the most significant parts about it. The building is adorned with statues of historical figures and mythical creatures, contributing to its symbolic importance. The Hungarian Parliament is not only a symbol of national identity and democracy but also serves as the legislative center for Hungary. It houses the offices of the National Assembly, the President of the Republic, and various parliamentary committees. Overall, the Hungarian Parliament Building is not only a political institution but also a cultural and architectural masterpiece that attracts visitors from around the world. That is one of the reasons when one thinks about Budapest, the Parliament’s image comes up… Well, to be honest, same for me!

  Every winter break since my freshman year I have been traveling back to Hungary, and Budapest to spend the winter holidays and celebrate Christmas, and New Year with my family. Unfortunately, this year I did not go back, instead, I have been traveling within the US and spent my Christmas and New Year with my host family in Richmond. It was a very nice experience even though it was pretty different from what I am used to. During my winter break, I managed to meet with my community partner over Zoom a few times. Those classes were much less formal than the ones we used to have on campus, however, it was extremely fascinating to see Szonja in Budapest, at home with her family. It was very interesting to hear her speaking with her family members in Hungarian and see their interactions when they accidentally came into the room during our meeting. One of the classes happened to be on Christmas day, and we dedicated it entirely to talking about Hungarian Christmas traditions, celebrations, and Christmas-related vocabulary. 

  We have worked on reading and translating the text which I have attached to this post. It was very interesting to see the similarities between Hungarian and Russian traditions for Christmas. Even though in Russia we celebrate Christmas according to the Orthodox calendar - January 7th, we still share some of the traditions in common. For example, Hungarians also go to church for the evening mass on Christmas Eve, have a big family lunch or dinner, and spend most of the time with family, and friends. I learned from the text that Hungarians have some food specialties as well - walnut and poppy seed bagels. You can find different types of those at the Christmas markets where they are very popular among locals and tourists. It was very interesting to learn about Christmas traditions by translating the text from Hungarian to English. I believe it gives a more objective and clear perspective.

   Last semester I took SDLC 105 and SDLC 110 courses which gave me very valuable experience and opportunity in learning Hungarian as one of the courses at the University of Richmond. This semester I’m enrolled in SDLC 111 which will be simply the continuation of my Hungarian studies with the same community partner - Szonja, an exchange student at the University of Richmond from Hungary. During the winter break, we completed both of the MagyarOK A1-A2 books - grammar book and vocabulary book. This semester we’re planning to use the next level of the series of MagyarOK books A2. They provide harder grammar, vocabulary, and deeper knowledge of the language in general. In some parts it will be a repetition of the topics that have been covered in the A1-A2 book, but with a much more complex and detailed perspective. 

   On top of using the book as the main tool for learning Hungarian, I would like to focus more on speaking and using my knowledge of the language this semester. We have already started watching some shows in Hungarian on Netflix and listening to some of the Hungarian pop songs on Apple Music. We translate some phrases, and sentences as we go on, and after the class, I spend some time memorizing them and using them in day-to-day life. I believe that it is very important to keep working on Hungarian grammar, tenses, and new vocabulary. However, I want to experiment with already existing knowledge and make use of it during my Hungarian classes. Sometimes we start classes with me telling Szonja about my day, classes, and practices in Hungarian which helps me to immediately start thinking in Hungarian and become more proficient in short and easy conversations. 

   During my meeting with my community partner last week we completed both the language and grammar books from the MagyarOK series. I enjoyed the structure of the books since they tightly correspond to each other, and cover the same topics in the same order just with the difference in vocabulary and the content of the exercises. 

   One of the most challenging topics that I have learned in the past week is the concept of the different prefixes which change the meaning of verbs. ‘Be-’, ‘ki-’, ‘fel-’, ‘le-’ are the prefixes that have the meaning of ‘in the direction to the object’, ‘in the direction from the object’, ‘up’, and ‘down’ accordingly. Usually, you add those prefixes to verbs such as ‘menni’ (Eng. ‘go to somewhere/something’) and ‘jonni’ (Eng. ‘come from somewhere/something’). For example, ‘bemenni’ would mean ‘go to somewhere’ with the emphasis on the action that one is heading towards some place/object. If you do not add the prefix, sometimes the direction of the action might be unclear. Another example - ‘felmenni’ means ‘go upstairs’. If you use this prefix, you do not necessarily have to use the words ‘stairs’ because it is already clear that one is going upstairs (using stairs). It was a little bit hard and challenging for me to understand this concept because neither in English nor in Russian do you have this kind of prefixes which provide an additional meaning to the verb. 

   In my last language learning journal of this semester, I want to reflect on one of the hardest grammar topics from Hungarian which I worked on a few days ago. Also, I want to acknowledge that I will be working on my understanding of this topic, as well as others. I think consistency and self-discipline are very important while learning a new language. 

  For my fourth cultural post, I have decided to write about Christmas traditions in Hungary and interesting events that happen on Christmas Eve. Since it is almost the middle of December, I think it is a very nice moment to appreciate how beautiful and magical the time of Christmas and winter holidays is. I have never celebrated either Christmas or New Year here, in the United States. Every year I fly back either to Russia or Europe and celebrate these holidays together with my family. Therefore, I would like to reflect on this culture during my time during Christmas in Budapest. 

  Budapest is a very beautiful city in general, but during Christmas and winter holidays it becomes almost unbelievably magical and breathtaking. All of the seven bridges that go through the main area of downtown and which connect two sides of the city - Buda and Pest, get filled with various decorations, lights, statues, symbolic ornaments, etc. Christmas markets and festivals are another big part of Christmas time in Budapest. There are two main squares in Budapest downtown where these markets are located - Vörösmarty Tér (Eng. Vörösmarty Square) and Szent István-Bazilika Tér (Eng. St. Stephen's Basilica Square). It is very interesting and fun to spend time at the markets. Usually, they open in the events from 4 pm to 10 pm because that is when all of the city lights get turned on. On the markets, you can try traditional Hungarian goulash soup, kürtőskalács, or chimney cake (traditional Hungarian sweet pastry), hot wine, and other delicious Hungarian foods. Also, you get to see a lot of local handcrafts, and homemade traditional creative souvenirs. Usually, it gets very busy at the markets because they are open just during one Christmas week, so as many people as possible try to visit them. As I said, last year when I was in Budapest over the winter break, Christmas markets, specifically the one located on Szent István-Bazilika Tér, was my favorite place to spend evenings with my family, siblings, and friends. Below I will include a picture of kürtőskalács and 2 glasses of hot wine which I got at one of the markets. It is a great memory to have, and looking at this picture makes me want to come back to Budapest!

  I like spending Christmas in Europe. I think it is such a  magic time, and Christmas markets make it even more special and fun. I hope you enjoyed reading about this, and it makes you want to visit Budapest once during Christmas time. 

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   Enrolling in Self-Directed Language Course 105 together with 110 sections is one of the best decisions I have made as a student and a language learner. To be honest, I was a little bit worried about whether I would be able to create my schedule for learning Hungarian, allocate specific times in my schedule for the meeting with my community partner, maintain motivation throughout the semester, and other concerns. However, approaching my Hungarian learning ended up being very easy, fun, engaging, and entertaining. I had such a positive experience mostly because of my community partner - Szonja who is a Hungarian native speaker with a fully Hungarian background/family. During our classes, she did not just show me some tricks on how to memorize specific words, structures, and complex topics, but also shared her own stories from her time living in Budapest. We almost immediately connected, and it allowed me to maintain motivation and passion for learning the language the whole time. 

   One of the main insights that I have gained about myself as a language learner is consistency and discipline. No doubt, there were days when I simply did not want to open a Hungarian book and do grammar exercises just because I was tired or overwhelmed with my other responsibilities. However, I realized that it was much more helpful to do some small tasks on a day like this (such as one class on Duolingo, watching a short YouTube video in Hungarian, listen to a song, or doing an easy drill) rather than skip the day completely. Language learning is all about practice, and the more practice I have - the faster I will succeed. And honestly, these little language activities were my favorite part of the learning experience. Me and my community partner - Szonja, we were trying to incorporate as many as possible. 

   One of the most challenging parts of learning Hungarian is a lot of cases, conjugations, and irregularities that are an essential part of Hungarian grammar. It took me a while to get used to some of them because there are no similar concepts neither in Russian nor in English. However, this is something that I got better at by the end of the semester, and this is something that I am planning to work on more!

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Below you can find the summary and the slides for my final cultural project that I have presented for both SDLC 105 and SDLC 110 courses.

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  The past couple of weeks have been very intense in terms of learning new grammar structures, vocabulary, and new topics. Currently I am working on the last unit from both the MagyarOK grammar book and the MagyarOK language book. This last unit offers new material on topics such as family, home, house (pieces of furniture), expressions used at home, hobbies, and etc. On the other hand, the grammar book covers topics such as present tense vs. future and past tenses, conjugation of personal pronouns, accusative case on complex nouns, continuation of the vowel harmony topics and its complexities, and other new information on possessive endings. Also, both of the books have a lot of audio materials included which seem to be pretty complicated and heavy in terms of vocabulary and all of the materials covered earlier in the book. Even though these couple of weeks have been the most intense and tough so far, I still really enjoyed it.

  In this language journal I want to talk about the construction of past tense in Hungarian language - one of the most useful topics I have learnt this week. Past tense (in Hungarian - ‘múlt idő) is pretty straightforward and an easy to understand concept in Hungarian language (very surprising, right?)... Any verb in Hungarian can be transformed from the present tense to the past tense just by adding the suffix -tam or -tem depending on the vowel harmony. For example, ‘néz’ means ‘to see’, therefore, ‘néztem’ means ‘saw’. Another example, ‘hoz’ means ‘to bring’, and ‘hoztam’ means ‘brought’. You can see that the vowel in the past tense suffix depends on the vowel in the root of the initial verb. It is a completely separate and pretty complicated topic, so I will not go into that. However, what I want to highlight is the fact that there are of course some exceptions because no grammar rule in Hungarian can be that simple and straightforward… 

  The first one is the case when the verb ends with -t. For example, ‘tanít’ means ‘to teach’, and ‘tanítottam’ means ‘taught’. You can see that an extra vowel, the root and the suffix was added, and ‘t’ was doubled. Also, there are certain so-called irregular verbs that have different structure for the past tense. For example, ‘jön’ means ‘to come’, and ‘jöttem’ means ‘came’. I believe that there is no exact explanation on why those verbs are part of the different rule, it just seems that it sounds better like the way they are. 

  I think past tense is one of the most interesting and pretty straightforward topics in Hungarian, that is why I thought sharing it with you might be interesting. 

   During one of the meetings with my community partner we talked about interesting celebrations, traditions, and holidays in our home countries. My community partner told me about Farsang, pronounced ‘Farshang’. 

   Farsang carnival in general marks the end of winter. The celebration is also connected to the destruction of the winter in Hungary - Old Man Winter. There is a lot of fun and food during the day and, in the evening, there is a “huge bonfire as everyone says good-bye to winter and sets their sights on spring. The length of the Farsang period is different each year.  In 2023, Farsang is between 6 January and 21 February. The most important part of Farsang is the “tail of Farsang”, meaning the last 3 days before the start of Lent. This way it includes Sunday, Monday, and Shrove Tuesday, which fall on 19, 20, and 21 February in 2023. Neither of these days are bank holidays, though” (Sarkadi). 

   There are quite a few unique traditions that happen during the period of Farsang. Traditionally Farsang is for merrymaking, courting, and sometimes even weddings. All of the Hungarian folk traditions represent the idea of making winter go away and spring coming sooner. Most of the Hungarians dress up as scary things and make scary noises, as that is “well known to ward off evil - winter is kind of evil as it can kill you with cold and starvation” (Sarkadi). According to the article from which I learnt traditions of Farsang, one of the best-known ones is the ‘Busójárás’ and it takes place at the end of Farsang. “People in fur coats and heavy wooden masks have a parade through the city making noise, lighting a bonfire at night. This tradition, however, is particular only to the region of Mohács, in the Southern part of Hungary, West of the Danube” (Sarkadi). 

   Even though Farsang is dedicated to having fun altogether, it is followed by Lent - a 40-day season religiously known for restraint and meditation. “During Lent, you are not supposed to eat meat, or even cheese or eggs. This is supposed to clean your body and soul, and prepare you for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ at Easter. As a result, the tail of Farsang is an especially cheerful season, as it is the last opportunity to have fun until Easter. There is a special day emphasizing this contrast between Farsang and Lent: Fat Thursday. This is supposed to be the last Thursday before Lent, dedicated to eating together, especially rich foods and sweets” (Sarkadi). 

   I think Farsang is a very interesting Hungarian national celebration. It captures a lot of traditions, local practices, customs, and other things that Hungarian people keep and preserve so dearly. I hope one day I can see the carnival myself!

Source: https://hungariancitizenship.eu/blog/what-is-farsang-in-hungary/

   The past few weeks have been very productive, and successful in terms of my learning of the Hungarian language. My community partner and I were able to stay on track with our meetings even though our schedules are very tight this semester. We still meet twice a week to go over some grammar stuff, new vocabulary, exercises from both of the books, and sometimes we also meet for the third time, during the weekend when we devote the whole class to impromptu conversations, drills, and small dialogues. I try to complete the weekly assigned tasks and exercises from the book on my own, in my own free time because I believe that it is much more useful to go over the harder topics during the actual meeting time with my community partner. So far we have covered the following topics:

-word order in negative sentences and questions;

-various articles and their usage within the sentence;

-adverbs of time and place;

-irregular verbs;

-plural forms;

-ordinal numbers;

-verbs ending with -s, -sz, -z;

-plural forms of adjectives;

-new vocabulary from the modules such as ‘in the office’, ‘human qualities’, ‘city’, ‘means of transport’, ‘greetings’, ‘restaurant’, ‘food’, ‘shopping’, ‘colors’, ‘hobbies’, ‘jobs and professions’.

This is not to complete the list of topics and the things we have done because each section of the book also includes the review of the previous chapters and concepts. However, these are the main things we have been focusing on. 

   A couple of weeks ago I was a little frustrated with my process of learning Hungarian. I have this notebook where I write all the new words by sections - verbs, adjectives, and nouns. When I looked at these words, I was confident that I knew and remembered them. However, every single time I had to make up sentences and use them in speech, they just vanished and I could not remember them anymore. My community partner, who is also one of my friends right now, was always trying to calm me down and help me out. Day by day, class by class I became more confident in myself and the idea of me coming up with sentences even though their grammar structure or the pronunciation were not necessarily completely right. At some point I just let myself speak, and used any new vocabulary I remembered at that point from the particular unit/topic. In the meantime, I developed a habit of coming up with the Hungarian word for almost every single object I was holding in my hands. For example, during class when I have a pen in my hand, I tell myself ‘toll’ (‘pen’ in Hungarian). Also, I believe watching short youtube videos and kids cartoons helps me a lot during my learning process. 

   Watching short youtube videos, cartoons, short netflix shows, and others is a big part of my process of learning Hungarian. I do not necessarily watch just national Hungarian movies, shows, but recently I have been very interested in those in particular because it does not just provide me with language learning but also enriches my knowledge about national Hungarian culture, customs, traditions. Most of the people do not know much about Hungarian film-making, however, I believe it is very underestimated. Surprisingly for a lot of these peopl, Budapest has long been Hollywood’s go-to location because of its dreamy atmosphere, timeless beauty, stunning attractions, rich history, and unique architecture. Hollywood stars such Anthony Hopkins, Ryan Gosling, Matt Damon, and Brad Pittsuch Many have fallen in love with the city during filming. Also, Budapest has also inspired some of the most unique movie directors such Wes Anderson and his film The Grand Budapest Hotel. Although the film itself was set in the fictional country of Zubrowka, it creates such a picture that it makes the spectator think that they are in Hungary. There are a lot of other magnificent films that were shot in Hungary, but in this cultural post I would like to talk about short film called Mindenki (Engl.: Sing) and present my movie review which I produced in Hungarian together with my community partner. 

   Sing is a childhood drama with a lot of music set in 1990s post-socialist Budapest, Hungary. Based on a true story, it follows an award-winning school choir and it tells the evolves around the life of a new girl in class who faces a tough choice: to stand up against a corrupt system - or to fit quietly into it. Sing was directed by a famous national Hungarian producer and screenwriter - Kristof Deák. The film won following awards:

- Best Live Action Short / Academy Awards OSCAR, 2017;

- Audience Award / 32ème Festival du Cinema Européen Lille;

- Audience Award / Festival International de Cine Lanzarote;

- People’s Choice Award / TIFF Kids Toronto;

- Daazo.com Special Award / Friss Hús Fesztivál Budapest Grand Prix &  Best International Short;

- Audience Award / Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia, Tokyo (OSCAR® Qualifying);

- Best Child Actress (for Dorka Gáspárfalvi and Dorottya Hais) & Audience Award / Sapporo Shortsfest;

- Best Live Action Short Film / Chicago International Children’s Film Festival (OSCAR® Qualifying);

- 2nd Prize / Interfilm KUKI + TeenScreen Berlin.

I really enjoyed watching Sing, and discussing it with my community partner. I think the movie is very easy to follow, and the language is pretty comprehensible. Below I am going to include the part of my review of Sing in Hungarian. 

   A Mindenki Budapest egyik ének-zene szakos általános iskolájában játszódik 1991-ben. A tízéves Zsófi új tanulóként érkezik az iskolába, amit elöször kicsit furcsának talál, és ahol ot is kicsit furcsanak találják, de hamarosan összebarátkozik Lizával, az osztály legnépszerúbb diákjával. Zsófi érkezésekor az iskola híres kórusa éppen próbál. Az igazgató megígéri az anyukának, hogy Zsófi is bekerülhet a kórusba, ami az igazgató számára a legfontosabb ér-ték az iskolában. 

   Zsófi első alkalommal vesz részt a próbán, amikor Erika néni, a karnagy bejelenti, ha meg-nyerik a országos kórusverseny, Svédországba utazhatnak egy újabb versenyre. A próba végén a karnagy csokival jutalmazza a kórustagokat, és szeretne még Zsófival beszélni. A próba véget ér, Zsófi marad. Azt kéri, énekelje el a Pál, Kata, Péter-t. Zsófi elkezdi, de nem fejezheti be, mert Erika néni arra kéri a lányt, a következo kóruspróbától o már csak ,táti-kázzon", azaz, a fejében énekelje a múveket. Zsófi nem érti, miért kéri ezt tóle Erika néni, aki elmagyarázza, hogy azért, mert nem olyan jó, mint a többiek. De erröl a kérésról a töb-bieknek nem beszélhet. Zsófi és Erika néni közös titka kiderül, amikor Lizának, nehezen bár, de sikerül kiszednie barátnójéból az igazságot, miután Liza rájon, hogy Zsófi a próbán nem énekel. A következó próbán ó is „tátikázik”. Liza kedvenc tanárnője, Erika néni azonnal észreveszi, leállítja a kórust, és felszólítja Lizát, hogy énekeljen. Liza szembeszáll a tanárnővel barátnője és még néhány elnémított társa miatt, ám Erika néni elmagyarázza, hogy az élet olykor igazságtalan, és job némán részese lenni egy híres kórusnak, mint se-hogy. Erika néni eddig nem akarta megnevezni a „tátikázó” kórus tagokat, de ha ez kell, hát tessék. Két-három gyerek, köztük Zsófi, bátortalanul jelentkezik. A próba után Liza és Zsófi megbeszélik a próbán történteket…

   I am still working on finsihing up my review because it is a very continious and complex work, however, I very much enjoy it. This movie contributed to my knowledge about Hungarian culture, as well as new vocabulary, and language structures. I defenitely recommend watching it!

   I visited Budapest for the first time in 2017 during my summer tournament camp which was around 7 years ago. Now when I think about it does not seem to be a very long time ago, but 7 years is a long time indeed. I wish I started to learn Hungarian back then which means that by now I would be a fluent speaker. However, I have chosen a little bit more complicated path for myself - learning one of the toughest languages in the world during my senior year of college. If not now, then when? First, I downloaded Duolingo (by the way, I am on my 62nd day strike). In about a week I found myself the tutor on the Italki platform with whom I started to learn the basics of the language like the alphabet, vowels/consonants, grammar structure, types of verbs, etc. During the early beginning of my learning journey, I was struggling a lot with motivation because I simply forgot how tough, and time-consuming learning a new language can be. 

   My decision to get enrolled into both SDLC 105 and SDLC 110 gave me that extra motivation, and opportunity to include Hungarian learning into my schedule. I was lucky enough to find an exchange student from the UK who was born and raised in Hungary and, therefore, fluently speaks Hungarian. I meet with her every week at least twice a week, and sometimes we manage to schedule the third session depending on our schedules. As it says in my study plan/syllable, we use 2 MagyarOK books - one for grammar, and the second one for vocabulary and practice of communication skills with audio files. I have been working a lot on my own, doing homework, and finishing the rest of the assigned pages from the books for which we did not have time during our meetings. Before every class I text my community partner and let her know my progress on homework, share with her my questions, and the exercises I want to go through with her. I have been using a lot of flashcards and stickers with new vocabulary which I take with me and review on my way to classes. Also, my community partner suggested that I listen and translate to English some popular Hungarian songs that have a lot of new and useful vocabulary. I find these strategies very useful and effective in my learning experience. I feel that I already drastically expanded my vocabulary, and moved from zero level and not being able to say a word 2 months ago to some level of A1 and being able to participate in basic conversations. I am planning to maintain the same learning techniques, meet with my community partner, and do my homework, learning activities, and exercises from books with the same frequency.