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Easter in Hungary

Hello, Bunnies

Happy Easter or Happy Bunny, as we usually say in Hungary! 🐰

Easter is one of my favorite holidays, not only because it is a four days weekend, but because finally, it is Spring. Flowers everywhere, colors, nature is waking up, the days are getting longer and the weather is starting to warm up. Easter is about rebirth, renewal, and the celebration of the colors. (At least to me.)

So many traditions attached to Easter depend on the family or which part of the country you goes. So I decided to talk about my family’s Easter traditions. When I was a kid, we always decorated the house and colored boiled eggs. My grandma did it with onion leaves and made them brown. Sometimes she used wax to draw on the eggs. At home, we bought some egg coloring kits with stickers, but either way, the end was beautiful and colorful eggs.

Saturday my mum cooked the ham and the eggs, as these are the traditional breakfast for Easter morning. Of course, she cooked and baked as well, because the family gathered together on Sunday for a lunch. Also we “built the nest for the Easter Bunny”. My brother and I went to the garden with one of our mother’s baskets and we collected some grass, to make sure the Bunny has the best and nicest place, so he could bring us lots of chocolates. (Back then usually the kids got mostly chocolates, toys, and some money from their grandparents. Now it is a bit different because Easter became Spring’s Christmas, and the kids get toys and of course money after a certain age.)

When Easter morning came we woke up we were so excited to see what the Bunny brought for us. Also, the family set down together and eat the traditional Easter breakfast. This breakfast contained ham, boiled eggs, horseradish sauce, some vegetables, and fresh bread. (It was funny because we grow up like we never really had breakfast, we just grabbed a cup of hot cocoa and ate first around 10 am, so the Easter breakfast was delicious, but we did not really a huge fan of eating in the morning. 😅) Usually this is the same everywhere in Hungary, mostly because of religious reasons, even if our family wasn’t really a religious family. As a Christian (even though I am not practicing my religion) Easter is a big celebration after 40 days of fasting, the first time you can eat meat. Especially on Good Friday, the meat was forbidden (good for vegetarians and vegans, less good for me.😅) As I said I do not really want to go to the religious side of the holiday.

So after we had our breakfast, we had a look at the nest and we were so happy and grateful that Bunny loved us and we always get something and then we waited for the rest of the family. Slowly arrived our grandparents and sometimes our uncle too. They all brought something for us and the nest just got full of goodies.

 At 12am we started our lunch. We always had chicken soup, breaded pork and/or chicken, stuffed meat, oven-baked meats with rice, mashed potatoes, some salads, and pickles. My mum always made at least 2-3 kids of cakes and grandmas brought their creations too. Yes, we were so full, so the rest of the day we just enjoyed the sunshine outside our garden and talked about everything. As kids, we played with the new toys and had so much fun.

Easter Monday is much more interesting in Hungary. This day is known as “Shower Monday” too. Every woman gets sprinkled or showered with water or perfumes and men get colored eggs, chocolates, or even money as rewards. The original tradition was actually that the boy shows his interest to the wed-aged girl like this. Always the single girls get sprinkled and no one else really. Somewhere if the boy got a basket (not only eggs) in return that showed he is the chosen one and even the girl’s family blessed his interest and after that, they were allowed to start “dating”. 

Nowadays it is a bit different but still, women get their sprinkles/showers, but now doesn’t matter their age and marital status. Actually, if you are a man and you want peace in the house, you just shower every woman.😀 The “belief” is in Hungary that the woman must be showered “locsolni”, otherwise they will get wither, just like the flowers. The boys go around the village or in the city neighborhood and usually, they use perfumes to sprinkle, but somewhere (mostly in the villages) still water is preferred. This is the man’s choice, and these days girls give them money instead of eggs or baskets. The boys create some nice or sometimes funny verbs where they “ask” the girl if she allows the sprinkles (not that a girl really has a choice 😅), and these verbs make the tradition funnier.

I always wanted to be a boy on this day. My brother was so shy and he just sprinkled the women in the family, he never went around the village, but he doubled his pocket money on this day. On the other side… well until the end of the day, I get wet (come on!) and I had at least 5-6 different perfumes smell mixed up on me and I couldn’t wait to go home (usually Easter Monday we celebrated in my grandmother’s house) and wash my hair. 

But still, I love Easter and all of those traditions. I think especially after we grow up, we forget the fun and Easter can be a very fun day. 

Some families or sociates in Hungary make Easter games for the kids, such as eggs painting, contests, “find the eggs competition” (hide the eggs or chocolates around the place and kids have to search for them) or my favorite was the egg rolling game (whose egg went farthest was the winner). Easter is mostly about the kids, but still, families gather together, eat and celebrate. 

I hope you will have a lovey Spit(firey)Easter and the Bunny brings you so much fun, love, and sweets.

And don’t forget during the big celebration, that you are a Hero, no matter what!😘

XOXO,

Krisz😘

P.S.: Question, comment, or anything, just follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or here.

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Egyéb kategória This is how we do it!

Santa is coming tonight

Hello, hello…

…or should I say Hohohohoooo?! 🎅

I know some of you are just looking at the title and have no idea what I am talking about because today is only the 5th of December. Let me explain to you and I promise until we finish here you will go and clean your boots (okay, sneakers will work too 😉). Okay, now, I am sure you lost (except if you are from Hungary).

So I know most of the world celebrates Christmas and Santa brings presents on the 25th of December…well not in Hungary. Don’t worry, we have Christmas and we get presents too (in my family we open the presents on Christmas eve), but in Hungary Jesus brings the presents and the Christmas tree too on Christmas eve (yes, we do not decorate the Christmas tree until the 24th of December’s afternoon)… so now you wonder, what we do with Santa?!

Well, we do nothing with him, but he brings us presents on the 6th of December night. I do not wish to explain the whole history of this tradition, because is more religious and I do not want to mix this here, but I can explain the actual tradition. 

So in Hungary (and some of the other European countries too) at this time, the kids are cleaning their boots and preparing them for the night. On the 5th of December evening, we had to clean our boots and leave them in the window before we get ready for bed. We had to make sure that they are nice and shiny and left them in the windows to make sure that Santa easily can find them During this magical night Santa picks up his sleigh and all his reindeer (we are not that weirdo, we call them on the same name the same as the rest of the world does) and deliver the presents to the kids. Fill up the boots with lots of nice things. Nowadays the kids get maybe some small toys too, but the original tradition is that Santa only brings sweets and chocolates (in my grandparents’ childhood was a bit different, they had fruits, sweets, and nuts)…lots of chocolates. During this time of the year, you can buy small packs full of different kinds of sweets or you can make them your own (the only must-have is the Santa figure) or just leave the goodies as it is in the footwear. But one thing is sure, everyone gets something…

…and here you can ask “what about the bad kids”. Well, the bad kids don’t get anything or they only get “sorghum” (I am not sure you have a proper word for this thing, so you can see a picture of it below). Actually, still, today parents threaten their kids during the year (or should I say blackmailing?) with the fact that if they do not behave or be nice, Santa will not give them anything or they will get only a big bounce of sorghum. (Let’s make something clear, I have it sometimes, but because I was a bad kid… I was always cheeky. Just for clarity.😋)

The week of the 6th of December Santa goes to schools, kindergartens, and nurseries (even into the Library in Hobol, search for it!) and brings small presents and chocolates to the kids (szaloncukor, it is a traditional Hungarian bonbon only for Christmas). The kids decorate the houses, and the institutes, and sing songs to Santa when he arrives.

As a sweet tooth, this is one of my favorite traditions. And the answer is YES, I cleaned my boots already. 😉

So have fun, clean your boots and if you were good enough during this year, maybe you will find something in your footwear tomorrow morning.😘

Love you guys and Happy Santa day for tomorrow!🎅

XOXO,

Krisz😘

P.S.: For the daily quotes and more fun, please follow the Spitfires on Instagram and Facebook (find as spiritofspitfires).💖

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5 tips to SpitFire up your mornings

Hello Guys,

As I promised, November is about relaxing and preparing for the winter. I wish to help you to make ready for the crazy, busy holiday season, the end of the year, visiting family, having Christmas parties, and all the fun things that require a lot of energy from us. Yes, we must prepare our minds, body, and soul for all these. My philosophy is to do everything step by step. That’s the best way to set up and achieve our goals too.

All story starts at the beginning, and so do our days. The morning routine is very important because how you start your day will be the foundation of your whole day. Very important to set up our own, unique morning routine. I don’t believe in fixed recipes (it could explain my not always… let’s say like these “well-presented” cakes or foods🤔), so what works for me may not work for you and it is fine like this. We are all unique and that’s what makes life so wonderful. 

Okay, let’s get into it. 😉

  1. Set your alarm

Well, that sounds easy, but trust me, so many times, this is where everything will be decided. I use two alarms, with 10 minutes difference, because like this I have 10 minutes to think about the day ahead of me, visualize my goals, be grateful for my life, or just simply prepare my soul until I physically kick myself out of the bed. Another nice tip is from Mel Robbins and her 5-second rule, which is an amazing book and a more amazing technique to force yourself to do actions, in less than 5 seconds. The whole idea is that your alarm rings and you count back 5-4-3-2-1- GO! That’s it. No snooze or “please, just 5 more minutes, mama”. (I highly recommend her books and her podcast too, to get practical tips without sugarcoating. Also, you can use the 5-second rule before every kind of decision in your life.)

  1. Coffee, coffee, coffee, and water

First things first, water. Water helps to wake up your body and of course after a nice (minimum) 8 hours of sleep you will be dehydrated, so you need it first. Someone just drinking a glass of water and that’s it. Someone is a tea or smoothie person. What works for you, Babe, no judgment here. But if you want to communicate with me and wish me to operate as a normal human being…well, better give me a coffee in the morning. 

I love to do my coffee because that’s another opportunity for me to think about my day, organize my tasks in my head, and enjoy the wonder of a sunrise or everything that I want. My soya-cinnamon-honey cappuccino is a guarantee of a perfect start to the day. 

  1. Write in my journal

That part of my morning is important because that is the time, when I sit down, drink my coffee, and let myself relax, feel what I have to feel, let go what I have to let go and also summarize the previous day. Usually, I am writing about my feelings, prepare my goals, make lists, organize my tasks, create plans, or just simply write what’s in my head. Here are no right or wrong things, no judgment, simply just notify my thoughts and my feelings. Our brain is a very nice and complicated muscle. Like all other muscles, it can be trained. Your “brain push-ups” are your thoughts. When you write about your thoughts, you train your brain, because it cannot be focused on anything else, only what you are writing. If you think and feel positive during the morning, you most likely have a good and happy day. (After all, I allowed myself to turn on my internet, and check messages, emails, and social media, for a maximum of 5 minutes!)

  1. Yoga (or any kind of exercise- just move your body)

And we arrived at the favorite part of my morning routine. I love yoga. I never thought it will be one of my favorite types of exercise, but it slowly became one. I do 15-30 minutes daily, depending on how much time I have left after writing. Usually, I use YouTube videos, but lately, I found out about the Boho Beautiful Yoga app and I love them. Juliana and Mark are a lovely couple and incredibly nice teachers and they have amazing yoga, pilates, and meditation videos, also they have a podcast, website, and YouTube channel. Also, they have some free programs which are so effective. Lately, I have done the 7 days Blissful Body Bootcamp series which was 15 minutes of yoga a day for 7 days… intense, and killer, but worth every minute.

The most import is that you do something for your body. Move a little bit. Do push-ups, lift weights, go for a run or a walk, dance in front of the mirror… doesn’t matter, just make sure you move a bit and check how you will feel. Movement creates endorphins as well as dopamine in your body, which are the “happiness hormones”. I think you get it now why it is important. 😉

  1. Learn while you get ready

Usually, after I finished my daily yoga, I start to prepare myself for the day: get dressed, brush my teeth, make my hair, etc. As I am a proper woman, it takes so many times. (Okay, not that many… average…30 minutes…or maybe sometimes more…whatever🙄) So I have time to train my mind. That means I listen to podcasts (yes, it is a kind of brand-new morning routine as you know from my previous podcast). I love it. I love the fact to use my time to learn something new and I do not waste a minute of my morning. So effective and energizing, at least that it causes me.

So, folks, that’s how I relax and get ready for my day. It became important to me to take care of my soul, my mind, and my body. Not just because everyone is getting older (of course except me), but it feels so good and this routine gives me a nice and calm vibe to start the day. Of course, I do have bad days, lazy days, or even moods, but still, my mornings are always calm and balanced. I do not say that this is the best recipe for everyone. We are all different…some of you are owls and like to stay up until late, so you will not wake up at 5.30 am to do all of this. Or even someone who has more energy during the afternoon (it could be a good afternoon routine too) will prefer to do these things then. Also, all of these things can be done at different times of the day or actually more often each day. The most important that we all need to take care of our mind, body, and soul to feel better and be better people. 😉

I hope you have a relaxed and nice November and if you are as much a Christmas freak as I am… well…the holiday season officially started!!!!! 😁

XOXO

Krisz😘

P.S.: For more fun, tips, relax, please follow Spitfire on Instagram and Facebook. 

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Podcast relax

Hello guys,

I hope you are doing well. I cannot believe it’s already November. One of my favorite months, because nature has amazing colors, everything is just slowing down and starting the preparation for the winter…or in my case for Christmas. 

I have started this part of the blog where I will share my recommendations, favorites, and things which helped me during the years of my positive journey. And this post will be one of my many recommendations. Also, I recently wrote about the importance of slowing down, so I bought a tip for you on how to educate while you are just stepping back a bit from your crazy busy life. November will be all about slowing down and relaxing. I plan to bring some tips about how to be more relaxed. It will be a very exciting month, I promise.

So what I have realized is literally 24 hours is not enough for me (okay “fun fact” that I am capable of sleeping like, and as much as a baby, but I need at least 8 hours of sleep to be able to function) to do everything I wish and also like to do. I like to do so many different things, such as Zumba, dance, meditation, yoga, eat ( one of my favorites), sleep, sometimes cook or bake, read, learn, etc. So I had no idea how I fit into my busy schedule of self-development. My best friend said that he loves listening to podcasts and my first reaction was: “Dude, I have no time and even I don’t like to listen to one subject, I love listening to music, but not people talking.” Guess what he introduced me to Joe Rogan’s podcasts (okay, I am a huge fan of Scott Eastwood, so the interview with him) and my whole world changed. Let’s make it something clear, I do not like to listen to thematic podcasts because I am never really sure which subject is interesting to me, but I love to listen to totally different subjects. However, positivity, mindset, self-growth, and well-being will always interest me. Since that interview, I became a huge fan of podcasts because finally, I have “time to learn” most easily and quickly. I love learning new stuff, but the fact that my mind is just as hyperactive as my entire self… Well, the classroom learning is just simply freaking me out. Staying over the books, and memories for hours, and the next day after the exam I will not remember for a word…yes, learning wasn’t my best hobby. Don’t get me wrong, I keep studying new things because I think self-development is one of the most important things in life because it challenges you, but not in a classical way…at least not for me.

Podcasts are the best classrooms. I can do the dishes, cleaning, walking and I can learn from the world’s leaders. You can be an expert about anything and you do not even have to pay a huge amount of money to learn from your idols, role models, or even from scientists. You can learn about anything…history, music, sports, social media, business, cars, money, entrepreneurs, well-being, etc. I started to listen to many podcasts depending on my mood. 

My favorites are (of course) Scott Eastwood’s Live Life Better; Oprah Winfrey and the Super Soul Conversations; Tony Robbins and The Tony Robbins Podcast; Joe Rogan and The Joe Rogan Experience; Mel Robbins and The Mel Robbins podcast…and one of my friend’s podcast is What Wild Women Wants with Rachel Rose (if you like spirituality and holistic health this will be your favorite). One of the newest is Archetypes with Megan (yes, Duchess of Sussex), I always liked her as an actress and I do since then. I listen to many more, but not all. 😅

I think this type of education is amazing and makes it easier and quicker to study different areas of the World. What I have learned since I started my “positive journey”, never stops growing. You always need to challenge yourself and be an expert in as many areas of life as you can, because when you feel alive, you can feel confident. Even if you think you know something, just question that knowledge and be open to new opinions, and new views, so you will keep continuing to grow.

I know many of you are just laughing now and saying: “welcome to the 21st century Babe.”, “Podcasts are so obvious and everyone listening to them, where do you come from”. Well, you are right, but as I said so many times in my previous posts, everyone has the “click” or as Oprah says ” aha” moments when the time has come for them to be ready to get the information.🥰

I love you all. Listen to podcasts!!!! 😅

XOXO,

Krisz🥰

P.s: Quotes will be back soon. As I mentioned earlier November will be all about how to slow down.  If you don’t want to miss anything, please follow the Spitfires on Instagram and/or Facebook. 😘

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Slow down!

Hello guys,

I hope you are all well and enjoying the beauty of the fall. I know I have not posted for a while here or on my social media, but I had to slow down. 

I am a very energetic, hyperactive and always on the move person. Never stop! Stop? Sit down? Relax? Never really was in my vocabulary. To be honest, during the past years I have gotten better, but I am still addicted to stress. I couldn’t leave without it. Well, now I had no other chance, because life just actually did shut me down.

Two weeks ago I got a really bad cold. People who know me, also know that cold never stopped me from working and especially never forced me to stay in my bed…at least not longer than a day. I have spent five whole days in my bed, having tea, medicine and everything to get better. I literally couldn’t get out of my bed, I physically wasn’t able to do so.

And that made me think about the importance of slowing down, stopping, relaxing and listening to my body. 

I believe that your body and your soul are always telling you what to do and what is the best for you. I worked a lot, never stopped stressing, I had so many activities after work too, the blog, the pictures, the new projects which I have just started…well I got overwhelmed and my body physically stopped me and saved me from myself.

In my opinion a cold or any kind of illness has two parts:

a.) Physical. This is clear, your body is tired and needs to stop to recover.

b.) Emotional. It can be any kind of “negative” (or how I call “emotions that no longer serves you”) emotions.

I believe that we only will be better for good, if we start with the emotions part. We need to find out how we hurt ourselves, not always consciously, sometimes we do not even realize. Sometimes these are “small” things (at least no one even thinks about those that can affect us in a really bad way) such as guilt, sadness, judging, and negative self-talk. 

Have you ever caught yourself you made a mistake and you just said “oh, I am so stupid”…do you see my point? We don’t think it could hurt. Or what about when you see someone on the tube and you start “really, did she/he not have a mirror, what does she/he looks like”?…yes my friends, pure judgment. I could tell you a million other examples, but I think you got it.

We are always so busy in our everyday life…grab the kids from school, cook something for dinner, go to work, do some exercise, even we stressing ourselves when we try to relax…our mind is not relaxing even when we finally dedicated the time to do so…how many of you just sit down to watch a movie and in the meantime you thinking about that you need to go to grocery shopping the next day, make the presentation on time, need to visit the parents, etc. My special favorite, that’s what I do most of the time: schedule X amount of time to read, exercise, even with meditation and during my relaxing “me time”, I can’t relax, because I am constantly checking my clock, just to make sure I will not spend one extra minute on each “task”, because than the whole schedule will be screwed up. Yes… I know, it is so pathetic that I am stressing about my relaxing time. 

What I want to say here is that please listen to yourself. And now I see someone’s eyes are rolling and asking me the magic question: How? Well, that’s easy, just ask yourself frequently “What would make me happy?”. That’s it. And let it go. Don’t force the answer. Maybe today it will be a bunch of flowers or a cake…cool, do it. (Maximum tomorrow you will spend an extra half an hour on the gym🤷🏼) Go for a walk, call a friend, watch a movie, have a glass of wine…whatever makes you feel happy, but ask and listen!!!! Don’t wait until your body shuts you down…trust me it will do it sooner or later.

Fall is about to slow down and prepare for the winter. As nature transforms itself and starts to prepare, slowing down, we should do the same. During the summer we collected a lot of energy from the long days, from the experiences during the holidays, we spent so much time in the sun, we did it to be prepared for the colder months. As the days get shorter, everyday is getting darker, our body must be slowed, must be prepared.

I will try to share with you from my life and my preparation as much as I can, to do it together and slow down together. So follow the blog on Instagram and Facebook to get tips to slow down and ask as many questions as you like. Even a Spitfire allowed to slow down and relax a bit. ❤

I love all of you so much! ♥️

XOXO

Krisz🥰

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Hungary vs Italy: The wedding competition – part 2😉

Hello Everyone and welcome back!

I know, I know, I am always late with the posts and I am so sorry, but I am a very busy woman (I must live my life, so I can deliver new stories, once I put my ass down and finally write them). But now I am back and as I promised, I will let you know how it was at the Italian wedding.

Before I start, I would like to dedicate this post to the couple, my dear friends and say Thank you that I can be there and you shared your happiness with me, but most importantly Thank you for being such amazing friends and part of my family. I love you to the Moon and back guys!❤

So let’s get the party started!

In Italy they will skip the coming and going part between the 2 houses, but the groom’s family and friends are gathered in his house and the bride’s side of the guest in her family house.

By the way, in Italy the groom cannot see the bride until the church doors open… trust me, I am one of the “cold hearted woman” and I do not get cry so easily, but when the doors was open and I saw my best friend as real Princess (btw she is always like a Princess and she never believe me)… well though Krisztina started to cry. It was worth everything to see her and her husband’s happiness on that day.

 As I mentioned in my previous post in Italy the couple can do the government and the church wedding in the church, so both are placed in a very nice church in Udine. The guest arrived and everyone was waiting outside until the very last moment (when the bride arrived) in front of the church. Once the bride’s car arrived (and before obviously she came out of it), everyone just went inside the church and had their seat. (My friends created a kind of booklet with the ceremony, so we could follow the ceremony. If you know Italian, but that does not matter.) Previously I told you, I understand a bit of Italian and the ceremony was really nice and the priest was such a cool and funny guy. After the ceremony ended, it was rice, bubbles, flowers, and everything you can imagine. (This is similar in Hungary too.) Everyone had a chance to take pictures with the couple  or of them. 

When the ceremony/ceremonies over the real party has started. As I said in my previous post, both countries’ weddings continue in the same way… “GO TO EAT!”🤣Well in Italy we have been in a really nice castle on the top of a hill… trust me (now you can be jealous, all of you) the view was absolutely breathtaking. I attached some pictures for you guys, but these are nothing compared to being there… If you don’t feel that finally you are alive in that place…well you will never feel it anywhere else. The hills, the nature, the whole milieu…It was such an experience.

Back to the wedding, both countries love the welcome drinks part, but in Hungary we prefer the alcoholic, especially spirits… okay, okay, I am not trying to market better, Pálinka. 😀In Italy they are more sophisticated, so different kinds of wines, lemonade (most amazing I have ever tasted in my life- sorry Mum),  and water with ice, so you can cool down a bit in the 40 degrees. (It took place on the front garden of the castle and trust me the view was absolutely “disgusting”) The couple arrived with in a very nice old timer car and that’s another different point, because they just stopped and let everyone take pictures of them or with them, while in Hungary you do it only after the wedding ceremony.

And finally we are on the food part! I know, I started to get hungry too. But in the traditional Hungarian wedding everyone sits around the tables and starts the dinner, in Italy first you have a huge buffett…I don’t even try to write you down all the food was served there and I don’t think that everyone ever described a word how delicious it was!!!!! (This kind of “dinner” started to take place in Hungarian weddings too, but as I said this kind of thing really depends on  the couple.) But seriously guys… you have no idea how much food is there!!!!! (Funniest thing that my best friend- THE WIFE- asked me how the food was and was it enough?????? Are you kidding me??? Have you seriously asked that question????😮🙄🤣) You know, what… I think the pictures will say everything… and that was only the buffet. The couple was the first to eat and when they had picked up their preferences, the rest of us started to have “something”.

After everyone finished with the buffet the couple took pictures with everyone on the top of the hill, behind a very nice view. They made sure they have pictures with all the family and friends and also some just the two of them.

When you think you are full with all the best Italian stuff and had a walk around the place, made your picture with the couple, discovered the gardens, with flower swings, gates, (yes, you read it correctly, a Flower Swing!) swimming pool, woods and everything else you can not even imagine, someone just says that the dinner is about to start…WTF???? Really?? I have just eaten a whole pig with every kind of cheese, vegetable, sausages, the most amazing bread I have ever tasted and I was much more rolled down the hill than walking, now we just “start the dinner”!!! Don’t laugh guys, it was so serious. 😅Not just a bit of food… nooooo… 5 course menu…5!!!

Well, I have attached the picture of the menu, so you can have a look at it…don’t even bother myself to write it down…no.

During the dinner, between the courses the couple walked around, played the shoe game, which I think I have mentioned in the Hungarian wedding, because that is similar and you were allowed to take pictures of yourself which ended up in a photo album as a memory for the couple. 

At this point I would like to say how lovely, nice, kind and friendly the Italian nation is. My friends created an “English table”, so me and my best friend sat at the table where everyone spoke English too and they were lovely. I have not felt for a moment that I have not belonged there. Even though it was clear that some of them have known each other for a long time, they welcomed us as they have known us for so long. It was another amazing experience to meet with those lovely people.

Once we “survived” (no, not finished, survived) the dinner, guess what was waiting for us outside in the garden????? I know you can get this.😅 YES, more food!!!!!!!!🤣 Fruits, cakes, every kind of sweets and…and…a CHOCOLATE FONDUE… I think that was the point where I just put my hands up and said: “I will die by eating, but at least in the most beautiful place I have ever been!” By the way, that was the “rest time” before the party started and 3 people brought out the Wedding Cake!!!!!🤣 I love Italian people, I do! They know how to enjoy life (or at least how to eat without dying) and I think the rest of the World should learn from them this mentality!

It was a lovely cake cutting ceremony with fireworks and Ed Sheran’s Perfect song… yes, I cried there too…and what?!😅 Pictures say it better than me, how lovely it was.

After that started the dance. Of course the couple opened it and after their dance, everyone started to enjoy the night. The bar was open, the people were happy and all went absolutely perfect. Italian weddings do not continue until the morning and I was really happy about it, because it was a long day before (that’s another story), but in the meantime I wish I could be there forever…in that place, with those people and just feel the happiness that was there… to see and feel the pure love, gratitude, joy and all the positive energy in the World. 

Before we left my friends surprised us with the “Thank you gift”, which was a bottle of the local wine which was made for that castle specifically and a bit of local sweets, but the surprise wasn’t those things… I knew from the beginning that they are lovely people and I will do anything to keep them as friends forever…but they have even thought about our families and sent them gifts too.

Well it was one of the most amazing weddings I have ever been to and not only because of the fact that it was in one of the most beautiful places, not because it was in Italy, which is one of my favorite places on Earth…nooo… because I saw my friend’s happiness. I love you guys so much and I wish you all the best. I wish all your dreams will come true and be as happy as you have been on that day for the rest of your life.💞

XOXO,

Krisz💞

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Egyéb kategória This is how we do it!

Hungary vs Italy: The wedding competition – part 1😉

Traditional Hungarian wedding

Hello,hello

As I mentioned a long time ago, I want to make a site where I will see the differences between nations, cultures, traditions, foods and so many other things based on my discovery. I am so excited about these “projects”, because I really love to talk to people. As you know I live in London, which is a beautiful cultural mass, so I am in the best place to do it.☺️ I hope you will enjoy reading these, just as much as I enjoyed writing them.

I am so lucky that one of my best friends is Italian and her (now) husband too. So when they invited me to attend their wedding, I felt so excited and so honored. Especially because they are one of the best couples I have ever met. Their love story and how they live their life is so inspiring.
So what’s the difference between an Italian and a Hungarian wedding? Well I have no idea where I start the list.😅 (Here I want to make a note that I love weddings and doesn’t matter where they take place, I just generally love them, so both nation’s weddings are incredibly and of course these are just general differences,due to a wedding is always based on the couple’s style.)
Let’s start with my nation’s, The “Traditional ” Hungarian wedding. The wedding starts with the groom going to the bridge’s house with all the invited people and asking the bride from her father. Live band escorts him to the house and the bride’s family offers small cakes or pastries with some drinks (of course alcohol) to the people who came to the house to see the “ceremony”. Some couples hire a ceremony master, some use the maid of honors, it really depends on the couple. (This is an old tradition, nowadays this part often will be skipped.) After that the whole crew must go to the groom’s house and ask the groom from his mother. (Again cakes, drinks, music, fun and some couples skip this part too.)
Once they have both been asked out from their parents, everyone goes to the church or the local council, it is absolutely up to the couple which will be the first place or nowdays the church wedding is not really a part of the weddings, due to not that much place in the World accepting the marriage which was only blessed by the church and not by the government. But if the couple decides to go to have both, they usually go to the church first. And that part is similiral in Italy, only they can do both the government and the church wedding in the church. Okay at this point I would like to make a note that I do not speak Italian, but I can understand a lot, so based on my “piccolo” Italian, the ceremony is quite the same, unless in Italy some guests say speeches about the couple, while in Hungary we are not allowed to do that. Shoulders must be covered in both countries in the church and that’s okay. (Another quick note that it was a christian catholic wedding- and I am christian too.)

After the ceremony in Hungary there is some rice, flowers, bubbles and whatever you want. Also there is the part where the guest is allowed to make “official” pictures with the couple, due to after the ceremony the couple usually goes to their chosen “photography place” where the official wedding pictures will be made. These pictures will be sent to the guests who were there, family members, to take as memories and the couple usually ask for an album for themselves as well.
While the couple is busy being photographed…Both countries’ weddings continue in the same way… “GO TO EAT!”🤣And trust me if I say both nation are really obsessed with the food part. The entire World knows that Italians are so into food and fashion… well Hungarian too. So you end up at the party place. It can be anywhere… restaurants, bars, cafes, fields, tents, castles, etc… anywhere where the couple like to have their wedding. This really depends on the couple, the number of attendees, the food, the type of the party or the theme of the wedding.
Once you arrive at the party place the first thing is…yes, you are right, drinks. 😅 It could be spirit, champagne, wine,etc. The most important thing is that you have to have your welcome drink.
The Continuation of the day is a bit different in each wedding, because in places you just sit down and be ready for the dinner or some couple choose to do their first dance before the meal is served or starts with some wedding games. The tradition is that the people have some cakes, talk a bit, drink a bit and once the couple arrives the dinner starts. Usually there is a siting plan, due to next to your name will be the wedding favours gift. The traditional Hungarian wedding menu includes chicken soup, which is always the start served with the vegetable and the chicken itself. Then comes the fried,baked and cooked meats/ vegetables (mostly pork, chicken and/or beef; fried mushrooms, cheese, cauliflower, etc.) with mashed potatoes, chips, rice, fresh salads, sauces, pickled onions and girkin, etc. The end comes the cakes … lots of different kinds of cakes. The menu is massive, but it is necessary otherwise you cannot drink… which is a very important part of the wedding. During the dinner, between two courses we do wedding games (it is kind of similar in Italy and the games too). The groom should take the bride’s garter with his teeth…or the quiz game where they have each other’s shoes and have to pull up the right shoe to answer the questions…the story telling game, where they involve the guests too. The ceremony master starts to tell a fairytale and each person has their own character. When you hear your character in the story you have to stand up…if you miss it or you stand up at the wrong time …well, you must drink.
After the dinner the couple danced their first dance (same in Italy) and the party officially started. The traditional music is the traditional Hungarian gypsy music from a band, but it can be a DJ too who plays the popular ’80 and ’90 songs.

A bit later the couple cut the wedding cake and the party continued with dance and drink, drink and dance until midnight… midnight they start to serve the traditional Hungarian stuffed cabbage, which is actually meatballs with cabbage…one of my favourite part of the weddings.😅 And in the meantime the couple goes and change their dresses from white to red, the symbol of that the bride is now officially a wife and a groom became a husband. Once this happens it will start the New wife dance… So traditionally the wife has to dance with all the male guests and the new husband dances with the female guest. Before the guests start their own dance with the couple they have to “pay” for this dance (the couple’s parents have a huge pot and the guests put their wedding gift- usually an envelope with money- into the pot). When everyone finished with them and paid for their dance it started another funny game. The New wife has a broom and the new husband has a dustpan. The guest throws the coins into the floor and they have to collect it all in a bucket, but the guest always continues to throw the bucket to the floor. Once all the coins are in it, the party counts until dawn. Usually the Hungarian weddings finish somewhere between 4am and 6am.
Every Hungarian has a little bit of Spitfire in them, especially if it is about a wedding 😅
Huh, I didn’t realize until I finished with how long this post is, so I will let you know about the Italian wedding in my next post which will be published very soon, I promise, so please check my Instagram, Facebook or just like the blog below the post so you will not miss anything.😘

Love all of you and I hope, I will have you all here tomorrow to see the Italians.😘

XOXO,

Krisz