Last Blog Post from Europe (London, this time!)

Jessica and Megan Watts here, blogging aboard the plane to London. We’ve had an amazing time debriefing in Budapest, Hungary for the past two days. We got in on Wednesday morning and headed straight to the Maverick Hostel. It was a beautiful building and our team had its own floor! It fit our team perfectly, with the girl’s room having 12 beds- one for each of us! From the hostel, we walked a short distance to a restaurant for a much-needed Hungarian brunch- after 15 hours, we all wanted food, real food. We devoured omelets, croissants, brioches, toast, fruit, and sausage… rather quickly. As Josh Bunting said, “This was the best meal of my entire life!”

We then took the tram to an old Basilica where we took a tour of the inside and then climbed 450 steps to the top of the dome. It was a breathtaking view of the city- including the river, rolling hills, and gorgeous buildings. After walking (or taking the elevator) back down, we stopped for gelARTo… yes, gelato art! We had different flavors all shaped into a beautiful rose on the cone. Not to mention, it was delicious!

Next, we headed to an old castle for quiet time. We took a trolley cart almost vertically up the mountain and then headed to find a comfortable spot to journal, think, or for some- nap. After a nice walk, with a few detours, down the mountain, we headed across the bridge to begin our elegant dinner cruise along the Danube River. We got to experience an array of different foods, a setting sun behind the city and a string quartet that sang “Happy Birthday” to our own TAYLOR MCGRATH!

Then we got to climb up to the top of a amazing lookout in Budapest, called the Citadel! Even though we were tired and it was a little colder, and there were a lot of stairs- we got to the top and were amazed to see the city at night. Then we got into a circle to debrief as a team and talk about what we had experienced at camp and in Craiova. We huddled together and really got deep into the conversation.

The next morning, we woke up to breakfast being cooked by Josh and myself (Jessica).We had eggs, cereal, yogurt, and… BREAD! Along with fresh fruit and juice J

Then we headed out to a small island for more team and alone time. We all got the chance to write to notes to each other and begin talking about coming home. We then got the chance to spend some time journaling by the river or fountain.

For the next two hours, we got the opportunity to spend some time in small groups eating lunch and shopping for gifts. This gave us all the opportunity to get the food we had been craving- some had burgers, other Italian, some enjoyed a slice of pizza and others enjoyed sandwiches at the juice bar. After spending time together, we headed to the Thermal Baths for relaxation. It was a unique experience to sit in a menthol sauna, see Lief act out his Koala impression, and be pushed in circles by the whirlpool.

Not too far from the baths, was an old castle, where we ate dinner like kings and queens. We enjoyed chicken or beef with a delicious sauce over it and mixed with spaetzal (not to be confused with schnitzel).

We had our final debrief session where we finished writing notes to each other and then discussed our feelings about coming home and what it will be like. We got some alone time to think things through and journal and then closed in prayer. We ended with the whole team breaking into the song “Lean on Me” one last time.

We can’t wait to see your smiling faces when we arrive home this evening. We have so many stories to share, but don’t bombard us too much as it will probably feel like 3a.m. to us! We love and miss you like crazy! See you soon.

Logging off one last time from (London Heathrow International Airport!),
Jessica FloRida and Meg aWatt