Eight is Enough

Upon our arrival in Budapest, we took several forms of public transportation (there's more than one way to transport dirt and debris and incidentally, some people via public transport) until arriving near St. Stephen's Basillica. Practically in the shadow of St. Stephens was our youth hostel. Inside of our youth hostel was our room, and inside of our room was 8 beds.

Oftentimes, this sort of housing arrangement leads to uncomfortable situations where some roommates want to stay up until late and disturb everyone else, etc. However, intelligent, sensitive people realize that there are ways around this problem without the dreaded "just go to bed" option being activated.

Of course, I am referring to inviting everyone out for a night on the town.

Genuis struck. A group was formed. 7 of the 8 roommates were recruited (the other was no where to be found) and Budapest was now under seige.

A word on the make up of our group. Out of seven people, 5 were trial lawyers (The Legal Pad plus 2 jolly Irishman), 1 was in international finance (taking the year off. What a jolly idea), and the last one was a college student from England studying Embryology.

The night started off innocently enough with a conversation about public health care and capitalism from the English point of view. Then it moved into the irish situation, their economics, Roman Catholic theology and how it relates, their policing habits and how it differs from ours and why, traditional European power, the rise of China and how it relates to international finance, trial courts here, in Ireland, and other parts around the world, great literature, and of course, "The Simpson's."

More facts and figures were thrown around the room than mentioned in a month's full of stateside conversations and the next thing I knew, it was 5 AM and "welcome to a Budapest sunrise!" It really didn't seem like 5 AM. Actually, maybe it was only 4.

But it just goes to show that put a bunch of entertaining people together and the dullest place in the world becomes a vacation wonderland.

Yes, Budapest could very well be the dullest place in the world.

MB