First stop: Budapest, Hungary. The first leg of the trip was work. Well, kind of. We were treated like kings and it didn't really feel like work. The pics above are shots from my room as well as the gym in the hotel. Beautiful.
The drama started in Chiang Mai, Thailand when I had to go shopping for "business casual" dress for the conference. Two friends of my made the trek to the Chiang Mai mall -- which actually felt like a mall anywhere in the world. We together decided on khaki pants, a striped shirt and brown shoes... not too shabby Thailand. I was ready to go and got on the plane for Europe.
When I arrived in Budapest after a layover in Bangkok and Paris, and over 20 hours of traveling, I had no luggage. Yup they lost it, with my new clothes. The Parisians were probably too busy smoking and worrying about baguettes and the Eiffel tower to not get my bag on the plane :)
I once again had to go shopping because we had our first "meet and greet" a couple hours after I arrived. Thanks to H&M I got myself a new look - much more European this time!
The week in Budapest was great! It is an amazing city, with so much to see and do. With a week full of talks, city tours, karaoke bars, and the baths, it was fantastic. Made cities in Western Europe feel overrated. Try it yourself.
Prague, Czech Republic. It was just a matter of getting in touch with my roots, considering I think I am 1/8th Czech. Wow did it feel like home ;) I loved it! The architecture, weather, people and beer are hard to beat. Although the city is full of tourists - myself included - there are so many places to run off to and escape the crowds - like their version of the Eiffel tower (see above). I highly recommend Prague -- get there!
