We first flew to Budapest to meet with Gabi Papp, who had stayed with us years ago as a Rotary exchange student when he went to Rifle High School. The week after my niece’s wedding in Germany in June, 2006, we visited Gabi at home in Debrecen, Hungary. It was a memorable experience, and when we left we told him that we’d come back either when he was elected Prime Minister of Hungary or got married. Apparently, (and unfortunately for his country, but good for him) politics are not in his future, but Kitti Karakas was.
We arrived at the bustling and confusing Budapest airport at the same time as his younger brother Balint flew in from a trip to revisit old friends from his Rotary exchange experience in Mexico, and we connected at the baggage claim area. The Papp family first took us to their vacation villa on the beautiful Lake Balaton, then after a couple of days recovering from jet lag, and touring the wine country, several ancient and historic areas, and a mineral spa, we went to Budapest for the wedding. Which was remarkable:
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We won the prize for the guests who came the farthest to attend the wedding.
Gabi, his wife, and their families could not have been more gracious, and except for the heat and humidity in Budapest, everything was perfect. We were ready to travel overnight to South Africa.