We were very lucky to have Derek’s college roommate Scott and his wife Kaylin and daughter Kali come visit us before the whole world shut down with the Coronavirus pandemic. They flew into Vienna and went straight to Budapest for some sightseeing before coming to Pápa to get a feel for life here in Hungary. It was a real treat to be able to meet their little bambino and share such quality time together here! Scott was so sweet and brought us a bag full of American goodies including marshmallows, taco seasoning and Jell-O! The kids were so excited that we made Jell-O right away. What a hit!

We took them on a little walking tour around Pápa, making sure to show them the cathedral, castle, town square and walking streets. The noted the colorful buildings and laid back feel of the town.

We had beautiful weather the whole time, allowing us to catch a terrific Hungarian sunset from the Döbrönte ruins. This is one of the spots we love to bring visitors – and its clear why!

Kali is such a cutie pie! She loved running around with the kids and didn’t want to be held back! The bigs learned how to climb up the side of the ruins, much to my chagrin.

What would a visit to Hungary be without some of the classic Hungarian dishes – goulash soup, porkolt, paprikas, gelato and kurtoskalacs!

On our last day we brought them to Panonhalma, a treasure of a place just northwest of us in Pápa. It was a perfect day to take in the views from the observation deck, grab a few souvenirs and have a beautiful lunch at the Viator restaurant near the Abbey. It may have been a whirlwind trip for this little family, but they sure packed in a lot of exploring in just one week!

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From Pannonhalma they went back north to Vienna for a day of exploring before flying back to the states. It was all so perfectly timed, and looking back on it a couple of weeks later, it’s hard to believe it even happened! The world has changed so much in a very short time – we have to savor these special moments as they are fleeting indeed! Thank you for coming all the way across the world to visit us, guys! It felt like you brought a little piece of home to us, and it meant the world!