William Penn Life, 2010 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2010-11-01 / 11. szám
Magyar Matters Hungarian Room Committee Summer Scholar Postcards to history by Andrew Behrendt This summer, I was the lucky recipient of the Hungarian Room Scholarship. With these funds, I spent seven weeks in the libraries, archives and (naturally) cafés of Budapest studying the history of travel, tourism and foreign student exchange in interwar Hungary. The ultimate purpose of my expedition was to gather materials for what I hope will become a Ph.D. dissertation in history at the University of Pittsburgh. One of the more memorable experiences—though these were many—unfolded among the cluttered shelves and tables of a Budapest antikvárium (second-hand bookstore). It was on Baross Utca, around the corner from the Ervin Szabó Library, a favorite haunt of mine. I had been lured there, on a friend's tip, by the prospect of rummaging through stacks of old postcards from the years between the two world wars. The tip was a good one: piles-mountains, almost—of unsorted cards awaited my arrival. After observing some initial polite restraint, I fell upon them with the goofy enthusiasm of a child. A good while passed as I sifted through the chaotic boxes. The shopkeeper, made curious by my greedy rooting, showed off the collection: fine specimens here! But soon enough he learned that I was a historian, and moreover an American, for whom Magyar was an acquisition of struggle, not a native blessing. He engaged me with that baffled question I have occasionally, though invariably, been asked when abroad: why are you interested in Hungary, in us? I never have ready answers—not because they are few, but precisely because their numbers overwhelm me. So I told him about my research, in the best terms my skills in the language could allow; about how interesting I find Hungary, how beautiful its capital. I could not tell him, though, of my debt of inspiration to Kosztolányi and the famous encounter between Kornél Esti and the Bulgarian ABOUT THE AUTHOR Each year, the Hungarian Room Committee of the University of Pittsburgh awards financial assistance to students enrolled at the university to help defray the costs of their summertime studies in Hungary. This year’s recipient was Andrew Behrendt, a graduate student working towards his Ph.D. in history. He earned his bachelor’s degree in history from Grinnell College in Iowa. He plans to pursue a career as a scholar and teacher of European history. conductor: how, in the difficult handwriting of those postcards, I sought a kind of wordless connection to travelers from a complicated place. What made them go? What did they see in Brussels, Marienbad or Christiana that was, in fact, worth writing home about? And what, to flip the inquiry, brought travelers to Hungary, and what drove them to mail their own notes in the other direction? In the end, I returned home with my own modest collection of postcards. I returned, in fact, with reams of documents from the Ervin Szabó, the Széchenyi Library, and the National Archives. Most of all, I returned with the foundations of a dissertation-and with them, the beginnings of answers to my questions. My debt to William Penn Association and the Hungarian Room Committee is as great as their generous support for my research. None of what I was able to accomplish this summer would have been possible without it. My sincerest gratitude goes to them-and in particular to Mr. John L. Lovász, Mrs. Mária Bistey and Prof. Ágnes Huszár Várdy, from whom I very proudly accepted my award. Thank you all. Ö Pitt’s Nationality Rooms to host holiday open house PITTSBURGH — The Nationality Rooms of the University of Pittsburgh invite everyone to a Holiday Open House to be held Sunday, Dec. 5, from noon to 4:00 p.m. The 27 rooms, each designed and furnished in the traditions of various European, Asian and African cultures, are located in the university's Cathedral of Learning in the Oakland section of the city. From now until Jan. 14, the rooms will be decorated in the holiday traditions of each nationality. During the open house, guides in ethnic dress will describe the history and meaning of each room's decor. The open house will also feature performances of holiday dances and customs every 15 minutes, as well as ethnic foods, craft demonstrations and an ethnic marketplace. The open house is free of charge. The rooms may also be visited weekdays and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Sundays from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The rooms will be closed Thanksgiving Day, Dec. 24 to 26 and New Year's Day. From Dec. 27 to 31, guided tours will be available each day on a firstcome first-served basis from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. On weekends (except Dec. 27 and 28), narrated taped tours are available without prior reservation. The last tours are dispatched each day at 2:30 p.m. Tour fees are $3 for adults and $1 for students ages 8 to 18. To learn more, visit the Nationality Rooms website at www.pitt. edu/~natrooms, or call 412-624-6000. 12 0 November 2010 0 William Penn Life
