Celebrating a blue country in a former red state

Michael and I just returned from a thermal spa, so I am exceptionally relaxed and am resisting the urge to crawl back in bed. We went to Szechenyi bath, which has a combination of inside baths and three large outdoor pools. Soaking in a steaming bath, watching old men play chess and laughing at the ridiculous European Speedo was a perfect way to spend a gray Sunday afternoon.

We've been back in Budapest since Tuesday, when we took the train into the city to catch an election night party, sponsored by the American Embassy and American Chamber of Commerce. The party, which was held at this swanky hotel up the street from me, was packed full of Americans. I forget that there are that many professionals from the states here; the party could have been plunked down in any American city. Since the results of the election didn't start pouring in until about 2 a.m. Budapest time, we just kept ourselves occupied by indulging in the all-you-can-eat American buffet, complete with chicken nuggets, hotdogs and potato salad. We didn't hear the results of the election until the following morning, when Mike woke me up to tell me McCain had won. Luckily, I rarely take anything he tells me seriously, so I hadn't lost faith that Obama had achieved victory. While I am pleased that Obama won for many, many reasons, I am especially relieved to finally have a president in office that Europeans seem to respect, which is quite the opposite of what we have now. My hope is that American's image is improved with the new candidate, and that he continues to build strong alliances with both Americans and foreigners alike.

Last weekend in Zagreb we didn't end up celebrating Halloween, because there weren't any festivities that we were aware of, but we did take part in All Souls Day, or Day of the Dead, on Nov. 1. On this day, people flock to the cemeteries to show respect for their relatives by cleaning off their graves and leaving candles and fresh flowers. Zagreb has one giant cemetery, where people waited in line by the hundreds in the city center for the buses that took them there. Mike and I went just shortly before dusk, and walked around the grounds, watching thousands and thousands of people come in and out, and Michael took some beautiful photos. This day of reverence was incredibly touching and beautiful in an eerie way. As the sun set, the cemetery was enveloped by candlelight, especially in front of the war memorials.

What most intrigued me about this holiday is why we don't honor it in the United States. Perhaps Memorial Day is close, but nothing close to the scale of Day of the Dead in Europe, South America or Mexico. The more Mike and I talked about it, the more I realized just how little Americans discuss death, nonetheless devote a day to thinking about it. I think it would do our constant forward-thinking culture wonders to reflect more, especially about those we have lost.