Here I was in Europe and I wasn't enjoying any soft, warm Hungarian hospitality and living at Susie's flat negated going out to sample the night life. Well, that and the money thing.

So, there I was, thousands of miles from home, lonely, broke and sexually frustrated, dreaming of being a star in Hungary's porn industry which taunted me on late night tv while Susie slept in the other room.

Still, there were some nice moments:

- The first night, walking along the Danube, simply in awe that I was actually in Europe. A dream come true that brought a tear to my tired eyes.

- Being cynically entertained by a charlatan German hypnotist who bilked Susie and her friends out hundreds of dollars each at a stop smoking seminar. None of them quit.

- Getting drunk on three bottles of Hungarian red wine in a Romanian owned Italian restaurant.

- Riding the trams free all month then getting caught by the Ticket Control Tram Cops on my second last day.

- Leaving Susie in a fit of hysterical laughter as we ran across St. Stephens Basilica towards our cab (the meter was running as we took some last minute pictures).

I tripped on the stonework as we raced back to the cab, shoulder rolled, stood up and kept running all in one motion (thanks to martial arts and muscle memory I managed to make tripping into a display of agility). With my new brown fedora she said I reminded her of Indiana Jones and she expected me to reach back for my hat.

Weighing the pros and cons, I actually didn't want to leave during the last few days. I almost stayed.

I had $1500 available on my Visa and considered visiting other countries, meeting friends from Winterwind, or exploring a relationship with Krisztina.

Krisztina was one of my students, an intelligent, beautiful woman I was drawn to. And her to me it seemed.

Before I returned to Canada, we went for a coffee. We talked, but with the language barrier, I was still unsure if it was mutual or if I was misreading her.