Central Europe Reflections - Kara Messenger

So far this trip to Central/Eastern Europe has been very interesting and enjoyable. We have experienced Budapest and Vienna so far and have Bratislava and Prague to look forward to. I enjoyed Budapest very much despite the fact that I was a little turned off by the apearance of the city while driving through it from the airport. My first impression of it was that it was very run-down with urban art and overgrown grass everywhere. However, after our tours I was able to appreciate the most beautiful parts of the city including both the 'Buda' and 'Pest' areas. Corvinus University was also extremely interesting. I was very impressed with the women leaders we were set up with and enjoyed talking to them about their experiences living and working in Hungary. Some common trends I have noticed throughout our discussions involve women's challenges dealing with their work/life balance, how much their looks have contributed to their success, and how much family support plays a role in their success. I am particularly interested in how these remarkable women have balanced both work and life as I plan to become a mother as I pursue my career. I am looking forward to meeting the women scientists of Vienna tomorrow; however, I wish we would be able to directly ask them about their experiences as women in the workforce, as that is the basis of this course. I suppose that the cultural difference of not being able to politely ask those questions is a strong statement in itself and we should ask other creative questions to discover what it takes to be successful in this city as a woman. As far as culture shock is concerned, I am doing okay even though it is my first time in Europe. Everything is so beuatiful here and I wish we had more time in each city to experience all the things they have to offer.