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Maribor - a snapshot of this year’s European Capital of Culture

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Maribor, Slovenia

#busking #maribor #slovenia #guitar #stickers #dreadlocks

Day 9-11 - Graz, AU/Maribor, SLO

Graz was definitely one of the nicest places on the planet. Like I said, the people are so wonderful, so generous and so open.

I made friends with a lovely busker girl, Lena. She was playing the recorder. It was her first time busking, she just wanted to practice and she had a big bowl of cold water poured on her when she was playing in Sporgasse. Then I heard her, listened to her and when she finished I made conversation. She said that if I don't stop and listen to her, she would have probably given up busking once and for all. And what a waste it would be. She reminded me of early Allison Weiss.

Then there was a couple who were unfortunately always in a hurry. But they were always smiling at me from afar and giving out such positive energies. On my last day, the weather was kinda shit and the guy was just running barefoot in Sporgasse, he heard me, reached into his pocket and just threw everything in my hat. Including a sea-blue marble. Worths more than all the money I got that day.

There was a festival going on in Graz, the Murton. On Mariahilfer Platz, the concerts were and since my host had course in the evenings, I had to find some entertainment (ie people). I'm standing there all alone and so does a lady. So I just go up to her and say "You seem to be alone, I'm definitely alone. Let's be alone together." And that we did. She turned out to be a very cool person, along with her friends. They were so inspired by me, it was such a heart-warming couple of hours for me. She kinda reminded me of my godmother, and she gave me something that will be a great help to make more friends in my travels. Graz, mit vodka, past schon.

Then the troubles came. My host in Maribor canceled in the last minute. I couldn't find another host. It gave me a lot of headache. I said some nasty things about this city this morning to be honest. But how wrong I was. It is such an incredible city. The title, Europe's Cultural Capital absolutely applies. I haven't out much in the city, but it seems to be incredibly lively. The people are also very generous. I booked a room in a hostel for one night but after one hour of busking I made enough money for another night. So Maribor, get ready for me.

liaghtsout-deactivated20131010

It’s all about perspective.

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Graz, Austria

Day 6-7 - Vienna/Graz, AU

For the most part of my last day in Vienna I had no idea where I was. I went to this party, located in Trans-Danubia with a guy I met the day before. Nope, nothing bad happened. In fact, it was amazeballs. Friendly people drinking alcohol and having fun. I also met a male nurse who looked more like a model. Then we went outside on the roof to watch a meteor shower. Last year when I was watching, I remember wishing for a lot of things. Not this time. As I saw the first falling star, I thought "Quick, wish for something" But then I just couldn´t think of anything. I have love, friends, the road and my passions. It´s the best feeling in the world.

The next day I hopped on Adele´s old bike, guitar on my back, music in my heart. I just cycled around, without a destination and in about 20 minutes I got lost. But I didn´t mind. If a place seemed to be good for busking, I stopped, played my repertoire and moved on. I did that for 5 hours. Then we went to get ice-cream in Ma-Hü.

After that, it was travel time. From Vienna the A2 goes straight to Graz, but I obviously had to deter from the planned route. Because why the fuck not. The Austrian countryside is beautiful, why wouldn´t I want to see more of it. My first ride was with a single mother and her two young boys. They were listening to gypsy folk music. The eldest kid knew the words to every song but he looked like he was from the North. He kept talking to me in German and her mom translated. He was so cute. They dropped me off at a desolete tankstelle but I didn´t mind. I just sat in the grass and played music I was so happy. The scenery was great. Then I got a ride in a truck. He asked me to play in the cabin because he´s tired of radio. Then he gave me the highest honor a hitch-hiker can have. A tachograph. It´s a paper disc that is used to record the truck´s speed and movement. But as a hitch-hiker, waving this at trucks means that if they are going in the directions you´d like to get to, they will take you for sure. My last ride was with an elderly Austrian couple who were incredibly helpful. They weren´t even going to Graz, they just wanted to go around it but they thought I was intersting and fun, so they took me to a bus stop in the suburbs of Graz, told me which bus to take. In the bus stop there was a French girl. I asked her if I can buy ticket on the bus. She said probably. Then we just started talking. I told her my stories, she was so amazed by it. We exchanged numbers, invitations to our respective hometowns, hugged and said goodbye. I was so full of love when I arrived to my host´s place.

Graz is a wonderful city. The people are so lovely. I am completely blown away by it. And the busking laws are fair as well. You need to go to the Rathaus (the City Hall) and get the "daily ticket" for playing. The rules are fair as well. No amps are allowed and just playing drums is forbidden as well. I think I can make some good money while I´m here. So far, the buskers I saw weren´t exactly musicians. Most of them were just beggars with an instrument and there is a difference. But we´ll see I guess.

See you on the flip-side.

Day 4-5 - Vienna, AU

I could have a flat I can afford in Vienna. Adele, my host suggested that I should move here in a year or so. She´d be moving in with her boyfriend anyway, and having a friend follow her would be cool. That is kind of a game changer and definitely worth considering.

Yesterday sucked busking-wise. I tried Meidling Platz, nobody gave a fuck. A dog licked the hat and walked away and a couple of boys threw a cigarette in the hat. So I decided not to force things. So instead I went to a park, and started writing. A Bulgarian lady asks me if she could sit next to me with her baby. I nod and go back to writing music. She can only speak Bulgarian and we had the greatest conversation on the planet. She told me how she used to be a musician in her hometown and how they had to move to Vienna because of some money and mafia problems. And since she didn´t really understood what I was saying I just played some music for her. She seemed so into it, it was such a rewarding experience.

I am having a love affair with a cat. Mono loves me. On the first night he slept next to me. When I came back from the park, we continued our lovemaking. He kept climbing in my lap and rubbing up against my leg. Adele told me that his name means monkey in Spanish and he really is like a monkey. He climbs up everywhere.

In the evening we stayed in, drank wine and talked about everything and then the Becherovka made its way out of the fridge and we played "Never Have I Ever". I got to tell two very proud moments in my life: how I met Wolf Kati or how I helped a lost and drunk guy dressed in traditional Bavarian costume at 6 am in the morning while being piss drunk myself.

This morning we woke up quite late. Cleaned up the flat after last night. The weather was kinda bad, it rained a bit but while we waited, Adele suggested painting. On canvas. With fancy brushes and oil paint and things. It was so much fun. Last night she noticed that I use the word "szabad" (free) a lot in my songs. I never realized that. My need for freedom comes so naturally and it´s the most inspiring thing to me. There was a canvas that I previously used to make shoulder straps for my guitar case and we painted on the remaining parts. The result is uhmm...avant-garde. I really enjoyed creating new colours.

After that we went to Karlsplatz to busk a bit. People were really into it. Mostly tourists but it was so lovely. Adele was hanging out on the steps and drawing, clapping when I finished a song. I got a good amount of money. After that we decided to go look for a shop to get something to eat/drink. Guess who we run into? Hannah and Fabian, friends I made previously in Vienna via Couchsurfing. They were on their way to an exhibition about squats and anarchism in Wien Museum. It was time. Vienna is no longer my fuckbuddy. But I am okay with it. After all, I plan on asking her to marry me sometime...

Solidarity is a Waffle.

See you on the flip-side.

Vienese spirit animal

Mono, my couchsurfing host.

gegenrevolutionaerin

serbz

Subotica, Northern Serbia

Day 3 - Vienna, AT

Vienna is my fuckbuddy. Everytime I am here, I never do touristy shit. No museums, no history just alternative pubs, events and people. And as far as I am concerned it is staying that way. I am here to have a good time.

The way here started a bit depressing. Last night we were in the garden talking with my host until 4 am. Needless to say, I overslept. I missed the rush hour, so from Subotica to the border (30 km) I had about 5 rides. From village to village. I started hitch-hiking around 10 am and it was around noon when I got to the crossing. There was an incredibly long line but it all worked out. I started walking around, looking for cars from Vienna and asking them if they could take me. A Serbian guy and his son agreed to take me there. Weirdest car ride. The kid, Maxi spoke some English and Hungarian. So we were using about 4 languages to communicate. I had a brainfart by the time I got to my host in Vienna.

She is an ex-art student who decided she´d be better off with pedagogy and has a cat, named Mono. He is the cutest. I barely set foot in the apartment (a room and a kitchen) he was already rubbing up against my leg. We went out to meet some people in a place called "Nightasylum" and she gave me her old bike and the keys to her flat. As I am writing I am all alone in this tiny flat with the cat. I could see myself live in Vienna.

It just is not what you would expect. It is not this tired old city for classical music weirdos. There is so much happening, I can hardly sleep, there is so much to do. Maybe one day I will move here...

See you on the flip-side.

Day 2 - Subotica/Szabadka, SRB

Days like this are the reason why I'm alive. By the time I woke up, my host already made breakfast, bought the ingredients for dinner (which he is making as I'm writing...I'm spoiled, basically) and packed me some snacks. He works at an insurance company. He dropped me in the city center, directed me towards the Korzo and told me to meet in front of the city hall around 1 pm.

Before today I never really liked children. They were cute and all but I just couldn't relate to them. Today's busking adventure changed it all. Little Serbian kids were shaking their booty to songs like Black Me out by Against Me! and my heartbroken songs.

I got about 1500 RSD (13 EUR) but compared to Serbian standards it's more than enough for a night out. But the most precious thing was people's attitude. They loved me. It might've been my hair, the stickers on my guitar or my eyes, but some many people smiled at me. Also it was a nice surprise to see the mother of the family who gave me a ride from the border just passing on the other side of the street, waving frantically at me.

Then I came back to the house, had some wine, chilled out and practiced. I went back to the Korzo, around 7 pm. I played 2 songs when two girls came up to me saying that I'm at their place. Normally, a busking war would start: they'd just set up near me and see who's the loudest. But they came up to me, invited me to jam with them. They had a cello and a violin. Financially, it wasn't the best decision but I had the time of my life. They were lovely. As much as I love my host, we're not the same age and that can be a bit tiring. So I really enjoyed the company of like-minded young people. We bought a "prasica" (female pig) from the money we made together (2 litres of beer in a plastic bottle) sat down in the grass and I finally realized why I prefer the company of Hungarians who don't live in Hungary. They don't really like Hungarian Hungarians, as they call them. They had so much character and just this unbelievable zest for life. And for some weird reason they never judged me for my sexuality, political beliefs, (no) sense of fashion, dietary choices or preferred ways of travelling. Funny thing is, you'd think they are like the radical nationalist party in Hungary, but they are just as "liberal" ie. normal, regular people with a healthy view on life. Tehát, ha Dína meg Bernadett, ezt olvassátok, mégegyszer köszönöm a társaságot.

All in all, finally I didn't feel like I should've stayed in bed in a long time. This is a good start and I'm certain it'll only get better.

See you on the flip-side.

Day 1 - Subotica/Szabadka, SRB

I think I travelled with every archetype of drivers today. The old guy who hitch-hiked around Eastern Europe in their 20s, during the Soviet times. The classic truck driver, constanly yelling into the CB radio and occasionally offering you cigarettes and home-made alcohol. The family returning from a vacation and treating you as their prodigal daughter. The guy who has no fucking idea about hitch-hiking and adds an extra hour and a half to your plans.

As a musician, one of the red flags when I'm about to get into a car: bad music. I will not get into a car that is blasting trance music or listening to talk radio. So there was one guy who stood out from all the people who gave my rides today. He was a petrol station engineer or something and he was on his to Szeged from Hatvan. I was sitting in a car that would've taken me on M0 when I overheard him yelling to a co-worker that he's going to Szeged and as he opens the door, 70s Hungarian rock music is blasting through the speakers. I jump out the car, grab my shit and run over to him, asking if he could take me to Szeged. He said yeah, sure and we basically spent the way singing Piramis, P.Box and the like.

(Shout out to Strings of Rock and Roll, for introducing me to all these bands)

The last ride, with the family was the shortest yet the funnest. They picked me up at the border, thought I'm English, even though I was waving around my Hungarian ID right in front of them. But that's beside the point. The father was Hungarian and the mother was Serbian. The kids were bilingual but it was so weird. The eldest kid, barely spoke to me but the youngest kept bombarding me with questions in Hungarian. It was such a weird experience to listen to them speak with their cute accent, translating some things they didn't understand. They gave me a map of Subotica, called my host and gave me a lift all the way to the meeting point so that I don't have to wander around.

My host is a cutie-pie. He drives a white VW Beetle, has a winery and is 56 years old. The moment I put down my bag he was already in the cellar, asking me what type of wine I like. I replied "Sweet red." He walked upstairs with a bottle that said raisin wine. I highly suggest it. It's like an alcoholic syrup that tastes like raisin. I am sipping it as I'm writing these lines. So good. He drove me to Lake Palic which is nice, but the best part is the architecture of the buildings. I've never seen anything like it. I can't even describe it. The best part is that he can talk non-stop about anything. His family, his hobbies, history. Ask him a yes or no question about the most trivial shit on the planet and he'll present you with a PHd thesis on it.

Tomorrow it's busking time.

See you on the flipside.

Day 0 - Debrecen, HU

I can't sleep. It's 6 am and I am just not tired. I guess it's that unsettling feeling of a quiet few hours before a storm.

A couple of days ago a guy posted on facebook about how much he encourages young musicians to busk. "No manager, no stylist, no pressure. Just you, an instrument and everything that ever happened to you." It felt like a sign. I already planned this adventure, about a month before but I was having second thoughts. I didn't really feel ready or I just let others make me feel like I wasn't ready. But then I reminded myself that this discouraging attitude around me is exactly why I want to get such amazing experiences they can't even begin to dream of. Because they always see the negative.

They say "But anything can happen to you." To that, I just reply "Exactly. Anything." Anything happening is the highest prospect anybody can have in this life. Opening yourself up, smiling and putting your thumb out on the highway and see what happens.

Hitch-hiking and busking are two activities with the least amount of certainty involved. You never know what's going to happen next. It's the most thrilling thing. I used to be terrified of the future, but this past year taught me that I am one lucky bastard...as long as I have the right attitude about it, of course. I know I'll always be okay, so I am going to be okay.

Today, I'll finish packing, go rehearse with my band, play a concert in front of people who may or may not be there to see/support me, say goodbye to friends and get ready for an adventure of a lifetime, hopefully not the last.

See you on the flip-side.

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