Huuunnngary! Hungary! RAD AND HUNGRY! It’s about time we hit up this joint! And you know what? Still can’t figure out how a culture still rockin’ the old-school – rubber stamps to endorse tickets, transit police checkin’ every ticket, hefty twine to wrap and pack boxes, old trains and creakin’ trams that would never pass any type of inspection in the States – how everything moves so fast. I’ve never ridden escalators that move at jet speed, taking me from underground to above ground in seconds. Or trains that are rusty and weathered that move at the speed of sound. How do they do it?
Checked our map and marked the spot – where the hunt would kickoff. A short subway ride later, we popped out of the station and the second shop I spot is an old bookshop. Diggin’ deep, rummaging through every shelf, I spotted vintage paper protractors! People still rockin’ paper protractors despite all the fancy options? Hello?! So f’in amazing, so beautiful. I mean, that’s what RAD AND HUNGRY is all about, this is why we do RAH. We travel the world discovering how locals do and it reinforces that some of the best things are done the old-school way. It’s the lo-fi, the non-slick shit that often goes unnoticed, put to use. What really matters is what you put down when pencil hits paper. It’s your dreams, your ideas, your wants, the crazy ideas that you’re getting ready to share with the world. It’s something BIG even when you don’t yet see it.
Can’t contain the rush I’m feelin’ from scoring the paper protractors. Love the feel of the heavy paper and couldn’t stop rubbing the numbers. Feels like an embossed print job but it’s not – the paper and printing is just that rich. Must. Stop. Shopping. I explain to the shopkeepers that I’ll be right back ‘cause I gotta go. I gotta find a spot to sit and write it all down. Walked down to an outdoor garden bar, and now I’m chillin’ wrapped in a communal blanket, beer in one hand and writing as fast as I can with the other. Feeling good about our major score… lovin’ this WHAM in-yo-face-moment when everything we do falls into place and connects.
An hour later, I head back to the shop and within minutes of my return I spot highlighters made in Hungary!! Love the Hungarian writing, love that they suggest you use them for faxes (faxing is old-school? No?). The bookshop also stocked ballpoint pens from the same company. Slender body, delicate design and sportin’ pinstripes. Can a lo-fi ballpoint pen be any more classy? Some serious fa-fancy love.
I take our stash of pens to the counter and then I spot ‘em… notebooks that are a perfect match for the pens! The bluish-purplish ink of the ruled margins reminds me of old-school copying machines. And I love that the margins are a different width than any other notebooks we’ve picked up. But what I love most? The dreamy cover. Almost like someone painted the texture with watercolors. A closer look and it’s actually a blown-up, grainy image! Love the lo-fi tech – pairing old with new to create some magic.
Sometimes we wanna go back ‘cause the trip was so f'in amazing (helloooo, Germany) or sometimes we put the country down on our never-go-back list (sorry, Costa Rica). Hungary goes on our return list ‘cause I’ve got a mission. I’m gonna find out Hungary’s secret – I’m gonna figure how they do it, how they rock the old-school with the deftness of a supafly, tricked-out ride.
oxxo, Hen