Enjoying Adventures In Hungary

Posted by nemo on December 4, 2005, 10:53 am in life

This was originally written as a posting to the expatshungary.com discussion forum, but we decided that it should go to the reviews section too. Lovemoldova2000, one of the most active members of our portal, agreed to have his posting in that section. So, read on...

The first time I arrived in Hungary or even traveled to Europe was back in 1985, when the country was still under Communist control. It was one of those “WOW” experiences as the old noisy sparse Russian TU 127 touched down in Budapest at the old Ferihegy 1 airport. (no longer used for passenger traffic). Excitement ran high for several big reasons. First I was here to visit my brother and run in the second annual iBUSZ marathon. David, a physics professor from the University of Connecticut, was on a one year sabbatical and exchange program with the Hungarian Institute of Physics. He was living with his two young children at that time, on the Buda side of the Danube River just off Bartok Bela Street- named after one of the great Hungarian composer’s. Second, there was instant excitement upon feeling the wheels of this flying machine making contact with the runway and rolling safely down to the terminal.

Arriving in Frankfurt, I had transferred over to Malev, the one and only airline of Hungary, and still run by the government. Even though the 1hour 40 minute flight was a bit unpredictable, delights were plentiful and included smiling faces, friendly service, and a delectable cold plate lunch which consisted of tasty Hungarian style salami, ham, hard boiled eggs, tomato, and crisp slightly sour pickles- there’s nothing worse then a wimpy mushy pickle on a slightly white knuckle fright. All this accompanied by a delicious biscuit called pogacsa in Hungarian. “Do you have any more pogasca” was my plea as the attractive flight attendant filled my wine glass for the 3rd time- and remember, this was flying coach on a short hop. At least a half dozen more pogacsa were consumed during the last 30 minutes of the flight, not to mention the three that mysteriously ended up in my jacket pocket- these tasty morsels didn’t know it at the time but they would eventually help me finish the marathon, well that’s another story.

In addition to the excellent service provided at the Malev ticket counter as well as the in-flight extra rations of pogacsa, claming luggage and clearing customs was almost a non event. Along with your passport, one needed a visa to enter Hungary at that time, and I had secured mine in the USA. Let me quickly run through the tourist (short stay, less then three months) visa requirements today. (from the USA).

If you have a valid passport you can stay up to 90 days without any visa. There is a 90 day waiting period before you can re-enter for another 90 day stay. If you desire to stay in Hungary longer then 90 days you must apply for an entry VIZUM from one of the Hungarian Consulates in the USA. This will allow you multiple entries, and is usually valid for 6 to 9 months.

There are a variety of great hotels in Budapest from $50 on up depending on your budget. Another great option for accommodations is to rent a flat, which is what I always do. For $30-60 per day on a one to two week basis, or $400-600 per month, you will relax in a one or two bedroom, one bath- the commodes are located in a separate room next to the bath-, a small separate kitchen and a larger combination sitting room with a dining area. The telephone is normally not included, although physically there it can receive a call but won’t let you dial out, unless special arrangements ate made with the owner.

Most flats are well furnished with the sofa’s opening up into an extra single or double bed. This made my stay with my brother David and the kids fun and easy especially since I don’t snore and always make my bed in the morning. Other furnishings including television, furniture, even kitchen equipment and utensils necessary to bake and cook any meal you desire.

Waking into any building and smelling the aroma of pogacsa in the oven is a great catalyst for making good friends with your neighbors. Everyone in Budapest-and in Hungary for that matter- bakes these delicious flakey biscuits and almost no two recipes are alike. Although there are only two basic types, salty and sweet, within these limits, there are many different varieties to be tried.

The fun part of renting a flat is it allows you to have a lot of contact with ordinary Hungarian citizens and forces you to practice Hungarian a little more often. Even a simple greeting like servusz, (hello) or jo napot kivanok, (I wish you a good morning) will provoke a smile and sometimes a small conversation- which who knows, could lead to “come on over for a visit, I just baked some pogacsa”.

So, how did I do in the exciting 2nd annual iBUSZ marathon- well that’s a whole other story!