Moving back to the States was kind of a big fear of mine. I wasn't ready to leave my charming Hungarian hometown, nor the amazing community we were part of. I wasn't ready to go back to living life "comfortably," because I already knew how to go to the store, I knew how to pay bills, I could communicate without thinking to anyone around me, and every day sights are pretty much taken for granted. My biggest fear was that I would no longer be reaching outside my comfort zone, learning and growing, experiencing something new and honestly: simply being appreciative.
Living in Hungary I had to learn the local culture and how to speak/read some Hungarian just so I could buy the right kind of milk at the grocery! I had to go to the little downtown Posta to pay bills in person. I had to actively listen to when someone was speaking and get out of my comfort zone to (try!) to speak back, even though it usually resulted in a 50% success rate of communication, ha! Every day I looked around me and I was in awe of the sights. Housing and buildings of worship. Train stations and "mom and pop" shops of every kind. The landscape transforming with new crops and flowers every other month. Oh and, castles and castles galore! It was a dream, I knew it, and I didn't want to wake up.
How I feel since being back may be a whole other future post, but the intent of this one is to list the things I learned living in Hungary. Just an overview of things that I noticed were different, some silly and small others a little more important (re: drinking & driving limit.) Some things may apply to general life in Europe, some may be things I just never realized about living in the States. Here is my disclaimer: I am not an expert on these things as they are not "rules" just take them as tips! Obviously, this is all from my point of view, and it's all pretty random and interesting (I think anyway!) I tried to organize them by categories to help a little. Let me know what you think!
General Life
- Working hours
Coming from the States it took a while to get used to the fact that businesses (for the most part) aren't open all days of the week. Most businesses had Sunday off. Another interesting thing to note was that if businesses were open on Saturdays it may only be from 8am-12pm. With my background in the 24/7 life of retail, I thoroughly enjoyed these working hours as a reminder of the simplicity of life and greater allowance for time with family.- Holidays
Re: above about working hours. Again, with my background in retail that requires round the clock availability, I thoroughly enjoyed that every holiday was observed and respected. No businesses were open on major holidays such as Christmas and Easter, and maybe not even Christmas Eve! Oh and of course, there was no such thing as Thanksgiving or Black Friday- phew from this ex-retail worker! There were plenty of other holidays that we as Americans aren't used to observing that we were surprised by- like on May 1 when we went to the store for eggs and they were closed to celebrate their Labor Day, oops! There is about one national holiday per month, and even if you go to Budapest things may still be closed- check the calendar!Another cool holiday that Hungarians celebrate is called your "name day." It's like your second birthday celebration! Typically a birthday is celebrated with family, and your nameday is celebrated with friends and coworkers. (My Hungarian friends, correct me if I'm wrong on this one!) So how do you know what your nameday is? Take a look here and you can see that for example, Klaudia's name day is March 20. Also, shout out to my beautiful friend Klaudia! Hiiii! I couldn't have functioned living in Hungary without you!
- Standard printer paper size
I think this may be an European thing, but the standard sheet of printer paper in Hungary is just a bit bigger than the US 8.5" x 11". That was fun to realize after I organized all our tax documents into this pretty folder that only fit US standard size and had to fold the edges of the Hungarian docs. Ooh the OCD in me was mad about that one.
Restrooms
- Just say "toilet"
Okay, most everywhere you go you can ask for the "toilet" and people will understand what you mean. "Restroom" is not really a thing and will just confuse everyone. We had a conversation with Brazilians, British, and other Americans in our group at the Elephant Nature Park in Thailand about the difference between the two, and "water closet." Just FYI: NO ONE says "water closet," even though it may be marked as "WC" on the door. Restroom just seems to be a polite American way of saying toilet... so don't be fancy when traveling, just say toilet!- Plastic toilet lids
Definitely appreciated this after all the times I had to shut ours after the hubs went to the toilet... I could be mad that once again I had to shut it because he forgot (I mean, gross! You brush your teeth in that room- and particles fly out when flushing!) And I could slam it and it wouldn't make a huge sound or break anything, hahaha! #marriage. But in all honesty, why would anyone need anything thicker than a simple plastic lid? If none other than the loud noise when being shut or the possibility of it breaking- it literally covers your waste receptable. Why does it have to be fancy? Maybe it's just me?!*edit: since buying our house we've started to spend our Saturdays at Lowe's and Home Depot (wow have we grown up?! ha!) and we actually noticed that there are now SOFT CLOSE LIDS! They cost like $50 which is half the price of a toilet alone, #LOL ... but okay I suppose those are genius inventions!
- Motion sensor lights
I noticed these in the stairwell at our hotel when we returned to the States. Other than that, I don't believe I've noticed them before in America. Everywhere had motion sensor lights! Bathrooms, stairwells, hallways, stores and entire shopping centers. SUCH AN ELECTRICITY SAVER!* Also a bit more sanitary if you ask me (bathroom lights.) Need I say more?*edit: I didn't start on the smart consumption/ eco friendly/ recycling habits in Europe, but I am obsessed. If you came to my house you knew I had labeled receptacles for the different materials and took them myself to the bins weekly. If you put your beer can in the trash, I'd fish it out and put it in the correct bin. It deserves it's own moment- so before I write an essay on how recycling is more widespread and responsible in Europe, let's just say I feel very passionate about it and leave it at that.
Home and Garden
- Property contained entirely
Looking around the city, I saw that most houses in our town had no front yard. The houses all kind of look like compounds- made of concrete and with the entire property lined. Of course there were some newer constructed homes that had some green out front, but walking around downtown all you saw was pastel colored concrete walls that changed color with the next house. My understanding was because every home had their own garden in the back to provide food for themselves. Some may have small chickens also. Just a little different than the large front yards I was used to seeing!- Mistletoe
Year round there are these big nest looking things in the trees as you drive around. They're usually pretty circular and you may be confused what the heck they are. What animal makes a ball nest? Are they naturally occurring moss orbs? Is the tree supposed to bloom like that? Nah, it's European mistletoe! A parasite of a shrub that grows in the trees. I put two-and-two together and realized that's where the classic American Christmas round leafy ball and berries came from. I never looked into the good-luck-kissing theory but FYI the mistletoe berries are poisonous!
Restaurants
- General info
Okay, there's a bunch to note on this topic.1. Order everything at once. Drinks, dinner, maybe even your dessert. The waiter will come for your order only once so actually look at the menu when they give it to you and be ready when they come.
2. Wave your hand to get your waiter's attention for a second round of drinks. They're not going to come to you and ask every 5 minutes if "everything's okay" or to fill your ice water even though you only took 2 sips.
3. You're lucky if you get ice in your drink. Don't be a jerk about it- it's just not a thing in Europe.
4. You won't get asked for your ID. Drinking age is younger in Europe and they're much more relaxed about it overall.
5. If you want water- order it. It will not come automatically. You can order a small individual size or a large bottle that will usually be enough for 3-4 people. Don't forget to ask for "STILL" or "WITHOUT GAS" water unless you want bubbles.
6. Refills are not free. But the drinks are cheap.
7. Food is made entirely fresh, so it will take longer to arrive to your table.
8. Wave your hand to get your waiter so you can ask for the check. They will ask cash or card- and they will not split the bill for your party. Again, if you're lucky they will let you go up to the computer and let you pay individually for your meals aka "split the bill."
9. If one person pays the bill via card- they will bring a machine to you. They cannot take your card from you so they will run your card with you while you sit there.
10. Tipping is not really a thing. If service is beyond excellent, leave a cash tip or ask if you can add tip before they charge you. Every country is a tiny bit different on general percentages- but for the most part I didn't tip unless we paid cash and rounded up.
11. AMEX is not accepted in most places, especially smaller businesses.
Fast Food
- Leave your tray
If you look around and don't see any trash cans or disposal areas, they most likely will have someone come around and pick trays and trash up off your table. You can leave them behind.- Pay for condiments
Simple as that, you have to pay for your condiments. Be sure to order your ketchup with your meal! I love this as a way to cut down on waste. It goes back to my previous note about recycling and more responsible consumption.
Food
- Produce
Most produce is grown locally and is very seasonal. That being said, everything tends to be a little more fresh, a little more natural looking, and a whole lot cheaper. ALSO to note: there is like 4 days in which you can get fresh asparagus. When it's in the store we send out a mass notification for everyone to go get some ASAP.On the veggie note, there are no fresh brussel sprouts either. Occasionally you can get them frozen. On the list of things you can't find such as peanut butter and marshmallows, you also can't find sundried tomatoes. Now, there are times when the British version of Walmart called Tesco will bring in some slightly American-ish food (like salsa and peanut butter) that you can get until it's sold out. Sometimes the goodies you find are not reordered as often as you'd like. Get it while you can!
- Sugar
Things that we aren't used to have sugar! Or it just tastes different overall. Heinz ketchup has a different, more sugary taste. There is no bubbly water like LaCroix that doesn't have sugar. Huge LaCroix fan over here! That was a bummer in our household. We'd get Swedish Ramlosa in it's place.
Driving
- White lines on road
Beware when driving- always stay right! If you are unsure if the road is a one way or two way street, don't rely on the colors of the lines to help you. They are all white, where Americans are used to yellow as a division!- Hazards
When driving down the highway and there is sudden congestion, drivers turn on their hazards to notify behind them that it is an abrupt slow. I love this vs. only braking because you can actually tell a difference. Where a sole brake is red, no matter how abrupt you stop- the hazards are a clear notice.- Right of way
This is a bit different than in the States. At a stop, it's not based off of who got there first- but who is going straight (if you are facing opposite directions, and at a 2 way stop, not 4 way.) If you are turning, you may have to wait a couple cars before you can go. This is something we should have been briefed on before moving, but it was observed and learned quickly!- Right on red
Not a thing. Don't do it. There's a LOT more pedestrians than we are used to in the States and yes, they always have the right of way, but there may also have the green on the crosswalk when you would want to be turning.
- Yellow in between
The lights will flash yellow between turning. For example, from a red light it will flash yellow before it turns green. My presumption is because the cars are manual- it gives you that time to get in gear and go on green. Maybe that has nothing to do with it but I think it is a valid thought! It will also go from green to flash yellow to red.
- Highway toll vignette system
I grew up in Florida so I know what a toll is. However, if you aren't aware before you go on your Euro trip you could be SOL. The toll systems aren't like the FL Sunpass system. You may never know you've even gone through a toll stop! So take note of the "vignette" system in Europe before you go. Each country is different. Some you can purchase online, but for the most part stopping at a gas station and buying a sticker (for each country!) or registering your license plate is the way to go. Italy and Croatia do have actual toll booths. Lucky for all multi-country travelers (carrying each respective country's currency is difficult!) they take credit cards.- Drinking & driving
Don't do it. The BAC limit is 0. Don't even try it. Ride your bike, and even then- wear your helmet!
Words
- Megve, Meggy, Könyv, Konyha
In the simplest of paragraphs, I will try to explain how hard Hungarian is for us native English speakers to learn. Unlike most other languages we may be more familiar with (Spanish, Italian, German, etc.) there is no real "root" in Hungarian. Of course the noted example languages have Latin roots (or well, Germanic, which I believe is close to English? Not a linguist here!) Anyway, my point is there is no way to use one root of a word to understand it's meaning. In the heading above, here's the meaning of the words:
megye/ meggy= county/ cherry
könyv/ konyha= library/ kitchen
This isn't the SATs, don't try to find common themes here- just read the words. They really have nothing in common! But if you were a native English speaker (like me!) you would assume these words (because of their roots) were related. Right?
Now, that's just a quick example without going into formalities and sentence structure, of course. But here's another tip: I started this post with "szia!" Which means, "hi!" But you would never say "hi" to anyone older than you. You would say a more formal version that translates basically into "good day." However, you would only be able to say a casual "hi" if the elder does to you first, inviting you to address them more friendly.
There you go! These are my random little list of things I learned while living in Hungary. Of course there is more, a little more personal "things I learned" but those may be to come. For now, these are little tid bits that I found interesting and important to know about actually living in the country. Let me know if there is something else you'd like to know!
I hope you learned something new today!
All photos from Budapest with my girl I'm sure you've looked into by now, Kristin Ariel Photography. She just moved back to the States too! You can follow her stories on Instagram at @kristinarielphotography.
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