Things to know before you move to the Hungarian countryside

Dreaming of the tranquillity of the Hungarian countryside? Fresh air, bright sky with a glass of drink in your backyard – as we would all like to imagine it. Here are some stories to prove you wrong.

We do not mean to scare anyone away from moving to the countryside. These are obviously handpicked examples from the readers of Sokszínűvidék. And you can meet bad neighbours anywhere. If you do not have one, you are probably it. Also, if you want to feel better about your own neighbours, do not miss these funny anecdotes – all are true stories recalled by readers.

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Gossip girls

We all know the old lady archetype who knows everything about everyone in the village. It turns out that sometimes they seem to know more about you than you do actually. One reader recalled a story when she went home to her parents’ house to wash her clothes as the washing machine broke down at her boyfriend’s place. The old lady who lived next door put together the pieces and started spreading the rumour that she was dumped and kicked out of her boyfriend’s place because she accidentally broke the washing machine.

The fresh air

Most people in the countryside have experienced the pungent smell of the dunghills, usually placed carefully next to the fence. It was a recurring issue readers were complaining about. Many people also mentioned that some neighbours used dirty sewage water for watering the plants. Also, as much as we love animals, it is not ideal when they are kept right next to our house (pigs, chickens, ducks or dogs) in cages that are rarely cleaned. It is not only a sad sight but can be rather smelly too.

If not the animals, it is the smoke. All winter and summer long. Something is always burning whether it is for heating or to get rid of waste. One neighbour figured, for example, that the best way to get rid of the overgrowing weeds was burning down the whole yard.

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The quiet environment

Are you bothered by late-night parties in the city or the constant noise of traffic? Well, if you are unlucky enough you can also encounter neighbours in the country who like to turn up the radio to the max while doing work in the garden. What adds to the experience is if they use a lawn mower, chainsaw, or whatever other loud machinery they can get their hands on. Do not get scared though, life in the countryside can be indeed quiet. But there will be times you will have to put up with a barking dog or the signature sound of the lawn mower at 7 AM on a Sunday.

Close-knit community

Lastly, one of the readers shared the story of their elderly neighbour. He was not bothering them so much, but he wandered a bit too freely around the area. One time they heard a noise coming from downstairs in their house and went to investigate – only to find him in their kitchen. He went over to ask for boards to build a bench in his backyard. Problem is, they obviously did not have boards nor was he in a bench-building shape physically…

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Source: Sokszínű vidék