Life in Hungary: What foreigners need to know – from the perspective of a rural Englishman
Our team is committed to reaching out to and giving a voice to foreigners who have moved to Hungary for work, family, or other reasons, and who spend their daily lives here. We want to understand how they feel about living here, what difficulties they face, how they have managed to integrate, and what they think about Hungary and their place of residence. Therefore, we have launched a series in which we interview foreigners living here about their work and experiences in our country.
Please read this intriguing piece from Simon, an Englishman living in Hungary (and watch his videos on organic gardening below!).
In August 2020, I relocated from the UK to Hungary with my Hungarian partner. The driving force was Anna’s desire to be near her grandchildren. We had already found a property close to one of her daughters and had completed the purchase of that the year before we arrived here.
Having driven over 1000 kms from the UK, we arrived at our new home in Kunszallas, a small village sitting between Keschemet and Kiskunfelgyhaza. Because of Brexit, I was able to apply for residency under the EU Withdrawal Agreement, so the process of applying started, along with the seemingly endless visits to various government offices to only get this card, but also a proof of address card and a local village ID card.
At the same time, we needed to start renovations on our new house – an old Tanya that, while liveable, needed updating with new floors, bathroom, kitchen, windows and heating. Through family members, we were able to find a local tradesman who was very helpful, and work was completed just before Christmas that same year.
During that time, I would often visit a number of companies for building materials or furniture. We now have a family joke here, which is basically, if someone is in a bad mood or feeling miserable, we suggest they go to work at Praktiker – this is because I was shocked at how rude some of the staff seemed to be towards us, but decided to just think that is how they are. Well, not true, as my experiences have generally been good, very helpful and polite – maybe I just met them on a bad day….
As a school teacher, Anna has returned to her profession, taking up a position in a local village school teaching English and also Hungarian, but for me, what could I do?
Having financial independence, I did not need to work, but I am not one for sitting around either. My passion lies in growing fruit and vegetables organically, and part of the reason for buying our new house was the potential I saw in the land, allowing me to indulge in my passion.
That started at the same time as renovating the house. The land had been farm for many years, and so I set about transforming it to not only grow food, but also bring back the wildlife.
It has taken time, designing and planning and also making our own compost! But last year, we harvested over 500 kilos of fresh produce. If that was not enough, I also started a YouTube channel called Diary of an Organic Grower, which shows our progress here and offers advice for anyone interested in doing the same thing. This coming year, we are also going to be bringing our knowledge of fermentation and medicinal plants into our efforts, too.
What I love the most about being here is the ability to bring my English knowledge and add it to Hungarian experiences, mix it all together and create our own unique results. Whether it is food, growing or making things, there is such an amazing amount of things to discover and enjoy.
Of course, I have been introduced to Pálinka, and we enjoy sitting with Hungarian family and friends watching them try my homemade flavoured fruit gins in exchange whilst eating a goulash with roasted potatoes cooked in goose fat.
Family values are important here, which are in turn important to us, so that is a big plus. Looking at the old buildings as I travel around are also wonderful to see. The summers are long, sometimes a little hot, but also very pleasant, and with a positive outlook on life, I use these experiences to balance out any negatives I get in Praktiker or the occasional bite from a mosquito.
The advances in technology have also helped me a lot, and also social media. I am able to translate things when needed or communicate with a shop assistant. I can shop in the local supermarket and check out in English. I can keep up to date with events in the village on the village Facebook group – there are a lot of these groups that I would recommend anyone moving here should join – it is a great way to learn about all things.
Moving here has given me a lower cost of living when compared to the UK. But that is only possible with a good financial position to start with. I do see some Hungarian families struggle, but that is not unique to this country; it happens everywhere. But the strong bonds I do see within families is a great thing to have as a support.
As for the future? Well, I have no plans to return to the UK. I love our life here, having the opportunity to build something we both love. The plan is to grow the YouTube channel and share our experiences – it is not to make money, just to show other ways of doing things. It is nice to not only see viewers from Hungary watching me, but also asking questions!
I hope I will see more – just look for me, “Diary of an Organic Grower”.
Fun fact: Simon wrote a book called From Seed to Table – Diary of an Organic Grower! He has a newsletter on Substack (sadams589.substack.com), and if anyone subscribes to that, they get a free PDF copy of the book. Don’t miss it!
Watch Simon’s video on using oats for slug control in your garden below:
And in this video below, Simon is sharing tips on using baking soda to control pests like aphids in the garden:
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