What do Hungarian expats miss the most about home?

Leaving the familiar behind and building a new life in a foreign country – either by yourself or with a family – can be both an enchanting idea and a stressful process. We have asked five of our readers, Hungarian expats, what they miss the most, apart from their loved ones of course, while living abroad.

Kata – Greece

“I could go on and on about the things I miss from Hungary. Once, I have even compiled a list of 43 reasons why Hungary beats Greece a hundred times in my blog. Here are some of them.. Firstly, the clean and well-kept pedestrian roads, which are basically non-existent in Athens. One can easily sprain an ankle or break a bone while trying to bypass a giant gap or a tree erecting out of the concrete in the middle of the road. Secondly, the instant hot water and the gas heating system – we have to switch on the boiler half an hour before taking a shower in Athens. Winters in Greece feel like an expedition to the North Pole. In Hungary, there is proper heating all day around while oil radiators operate only for two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening here. Apart from these, I miss the four seasons, Hungarian architecture, and cosmetic stores such as Muller or Rossmann.”

Orsolya – United Kingdom 

“Food – definitely the food! Even though, there is an abundance of places with international flavours here it still does not stop me from craving those delicious and heavy Hungarian dishes – chicken paprikash with homemade noodles, my mum’s goulash soup, lángos with sour cream topping at Lake Velencei. I’ve tried to make some of them for my husband, but the ingredients just do not taste the same – probably due to the lack of sun. Also two things, I just can not track down are túró (cottage cheese or curd cheese) and tejföl (sour cream). Some days I am dreaming about a huge plate of cottage cheese dumplings or crepe filled with cottage cheese. Another aspect of living in the UK that I can not get used to is the weather. I miss warm summers and those balmy evenings when you can be out all night wearing just a pair of shorts, flip-flops and a light top. I wish I could just stuff my leather jacket at the bottom of my wardrobe.”

Read more: Why am I a proud Hungarian? The honest confession of an Argentinian Hungarian

Zsuzsanna – South of France

“I can list a bunch of things that do not exist in France but I wish they did. First of all, as a new mum, I miss Hungary’s well-designed family support scheme. There is no other country in the EU that allows mothers to stay at home with their toddlers for 2 years after giving birth. Besides that, I also miss the organised transportation system back at home. Here in Nice, the time schedule of the buses is just a myth, no vehicle comes on time. Another thing I miss is the rich variety of cultural programs in Budapest, whether it’s art, music, sport or concerts. Unless you live in a big city in France, which is not the case for me, you are kind of deprived of that. At home, there is always some interesting event to look forward to, regardless of the season. In the South of France, once the tourist season is over, there is not much to do other than dining in some fancy spot or visiting the nearby village for the 100th time.”