10 countries where Hungarians stick together- Part 1

Hungarians say Hungarians don’t stick together abroad. However, velvet.hu collected several letters sent by Hungarians from abroad to show there are positive examples as well.

Austria

“It was strange to read about Hungarians of the article who had immediately given up making contacts with other Hungarians after some negative experiences. I myself have been living in Salzburg for 5 years, but earlier, I had spent 2 years in Vienna and one in Munich.

During my life in Vienna, I had gone skating with Hungarian students, since many of them had attended the Music Academy, they had also invited me for their concerts. I played football with Hungarians once a week. Of course with Austrians too, in the company team. I sat with 3 Hungarian colleagues in the office, we always helped each other, the first time I stayed at one of my colleague as long as I couldn’t find an apartment.

I have Hungarian colleagues in Salzburg, we are on good terms and help each other. If you need to carry furniture, tow a car, return this and that home, we can always count on each other. From time to time we drink together a beer, eat a pizza or go hiking etc. Of course, we pay attention not to separate from the Austrian colleagues, we don’t exclude them with the language, we don’t go to eat together, and everyone goes with his/her Austrian colleagues. On Sunday, there was Tankcsapda concert in the town, I went to there with three Hungarians and an Austrian, but there he was the “foreigner”.

It is essential you can make friends with foreigners in a foreign country, because locals have their own network of connections, they don’t need new friends. Why should I exclude Hungarians? There is a Facebook group for Hungarians living in the province, there are around 2500 people in it, if your computer breaks down or you need Austrian license plate for your car, there is always someone who can help you. In a small team, we celebrated March 15. Of course, you can also womanize in this case.

There are trolls among so many people, as well as at home. If someone hostile is or “want to rummage in my pocket”, I obviously won’t make friends with him/her. Of course, I don’t limit myself only for Hungarian people, I went skiing with a Ukrainian and a Spanish guy two weeks ago. I go football with more Austrian companies and I play ice hockey with the company team.”

Germany

“I’ve been living in Bavaria for almost three years and I work with hundreds of Hungarians at Munich Airport. We came here from very different life situations and almost all of us started from bottom. It means package loading at most of us. The very hard years of the beginning brought together many Hungarians, acquaintances, friendships formed. We are held in high esteem at the airport because we are hard-working and reliable. Many of us started as borrowed workers and lived in workers’ hostel, which brought us together. We also have an association founded by a former colleague worked at the airport. I am the author of the MUC-airport blog, which due to many Hungarians could get a job. There is a great Hungarian team here, for those Hungary doesn’t need to be ashamed of.”

Switzerland

I lived in Bern, Switzerland for 13 years, I raised 3 children with a husband from a third country, I was a university student. It was between about 1984 and 1997. That was the most beautiful time of my life in terms of the Hungarians, there was a heart-warming, great Hungarian community. Demanding cultural performances, scouting, Hungarian Mass, these gave me the spiritual home. The atmosphere there and then was thanks to some enthusiastic, charismatic people’s work, who lived there such a way they could not go home. Hungarians were important for them, 56 refugees were also living then.

Heart-warming celebration of national holidays, we often got together privately, the atmosphere was friendly, loving and cheerful. I have never spoken with my children in German, they learned that on the streets, pre-school, school, but the local community was a great help to keep their Hungarian identity. Not all of the Hungarians there were sympathetic for me just because they were Hungarians, but I found friends as well. Sometimes there something in the life of the community reminiscent of a soap opera: marriages, divorces, stories…but everyone does his own level. Some of the friendships has been lasting, some of them have been updated after a longer break.