Left or Right?
In this last installment of our short series on differences between Hungarian and American culture that affect our life and work, we'll mention some little differences.
Hungarians do not generally drink their cold beverages with ice. In the summer, they are served chilled, but in the winter a lot of people prefer them at room temperature. When we have guests over in the colder months, we need to remember to keep some drinks at room temperature even though we prefer ours cold year round. It is fun to visit McDonald's or KFC because we can get ice with our soft drinks there.
American culture is car-centered. Many Hungarians, however, walk, bike or use public transportation. Many people do not own a car or even have a driver's license. With many people walking places, the streets are rarely deserted and it is safe even for women and the elderly to walk even at night. Public transportation is readily available and it is possible to get around the city easily without a car. In fact, we walk or take public transportation most of the time in town because it is often much easier than finding or paying for parking.
When we meet people we know on the street, it is polite to stop and greet them. Sometimes this can lead to a lengthy conversation. Unless a person is on the way to work or to an important appointment, friends and family take priority. People can be several minutes late to a meeting, even an INSTE meeting, if they meet someone on the way there.
Hungarian women often greet their friends by kissing on both cheeks. In church, both men and women greet each other by kissing on both cheeks. Kisses are given first to the left cheek and then to the right. This can get confusing to us because in the US, when we give hugs, we generally go to the person's right. So, please forgive us if we hesitate to give you a hug. It's not that we don't want to, we've just forgotten which way to go!
Thank you for reading about our lives in Hungary. If you have any questions or comments, we would love to hear from you.
Hungarians do not generally drink their cold beverages with ice. In the summer, they are served chilled, but in the winter a lot of people prefer them at room temperature. When we have guests over in the colder months, we need to remember to keep some drinks at room temperature even though we prefer ours cold year round. It is fun to visit McDonald's or KFC because we can get ice with our soft drinks there.
American culture is car-centered. Many Hungarians, however, walk, bike or use public transportation. Many people do not own a car or even have a driver's license. With many people walking places, the streets are rarely deserted and it is safe even for women and the elderly to walk even at night. Public transportation is readily available and it is possible to get around the city easily without a car. In fact, we walk or take public transportation most of the time in town because it is often much easier than finding or paying for parking.
When we meet people we know on the street, it is polite to stop and greet them. Sometimes this can lead to a lengthy conversation. Unless a person is on the way to work or to an important appointment, friends and family take priority. People can be several minutes late to a meeting, even an INSTE meeting, if they meet someone on the way there.
Hungarian women often greet their friends by kissing on both cheeks. In church, both men and women greet each other by kissing on both cheeks. Kisses are given first to the left cheek and then to the right. This can get confusing to us because in the US, when we give hugs, we generally go to the person's right. So, please forgive us if we hesitate to give you a hug. It's not that we don't want to, we've just forgotten which way to go!
Thank you for reading about our lives in Hungary. If you have any questions or comments, we would love to hear from you.
posted by Mike and Nancy Juntunen @ 7:19 PM
2 Comments:
At March 9, 2015 at 7:36 PM ,
Anonymous said...
"When we have guests over in the colder months, we need to remember to keep some drinks at room temperature even though we prefer ours cold year round."
Well, as a Hungarian I would say our way is more logical, because you want to cool down in the summer, but why would you want to cool down in the winter? Then you want the opposite: warming up or at least keeping your current temperature.
Of course, I'm sure you can give some logical explanation of your ways. :)
At March 10, 2015 at 4:47 PM ,
Lori Svoboda said...
We (humans) often fall victim to traditions that are presented in our homes when we are growing up and they become habits. It can be a really good thing to un-learn some of those habits. For example, we eat our soup hot, yet my fathers mother was a chef in Holland and was accustomed to serving some soups chilled and they are delicious that way. Yet Americans antiquate soup with winter and cold days. I also save my white pants and white shoes for after Easter and would opt for a sweatshirt over a fuzzy, wool sweater in the summer even if it is 30 degrees. On that note, it really doesn't surprise me that I (we) Americans or whomever, would have silly, illogical habits regarding the things we consume. Many cultures drink dark beer or white wine warm, I wouldn't do that with any more enthusiasm than I would crack open a warm can of Coca Cola...I want ice! Moral of the story; we need to step out of the box and give things an honest try, after all, we can always go back in the box if we don't like it out there.
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