Hungarian Living

Hi, it’s Liz. This episode is special to me. It’s a Christmas story my mom, Elizabeth Szabo, wrote – and I wanted to bring it back during the holidays because this is the time of year when we think about family and traditions. My mom wasn’t perfect. But she understood something important: you don’t have to be perfect to create meaningful traditions. You don’t have to do it all, and you don’t have to do it flawlessly. You just need to make the effort to connect. She started Magyar Marketing back in 1988 because she saw that it was getting […]

Hello there, it’s Liz. And welcome back to The Hungarian Living Podcast. It’s officially Advent and that means we are headed into the Christmas season, and I wanted to bring back one of my favorite episodes about a tradition that’s really special to me – Mikulás, or St. Nicholas Day, which is December 6th. For kids growing up in Hungary as well as other European countries, the evening of December 5th is always exciting. I remember when we were living in Budapest in 1973. I was 8 years old and It’s my first memory of Mikulas nap. I shined my […]

Episode 110 Hello friends, and welcome back to The Hungarian Living Podcast! I’m Liz, and today we’re talking about something that’s very close to my heart – the tradition of name days. And if you are listening to this episode on November 19th then you are hearing it on the name day for Elizabeth or Erzsébet, as celebrated in Hungary! Before we dive in, I want to share a memory with you. For years after I moved away from home, my phone would ring on November 19th. I’d pick up, and there would be my mom’s voice: “Boldog névnapot, Liz!” […]

Episode 109 This is another one of the folktales that my mom translated in the 1970s. My mom translated many Hungarian folktales into English. This project is designed to preserve her words for her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. This recording is by Landon, her grandson. Near the edge of the Bakony Forest lived an old woodcutter. It was a hard living for an old man, and he was very poor. The old woodcutter had little he could call his own, except a daughter. Kati was as clever as she was beautiful. In the village of Bakony, she was called […]

WHEN IS A STUDENT A KING? Episode 108 This is a Hungarian folk tale translated by my mom, Elizabeth A. Szabo, and read by her grandson, Landon. King Matthias had many students working for him in the palace. One of these students, named Marton Nagy, was out travelling in one of the villages of Hungary. When he felt tired he stopped at an inn and knocked at the door. “My name is Marton Nagy,” said the student, “and I work in the King’s court. Could you give me a room for a night?” Now many people had heard that the […]

Hi there! It’s Liz. We have so many great opportunities for learning coming your way this fall through The Hungarian Store! In this episode I’ll do a recap of our recent Hungarian Heritage Expo and also talk about our upcoming classes. This is episode 107 Newsletter sign up! Intro As you know, we are all about encouraging you to discover, celebrate, and share Hungarian heritage. We try to provide as many opportunities as possible. Some are free and some have a charge. Believe me, we would love to just do everything for free, but we are not funded by any […]

Episode 106 In this special episode Landon reads a folk tale his grandmother, Elizabeth A. Szabo, translated into English way before he was even a twinkle in MY eye! THE KING’S GOLDEN LAMB Long ago, in the kingdom of Hungary, lived a King named Matthias. The people of Hungary loved their king because he was such a good king and very, very just. The king of Prussia had heard that King Matthias owned a golden-fleeced lamb, and so together with his daughter, a beautiful princess, he decided to pay a visit to King Matthias. “We hear you own a beautiful, […]

Episode 105 Hey Everyone! It’s Liz with The Hungarian Living podcast. I am sure I underestimated how much effort and energy the Hungarian Heritage Expo takes and to host three in a matter of 13 months is a little bit crazy so I do apologize that things have been a bit inconsistent in the podcast department. It’s already August, which is crazy to me. But here we are. And for this episode we are going to talk about my mom, Elizabeth Szabo, a little because it is her birthday month. If you knew my mom, you know she was amazing. […]

Episode 104 Hey Everyone! It’s Liz with The Hungarian Living podcast. And this is just a quick episode to tell you about our next Hungarian Heritage Expo. It is coming up August 25-29th and we are super excited about it! If you are not familiar with the Expo, it is an online event and it is free. It is a celebration of Hungarian heritage and culture, and we have some amazing presentations coming your way. Did I mention the Hungarian Heritage Expo is in English? Well, it is. Even though I have been learning Hungarian for a number of years […]

You may have wondered where I disappeared to. Well, let me tell you, I prepared the podcast and then I was so sick and then I lost my voice. Today we will talk about the upcoming Hungarian Heritage Expo and I will definitely touch on Hungarian food and books relating to Hungarian things – as long as my voice holds out! This is Episode 103 The big news is that the Hungarian Heritage Expo is starting this week! I am super excited. If you haven’t heard about the Expo before – it is March 13-16th and it is 4 days […]

It’s 2025 already and I can hardly believe it. Time seems to be flying by! Have you thought about what you can intentionally do this year to share your Hungarian heritage with the people within your circle of influence? We’ll cover that and more in this episode of The Hungarian Living Podcast. This is episode 102. Hi there! It’s Liz and I am delighted to be back with you on the podcast. If you know about what we do at The Hungarian Store you can imagine things are really busy during the holidays as we are shipping Hungarian goodies all […]

This is The Hungarian Living Podcast. And today is going to be all about exploring your ancestral addresses. Stick around! In the last 15 years or so I have been curious about a lot of different things regarding my ancestors and relatives as well as my husband’s. Why did they leave where they were? Why did they go where they went? Between my husband and I, our families lived from coast to coast and all around Europe. It isn’t practical to just travel around the country or the world visiting places and cemeteries. But, through the years we have been […]

Wow! We are officially at 100 episodes of The Hungarian Living Podcast! Woohoo! That is something to celebrate! But The Hungarian Living Podcast is not really about me, it is about you and your Hungarian heritage – and supporting you with creative ways to learn more about it. Let’s dig in! Welcome to The Hungarian Living Podcast. I am Liz, your host. Today we are talking all about the variety of ways you can make a deeper connection with your Hungarian heritage. And, in fact, if you are already deep into it, I am sure you can teach me a […]

Our Hungarian Heritage Expo starts this week and we are excited!

Hey there! It’s Liz and today we are going to talk about a fun and free event coming up July 17-20. It’s the Hungarian Heritage Expo – an online celebration of Hungarian heritage and culture and it’s free – and you don’t want to miss it! I am so excited about our upcoming Hungarian Heritage Expo! There are so many others around the world who, like yourself, are doing what they can to share their Hungarian heritage with those around them. And you get the benefit of hearing what they have to say and letting it inspire you to try […]

n this episode of The Hungarian Living Podcast I talk with Dr. Doug Cantrell about immigrants and coal mining and, of course, we focus a bit on the Hungarians!

Hi there! Today on the podcast we are going to talk about our upcoming online Hungarian Egg Decorating class. If you love folk art or you just love art in general, you probably just want to sign up and be a part of the fun! You don’t have to have Hungarian heritage to enjoy it! Easter is coming up at the end of this month. Eggs have long been a part of the celebration! Have you wondered about egg decorating and the history behind it? We’ll talk all about it in our upcoming Hungarian Egg Decorating Workshop! You can take […]

Hello! It’s Liz and today on the podcast we are going to talk about our upcoming Survey of Hungarian Folk Music class, stay tuned! Check out our full list on upcoming online classes HERE! We are super excited about our A Survey of Hungarian Folk Music class offered through The Hungarian Store and it starts on March 4th so hurry up and get registered so you can be a part of the fun. Here is the link to register. Zina and I have been discussing a class like this for the last couple of years and, finally, the time has […]

A Survey of Hungarian History Class Register Here! Today on the podcast I am talking about our upcoming Survey of Hungarian History class. Stay tuned to learn more about it Hi it’s Liz and welcome to this episode of the Hungarian Living Podcast. When I visit Hungary, I love hearing about the history of the medieval castles, the mansions and palaces, and the traditions and festivals that celebrate everything under the sun. Even though I have visited Hungary multiple times, I feel like things are just starting to sink in. When I am working on genealogy and wondering why my […]

Storytelling Workshop: Recording your family’s story for future generations How can we share our treasured memories with future generations? Hi, it’s Liz and today we are talking about our upcoming storytelling workshop: recording family memories for the next generation. You have the memories all sitting in your mind. Sometimes you speak them aloud and sometimes you don’t. But, whether you want to believe it or not, there will come a day when you will unable to speak your family stories. Let’s preserve the most important ones so they are available to family members for generations. — This is the goal […]

Hi, it’s Liz –welcome to The Hungarian Living Podcast. Today our topic is about family recipes and how to pass them along. If you haven’t noticed, life is flying by. I am in my late 50s and I am really starting to think about what information I am leaving behind for my family. What are the important things to share? Have I shared them in a way that makes it easy for them to access? We have a basement wih lots of boxes full of documents and important information. And while that is its own project, what I am talking […]

Today on the podcast I am going to tell you about a freebie you don’t want to miss out on Hi! It’s Liz! And We’ve got a quick bonus episode for you – If you know us, you know we love to find fun ways to encourage you as you share your Hungarian heritage with the ones you love. And, with Valentine’s Day coming up, we thought we would share a little bit of Hungarian love with you! if you enjoy Hungarian folk art or you are playing around with the Hungarian language and you want to add something fun […]

What is Hungarian Living? On this episode of the podcast I am going to explain a bit about the concept behind the phrase Hungarian Living and why we use it. Hello! It’s Liz and today we are talking about the term “Hungarian Living”. Why we use it, what we mean by it, and why you might want to endeavor to add more Hungarian Living you’re your life! A little bit about my background. All of my great grandparents came from Hungary and three of my four grandparents were born there. Maintaining a connection to their Hungarian heritage was very natural […]

Regions of Hungary: Treasures of the Countryside Hello! Hello! We will be doing a series of free online travel webinars. Have you registered yet? More details on this special opportunity coming up in this episode! Hey – It’s Liz with The Hungarian Living Podcast. If you are new around here, welcome. And if you have been here for the previous 88 episodes Thank you for hanging with me! Our topic today is our free Regions of Hungary: Treasures of the Countryside online Travel Webinar sessions. We will be doing two in January and two in February and we would love […]

So, you want to learn Hungarian? I don’t want to scare you away from this exciting challenge! Coming up in this episode of The Hungarian Living Podcast are some things you want to think about as you consider studying Hungarian. Welcome to The Hungarian Living Podcast. Yep, it has been a bit since we have released a new episode. We added so many new things to our Hungarian world over the last several years – which has been amazing and fun. And, we have more Hungarian projects coming up this year. So, we are excited. And we are also trying […]

We’ll post the show notes soon!

After not traveling to or from Hungary since December 2019, I was pretty sure I had forgotten all my little tricks and tips for traveling. So, really, up until the last minute, I was adjust and readjusting what I was carrying along for the plane, what I was checking and all that stuff. I think I did ok. I arrived in one piece

If you have other areas of Hungary to visit on your mind, or you want a private tour, let’s talk! We know that sometimes our tour dates to not necessarily align with your available dates for travel. For example, maybe you are going on a cruise and your final stop is Budapest. You can extend your trip for a few days and we can find you a driver/guide who can get you to those important areas of Hungary you would like to visit. We can take care of all of those details and you can have the fun!

We will be doing several podcasts on some of our road trips because we normally take quite a few of them and we always learn so much when we do and we thought it would be fun since summertime is typically the season for road trips!

Hey there! You are listening to the Hungarian Living podcast where we explore all sorts of things that revolve around Hungarian heritage. Today we are talking a bit about tours to Hungary and Transylvania and, specifically, our tours to Hungary and Transylvania through our other business, Magyar Living Tours, so, stick around. Since we have […]

During the Christmas season in many families in Hungary, the Bethlehem players visit the homes of relatives and friends, bringing to them the story of Christmas. Each boy and girl has a special part in re-creating the Bethlehem scene.

Tasting Hungarian food, hearing the Hungarian language, learning about Hungarian history or seeing Hungarian folkart patterns can spark curiosity and questions about heritage. You don’t have to know any of these things perfectly yourself to encourage others! When you share something that interests you, your excitement might draw others in. And from there you might find that it leads to an interest and from there you might find that someone becomes enthusiastic about discovering more.

Episode 80 This is part 7 of the icipici series of Celebrating Christmas with Hungarian Style on the Hungarian Living Podcast. Food traditions are always important around the holidays. This episode has an observation and a little bit of encouragement to continue cooking Hungarian food and teaching others how to do it, too! Have you […]

I encourage you to bake some of these cookies and invite some friends or cousins over for an adult mézeskalács decorating party. Of course, the kids can be a part of this too, but, sometimes its nice to have some mulled wine and have a creative party with some adults you enjoy spending time with!

You might want to start a tradition of having palacsinta on Christmas morning or the day after Christmas or whenever you have special guests visiting from out of town. As far as I am concerned, palacsinta is good for any time!

I grew up hearing lovely Christmas carols in Hungarian. I am sure hearing the sounds of Hungarian — and repeating them — has helped me in my pronunciation as I have been more intentional about learning Hungarian in the last several years. I am thankful my mom played these songs during the Christmas season every year. Hearing the songs brings back some nice memories.

Take some time to think about your favorite traditions and what and how your house plans to celebrate. Write down the ones that were most meaningful to you as a child. If you get together with family and friends, it might be an interesting discussion!

Szaloncukor is a Hungarian candy that is wrapped in foil and can be hung on the Christmas tree. It is customary in Hungarian homes to hang these beautifully wrapped candies on the Christmas tree as a decoration. Traditionally,

December 6th is the name day of Miklós, and children especially love this day because for them it is Mikulás Nap. The Hungarian Santa, called Mikulás, visits children on December 6th, St. Nicholas Day.

Find other ways to minimize your daily routine. Do not bring along strongly scented perfumes or lotions. If you are traveling with a group of people, the chances are very high that someone will have a perfume allergy. But, even if they don’t, just remember YOUR favorite scent may not be someone else’s. And if everyone wears their favorite scent – oh boy. It just gets to be too much!

Episode 72 This is part 7 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary. Today we are going to talk just a bit about cell phones and cell phone plans. There are so many ways think about this that I am going to give you the questions you should be asking your cell phone provider before you go on a trip. They are the questions I ask each time I go overseas because these little international plans change quite frequently. They raise the prices, they give you more features, and sometimes I just get overwhelmed about all the options. The bottom line for me is I need to be sure I can make international calls if a participant on one of our tours has a problem. I know I can probably access wifi a little bit every day, but I don’t really want to check email or text people unless it is an absolute emergency. I want to be as present as possible on the tour with the people in the group and engaged in what we are doing for the day. I don’t get to Hungary very often and I want to enjoy every moment! When I am at a hotel and if I have some downtime and want to check in, I can even do that if I am on airplane mode. What do you need to do? Get to know your phone and get to know your plan. I have even printed out the instructions about how to do it in case I forget a step. Believe me, if you hit the wrong button while you are traveling, you can spend a lot of your data in a very short amount of time and not even know. Don’t count on others to know what is going on with your phone and your plan. You have to be the one who knows because you are the one who pays that bill. And it is no fun having surprises when it comes to a crazy international charge. Contact your cell phone provider and ask them about their international plans. Is it a daily rate? A monthly rate? Are there different data options to choose from? Ask them about the countries you are visiting, including your layover country. And ask them to email you about the step by step instructions on how to make sure your phone is ready for an international trip. And bring along a copy of that when you travel to refresh your memory! One thing I do recommend is to download google maps to your phone if you are bringing one along so you don’t have to use data to look at a map. But be sure you understand how that works. When you are exploring, it is a good idea to have a little map with you—either a printed one or the one on your phone! Check out all our upcoming tours at Magyar Living and contact us at [email protected] if you want to check out one of our Zoom sessions all about our tours to Hungary or Transylvania. We will have links to our tours and the ways to contact us in the show notes. We have one more tip coming up. Stay tuned.

EPISODE 71 This is part 6 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary on the Hungarian Living Podcast. Some people have said to me “I don’t need a travel agent and I don’t need travel insurance.” I will share my thoughts about this in this episode! Have you noticed? Even making your way across the USA by plane is a bit crazy these days. If you are skilled at making flight reservations and you have travel points you want to use, by all means, make your own reservations. But when it comes to flying, you have a few things to consider like: is a direct flight is available? How long is a reasonable layover? How do you plan to get to your hotel once you get off the flight? I recommend you arrive a day or two ahead of schedule if you are joining a tour. This gives you a moment to rest a recuperate from the flight and it builds in a little cushion in case your flight gets delayed. And trip/travel/tour insurance? Definitely look into it. In most cases, if you have a pre-existing condition, you need to purchase your insurance within 10 days or less of your flight or tour deposit, whichever happened first. When you buy travel insurance be sure you know what it covers! It will take a minute to sort through all of your options, but just remember, insurance is designed to give you piece of mind. And, if you plan on doing a bit of travel within a year, consider an annual plan. We recommend insurance because when we send the money over to Hungary and Transylvania for our deposits, in most cases they are non-refundable. That means we do not get any money back if you don’t show up. We cannot return what we don’t have. There is a time frame for cancellations on any tour you take so be sure to ask what those details are whether you are traveling with us or someone else. If you want to spend a day or two traveling to your ancestral village, contact me! We love helping people explore the regions where their parents, grandparents and great grandparents came from! Check out all our upcoming tours at MagyarLiving.com and contact us at [email protected] if you want to check out one of our Zoom sessions all about our tours to Hungary or Transylvania.

Episode 70 This is part 5 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary on the Hungarian Living Podcast. Some people have asked me, “Isn’t everything worth seeing in Hungary in Budapest? Is it necessary to go the countryside?” Budapest us an amazing city to visit. But, as I like to say, the magic is in the countryside. There is so much to see and do in Budapest you can explore and get along pretty well only knowing English. But, consider finding a way to get into the countryside. It will give you a much deeper appreciate for the country, as a whole. It’s true, Budapest is romantic and gorgeous and full of incredible history. But the countryside is full of people, my kind of people. The regular Joes who live and work and play in the villages and small towns. I think the villages resonate with me because that is where my ancestors came from. Maybe that is why I felt comfortable in small town Nebraska for so many years – it was in my genes! It does get a little more complicated setting up a travel plan outside of Budapest. But it is completely worth going. If you love to plan the details of a trip, go for it! Some people love planning everything – vehicle rentals and hotels and all that. We have done it and it takes a lot of work. Actually, I should say my husband did it. But, he did consider everyone traveling (our four kids) and asked them each to come up with a few things that were important for them to see in this once in a lifetime (or so we thought) trip. Getting those who are joining you on the trip to chip in an idea or two is a good way to get them engaged in the processl The special places our kids picked out were put into the itinerary. But the memorable moments were from things that were unplanned or discovered along the way. This exact same thing has happened to us a time or two on our tours as well. We have a plan and then there is an adjustment in the plan. I have figured out that I don’t like to be in the nitty gritty details of the plans. I like coming up with the big picture and trusting the details will be covered by the person who loves that sort of thing. I like building in some flexibility so that adjustments can be made. But I am a person who can learn and have fun in many different situations, and I like to allow for spontaneity. A little down time is fine. A change in plans is to be expected. I like to have a rough sketch of a plan and then see what happens if I am traveling on my own. My husband likes to have a few more details fleshed out. Both approaches are completely valid and have their strong points. If nailing down the details and following up with them is too exhausting, you might be a candidate for one of our tours. We spend 2/3rds of our time in the countryside, exploring a region and getting to know what it has to offer. My tour partner and I work out all the details and you can relax and have all the fun. So, start thinking about how long you plan to be in Hungary. And then work back from there. If you only have three days, enjoy Budapest, but plan on a return trip when you can stay longer. My personal opinion is you should plan on at least 10 days in Hungary and even that isn’t enough time, but it is a great start. I think of it as a bit of a soak. It takes time to absorb the way of life. It takes time to get familiar with your surroundings – the language, the signs, the architecture, the history, the transportation options, and the culture. And you do need a lot of time to ponder the flavorful foods and beverages. I don’t believe you do Hungary justice – or any country for that matter – when you run in and run out and say “CHECK it off my list, I’ve been there”. I think it is important to experience it a little. And, if you have family from Hungary, see if you can get close to where they lived. And, guess, what? We can help with that, too! Check out all our upcoming tours at MagyarLivi...

Episode 69 Szia! This is part 4 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary. Are planning to take one of our trips to Hungary or Transylvania or you are doing your own thing? Either way, today we are covering some important money things to consider as you plan your trip. What do we need to think about when it comes to money? Well, first of all, if you haven’t traveled in a while, traveler’s checks are just not the thing at all anymore. Don’t do it. It will set you up for all kinds of challenges. Hungary is a part of the European Union so you can use Euros in Budapest. But I really recommend you get familiar with the Hungarian Forint. If you go out to the countryside, that is really the currency they will be using. I have only ever used forints when I have traveled to Hungary. It’s truly the local currency. It takes a little getting used to but with a little cheat sheet of some USD – HUF conversions, you will soon find yourself able to understand how much you are paying for things. I always have some cash with me. And I don’t get it all exchanged when I arrive. I always take more than I think I need. It’s ridiculous to buy a scoop of ice cream with a credit card. And when you are out in the countryside and visiting small vendors, believe me, it is rare that they are set up to receive credit cards. You know every transaction comes with a fee that gets assessed to that little business. Do yourself a favor and do them a favor, pay in cash. I never exchange money at the airport. The exchange rate is absolutely not in our favor at all. But, if you think you have to have $20 or $30 worth of Hungarian money in your pocket, you can do it. But unless you are flush with cash, you shouldn’t go that route for large exchanges. There are money exchange places all over Budapest and the rates are much better than at the airport. Personally, I would rather be generous with my money in other ways and not at the airport. Get your money exchanged in Budapest before you go out to the countryside. It isn’t so easy to find places to exchange money once you leave the big city. It isn’t impossible, but it is just a good idea to have it settled before you leave town. You might be able to get some money exchanged through your bank before you leave. I have never done that so I don’t know about the exchange rates or fees associated with that but, if you want to explore that option, it might be one for you. Just be ready to do that at least a month in advance. Give the system time to work. ____ I always have a credit card with me. Sometimes 2, just in case one decides to not cooperate. One time when I was traveling to Atlanta, all three of my credit cards were unusable. They were concerned that I was traveling away from my home state of Indiana. But a month earlier there were no questions when I used my cards internationally. That type of inconsistency forces me to have a back up plan to my back up plan. It’s a bit of a hassle but as much of a hassle as being stuck with no money. One nice thing about traveling with us is you have two meals covered on each full day. So, you know you won’t go hungry. But, it is a bit of a pain. I only use Visa or Mastercard when I travel. Discover and American Express cards aren’t really popular or well known. Maybe they have high fees for the vendor, I don’t know but it isn’t worth having a card along that may or may not be used so I just don’t mess with those kinds of cards. ____ I always contact my credit card company and tell them all the countries I will be traveling to and when. Even the countries I will simply have a layover in at the airport. You just never know when I short layover will become a long one. If you haven’t set up a pin code for your cards, I would recommend it. I set the same pin for both cards, that way I am not trying to figure out which card has...

Episode 68 Szia! This is part 3 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary. If you are planning to take one of our trips to Hungary or Transylvania or you are doing your own thing, we will be covering some important things to consider as you plan your trip. This time we are talking about documenting your journey. I have mixed feelings about having cell phones on a trip. There are some great cameras on cell phones and that is probably my favorite thing about having a phone along. And while it is awesome to be able to take amazing photos, it is also very distracting — for the photo taker. Some people actually miss out on the here and now experience because they are taking a lot of photos. I know, it is a hard call. I take photos a lot – for ideas, for memories, for promotional brochures. There are times I just have to remind myself that I don’t always need to have a photo for everything – in fact, that’s why journals are a good idea! A photo does give a great visual but it can’t use your own words to communicate your thoughts and emotions and the other details of your experience. Do yourself a favor, experience where you are without always needing all the photos and consider keeping a daily journal of your trip. I suggest taking notes in a tiny, portable notebook you can have with you during the day. Then at the end of the day, do a longer recap of the day. Every day you will have so many experiences that it is best to write them down each evening. Or, if you tend to wake up in the wee hours of the morning, grab your notebook and find a quiet place to think your thoughts and write out your experiences! If you visited your grandparents’ village and walked around, how did that feel? What did it leave you wondering? If you walked into a butcher shop and you inhaled the amazing aroma of the smokey meats, did it remind you of something from your younger years? If you are traveling with an elderly parent, what was it like watch them reconnect with a family member? Did they start telling you stories you hadn’t heard before? How might you share those stories with others? Of course, there is nothing like being there and hearing the stories first hand, but try to recapture something of the experience before life gets crazy and you forget yourself. Do you see what I am trying to say? There isn’t always a photo captured for these types of emotions. But thinking them over and putting them to paper – even if just to say it was indescribable paints a picture for the reader. And we don’t always know who the reader is or when they might be pouring over these memories. As you think about documenting your journey, there is no right or wrong way. There are advantages to each. Just remember to be present and experience it! If you spend too much time behind a camera or in a phone, you will definitely miss out on a few things. Would you like more information on our upcoming Zoom chat about our tours to Hungary and Transylvania? It’s free and there is no obligation to sign up for a tour. It’s a just a way for you to meet us and see if our tour structure is something that works for you! Email [email protected] for a link to the next session coming up! Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this podcast, Stay tuned for Part 4 of the Icipici edition of the Hungarian Living Podcast all about Traveling to Hungary. we also have Icipici podcasts on Getting Started with Genealogy and Getting Started with Hungarian. Be sure to check them out wherever you listen to podcasts!!

Episode 67 Szia! This is part 2 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary. And if you are planning to take one of our trips to Hungary or Transylvania or you are doing your own thing, we will be covering some important things to consider as you plan your trip. So take notes. Today we’re talking about walking and why it is a good idea to start now in anticipation of a trip. It’s a good idea to start adding extra walking steps into your days if you are planning any international travel. It might come in handy as early as at the airport where you might be required to change terminals or run like crazy because your gate changed at the last minute. Budapest certainly has a great transportation system, but if you only travel by bus, taxi, tram or metro you will be missing out on a lot. In fact, you might spend more time trying to understand all that, especially if you don’t speak Hungarian then you would if you just decided a nice walk will get you to where you want to go, I love every form of travel and there are certainly benefits to each. But there are some hidden gems in places where you have to walk. Of course, you should check in with your doctor first, but most people can add more walking into their day and their doctor won’t mind at all. In fact, if you can start taking the stairs more often, that will come in handy too. There are not necessarily elevators in every building that you might end up visiting. On our tours, we might we find ourselves in a medieval castle, in a palace, or taking a stroll in a vineyard. Cobblestone streets are fairly common place and certainly add to the charm of Hungary. And don’t forget, you will be faced with a lot of amazing food decisions. Planning to do a little extra walking will help offset your calor intake, if you know what I mean! Are you planning to travel with a buddy? Don’t forget to talk to them about adding more movement into their every day! Travel is more fun when you are in better shape! Would you like more information on our upcoming Zoom chat about our tours? It’s free and there is no obligation to sign up for a tour. It’s a just a way for you to meet us and see if our tour structure is something that works for you! Email [email protected] for a link to the next session coming up this month! Stay tuned for Part 3 of the Icipici edition of the Hungarian Living Podcast all about Traveling to Hungary. Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this podcast, we also have Icipici podcasts on Getting Started with Genealogy and Getting Started with Hungarian. Be sure to check them out wherever you listen to podcasts!! Want more from Hungarian Living? Visit our website and sign up for our e-newsletters or catalog in the Contact area!

Episode 66 Hello hello! It’s another icipici series on the Hungarian Living podcast. This time we focus on Traveling to Hungary! What do you need to know? Even if you have visited to Hungary before, we are talking about important things like passports, travelers insurance, credit cards and local currency, flights, phone plans, and all the ways it might be helpful to prepare for travel, so stick around! This is part 1 of the icipici series of Traveling to Hungary. And if you are planning to take one of our tours to Hungary or Transylvania or you are doing your own thing, we will be covering some important things to consider as you plan your trip. But first, I just want to say how exciting it is to see all the countries that are represented in our podcast statistics. Of course, we always expect listeners from the United States and Canada because there are so many, many people with Hungarian heritage in these countries. But we also have listeners in Hungary, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Spain, France, the Netherlands, China, and many more! It’s so exciting see where our listeners are listening from and hear from them! We love it! So, let’s talk about travel! My first question for you is: Do you have a passport? If not, and you want to travel internationally, don’t wait any longer to apply! It takes a little time to work through the process. There is a link in the show notes with all the details on how to apply! It isn’t complicated but it takes a little time. So get moving on that. https://www.usa.gov/passport If you already have a passport, do you know where your passport is? If you have recently moved or purged, you might have set your passport in a safe place. In fact, I need to make sure I know where mine is because I haven’t needed it for years. Ugh. And we did just move. I know exactly where it was in the old house but in this house? Hm. I need to think about it for a moment. I can’t say I can put my fingers on it in the next 5 minutes. Be sure you know where your passport is! When does your passport expire? It is very important to know the expiration date when you are making travel plans. For example, let’s say you have a passport that expires on August 1, 2023. You might think that you can travel internationally and then be back by mid July 2023 and everything is great. Nope! You need a 6 month cushion on your passport. So, before you even think about traveling, get ahold of a passport if you don’t already have one. If you have a passport, make sure you know where it is? And be sure to double check the expiration date of your passport. Are you planning to travel with a buddy? Don’t forget to talk to them about their passport, too! You want to be ready to travel when the opportunity arises, and the stress of passport delays or extra fees are no fun! Alright, we covered enough for today. Stay tuned for Part 2 of the Icipici edition of the Hungarian Living Podcast all about Traveling to Hungary. Would you like more information on our upcoming Zoom chat about our tours? It’s free and there is no obligation to sign up for a tour. It’s a just a way for you to meet us and see if our tour structure is something that works for you! Email [email protected] for a link to the next session coming up this month! Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this podcast, we also have Icipici podcasts on Getting Started with Genealogy and Getting Started with Hungarian. Be sure to check them out wherever you listen to podcasts!

Episode 65 We are wrapping up our series on Getting Started with Hungarian! This is the last official episode in the series! Szai! Welcome to Episode 65 of the Hungarian Living podcast! This is part 8 of the Icipici Series on Getting Started with Hungarian. If you are tuning into this episode first, I recommend you go back and listen to the whole series. Remember, they are just Icipici so they won’t take a lot of time! Episode 58 Part 1 Episode 59 Part 2 Episode 60 Part 3 Episode 61 Part 4 Episode 62 Part 5 Episode 63 Part 6 Episode 64 Part 7 So you can have all the things that will help you get in a good space for Getting Started in Hungarian. It is important to be squared away and get started on the right foot! But first, let’s talk about the danger of perfecting a phrase that might get you into trouble! There have been numerous times I have been to a Hungarian festival and someone comes up to me and says “Jo napot! Hogy vagy?” which means, “Hello, how are you?’ Well, I can answer that with a question so I often do because I am always excited to practice my speaking skills.. And then they typically say “Well, that’s all I’ve got. That’s all I know” And the conversation switches to English. And that is perfectly fine. I love that they know that much. In fact, I used to be able to only really say that much because I heard it over and over again. We catch onto things quickly in those younger years. But wouldn’t it be fun to get to a place where you can go further than that and be able to respond to a few niceties? Maybe be able to ask a few questions and have a sense of the answer? My husband, who is not Hungarian, does pretty well saying: Nem beszelek magyarul. Which means: I do not speak Hungarian. Unfortunately, as he is saying that, he is indeed speaking Hungarian and that actually gets him in trouble. I guess he needs to change his answer to: Csak egy kicsit beszélek magyarul. Which means: I only speak a little Hungarian. My caution to you is, if you are going to perfect a phrase, be prepared to hear the next thing in Hungarian. Those who speak fluently or link to practice will be so excited to hear that you speak Hungarian that they will definitely want to continue the conversation. Let’s talk about how to do that. There are a lot of apps that you can download and the free versions can be very helpful. I don’t pay for all of the tools that I use for my Hungarian learning adventure. I pick and choose. I have used the free version of DuoLingo the most, but there are also other ones like Quizlet and Drops. I love Catch Budapest’s One Hungarian Word a Day. Sometimes I listen to Hungarian folk songs by groups like Holviola and

Episode 64 Szia! Welcome to Episode 64 of the Hungarian Living podcast! This is part 7 of the Icipici Series on Getting Started with Hungarian. We are still talking about the Hungarian language. And Anna Hamp is back with us again. Today let’s talk about some of the common phrases we would use with folks who speak Hungarian. How do you say: Good Morning. Jó reggelt. Good Afternoon. Jó napot. Good Evening. Jó estét. Good Night. Jó éjszakát. Jó éjt. Thank you. Köszönöm. Köszi. Kösz. Cheers! Egeségedre! By the way, if you want to practice speaking Hungarian, we are offering our dialogue sessions again — starting early in September, so contact me right away if you want to jump in on the fun! We will talk about more phrases you can use right away in the class. To here a detailed explanation of our Hungarian Dialogue Sessions CLICK HERE for Episode 17 of our podcast. Thank you, Anna for joining me on the podcast. Check out our class offerings HERE and give us a call at 1-800-786-7851 if you want to talk about what might fit best for you!

Szia! Welcome to Episode 63 of the Hungarian Living podcast! We are still talking about the Hungarian language and we have Anna Hamp back with us today for another couple of tips. So Anna, what do you have for us today? The importance of vowel harmony with a little explanation Gender (or lack of it) — what makes that easy but, also, what makes that a challenge If you learned Hungarian from your grandparents and you are in your mid twenties or older you might find that the language isn’t quite the same. Want to take Hungarian lessons? Are you studying Hungarian on your own but want to be able to ask a live instructor a few questions? Check out our class offerings Hungarian Lessons for Beginners Hungarian Lessons for those who already have been working in the MagyarOK books Hungarian Language Clinic Hungarian Dialogue Sessions Hungarian Review Sessions Hungarian History and Culture I The Sights of Hungary