18.

Közélet /public life

̵ közintézmények
̵ Ügyintézés hivatalokban
̵ Helyi közélet
̵ Közbiztonság
̵ Nemzeti ünnepek
̵
Közintézmények / public institutions
- Önkormányzat- Local government: Every town has a local government- it’s independent, and
they can make their own decisions.
- Bölcsőde: Nursery school, Óvoda- Kindergarten, Iskola- school
- Kollégium- hostel
- Social institutions: szociális intézmények, like:
o Családsegítő központ: Family Counselling Centre: If a family have a problem with
their child or children, and they need help, they can ask them for advice. They give
information about services, subsidy, programmes, and facilities.
o Idősek otthona: Old People’s Day House: This institution accommodate old people,
the nurses look after them and they get food, sometimes this institutions have a
library, local doctor who examine the people, they have a day-room, coffee-room,
gymnasium, and maybe they can go for trips with their partners.
o Homeless people’s Day Centre: If a homeless asks for the Homeless People’s Day
Centre’s help, they accommodate him or her, and they give them a hand to find a
job, they act on his or her behalf, resettle (visszailleszt) them to the society.
- Service institutions (szolgáltató intézmények), like:
o Youth club: It’s an institution for youth, they give advices, information for the youth,
usually in these houses there is a free Internet use, reading room, and they organise
programmes- for example open-air school, trips or parties.
o Nevelési tanácsadó: Educational Counselling Service: It can help families, parents, or
pedagogues in several cases. The E.C.S. gives pedagogical opinion, and on the basis
of this opinion, they prepare the child’s developmental plan.
- Cultural institutions:
o Library
o Theatre, Puppet-theatre
o Museums
o Record office (levéltár) 
- Tourist office
- Sports establishments
- And other institutions, such as:
o Prison
o Cemetery (temető)
o Fire brigade
o Police office
o Court (bíróság)
o Bank
What happens in a bank?
- You can go to the bank if you want to ask an advisor in connection with your money, the bills,
or if you want to have a credit card done or entrust a bank with something(megbízni a
bankot). After you entered a bank, you can see an automat, which have a touch-screen. You
have to choose on screen what would you like to arrange. If you are done, the automat will
print a number for you, and you have to wait and look at the display. If you see your number,
the display will indicate which clerk you should go to.
The employee demonstrates some offers, maybe gives you some tips, and you can choose
the fairest.
If you enter a bank you have to decide in front of a machine what you want to do. There are
plenty of options, but these are collected into bigger groups which are showed on the display. A
big screen is somewhere in the bank but it’s well-visible. When you see your number which was
given by the machine you can go to a certain assistant. The bank assistants have got different
numbers. This number is always showed next to your basic number on the screen. When you go
to the assistant she/he will help you to handle your business.

Ügyintézés

If you want to do the administration, you have to fix an appointment at first. You can fix it
online, or sometimes through phone. You will get a number and a time. Than an assistant or
an employee arranges your problem- for example if you lost your personal cards, the
employee collects your data, takes a photo and prints a new plastic card. It only takes a few
minutes, but after 2 weeks get you the new card. They send it by post, and it costs about 3500
HUF.

Local public life has a bit fallen back in my town. The pubs and clubs are not crammed with
people like they used to be. Everybody has to work all day and after they get home, they’re happy
if they can spend some time with their loved ones. If they’re single then sometimes they go to
discos and pubs to have fun but it’s not too characteristic.
Although Hungary is generally a safe place to visit, you should use caution and stay alert. It is
said that “In Hungary you’ve got Budapest and then you’ve got the countryside.” In Budapest
be especially careful in train stations and crowded areas. In addition, you should avoid
demonstrations and political rallies. In recent years a few demonstrations have turned violent,
and authorities have used riot police and water cannons to control crowds. Street crimes,
particularly pocketpicking, theft from unattended vehicles and vandalism are the most frequently
reported incidents. Budapest's major train stations and the public transportation (tram, subway
and bus) system are popular venues for such thefts. I think the country is a safer place to live. In
my hometown there aren’t any crimes or murders in the streets. TThe police can often be seen
patrolling in my town. I feel safe when I see them but I also feel said because I know they’re not
always right there when something bad happens.
Nemzeti ünnepek

When? What? What do we celebrate?

on the first It’s the New Year’s According to traditions, the lentil soup makes people
of January Day. rich and rolling out strudel (rétes) dough will
guarantee long life. If somebody eats poultry (baromfi)
on this day, his luck will fly away.
15 March National Day It’s a memorial day of the 1848-49 Revolution. The
Prime Minister makes a speech and a lot of people wear
a cockade with national colours.
Moveable Easter Sunday We commemorate the Resurrection of Jesus. It is a
feast - (húsvétvasárnap) religious and a folklore holiday.
mozgóünnep
Moveable Easter Monday We eat smoked ham, horse-radish, eggs and milk loaf.
(húsvéthétfő) Boys sprinkle girls with perfume or water, they tell a
rhyme and get dyed or decorated eggs or money in
exchange. Children get chocolate bunnies.
on the 1st of Labour Day There are special programmes, the bridges are
May (A munka ünnepe) decorated and we celebrate work without working. In
America Labour Day is on the first Monday of
September.
Moveable Pentecost Sunday It’s a Sunday 50 days after Easter
(pünkösdvasárnap)
Moveable Pentecost Monday Monday after Pentecost
(húsvéthétfő)
20 August Saint Stephen’s Day We celebrate the Foundation of State. St. Stephen of
(Szent István Hungary was the first king of Hungary. There’s a
ünnepe) firework on the bank of the Danube, which is watched
by many people on both river banks, and it is broadcast
television. This day is the day of Hungarian Bread too.
23 October National Day This is the day of the Third Hungarian Republic, and
(Nemzeti ünnep) also we observe the 1956 Revolution. We celebrate it
with speeches, exhibitions.
1 November All Saints Day In Hungary we don’t celebrate Halloween, which is the
night before All Hallows. On All Saints Day we
remember our dead loved ones. Cemeteries are
decorated with flowers, candles, tea-lights and wreaths
(koszorúk) by families and friends of the deceased (az
elhunytak).
25 and 26 Christmas It’s a Christian holiday, when we celebrate the birth of
December Jesus. Unfortunately this holiday has been
commercialized (elüzletiesedett), because people buy
more and more presents for their relatives and friends.
People put their presents under the Christmas tree,
which is decorated with lights, ornaments, tinsels and
candy cane/Christmas candy. The family sings
Christmas carols together while lighting sparkles.
Christmas dinner is usually fish with a side dish. We
also go to the midnight mass with my parents. We also
bake poppy-seed or walnut rolls. On 25 and 26 of
December the people usually visit their relatives and
exchange presents. We celebrate the Birth of Jesus.
31 New Year’s Eve We clink glasses at midnight with champagne, we sing
December our national anthem. In English-speaking countries they
sing Auld Lang Syne. The Head of State makes a
speech after midnight.