Housing

The place I live

I live in a town in the North-Eastern part of Hungary. I like this town as I got used to (hozzászokni) its
buildings, churches, shops, its natural environment, the River and Lake Tisza. This town can be found
in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County (megye), there is a bird reserve (madárrezervátum) near our town
and it’s also part of Hortobágy National Park. The ground is flat here because we are on the Great
Hungarian Plain so if you go out of the town and look around, you can see the land stretching into the
distance. Our area is basically a paradise for tourists as the River Tisza attracts a lot of visitors from
year to year. You can do a lot of water sports, for example swimming, kayaking, canoeing, rowing
boats and windsurfing on Lake Tisza. Besides water sports people can lie on the beach sunbathing and
relaxing or go horse riding, cycling or fishing since the river abounds (bővelkedik) in fish, such as
carp (ponty), catfish (harcsa), pike (csuka) or pike-perch (süllő). The place is also famous for its 69-
degree thermal water.

Advantages and disadvantages of living in the countryside

Living in the countryside has many advantages: first of all, this is man’s natural environment. You are
in touch with the land, feel the rhythm of nature, you always breathe fresh air. As you are fairly active,
you are in good health. Another good point is that the country is safer than big cities. If you are a
parent, you will have fewer worries about unpleasant influences that your children might be exposed
to (ki van téve).Country people have their own houses, big gardens and the cost of living is lower. Life
is more peaceful and the air is fresh and cleaner since there is not as much traffic as in a big city.
People know each other, they always find some time to have a chat, give a helping hand to each other
or have a barbecue together. There is less stress here.

On the other hand, there are fewer job, educational and entertainment opportunities. Therefore many
people commute (ingázik) every day to earn their living. Villages do not have secondary or higher
educational institutions so if village children want to study, they must go to a bigger town. In the
countryside few festivals, concerts and cultural events are organized. Villages have basically no form
of public entertainment, there is a culture house or community centre, which has clubs for young and
old people and a hall for theatre performances but only once in a blue moon (hébe-hóba).

In a big city there are lots of offices and factories, different kinds of shops, for example, supermarkets,
hypermarkets, markets, shopping malls and you can also find cinemas, theatres, bars, discos, a zoo, a
fun park and museums or art galleries.

Some of the problems that big cities have

It’s an artificial, man-made environment where you are surrounded by high buildings, congested roads
(zsúfolt/ bedugult utak), honking vehicles (dudáló járművek), and jostling crowds of people
(lökdösődő embertömeg). Vehicles and factories emit (kibocsát) poisonous gases so the main problem
is air pollution. Consequently (ennek következtében), town people often develop respiratory diseases
(légzőszervi megbetegedések) and are not as healthy as country people. There is always a shortage of
housing (lakáshiány) as the number of dwellers (lakók) in big towns is on continual increase. The
majority of city dwellers live on housing estates. It is due to high estate (telek) and house prices and
rocketing rents (gyorsan növekvő lakbér). Some other problems of a town are the rise in serious crime,
the increasing rate of unemployment and the growing number of homeless people. There are so many
pickpockets (zsebtolvaj), thieves, drug dealers, beggars (koldusok), homeless and young people
hanging around in the town. You don’t even know your neighbours.

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Changes that can improve the lives of the people living in large towns
The urban (városi) environment needs to become a better place to live. First of all, the problems of
road congestion and traffic jams during the rush hours should be solved by developing public transport
and encouraging walking and cycling. Local councils should invest (beruház) in a greener
infrastructure. They should create new parks and gardens. The crime rate should be lowered by having
a stronger police force and more surveillance cameras (megfigyelőkamerák) should be installed in
busy squares and subways (aluljárók). New jobs should be created to provide people with the
opportunity to earn their living. The problem of housing may be solved by giving more financial help
for example subsidized loans (államilag támogatott hitel) or low interest- rate mortgages (alacsony
kamatú jelzáloghitel).

Future plans
I would like to live in a suburb (külváros) of a big town, I don’t like crowded places, the city rush and
I need peace and quiet. I would like to have an orchard (gyümölcsöskert) and my own vegetable
garden and I want to provide enough space for my children to play. However, you are close enough to
job, educational and entertainment opportunities.

Improving the area where I live

I would improve the playing facilities for young children with more up-to-date playgrounds. I would
create a DogRun (kutyafuttató), a large fenced-in (kerítéssel körbevett) area for dogs to exercise
unleashed (póráz nélkül). I would provide recreational (szórakozási/sportolási) opportunities including
parks where people could have a barbecue or make a campfire on summer evenings. As our world is
aging (öregszik), I would build more homes for elderly people. I would employ more traffic wardens
(közterület felügyelő) who would fine (büntet) car drivers for parking in the wrong places. Dog
owners would also be punished if they leave their dogs’ dirt (kutyapiszok) in the street.

Burglary in our area

I have never heard of any burglary in our area. There are some loud youngsters who sometimes go
home noisily in the small hours. However, I have heard that in bigger cities burglary is quite common,
cars are regularly stolen or terribly damaged (tyres are punctured=kerekeket kiszúrják, aerials torn off
=antennákat letörik, windows broken). At night it is not advisable to walk in the street because you
can be attacked and mugged (megtámadhatnak és kirabolhatnak). Neighbourhood Watch or Home
Watch Scheme (polgárőrség) is the attempt (kísérlet) of local people to tackle (megelőz)crime in the
area where they live. Their aims (céljuk) are to reduce the opportunities for crime and anti-social
behaviour, vandalism, graffiti. NHW is about looking out for each other (figyelünk egymásra),
building a community spirit and acting together as the eyes and ears of the neighbourhood.

Living in another country

Nowadays the borders of the countries of the European Union have collapsed (leomlottak). If you
want to learn a foreign language, earn quite well, look around the world, you should spend some years
abroad. In a foreign country you get acquainted with (megismerkedsz) a new way of life, a different
way of thinking and your mind will get broader( látóköröd szélesebbé válik). Keeping in touch with
your family is fairly easy with the help of modern technology. // I am a great patriot (hazafi), I was
born here, Hungarian is my mother tongue, plus all the celebrations (family gatherings, national and
religious holidays) mean a lot to me, so I wouldn’t like to live abroad.

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Our house/ flat

Our house is a bungalow (egyszintes családiház)/detached house (emeletes családiház)/semi-detached
house (ikerház)/terraced house (sorház)./ We live in a flat on the second floor on a housing estate
(lakótelep). Our house has got seven rooms: two bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, a bathroom, a
dining room, a pantry and a hall. We have got a small/ big garden with fruit trees, for example, an
apple tree, a pear tree, a cherry tree, a plum tree and a walnut tree and a vegetable garden with
potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, onions, peas or beans. We’ve got a beautiful lawn (gyep/pázsit).

We get on well with our neighbours because they are friendly. My parents often talk to each other and
when we travel somewhere, they look after our dog and empty the letterbox. We sometimes grill food
in the garden.

My room is medium-sized and very bright because there is a big window. The walls are green.
Opposite the door there is a wardrobe/ a wall unit (szekrénysor), next to the door, on the right there’s a
desk with a lamp and a computer and a chair. On the left I have got my bed and a bedside table along
the wall. I’ve got some bookshelves and posters of animals/famous stars on the wall.

We have got a terrace where we can have lunch and dinner when the weather is nice. I sometimes read
books or magazines or just have a rest. My mother sometimes hangs the washing out there.

Our kitchen is small but it is well-equipped with plenty of household equipment, for example, a fridge,
a microwave oven, a toaster, a toasted sandwich maker, a coffee and tea maker and a dishwasher. In
the middle of the kitchen we’ve got a table with four chairs, next to the window there are cupboards
with a sink, next to the sink there is a gas/ electric cooker. The fridge is opposite the window.

We have got a living room with a wall unit with books and ornaments (díszek), a sofa and two
armchairs, a coffee table, a flower stand (virágállvány), a standard lamp (állólámpa) and a TV stand in
the corner. We have got potted plants (cserepes növények) on the walls.

In our bathroom there’s a small window opposite the door, below the window there’s a bathtub
(fürdőkád), opposite the bath we’ve got a washbasin and a towel rack (törölköző tartó). There’s a shelf
and a mirror above the basin. We keep toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, shower gel, perfume and
other cosmetics on the shelves in the corner.

Facilities in our neighbourhood

In my village there are few facilities, we have a supermarket, a post office and a few services, there is
a football field where the local football team plays its matches.// I live on a housing estate which is not
far from the city centre. It has all the necessary amenities (lehetőségek, szolgáltatások), there is a
supermarket, several services, a post office, a surgery (rendelő) and a pharmacy. There is a fitness
centre and a swimming pool.

Protecting my house
We have a security door with a steel frame (acélkeret) and ultra-strong deadlocks (ultraerős lakat). I
haven’t installed a security system with door and window sensors, motion detector (mozgásérzékelő)
and indoor sounder to detect intruders (észlelni a betolakodókat), but if you have a lot of valuables,
this can be a very good idea. Moreover, there are state-of-the-art (modern, korszerű) surveillance
systems, which can effectively secure a house. Keeping guard dogs is another good idea. They would
guard the house and frighten strangers away.

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Changes about my house or flat

I would change the living room and the kitchen into one large area where the family could be together
all the time. I would also enlarge (megnagyobbítani) the bathroom, would install a large, heart-shaped
fizzy bath (pezsgőfürdő) and two washbasins.

My ideal home
My ideal home is on a hill in a forest. There is a babbling brook (csobogópatak) nearby. The walls are
covered with climbing ivy. As you enter a big open fire place is the first thing you see. The French
windows (erkélyajtó) open on the woods, there is a comfortable armchair in front of it. I’d be sitting
there all the time reading and looking at the squirrels (mókusok) and deer drinking from the brook.

Living in a house
Living in a house is much better than living in a flat as you have more space, an outer area and more
privacy. Everyone should have their own bedroom so that siblings do not have to share a bedroom or
the parents sleep in the living room. A house normally has a garage, a store room, a spare room
(vendégszoba), a pantry, so you can store things. You also might have a laundry (mosókonyha), but if
not at least you can hang the washing in the open air. You can keep animals, grow your own
vegetables, and sit under the sky every evening. You don’t hear the neighbours quarrelling or having a
bath.

An eco-friendly house
Eco-friendly or green homes are innovative (újszerű) solutions to housing problems and the impact
(hatás) they have on our environment. High efficiency solar panels generate all the electricity you
could need while highly efficient batteries store enough power to keep you running through a week of
cloudy days. The walls are highly insulated (szigetelt) and then covered with natural brick and clay
tiles (vályog). Grey water is collected for reuse in non-drinking areas of the home and rainwater is
used for irrigation (öntözés). Low-flow shower heads (víztakarékos zuhanyfejek) and dual flush toilets
(víztakarékos vécék) reduce water consumption (fogyasztás).