Hungary

Hungary is an odd man out in Europe. It is a country in the centre of the continent. The ancestors of the Hungarian people came from the Ural and Hungary is the only European country with puszta’s:vast wet grasslands. Spanning 93,030 square kilometres (35,920 sq mi) in the Carpathian Basin, it borders Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Austria to the northwest, Romania to the east, Serbia to the south, Croatia to the southwest, and Slovenia to the west. Hungary's capital and largest city is Budapest; other major urban areas include Debrecen, Szeged, Miskolc, Pécs and Győr. 

In Hungary people like spicy food with lots of peppers and lots of dancing. Listen for example to Brahms’ Hungarian Dances if you want to understand the Hungarian spirit filled with emotion. Hungary has suffered greatly from the Holocaust but the impressive synagogue in Budapest is still there. Worth the visit and maybe a good time to contemplate about the bad things that happened.

The official language is Hungarian, which is the most widely spoken Uralic language in the world, and among the few non-Indo-European languages to be widely spoken in Europe.The language is very difficult and different from that of the neighbouring countries. 

Hungary is becoming an increasingly popular study abroad destination – especially for medicine. Hungarian higher education has gained great credibility over the years in, among other things, it’s very strong tradition in the sciences. Beyond high-quality education, Hungary also offers a lively and welcoming culture, a fascinating history and beautiful cities. For the past twenty years, over 10,000 international students have attended education in Hungary. Hungary is especially popular for studies as medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine, to name a few. 

Greeting: Egészségére!(cheers!)

Good to know: the Hungarian László Bíró was the inventor of the ballpoint. In the summer there is the famous musical festival of Sziget which young people from all over Europe visit, on an island in the middle of the Danubue.