It is that history that separates Hungary from the other former East Bloc states. Hungary and its people cannot be lumped in with those of its neighbors. The origin of the people is different; the culture is different, and — most frustrating for the visitor — the language is different, so different that some linguists consider it to be among the world’s most difficult languages to master. It is considered a "hardship" language by the State Department, which gives foreign service staff a differential in salary for proficiency in Hungarian. Not a Slavic language, Hungarian is Finno-Ugric, making Finnish its closest cousin. This hardly helps. "I don’t understand a word they say," said a Finnish traveler, negotiating the bus system. "It’s not a language, it’s a code," a Hungarian friend explains, advising expatriates not to bother learning Hungarian. "It’s too hard."

Fortunately for the many visitors who flock to Budapest in the warmer weather, many people here speak another language. The older folk tend to speak German, while the younger Budapestians often know English. Most also know Russian — they were once required to learn it in school — but they don’t like to speak it. And Hungarians are very flattered and gracious at the foreigner’s attempts to utter a few words of the language.

Foreign Language Courses in Hungary - Budapest