Why do we leave Hungary?

The two of us are embarking on a wonderful new adventure for the next one year or so. We are leaving Hungary and will settle for the next period in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.

About roughly 2 years ago we decided to close the door of politics - at least for a while -  in Hungary. Elections were over, with a shocking landslide victory for Fidesz, the antidemocratic ruling party. We couldn't see our place anymore in the political system.

After a couple of month of search and reorientation, we found a scholarship that funded MBA-programs in St. Louis. It took us two years to get ready for the adventure - financially, emotionally, legally and from many other aspects.

As we told to our friends many times, the core reason of us moving to the USA is the MBA scholarship we received in St. Louis. But we didn't talk much about why we were searching for this possibility in the first place.

After all, we had a quite comfortable life here in Budapest. Nice jobs for both of us, nice apartment with view over the city. A wide and rich circle of friends with extended social life. And yet I couldn't wait to leave Budapest in the last weeks. Nothing really held me back.

Our life was in a transitional period in the last two years. In a way, Budapest and all the other circumstances of our life were well-known and got used to, it was cozy and comfortable. The life we were living didn't teach us enough, not on the level we wanted to progress and learn. We were just fine about everything - but we missed hardship and excitement and great joy, all the things that come with something fundamentally new.

Something needed to be changed, and nothing changes you as much as moving far away. That's why we were searching for possibilities somewhere else than Europe. But the adventure was only one aspect of the decision. There was another one - to escape from the too well-known problems of the country that surrounded us.

We were both very tired of the social reality of Hungary. I had to deal with my own frustration that there was no change whatsoever, never mind in which ways and how hard we tried.

I didn't want to see poverty anymore. Personally, that hurts me the most. I didn't want to face the ever bigger gap in the society, the frozen social immobility, the evaporating chance for poor kids to get a better life than their parents'.

Most of all, I was fed up with the indifference of those in power, whose job would be to serve instead of reign, to help instead of hinder. And the reaction to that attitude from the people -  the oppressive lethargy that surrounds everything and everyone (except for a handful of brave and independent).

All these recent developments hurt us very much because we both believe in freedom and democracy. I studied psychology, and I know that one can only live up to his/her fullest potential if all sort of freedom is available for exploring.

We also believe that your personal happiness is linked to others', it cannot occur unless the gaps in society are relatively small, and social mobility is providing possibilities for the less wealthy and fortunate. I am also quite certain that there is no planet B, so freedom and social justice have to flourish within an environmental framework - one that takes sustainability as its first priority.

Everything that happened in my country since 2010 was walking away from these values, and I've witnessed it from just the best spot to see the consequences of every horrible decision and not really being able to do anything against it.

I needed to go away. We both did. Not that poverty or bad politics (looking to you Mr. Trump...) would disappear in the US. - however, in any other country, I don't feel the immediate responsibility to change these conditions. I don't even understand the complexity and all the layers of social problems, I am not yet introduced to the different cultural codes. I am free of that burden out here.

So we decided to take a break, go away and get skilled up. To use our time abroad to experience fundamentally new things and develop further.

This blog is meant to document the changes and the challenges we experience - both inside and out.

The credit for the photo goes for Tamas Rizsavi. Check out his FB page here.