Hungary

Hungarian money comes in forints. In 2005, it was 200 forints to a euro. Everything is cheaper in Hungary than it would be in Western Europe. You can fill your stomach at a decent restaurant for less than $10, local drinks at a pub are less than a dollar, and a hostel in Budapest is usually less than $15 a night. A pack of name-brand cigarettes is less than three bucks, and the Eastern European brands are little more than a dollar.

If you buy your food at supermarkets and don’t go to restaurants, you can eat on a couple bucks a day if you don’t have fancy tastes and have a place where you can do simple cooking. If you know how to stretch your money and don’t mind eating potatoes five times a week, you could even fill your stomach on less than a dollar a day. The further east you go in Hungary, the cheaper things get.

You can get a job teaching English in Hungary, but it’s harder here than in the rest of Eastern Europe. There is less demand, and most employers expect a TEFL certificate and/or teaching experience. Many of them want to see a college degree, too. But at most teaching jobs, you’ll be making about $600 a month, which is more than enough to live comfortably in Hungary. Most English teachers only have to work about 25 hours a week, leaving you plenty of time to write the Great Hungarian Novel.

Most of the work available for foreigners is in Budapest. Aside from teaching, there is also a demand for English-speakers in the computer, car manufacturing, tourism and publishing industries.

The procedure for getting a visa is complex and long, so apply early. Most westerners who work here got their papers through their employer before they even came to Hungary. The exception is English schools—the richer ones usually take care of your paperwork for you, but the smaller ones either tell you to do it yourself or just hire you under the table. It’s hard to find a job here. It’s a country people leave to find jobs, not come to.

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