Elizabeth

OK so if you didn't read my other thread, I'm going to study in Budapest next month...

Why does everyone seem to think that once I leave the "magical" confines of the Wilmington area that suddenly anything that everything will go wrong? That I will simultaneously have my drink drugged and be blown up?

Ed says:
the chances that something bad would happen in budapest is a lot higher than wilm
Erzsébet says:
why? its not an unsafe city
Ed says:
ppl r crazy over there
Ed says:
blowing buildings up
Ed says:
shooting pppl
Erzsébet says:
there has never been a terrorist attack in hungary
Erzsébet says:
wtf

Why???? does such ignorance exist? Hello! I've done this twice before! Don't people think by now I've got this down pretty good. My mom already said everything but "you shouldn't go" (but only bc she loves me, not completely out of ignorance) and some people have outright told me I shouldn't. Why????? I'm so tired of the negativity every time.

Anyone else feel the same way? Why do people act like this? Jealous? Ignorant? Worried? Ugh...thanks for letting me rant.

expatben

Wait, haven't you been to Budapest before? I mean no offence but do people in your town not read current events? As far as I knew Hungry is a safe country never been there mind.
Good luck in Hungary!

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offhegoes03

Yeah, I've heard only good things about Hungary. This is what happens when people just broadly speculate about a country based on what happens in some of the Eastern European countries that are a little less safe.

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Esterina

Fear of the unknown, always the same thing, fear of the unknown. Budapest is safe, they'll know it pretty soon, Erzsébet.

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pinknic38

ignorance is here to stay unfortunately. maybe your trip will serve as an example to them that it's okay to venture out into the big scary world and that there aren't terrorists lurking around every other place with a bag full of bombs.

blah. I feel your frustration!

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mbo108

I totally feel your pain. When we told my mother-in-law we were headed to South Africa she immediately had thoughts of Rwandan genocide, AIDS/HIV clinics, Somalian pirates, and who knows what else. She is an incredibly smart business woman, totally warm and loving but when it comes to unknown lands she always assumes the worst.

maracle

Maybe mention to people that Hungary is part of NATO and the EU. And that it's next to Austria, people are cool with Austria right?

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joe7f

Since you know Buda and Pest you have a very vivid mental image of the city. You think of Kelveti station, Andrassy, the Neo-Gothic parliament, Fisherman's bastion, maybe even their Vienna cloned opera house and monument park.

If a person hasn't traveled outside the borders of the US they don't have a clear idea of what other parts of the world are like. Their sole exposure to it will be through the news which is not going to be positive.

You say Hungary and they don't know where that is. And I don't mean they don't know if Hungary is actually the Czech Republic or if it is Slovakia, I mean they don't know if it is Lithuania, Ukraine, Serbia or Turkey.

So those news clips will all get associated with Hungary. Problems in Belgrade? Budapest baby! Police crackdown on Orange Revolution protesters in Kiev? That's Hungary. Paris riots? That must be those French Magyars.

Ignorance and fear is a tough combination to overcome.

People told me the same thing about Montenegro. I showed them photos of Budva and they looked very surprised. I have posted this before on here but my mom was concerned about crime in Japan. Yeah that's right Japan. The same Japan that has four of the safest cities in the world.

Like Nicole said, maybe you'll inspire someone you know who shares those uninformed concerns to do their own trip outside our borders

--Joey

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