Hungary, the new France

When things ever got better in the Netherlands, pensionados bought second homes in Drenthe and Zeeland for very few. This was followed by a massive outflow of 40 + people to France, where new lives were started by converting the French property into / using it as a camping, an inn, a gite or any other recreational or hospitality function.

Now Hungary is the new France

Everything costs almost nothing, the people are friendly and unintelligible and there are now also villages in Hungary of a few hundred men M / V where just 5 or 6 Dutch, Luxembourg and / or German couples live. And then the question naturally arises:

"What about the classics in Hungary?"

For many of the new Hungarians that is also a question that they can only handle when they have become somewhat powerful in Hungarian. And that is quite a thing for us. Hungarian doesn't look like anything to us. Just have a look at Wikipedia.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungarian.

Moreover, it is a language with very subtle differences in pronunciation. If you ask someone for something like an ashtray with just the wrong stress, the person in question can hear that you want to kill them with a red-and-white cow or something about it. But the Dutch that we know feel completely welcome in Hungary.

Slow internet

But once in Hungary you can - via a generally slow connection - go on the internet to see what there is for classic lovers. Speaking perfect Hungarian does not have to be a necessity. Good friends are enough with Google Translate. Plus a healthy dose of suspicion. Because many Hungarians are firmly convinced that 'we' are all incredibly rich. They want to share in that. Just look for:

klasszikus autók eladása and http://www.veteranmerci.hu

Then it appears that the Hungarian classic file has a solid ex-east block background. But the dichotomy of the then system also becomes clear in the classic market. The Rollsen and Adenauer Mercedessen and a single ZIL eight-cylinder that are offered have generally been of political dignitaries. Or well after that time whether or not imported by very free boys from 'the West'. There are also quite a few 'ordinary' classics such as Ford 12 Ms for sale.

Coins and prizes

In Hungary people pay with Hungarian forints. 10.000 of those things are around 32 euros. Hungary will soon go to the Eurozone, and they are already bravely responding locally. PIN is becoming more common in Hungary. But before you pay with the pin, check whether it is possible at the relevant payment point.

Note: Do not exchange money on the street, this is not only prohibited but there is also a chance that you will be scammed!

When determining the prices of the classics for sale, the providers focus on the internet. But because the Hungarians themselves are generally not yet at PC Hooft level in terms of spending opportunities (and because the classics and their condition are often sub-optimal), there is quite a lot of negotiating space for an enterprising Dutch person. This negotiation will then usually take place in (in a kind of) German. But who knows what beautiful things can happen?