Hungary

Four young people and two staff ventured forth in July 2004 to visit a partner agency, the KIDerul Project in Hungary. The trip was a fantastic experience for all concerned and gave the young folk a great opportunity to meet with Hungarian young people and learn about their lives.

We spent the first two days in fascinating Budapest, where we visited the architecturally stunning Hungarian Parliament Building and cruised the famous Danube taking in the sights of Buda and Pest on opposite banks of the river. The group then took the train to Pécs, in the south west. Here the young people met the young Hungarians and were bested in a Scotland v Hungary ten pin bowling match. This late night was followed by an extremely early start (before 6am!) and another railway experience - this time on the very slow train to Lake Balaton, the largest lake in Europe.

Our hotel offered a variety of activities and here the Scots took their revenge on our hosts at the ping-pong table. A more rural aspect of Hungary was seen when we took the short ferry ride to Tihanyi the following day. There was no time to linger though and that afternoon we headed back to Budapest to enjoy one more night before returning to Scotland - exhausted but infinitely enriched.

Sadly, it proved impossible for our Hungarian friends to secure funding to make the journey to Scotland. Our young people, however, had a terrific experience which they will remember all their lives.

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