English Conversation Club

The American Corner in Debrecen is centrally located in a classic building on a  busy corner in downtown Debrecen.  It is a two-room office and reception space that is co-sponsored by the State Department and Unideb.  Anyone interested in finding out more about the US, whether they want to travel or go over as students, or whether they are just curious, can go there for books, DVD’s, and cultural programs.

We have been going there on Tuesday nights for English Conversation Club. On the first night there were about 20 people, mostly high school students.  Dora and Zsuzsi, the two coordinators, split us all up into two circles.  B and I sat with a group of about 10 Hungarian youths.  Some of them had been studying English for years and spoke very fluidly and with little difficulty; others were new to the club and groped for words.   But they all, regardless of their skill, were very interested in the States, in Americans their own age, and in our impressions of Hungary.

They asked us many questions about what we saw as the main differences between the two nations.  B mentioned that the Americans are much more addicted to their cars.  They all nodded in agreement.   I don’t think they quite grasp the difference in size and the huge distances. For example, Texas is 7 times larger than Hungary…and that’s just one of the states.

Dora and Szuszi and a Guest at the American Corner

Some of the topics in our first conversation included what books and CD’s or  DVD’s we would take with us if we were stranded on a desert island.  The high schoolers leaned heavily toward American comedies such as  Farrelly Brothers movies, South Park, and Family Guy. One young woman said she didn’t go to Hungarian movies because they only dealt with communism or the Revolution and she found them boring.

One young man, a student from Miskolc who is studying architecture at Unideb, asked us about American students and whether or not it’s true that they can’t locate Hungary on a map.  We have heard this numerous times since our arrival.  They all nodded when he remarked that Americans frequently confuse Budapest and Bucharest.  Unfortunately, it’s true.  Many Americans can’t locate their own towns or states on a map, much less a distant place like Hungary.  There was a report a few years ago about a group of recent Harvard graduates who failed a basic geography test.  Bernard and I acknowledged that there is a problem and couldn’t really explain why it exists.  To be fair, not all Hungarians can identify all fifty states correctly either, but their knowledge of geography certainly seems more comprehensive than Americans’.

This week, I was in a group with six Hungarians, most of them in their 20s and 30s.  They are all unemployed.  Three of them are taking an English course and came to the American Corner to practice their skills.  They are all hoping that learning English will somehow give them an edge in finding work.  They seemed skeptical when I mentioned that unemployment is very high in the States. Nevertheless, they have dreams.  One young man says he wants to travel to Thailand…he thinks it is a very beautiful  and a very spiritual place.  I really hope he makes it.

Thanks for tuning in and best regards,

Marcsi