Chapter 6

Budaörs

Although at the beginning I said that I would examine Budapest and describe its various properties I will derive from the well-trodden path. Nothing serious, though, Budaörs is not far from the capital, it is part of the metropolitan area of Budapest. Still, it is not strictly within the boundaries of the city.

Budaörs, Wudersch in German, is a separate town with village-like features, lying among the Buda and Csiki hills and the Tétény plateau in the Budaörs-basin. Its population is about 27000, which is the average population of a small town in Hungary, and a giant for a village. The reason why I’m still referring to its rural qualities is the atmosphere. When you enter town limits you will find that although it is a couple of kilometers from Budapest the view drastically changes. Town square with church, restaurant, and grocery store. Otherwise houses, occasionally schools, parks, and trees rule the landscape.

When I say “village” those who live in Budaörs might be offended; they may accuse me of patronizing their hometown. Nevertheless, I have no such intention. In fact, I think Budaörs is a positive example for all the other townships in Hungary. Currently, more and more settlements gain the title of a town, without any reason whatsoever. Instead of this aggressive expansionism we should concentrate on the basic values.

What are the basic values of a town? The community. Without a strong and self-aware community townships will be either annihilated (the younger generations will flee to bigger cities), or just rot in their own bog. One of the advantages of Budaörs (aside from the obvious fact that it lies in the vicinity of Budapest) is that it has residents who have a strong cultural identity. In the 18th century Schwab peasants were settled in the area. Schwabs are people of German descent and are Hungary’s second largest minority. After WWII the communist regime banished them from the land, still, some of them remained there. Once you drive through the city you will find not only Hungarian but German signs as well. There are “Heimatmusems”, museums on the German ancestry, inns and hostels owned by Germans, and separate division for them in the mayor’s office along with many other minorities.

One would think that this diversity creates tension between the citizens. Clearly, it doesn’t. The interest of Hungarians are represented as well as of any other peoples. The key is tolerance, cooperation, and hard work; that is what made Budaörs the wealthiest town of Hungary.