" Hello all, Let me introduce myself. My name is Reka, and I am actually Hungarian by birth and upbringing, but I''ve lived most of my life in the United States (I''m 26). Since most of my family now lives in Hungary, I have taken a deep breath and decided to try moving back myself. Though I speak the language, in many other respects I feel as much of a foreigner in Hungary as any American. So I was hoping that I could get some advice/suggestions from the nice people here about planning my move back to Hungary. 1. My main concern is that I''ve never worked in Hungary, and I am more than a little anxious about finding a job there. It occurred to me that it might make my transition easier if I found an American company to work for in Hungary. Does that really make a difference in your experience, or is a company just a company and it doesn''t matter who owns it? Specifically, is there a difference in the work environment between American-owned and Hungarian-owned companies? Does it make a difference in salary? About finding jobs in general, is there a chance I could find an employer before I move back (would be *really* nice to know what kind of income I could expect) or are my chances best once I''m already there? In your experience, how difficult is it to find a job in Hungary? 2. A related question is for the women who work in Hungary. One of the least pleasant aspects of Hungary, in my experience, is their attitude towards women. Have you ever experienced anything unpleasant in your work environment, specifically lack of respect or a hostile work environment? Or am I just being paranoid? 3. I plan on maintaining a financial presence in the United States, like bank accounts, credit cards, not to mention having to pay taxes, and I''m wondering how best to handle the paperwork associated with this. Can I have my mail forwarded to Hungary by USPS? Or should I hire someone, like an accountant, to take care of these things for me? 4. Is it worth it to ship nonessential personal belongings like furniture, car, etc, to Hungary? Do they tax these at customs? 5. I would very much like to make contact with the expat community in Hungary. What''s the best way/place/opportunity for this? Thank you very much for your time! Reka "

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" Reka, 80% of the problems most expats have is due to the language, so you have it made. You may find it easier, since you have been brought up in the US to work for one of the many multinationals in Hungary. That will also help with the chauvinism which is alive and well. My wife says Hungarian men are extremely courteous but there is probably still a very old fashioned attitude to women in the workplace in many Hungarian companies. That said, there are many women who head Hungarian companies. You will probably get a better salary working for a multinational as they value English speakers and people with with multimarket experience. Try the headhunters who advertise in the Budapest Sun or check out the multinational headhunters - Kornferry et al. You can send me your CV and I''ll see if we have a vacancy if you don''t have hangups about working for a tobacco company! It is easier (but expensive) to use one of the expat relocation agencies. Interdean (contact Mark Muss on +36309519993) or Granted e-mail domi@mail.matav.hu, phone Gabriella Pucsok on +36 20 93 45 757. They can guide you through the bureaucracy of getting yourself established. If you have and intend to maintain US citizenship you may need to get a work permit. I would not pretend to know how the law works but these agencies do. The post is terrible here and you should not send credit cards through the post. The best way to handle it is to have your mail forwarded to someone who can send you batches through UPS. You can make contact with other expats through the various women''s organisations or by just going along to the pubs which are more frequented by expats. Anything with an Irish name works. They are listed in all the guides. "

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