A summer surprise of fundamental human constructs

by Titose Chembezi (Botswana)

I didn't expect to find Hungary

My first summer student exchange was one like no other. Of course, you’d expect to learn new cultures, food and make new friends but you’d not expect to find racism positive. In the city of Pecs, Hungary, the locals are not exposed to seeing people of black African ethnicity. Some reserved people stare or whisper while others took pictures whilst others simply wanted to have a conversation. All had a common theme of fascination. They had heard about different ethnicities that exist around the world but for such a small town, they rarely ever get foreign visitors of my ethnicity more especially since most locals speak Hungarian. I could’ve easily taken offense when I heard, “Africa, Africa, Africa” shouted by a random driver as I crossed the road. For all they knew, I could’ve been from the Caribbean islands or a Black African American but the assumption made was that I was from Africa as if it were one country for all black people. My peers from western universities on the exchange program of contrast skin color blended in with the locals whereas I became an attraction while on a tourist attraction site. An exchange of something new for both parties I suppose. Indeed I felt like a celebrity! I think the thing I found most interesting was an exchange I had with a cashier by a local store as I bought sandals. She recommended a shoe shampoo, demonstrated how to use it and explained the reasons why it’s better than dunking them in water all in Hungarian when I knew none but understood. Her manager stood in amaze at the exchange and how fluid it was. At that point, I realized that human interaction at its core is unbiased to race, culture language. It’s more than mere words, as the eyes, the body, the tone, the hand gestures are all part it. In as much as today, there are conflicts, wars and a lot of racial indiscrimination, small instances like this show me that there’s hope for we may be different but we are all the same. I sure loved the wine tasting excursions, low prices on global clothing brands and the welcoming atmosphere that the locals presented. As little as this town on the map may be, they demonstrated a lesson that the world needs today! Wealth, geographical decent or social status are all noise that separates us from seeing ourselves in one another. So if we all eat food and water to sustain the body, air to breath, shelter to protect ourselves from harsh weather conditions, do number 2 (if you know what I mean!), like to laugh or feel loved and hurt when we feel loss or pain, then I ask, what makes you truly different from me?