10.

Tétel - Free time activities - Szabadidő

• going out
• parties, balls, festivals
• hobbies
• other ways of recreation

Pleasure grounds

There are lots of pleasure grounds all over the world. I think everywhere there are pubs, discoes,
clubs, etc. We go out with my friends especially to pubs where we can chat, listen to music, dance
and eat something. But the garden parties are more friendlier and cheaper. We usually organize
barbecues with children, this time they can play and run in the garden.
I usually go to a wellness-weekend with my husband once a year in winter because we work a lot all
of the year. There are some well-known spas in Hungary, for example, Hévíz and Hajdúszoboszló, and
many people, including foreigners, go there.

Hobbies/Activities

A hobby is an activity that you like doing and do quite often. Hobbies are a form of recreation. If you
have a hobby, it’s easier to regain energy after a hard day’s work. Depending on the type of the
hobby, you can also make friends.
Unfortunately many Hungarians spend their free time at home watching TV. But there are some who
do some physical activities regularly, like swimming, aerobics or hiking. Nowadays many young
people spend much of their time playing computer games either at home or in internet cafes.
I think men and women usually have different kinds of hobbies, for example, very few women go
fishing and they are not so interested in extreme sports, either. On the other hand, men generally
aren’t interested in needlework or pottery. In my opinion both men and women do gardening but
they tend to do different jobs in the garden. Women like dealing with flowers, they weed the
flowerbeds, plant new varieties and they design the whole garden. Men usually prune the trees, trim
the hedges and mow the lawn.

Collecting and watching sports

Collecting stamps, coins, autographs, phone cards, beer mats or napkins, model building, doing
needlework or woodwork, pottery, basketry, playing an instrument and dancing are indoor hobbies,
while hiking, mountaineering, caving, sailing, fishing, canoeing and bird-watching are outdoor
hobbies. My sister’s hobbies are collecting phone cards and diary writing. I like reading about feng-
shui and I like to be an Avon consultant. I used to play handball for years, nowadays I only watch
handball games on TV.

Popular sports

As far as I know, the English like playing golf and cricket, and there are quite a few soccer fans among
them. They often mow the lawn and wash their cars at weekends, while some British people go to
horse races to bet or just to watch the race. 
Some Americans go to baseball and basketball games regularly to support their teams. But there are
others who prefer staying at home and watching these games on TV while eating snacks. 
I think Hungarian people collect the same things that people like collecting all over the world, mostly
stamps and coins. 
Popular sports in Hungary

If we considered +a sport that many people pursue popular, the most popular sport in Hungary are
football, handball, hiking and aerobics. If a popular sport means a sport that many people watch,
besides football and handball, the most popular sports are Formula 1 racing, water polo and boxing.

8. Tétel - Reading; television, video, cinema - Szabadidő - olvasás,

televízió, videó, mozi
• reading (books, newspapers, libraries, Internet)
• TV, cinema, video
• reading vs TV
• TV vs cinema
 
Reading

I think reading is a very useful pastime. I like reading interesting books because I can relax with it.
People go to a library to borrow books and cassettes, read newspapers and magazines, photocopy
materials, listen to music and use computers. 

Magazines and News papers

It’s oftener that we buy the newspapers. In Hungary there are local and national daily papers. The
local papers tend to concentrate on the news of the county and write only short articles on world
and national news. As for the national daily papers, there are two basic types. One is quality papers
which focus on more serious issues and try to cover all kinds of topics. Newspapers belonging to the
other group, tabloids, concentrate on sensational news, such as murders, tragedies and stories on
famous people. The headlines are sometimes provocative, using big letters. The articles are short and
there are lots of pictures.
The British are a nation of newspaper readers. Many people even have a daily paper delivered to
their homes in time for breakfast.
British newspapers can be divided into two groups too: quality and popular (tabloid). Quality
newspapers are more serious and cover home and foreign news thoughtfully while the popular
newspapers like shocking, personal stories as well as some news. These two groups of papers can be
distinguished easily because the quality newspapers are twice the size of the popular newspapers.
Of course the press means more than newspapers. A vast range of magazines and weeklies is
published, aimed at readers interested in all sorts of subjects. In fact, there are magazines for
practically every special interest you can imagine. There are women’s magazines, gourmet cooking
magazines, or magazines dealing with gardening, science, cars, motorcycles, computers, modeling,
home decorating, fashion, sports, body building, film, theatre, music, news magazines and so on.
I love books. I love to read especially tales to my daughter. I buy books by internet because it’s
comfortable and cheaper than I buy books in the bookshops. 

In my opinion, people prefer watching films to reading. Watching films is less demanding than
reading books after a tiring day at work or at school. Although cinema tickets are quite expensive, so
are books.

People not only watch what is on TV but watch videos and DVDs. It’s better because there isn’t
commercial during the film. I understand that commercials are important for channels and
sometimes provide useful information for everybody. They can also be quite entertaining, though I
hate it when the film that I’m watching is interrupted at the most interesting part with commercials.
In my opinion, TV contributes to our social life. People like talking about TV programmes. For
example, they discuss all kinds of information on the characters of soap operas, try to guess what will
happen to them in the next episodes and talk about the actors’ and actresses’ private lives. They also
like criticising the way presenters talk and dress.  
I prefer those channels which broadcast documentaries and films on nature, animals and fabulous
events. I often watch tale channel with my daughter, we have lots of favourite programmes. I watch
the news every day because I like to know what is going on in the world. I also enjoy watching quiz
shows and comedies. 
We go to multiplex cinemas in big plazas where we go to not only for the sake of the film, but also to
enjoy ourselves with our friends before or after the film. Usually we have dinner there before the
cinema.
I mostly listen to the radio while driving. I like channels which offer programmes with few
commercials and lots of music. I also like programmes which provide news every hour or half an hour
and information on town traffic and road conditions.
Mass media is a phrase often used to describe ways of giving information and entertainment to very
large numbers of people. It includes newspapers, advertising and radio and of course, television.

15. Tétel - Sports - Sport

• sports facilities
• candidate’s sporting activities, favourite sports
• mass sports
• sports events, professionals
• extreme sports
 
 
Sport includes the healthy lifestyle, crowdsports, racingsports, popular- and extreme sports and so
on.
The healthy lifestyle contains eating healthy food, regular movement and free from stress.
I try to live healthy as I know. I eat lots of vegetable dishes, fruits, yoghurts and cereals. 
I like sports, especially handball, tennis and Formula 1. I used to go to fitness centres and play
handball for years but nowadays I only watch handball games on TV. I like this sport because of the
hardness and team playing. We won several awards, for example, silver medal in the competition of
Budapest. Nowadays I take exercises at home with a step machine because I can’t go out from my
daughter. My employer pays the season tickets of a fitness centre so the managing director help us
to keep our fit.
Crowdsports are played by several people, so crowdsport means the game of the crowds. For
example, football, running, basketball, etc.
Racingsports are the sports which are played in functional competitions and the winners get medals.
For example, motorsports, ice-skating, football, athletics, etc.
As far as I know, the English like playing golf and cricket, and there are quite a few soccer fans among
them.
Some Americans go to baseball and basketball games regularly to support their teams. But there are
others who prefer staying at home and watching these games on TV while eating snacks. 
If we considered a sport that many people pursue popular, the most popular sport in Hungary are
football, handball, hiking and aerobics. If a popular sport means a sport that many people watch,
besides football and handball, the most popular sports are Formula 1 racing, water polo, swimming
and boxing.
Although it’s said that extreme sports are dangerous, many young people try them. These sports are
gliding, white-water rafting, snowboarding, bungee jumping and so on. I think extreme sports are
nice and exciting but I don’t want to try them. Once I was parachuted with my husband by a motor-
boat above the Mediterranean sea in Tunesia and it was wonderful but I was afraid because I have
agoraphobic.

UNKOWN WORDS

pleasure-ground - szórakozóhely