Bela Takats

Story

I was born in Budapest in February 1944. My earliest memory of the Hungarian Revolution was when I was twelve years old. I was standing in my backyard watching a bunch of gypsy kids as they ran towards a nearby church which was occupied by Russian soldiers. The gypsies were hurling home-made bombs towards the building and I remember the eerie sound of bullets whizzing through the air as the Russians fired back. Life on the streets of Budapest became more dangerous in the years that followed.

In my late teens I remember listening to ‘Free Europe’ with my friends. It was an underground radio station which broadcast anti-communist stories and inspired us to debate ways of escaping our homeland for a better life abroad. Following the revolution, Hungarian citizens were not legally allowed to leave the country.

In 1964 two close friends of mine asked whether I wanted to flee Hungary with them. They worked for a shoe factory and had devised a plot to hide in a shipment of shoes which was bound, by train, to Sweden. Desperate to leave the country, I considered their offer, but decided against it Ð opting to finish my apprenticeship as a Typesetter. Unfortunately my friends never made it to Sweden. Someone informed the authorities of their escape attempt and the train was stopped. My friends were arrested and put in jail.

In 1965 I came up with my own escape plot. I found out there was a small group tour organised by a sporting club that was going to be doing a short trip to Austria. I applied to the government for permission to leave Hungary as a tourist and after an interview with the Interior Ministry to ascertain I was not an escape-threat, they gave me approval. I didn\’t tell anyone about my plan to seek asylum in Austria. I packed my bags and said good-bye to my brother and mother without a word. I was 21 years old.

When the tour group got to Austria I reported to the police who told me that I could not legally seek asylum until the tour group had left the country. It was a terribly anxious time for me. The group had already been alerted to my disappearance, the Austrian authorities could not protect me and I was all alone in a new land. I went in hiding for three days, with the help of a refugee organisation called Karitas. I then spent a few days in jail in Vienna while the police checked my credentials to make sure I was worthy of asylum status. Once this status was granted I was sent to Traiskirchen Refugee Camp where I spent three months. I was finally able to write a letter to my mother to let her know I was safe. She wrote back, suggesting I make contact with my aunt who had emigrated to Australia.

It was difficult to find work in Austria following my time in the refugee camp. I was lucky enough to have met a couple of Hungarian girls who were working as nannies in Vienna. They took me under their wing and taught me enough German to help me find a job in a small printing firm.

I remember one bitterly cold winter morning I was walking to work and happened to see a photo of Bondi beach in the window of a travel agent. The sun was shining, the sky was blue É it reminded me of my aunt in Sydney and I decided to write her a letter to ask whether she\’d sponsor my immigration to Australia. She agreed.

In 1966 I boarded the Italian passenger ship ‘Marconi’ for a five week journey to Sydney. I stepped off the ship at Circular Quay with fifty dollars in my pocket.

I can still remember the first time I went down to Bondi beach Ð that picture-perfect-postcard I\’d dreamt about on that cold morning in Vienna. I sunk to my knees in the warm sand – looked out at the beautiful ocean Ð and cried.

I now live in Sydney with my Australian wife. We’ve been married for 33 years and have two daughters – Angela & Elizabeth – and two grandchildren.

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