Budapest preschool brings together foreign parents

Carter Johnstone, 2, is secured into his booster seat, swinging his legs eagerly, ready to get out and play. He's on his way to Monkey Business, a year-old one-woman center run by Krisztina Gaal, which holds interactive classes for preschool babies and parents. It is his favorite time of the week.

"Carter really looks forward to this," chirps his mom Kari-Ann Sitko from her hands-free mobile-set while driving to the center in the morning. The Canadian mom has lived in Budapest with her General Electric-employed husband and their three kids for the past five years. All of her children have gone or will go to Monkey Business. Carter has an eight-month-old sister, Tatum, and a four-year-old brother, Logan.

"He has learned how to clean up after himself - which I am really happy about - and how to share. He is always happy to go, take his shoes off and play," says Sitko.

The class is a place where ex-pat mothers with young children can meet while developing their children's cognitive, social, and sensory skills, says Gaal. She worked at the A-Z International Kindergarten for two years prior to starting her own company; she says she saw a need for an English speaking pre-kindergarten.

"I have some moms, from all over the world really, who came to Hungary, got pregnant and they didn't know anyone," she says. "They were here with small babies but they didn't have friends and didn't feel good. Then, they started coming to my class and now they have friends."

Sitko agrees that the international school is a place to make new friends. Further, says Gaal, it is not just mothers, "I have two fathers that come."

"For me one of the most interesting parts [of my job] is meeting new people," says Gaal. "To see how many ex-pats there are in Hungary it is surprising. However there are Hungarian women as well, some are mixed marriages where the mom is Hungarian and the father is foreign;"

Gaal trails off, "I am also one of those, " she laughs. "I am Hungarian and my husband is Irish," she pauses, "no kids yet, we hope soon though."

For now, Gaal teaches interactive classes Monday through Friday. Monkey Business hosts classes for three age groups: crawlers (6 - 12 months), walkers (1 - 2 years), and movers & shakers (age 2 - 3 years). She also has a "messy" class where kids can paint, play with play dough and generally get messy. The best part? Parents are off the hook on clean-up duty, that's what Gaal is for.

A free trial-class is encouraged; payment is cash-only upfront for eight weeks of classes. Make-ups can be made within two weeks of the final class.

"Consistency is important, it is better for the children. Usually the same group continues since once people pay then they seem to show up," says Gaal.

Class size is limited to six children with an accompanying parent; English is the language of instruction.

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