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I've been here in the old Eastern Bloc for nearly 3 years now. Yes there are things about back home that miss, mainly my family, the rest of it...meh. But here's what & why I love living in Romania.
1. Romania is peaceful.
Romania has a long history, with it's share of violence, but none that she herself started. Since it's inception, WAYYY back in the day. Romania had 1 thing on her mind: how to live a good and peaceful life. She never sought world domination. Instead she was attacked and plundered by the Ottoman's - who she eventually overthrew (the only country I know of that did that during that time) thanks to Vlad Tepes, a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler, or for you 'Twilight' freaks - Dracula. Then came the Romans, who were in this country only a short time - the shortest of all their occupations. Then later came the Soviets and the only way that they really kept Moscow out of their business was to be even harsher in their policies than the Russians themselves. And now - the E.U.....but I'll save that for another post.
Romanians have a mentality of "let those fools take care of themselves, we've got ourselves to think of". And in that I think they are right. They don't want to get involved in physical or cultural wars. They just want to live a good life, one that doesn't involve scraping by, or constantly fighting. For this they have an enormous amount of my respect. But this has also made them weak in the sense that it allows countries and politicians that are perceived as more wealthy or powerful to prey up on this intrinsically rich country.
2. Romania is old fashioned.
Travel through a little village (Satu) here in Romania, and you will still see horse drawn carts, horses and mules being used to plow fields. The old ladies cutting funny looking plants to boil into a tea to cure an ailment. The ways of the past live on here. Yes technology is here as well, otherwise, well I wouldn't be blogging now would I. But it doesn't permeate every facet of life here, and for this I'm grateful. I don't have to rely soley on whatever crack-pot calls themselves a doctor here (at least in Tulcea anyway), I can talk to the old ladies in my neighborhood and they will tell me exactly what I need to do in order to cure a cold, or kidney stones, or liver or kidney problems - and they work! LOVE THEM OLD LADIES!!!!
3. Romania is Beautiful
Romania has some truly gorgeous landscapes. Granted the sovietic style architecture detracts from the beauty to be found along the coast of the black sea, and in the cities. But out in the country, there are mountains, hillsides, everything. It's untouched. Now there is a MAJOR problem with littering here. For some reason or other the people here have no qualms about leaving trash on the streets or sidewalks. I don't understand that. It makes the country look poor and ugly, and it's really not. Another thing that would help, especially in the cities, is if they learned what landscaping is. Yes, the blocs of apartments are old and ugly, but some fresh paint on the buildings and fences, put in some grass, bushes and flowers, and you could really make it pretty. Everyone in the building could chip in to renovate the outside to look as good as what they've renovated inside their own apartments.
4. Romania is "Centrally" located.....
......well at least to all the places in Europe I have always wanted to visit. Italy is only a 2 hour flight away. Germany, about the same. Odessa, Ukraine is only a few hundred kilometers by boat or car. I want to see the city with my name, mainly so I can steal the sign that says "Welcome To Odessa", even if it is in Cyrillic! ;p Turkey, specifically Istanbul is just across the black sea, or a 1 day trip by bus. France isn't too far either. Ireland - I think I will save the home of my ancestors for last, cause I really want to take my time there, and enjoy it. No I won't be having a pint of Guinness - that stuff is just awful, but I can pour you a perfect pint!
There is more to this list, but this will have to do for now. I've stayed away from the C.T.'s cause I think most people, well Americans anyway think I'm nuts when I start sharing those! ;p Speaking of Americans. I will soon follow up with a "How To Behave When In Europe" .... my last trip to Italy, made me embarrassed to be carrying a U.S. Passport, thanks to some College girls from the states. Oy to the vey!
1. Romania is peaceful.
Romania has a long history, with it's share of violence, but none that she herself started. Since it's inception, WAYYY back in the day. Romania had 1 thing on her mind: how to live a good and peaceful life. She never sought world domination. Instead she was attacked and plundered by the Ottoman's - who she eventually overthrew (the only country I know of that did that during that time) thanks to Vlad Tepes, a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler, or for you 'Twilight' freaks - Dracula. Then came the Romans, who were in this country only a short time - the shortest of all their occupations. Then later came the Soviets and the only way that they really kept Moscow out of their business was to be even harsher in their policies than the Russians themselves. And now - the E.U.....but I'll save that for another post.
Romanians have a mentality of "let those fools take care of themselves, we've got ourselves to think of". And in that I think they are right. They don't want to get involved in physical or cultural wars. They just want to live a good life, one that doesn't involve scraping by, or constantly fighting. For this they have an enormous amount of my respect. But this has also made them weak in the sense that it allows countries and politicians that are perceived as more wealthy or powerful to prey up on this intrinsically rich country.
2. Romania is old fashioned.
Travel through a little village (Satu) here in Romania, and you will still see horse drawn carts, horses and mules being used to plow fields. The old ladies cutting funny looking plants to boil into a tea to cure an ailment. The ways of the past live on here. Yes technology is here as well, otherwise, well I wouldn't be blogging now would I. But it doesn't permeate every facet of life here, and for this I'm grateful. I don't have to rely soley on whatever crack-pot calls themselves a doctor here (at least in Tulcea anyway), I can talk to the old ladies in my neighborhood and they will tell me exactly what I need to do in order to cure a cold, or kidney stones, or liver or kidney problems - and they work! LOVE THEM OLD LADIES!!!!
3. Romania is Beautiful
Romania has some truly gorgeous landscapes. Granted the sovietic style architecture detracts from the beauty to be found along the coast of the black sea, and in the cities. But out in the country, there are mountains, hillsides, everything. It's untouched. Now there is a MAJOR problem with littering here. For some reason or other the people here have no qualms about leaving trash on the streets or sidewalks. I don't understand that. It makes the country look poor and ugly, and it's really not. Another thing that would help, especially in the cities, is if they learned what landscaping is. Yes, the blocs of apartments are old and ugly, but some fresh paint on the buildings and fences, put in some grass, bushes and flowers, and you could really make it pretty. Everyone in the building could chip in to renovate the outside to look as good as what they've renovated inside their own apartments.
4. Romania is "Centrally" located.....
......well at least to all the places in Europe I have always wanted to visit. Italy is only a 2 hour flight away. Germany, about the same. Odessa, Ukraine is only a few hundred kilometers by boat or car. I want to see the city with my name, mainly so I can steal the sign that says "Welcome To Odessa", even if it is in Cyrillic! ;p Turkey, specifically Istanbul is just across the black sea, or a 1 day trip by bus. France isn't too far either. Ireland - I think I will save the home of my ancestors for last, cause I really want to take my time there, and enjoy it. No I won't be having a pint of Guinness - that stuff is just awful, but I can pour you a perfect pint!
There is more to this list, but this will have to do for now. I've stayed away from the C.T.'s cause I think most people, well Americans anyway think I'm nuts when I start sharing those! ;p Speaking of Americans. I will soon follow up with a "How To Behave When In Europe" .... my last trip to Italy, made me embarrassed to be carrying a U.S. Passport, thanks to some College girls from the states. Oy to the vey!
3 comments:
I'm sure that every place has its pluses and minuses. Not everyone is wise enough to see them. Enjoy life!
hey! You've come full circle. The ole place is starting to feel like home. Fun stuff--I didn't know much about Romanian history (or the country, for that matter). So this was very interesting to me~ :o) <3
Hello Odessa,
I am Erika from TravelerVoice, a new social network for travel bloggers.
I just found your blog and I really like how you described your stories in Romania with beautiful pictures and assertive comments! It's exactly the kind of writing we are looking for our Living abroad section, please feel free to register :)
I am looking forward to hearing from you :)
Cheers,
Erika.
www.travelervoice.com
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