Oh Romania, well where do I begin? I guess it all started when my

grandmother’s family came to Illinois from Satu Mare in the early 1900’s.

Coming from a large, multicultural family, I’ve always been interested in my

various origins. However, I’ve been especially drawn towards the beautiful

language and fascinating history of Romania. Unfortunately, no one in my

immediate family speaks Romanian and since I’ve been somewhat

disconnected from my culture, I’ve researched and studied everything

Romanian for years. When I found out about the Projects Abroad® “Learn

Romanian in Romania” program, I knew it was my chance to return to my

roots. Language is of course one of the most important and identifiable

aspects of a culture, so learning Romanian was essential for me to better

understand and further experience what it means to be Romanian.

After almost a year of mentioning the program every single day (a

surefire tactic to convincing my parents to let me go), I practically walked

off the stage at my high school graduation and onto a plane from Dallas to

Bucharest via Amsterdam. Once I was in Romania, I really felt like myself,

as if Romania was where I was always meant to be. Braşov, where Projects

Abroad is based, is the capital of Transylvania, and was originally built by

the Saxons, which can still be seen in much of the architecture today. My

amazing host-family made for an easy transition with their unforgettable

hospitality. They were nothing, but warm hearts, open arms, and cooked the

most succulent homemade Romanian cuisine. I had only the utmost respect

for my host-family and for many other Romanians who exemplified “Ora et

Labora”, yet still deeply appreciated their free time. I found that Romanians

are quite independent and confident yet retain a strong sense of modesty and

respect for others. Their devout heritage holds sway over their mannerisms

as many Romanians take great pride in their religious identity. Romanian

Orthodox Christianity is a huge part of the culture and has produced some of

the most beautiful churches and works of art anywhere.

One-on-one Romanian classes were held with an experienced teacher

and Braşov native. We covered the cases, the genders, verb conjugations,

vocabulary, and even Romanian cultural and political history. My teacher

supplied worksheets with fill in the blank, dialogues, multiple choice, and

short answer to help me practice. Class was five days a week and usually

about three hours per session, with a flexible day-to-day schedule. I was

often able to use what I had learned in class the exact same day in real life

situations, like bargaining with street vendors, which was always fun.

Having a background in French and Spanish definitely made it easier to pick

up on Romanian vocabulary and syntax. My accent and conversational skills

improved dramatically. I can also read at a much faster pace and finally

write fully formed sentences. Living with a Romanian family worked

miracles for the learning process. Before I knew it, I was using expressions I

didn’t even study in class, but that I just somehow picked up on by living in

a Romanian-speaking household.

Every November, St.

Mary’s Romanian Orthodox Church holds a Romanian Food Festival in

Colleyville, near Dallas, which draws a larger crowd every year. This

November, after having taken Romanian with Projects Abroad, I was finally

able to buy my tickets and food, speak to vendors, and catch up with friends,

all in Romanian.

When participating in a

program with Projects Abroad, you easily make friends with other

volunteers. It’s an international crowd: English, Canadian, German, Belgian,

French, Malaysian, Australian, and even a fellow Texan. I even had a few

opportunities to volunteer with them. We face-painted at the Children’s Day

festival in Prejmer, and also painted the front entrance to a day center for

underprivileged children. We also travelled together, usually on weekends.

Braşov was really the perfect place to study Romanian because of its central

location, allowing for quick access to every corner of the country. We took a

tour of four majestic monasteries in Suceava in the north, including the

famous Voroneţi monastery, renowned for its brilliant shade of blue and an

exterior depiction of the Last Judgment, earning it the title of “Sistine

Chapel of the East”. The monasteries were hand painted inside and out

centuries ago and are still maintained by nuns who adorn the monastery

grounds with roses of every color: red, pink, purple, peach, orange, white,

and more.

Coming from Dallas, TX, I didn’t expect Romania to be any hotter,

but I was wrong. However, It was sometimes rainy in the mountains, so we

escaped to Constanţa, the main coastal city in Romania. It was crazy to think

where I was on the globe, swimming in the Black Sea, thousands of miles

from Texas. My favorite part of the mini-trip was definitely just lying on the

beach, tanning, with my iPod on full-blast. It was a vacation within a

vacation—ultimate relaxation, and just what I needed after a stressful few

years of AP classes, four clubs, hundreds of hours volunteering, and

Saturday morning German lessons. For our last night in Constanţa, we went

down to the beach again and ate shawarmas on the jetty and watched the

sunset. It was a perfect ending to a perfect weekend. We also took day-trips

to the ornate Peleş Castle and of course the much older Bran “Dracula’s”

Castle, both less than an hour outside of Braşov.

There’s still so much more I need to see in Romania and I can’t wait

to go back! I miss the food, my host-family, my teacher, my friends, and the

awesome Projects Abroad staff! It was a well-rounded trip, full of learning,

community service, and culture. All in All, it was the best month of my life.

As I’m currently moving to Paris, France, I fully intend to reach out to the

Romanian community in Paris. I plan on taking frequent trips to Romania

and eventually living there for some time. Mulţumesc foarte mult, Projects

Abroad ! România a fost perfect !