Visit Romania after twenty years and do not recognize it

Visit Romania after twenty years and you do not recognize it

After twenty years I and Marina decided to visit Romania our old country. We end up visiting also some former Yugoslavia places. It was the feeling of my unfinished business in Serbia twenty years ago. I wanted to say “Thank You” to people who helped me with food and advice in August 15, 1989 night when I escaped from Romania swimming the Danube. The other wish was to go to visit the Holy Mountain Ceahlau on Eastern Carpathians. Marina wanted to see the church and monastery built up there at 6000ft (2000 m) altitude. This link gives you pictures.
At Romanian airport Otopeni we met American soldiers in transit to their military jobs. My picture says how happy I was to see them young and strong here in Romania in casual dressing. We visit Romania and got surprises.

We enjoyed our relative smiling faces and the VIP treatment we have got. Good food and spoiling attentions made our visit a great vacation. We spent time with family and old friends on a property up on a sunny hill. We carried out our plans driving a small Opel and in the due process we added more trips to our collection. After driving a month with shift, when I came back to the USA roads, I was looking to shift gears with my right hand for about a week,.

On the streets, roads and TV we have been listening the same native language but somewhat we did not relate to this place after twenty years.

The no respect for people - everyone is equally replaceable - inherited from communist time, along with the ego exacerbated by a new sense of liberty, created in some people a show off attitude. The macho driving was grotesque in the context of the hard life there. We could not comprehend where or what for that nut driving.

In our first week there we have been hit from behind by a Suzuky motorcycle!

Visit Romania

Also many built ego big houses. It is unbelievable how many private residences were overbuilt.

Visit Romania

Houses with three or more levels were everywhere; many are unfinished, our relative’s included, due to business fall in conjunction with global economic recession.

Now since the old economy disappeared along with thousands of jobs and the new one in private hands is not growing fast enough, about two million Romanians work in Italy, Spain or England. Many young and energetic people are leaving the country for work every day.

Our story is repeating at a bigger scale.

We are glad with our mission accomplishments: visit Romania, Serbia, Banja Koviljaca, Bosnia (Medjugorie), Croatia Adriatic See coast and climbed the Ceahlau Mountain.

See our pictures from "Banja Koviljaca"

See "the crossing places in Romania and Serbia" after 20 years

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