Blog – Trip to Romania

I am the Danube Delta

Iuliana February 18, 2017March 3, 2017 Nature No Comments

Hello!
I am very glad that you have stopped here!
Wait, don’t walk away! It’s me, the Danube Delta and I have a lot of stories to tell you!
Like I said before, let me introduce to you…

Hello, again!
I am the Danube Delta and I’ve been here ever since the Moon and the Sun came into the world.
I am very wide and I’ve got a lot of water channels you can go through if you want to get to know me…
Come on over and take a walk into my house, you’ve got a lot of things to see!

I invite you to boat through my lakes. The water will talk to you, whispering my stories. A murmur that only you will understand, once you get to know me. The reed that keeps me warm in the winter will rustle at every move; through that reed I hosted in my place all kinds of creatures of the Nature. A peaceful feeling will spread through, after hearing the birds twittering. Don’t be afraid, they are all mine! When I will blow my signal, they all will rise to the sky, so that you can admire them. Yes, I have pelicans, cormorants, storks, herons and egrets, red-breasted geese and eagles; and many other, overall more than 300 of species…

Maybe you wonder how do all these birds feed themselve?
I’ve taken care of all. The nature is unique! I offer them, from my waters, important nutrients for their health, in addition to the living food that they can find all over here; that’s right, almost the entire fish species, you will find them here, just at my place!

When you will go on a sail through my waters, you will see fishes dancing right near your boat and they will be tempting you to get to know them, to fish them.
I am very generous and I will allow you to go fishing. Maybe you’ll find the golden fish; or maybe you will fish for the biggest fish within the area, so that you can step in the Guinness Book…

If you see waterlilies floating, don’t tear them out, I beg you, because they are my soldiers that guard me; they hold shade for me in the summer time when the Sun hugs me with his rays of light.
What can I tell you more about me? Oh, yes, of course, I’ve got many stories that are worth to tell and to share with you.
A long time ago, pirates came along to me, to hide treasures in the deep, treasures that mermaids wanted to find, and for that to happen, they were trying to seduce them with their beautiful voices and incredible beauty.
But I will let you discover the rest of the story and for you to decide what is true and what is myth.

Please, go to the people that take care for me daily. They are the locals from this amazing part of the world and they are called ‘lipoveni’. These human beings are remarkable, trust me!
They will cook for you different dishes, all made with fish. One of the tastiest dish is, no doubt, a delicious borscht soup, made from the fish that I will give you as a present. Ask them nicely to cook it for you, and you will forever remember a special soup prepared from my water, on a fire made from brushwood of willow. You will see that this decent people, the ‘lipoveni’, will tell you the same things I did.

As a good host that I consider about myself, if you prefer, I can accommodate you in one of the existing floating hotels. Get advantage of this thing and we will talk to each other even by night! It will be quite a memory to remember… frogs and crickets, water and other tiny animals will all sing to you, into a noisy tranquillity, as to be assured that you will have a peaceful night sleep. Swinging on my waves, you will understand their language quickly and nobody is going to disturb you, I promise you!

If you don’t want to stay in a floating hotel, don’t worry, that’s okay, I don’t mind! You can rest over the night at one of the local people that are living here or at a hotel. You can also go to Sulina, Gura Portitei or Mila 23 to stay overnight… All of them are mine and I will be with you every day, everywhere.

I want to tell you a secret: Please, don’t ever miss a sunrise or a sunset!
The Sun was once upon a time my beloved lover and now we can hug each other only twice a day and for that, this moments are important for us and will be for you, either.
Don’t forget to take home as much memories as you can! I want you to spread the word about me, wherever you go, because I am unique, I am the one and only.

I am the Danube Delta!

A story about Cluj!

Iuliana November 10, 2016February 18, 2017 Uncategorized 2 Comments

A story about Cluj!
It is a little bit longer, but please be patient up to the end. It is for YOU, and YOU and YOU…
Before starting to tell you about my visit in Cluj and what I have gained from this visit, I want to tell you that I don’t try to pose in a some kind of a too much talented writer. It’s not my main job and I don’t even want it to be. My main job is, according to my favourite saying, to be a ‘holiday merchant’.
I do not claim to be a travelling industry expert, I just try to enjoy doing my job in my own ‘shop’.
It was on a Friday evening, after I closed my ‘shop’, when I hopped into my car and went toward Cluj Napoca. It was such a joy and satisfaction, up until the half of the way, when a sort of impatience came over me, but this is another story.
Finally, I arived into Cluj Napoca after a whole night of driving, with my eyes blocked on the staring position.
After I had the scheduled business meetings, I decided to take this opportunity to visit also the old part of the city.
From this point after, the story begins: I heard that the old city of Cluj Napoca is very nice, but I was wondering what could be so spectacular? Well, yes, it is!

When I saw the old city, my tiredness was gone! I walked through all those tiny, paved streets and I felt like travelling back in time. But in the same time I felt sorrow for not seeing as many tourists as I expected.
And I was thinking: why?!

There is a Matia Corvin, born in Cluj Napoca, the last Royal figure of the Medieval Hungary. I want to make a specification: it’s not Matei Corvin (as many are naming him) but Matia Corvin. He was given this name of Matia as a credit to the day when he was born, 24th of February 1443, date when, according to the Roman calendar, was celebrated the Matia Apostle. He ruled over his kingdom for over 32 years and the story can go on, but I put it on short.

There is a Anna Bathory, well-known for her cruelty, a relative of the bloody Elisabeth Bathory. Anna Bathory, known in the history as the vampire woman, the woman which was taking the bath in the virgins blood, likewise her cousin Elisabeth, was obsessed of the black magic and also was accused of incest. The legend says that she was the mistress of her brother.

There is a Lucian Blaga, eternal love-poet, who married Cornelia in Cluj and besides, he had a muse in Cluj, Preoteasa on her name (a very beautiful and intelligent woman, who became one of the most beloved ones of Blaga).
The culture and art are at home in Cluj!

I was walking on the street and I saw people entertaining by reading books. Wow… here the books still have a life!
In Cluj you can find shops everywhere, nice open restaurants and lots of entertaining events. I also happened into a Street Food Fest and, of course, I tasted everything: ‘Papricaș’, ‘Varza a-la-Cluj’, ‘Gomboț’ and many other traditional food specialities.

The people of Cluj are very warm and kind, I only saw a single Transylvanian native which behaved in a different way (more Balkan 🙂 ), but after all they are very nice people.
What else you can do in Cluj? Well, you can visit the Unirii Square with its baroque buildings, the Museum Square with the little streets that I was talking about; you can take a look at the National Theatre in Cluj, there is the Banffy Palace (currently the Art Museum), there are lots of Pubs if you’re fond of entertainment.
Cutting short, there’s everything in Cluj.
I left for the last, but not least, a place that impressed me much, Insomnia Cafe which is not just a simple coffee house: when I walked inside I felt like I transposed into another time; there was a flavor of the times long gone. It was like I was waiting a classical writer to take a sit to my table, maybe a dramatist like Tolstoy or a novelist like Victor Hugo. I wasn’t wrong: inside this place a lot of cultural events are regularly organised.

It was the moment when I understood what is so special in Cluj Napoca: the bohemian flavor and the people who remained devoted to the good quality culture. One once said about this city that you can name it the ‘City of lost and found hearts’. He was right!

You come poor and leave rich!

Watching people

Iuliana November 6, 2016February 20, 2017 Uncategorized No Comments

Today I have been visiting the Old City Centre of Bucharest. The Sun was warming the scene, the habitual tumult of the area was sleeping and the tranquillity was there. All of the sudden, in front of me appeared a group of ancient archers, as if they were returning from the history.

The feeling was amazing! I think this is the travel in time about.

Back in time