va multumesc prietenii mei in romania! va iubesc!!!

couldn't have done it without any of you...

la revedere românia... pentru acuma

since viaţa mea is no longer in românia, i guess it is time to sign off... at least until my next visit. thanks for checking it out!


some memories...

am ajuns in românia cu mulţi speranţa...



















dar am pregatit in espania- granada with the sierra nevada and alhambra... i didn't want to leave
















a hundred operas... oh romeo, romeo

















at moments like this, i marvel at human abilities...


















and all the little animals


















got a bathroom story for every city i've been to in romania... and of course, a train




















the first snow of the year














cal cu caruta... in true romanian fashion

budapesta... spre acasa

a relaxing weekend in budapest always makes the transition between romania and home so much easier.

alone on a train for 7 1/2 hours... and this to look at














okay, so this is why i really love budapest!














sunday at the thermal baths. another great reason to love budapest. the medicinal baths are indoor and out and naturally heated every day of the year.













i need a beast of burden














i have seen these guys in vienna, bratislava, belgrade, and budapest. are they following me?

la multi an uniunii europene

what an exciting week to be in romania! first, because it is the 50th anniversary of the european union and now romania is a part of it. there was much cause for celebration. the other reason is because of the political uproar over the suspension of traian basescu, romania's president, for opposing the prime minister and parliament. he wants to end corruption and the public adores him. daca locuiesti in romania, votezi nu!








































cetatean suspendat!

la pata... ue nu face diferinţa

this is the construction of a garage to house the garbage trucks. many folks had to relocate behind it.















this is the medical cabinet that was built with EU funds two years ago... still sits empty

pata rât… şase luni mai tarziu

the same beautiful faces...

am intors în românia... yay!

so after six months, i went back to do a little follow-up research, now that romania is in the european union. i wanted to see what differences there might be and what new plans are in motion. also, i came to visit my friends, of course... once again, i forgot to take a picture with heidi, vera, and margarit... why do we always do that? i think we just have too much fun and forget the camera.

karaoke... amy and ben won that meter of tequila with their rousing rendition of paradise by the dashboard light. you guys totally rock!













ben primed our tummies for beer with delicious puerto rican food... yum















okay, so this was the view from my balcony a year ago. that is the magnificent orthodox cathedral...














this is the same view a year later!!! cluj is changing













zsuzsa si eu la gradina botanica. zsuzsa este mama romaneasca pentru mine














didn't some people get impaled last time he was in charge?

heidelberg... 30 years gone

the last leg of the trip in germany is a stop in heidelberg, where i was born many many moons ago. we left when i was still a baby so this is all new to me. i've seen all the pictures and grew up with the heidelberg stories so this was such a special treat to see it with my own eyes!