As I recently returned from a short trip to my native country, Romania, I thought I should share some things that impressed me positively there.  Maybe there are Romanians here that haven’t been back for a while, and would like to hear how things are going,  and sometimes we can all benefit from looking at how other people do things…

Romanians seem to be happily adapting to being part of the European Union. Highways are being built, and the natives are taking to them like ducks to water. Roads are improving, stores are full of beautiful things, you can’t go a few paces without stumbling over a restaurant or café, or terrace…the food, I could write a whole book about it, but others have already done it better than I could. Anyone who has visited Romania would agree that the food  is plentiful and very tasty, and by our standards, not very expensive.

save-waterA couple of things I noticed in the houses I visited: one is a little device that people can attach to their faucets and save water; especially in houses with  young children, that’s  great to have, because even if the children forget to turn off the faucet, the water won’t run…it’s of course motion activated. Similar devices exist here, of course, but I haven’t seen them widely used in residences, and that may be a good idea to implement, or to start asking builders about…

The other improvement that I noticed was the windows opening two ways, like a regular window to the side, or the same window could be tilted and opened only on top. I believe it’s a question of double hinges, but I am no expert. I am sure builders would understand how that is done. Great safety feature for children or pets, especially on higher floors, and a wonderful way of enjoying the last warm and sunny days of Indian Summer…

It was great seeing how Romania has changed, and visiting family and friends that I haven’t seen in a long while. It is even better coming back to my wonderful friends and the place I’m proud to call my home: Boise, Idaho, the United States of America.

~ Cristina Pescaru