Our first day in Romania

Day 2, May 6, 2017 (written on May 7).

We flew out of Chicago as a team. The first flight was 8 hours to Heathrow, London, England, where we made a quick layover and terminal change to fly out to Bucharest. The second flight was 3 hours, most of which I slept through. Our time change is 8 hours ahead of central time in the states.

We were able to see the landscape of Romania as we drove from the airport to where we were staying. They have beautiful scenery, with flat area for farming in the part of the country where we were. Many of the crops they grow are similar to home: wheat, corn. However, we passed numerous bright yellow crops, with which I was not familiar. Our host was able to tell us – canola. So cool. I guess I never questioned from where the oil came, but it comes from fields of yellow crops J  Another observation was limited signage – hardly any advertisement. The ones we did see were graffiti on buildings and bridges and nearly all of them said “Banessa e Romania”, which goes back to WWII when Romania and Italy were fighting over borders. Sadly, we also saw many prostitutes along the road. Apparently it is legal in Romania. At first I thought they were hitchhikers, but they were accompanied by a carful of men in the parking lot behind them – probably their pimps.

Canola fields

After a three hour bus ride from Bucharest, we arrived at our destination near Constant on the Black Sea. Literally, we are one block from the coast. Although we had been given some details of our trip ahead of time, I did not realize we were staying in a hotel. I almost don’t feel like I’m on a service trip as our accommodations are so glamorous. We have heated water, electricity, television in the room, and a breakfast/dinner buffet each day. There is a swimming pool and hot and cold saunas. As we are at a Med Spa hotel, we have the option of daily “therapies” such as massage, hot tubs, mud baths, and facials. It was quite an experience getting a Romanian massage and sitting in a hot tub relaxing for 30 minutes. My American mind was thinking 10 minutes would be adequate, but apparently we need to slow down and be patient.

Our hotel. 

Our hotel.

The Romanians we have encountered at the hotel are cordial, but not overly friendly. They are certainly willing to speak English and help if we have questions, but they do not smile often or greet us readily. Perhaps it’s a cultural thing.