It seems an odd thing for me to say now, having never given Romania much thought as a destination spot before the Spring of 2011, but if I were asked at this moment to choose a non-English speaking country in which to live for the remainder of this mortal existence, I would choose Romania. Granted, having only spent a little over a week in Romania, there is much of this wonderful country that I have yet to see; however, in my all too short time there, I have never felt more at home in a foreign land.
For me, Romania is the perfect mix of Old World, and New. It is a land where tradition and technology live harmoniously together; it is a land where friends and families gather together in town squares in the evenings to share life, love, and living. And perhaps the most compelling aspect of my visit to Romania, even though I do not speak the language and am totally unfamiliar with local custom, is that my wife and I were treated as guests no matter where we went, whether in the city or far into the countryside.
The images that follow were captured in and around the cities of Sibiu, Brasov, Deva, Hunedoara, and Medias, as well as along the Transfăgărășan Highway. At 92,000 square miles (238,400 square kilometers), Romania is the ninth largest country of the European Union by area, and has the seventh largest population in the European Union. As such, it is impossible to capture in images enough about Romania, it’s landscape, people, and culture to do it justice.
Hopefully this book will peak your curiosity about Romania, it’s rich culture, and history. Hopefully it will leave you with the same feeling about Romania that my wife and I experienced...that in Romania, there are no strangers.
