It doesn’t matter. You keep strong. Continue.
To be.
Photo credits go to: Alex Gâlmeanu
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Tag Archives: English please
With you, any place is home.
Smiles and stolen glances. These are my people. My darling human beings that I adore for merely existing and colliding with my path.
Thank you for being here.
You made it home.
Here’s to a new and exciting year full of good people and moments shared together.
2016, i hope you bring more angels to my life.
Bucharest, 7th of January 2016.
I live here. I love it.
Shine like you mean it
I like tattoos, but on other people. I am not sure if the next day I’d still be happy with my decision of making a dragonfly on my ankle, let’s say. Temporary tatoos? Well, that’s something I can definitely deal with for a few days. Flash Tattoos Romania – presented me the occasion of adding jewellery on my body in a very elegant way. As nervous as I was at first looking at all those golden shines, it all went very well! The results came perfectly synchronized with my 26th birthday as well. Thank you so much for such a lovely time! Here are the photos 🙂
©FlashTattoosRomania
Colection: Classy like a Motherf***
Photographer: Alexandru Mărgărit
Model: Lori Alexe
MUA: Carmen Arhire
Location: Funky Lounge Herastrau
If any of you should be interested in these temporary shiny shines and many more collections, here is their official website: Flash Tattoos Romania and their Facebook page.
Until next time, don’t forget to shine!
Regarde le ciel
What can I say? The world is a dream.
Bucharest, the greener the better!
Unofficially, summer is here. We had our first thunder-wonder storm last Sunday and now the temperature never drops below 15. I call it heaven. The only downsize to it is that we still have offices to attend to. A green lunchbreak will always charge your batteries. Disconnect for a moment and let the sunshine soothe your soul.
Ah, Bucharest, sometimes…
Corners of contrast in Bucharest
Late April with long awaited sunny days. The mornings are particularly gorgeous. Crisp air with sharp light, vivid green starting to dress up the city with a sense of calmness.
No, no, no. I’m totally wrong, here comes the chaos. Morning traffic, angry faces, dark circles around hurried people’s eyes, honking, pedestrians going around the mud. Ah, they are digging up again. In the middle of the street. I find a sense of lyricism in these layers of Bucharest that are starting to show up. Let’s see: improvised mini markets behind cars with fresh fruit from gardens and steam in the air. Yes, that sounds very much like it. Like the crazy mix of the beautifully repainted theater and the mess and mud in the intersection, with the smoker woman inviting me for strawberries grown in her greenhouse and the supervised workers looking at my ass while i am crossing the street. The swearing words of the taxi driver rushing almost on my steps on the zebra and the journalist in smart clothes bumping into an old lady walking her blind dog. All of this. You have to feel it, I can only offer a glimpse.
Bucharest. I live here. I love it.
The miraculous cream for everything!
Chickenbuses never cease to amaze me. There’s so much life in them, it seems unbelievable. Lovers express love, kids laugh and cry in the same tonality, some eat, others play, drunkers sleep, backpackers are curious, mothers breastfeed, fathers make up stories, grannies keep an eye out for anything suspicious, the seats are uncomfortable for eveyone so you can see a bit of that back and leg pain in all the passengers’ eyes.
It’s gorgeous, I tell you.
What I enjoy very much is that every bus is unique with customized design, different driving styles and various weirdness of each money-collecting guys. Ah, what else? Yes! People with different kind of merchandise just pop in and out of a chicken bus during a trip so you can eat, drink and buy anything you might think of while going to the beach or the mountains of Guatemala.
My day got brighter when I actually followed the marketing discourse of a well dressed man about the cream. Just wanted to practice my Spanish active listening while I was stuck inbetween sleepyheads, Manouela and Izabel, but it really got to me. He was very pedant and started in a soft, but strong voice. He actually seemed to be taking after Julio Iglesias. A bit. Well, this charm actually worked while describing the properties of this noni cream that seems to help with everything. You name it: fungus, burns, irritation, scratches, hair loss, nail cuticles, acne. You just choose your skin problem and it actually solves it!
Now my description after I actually bought it: it’s yellow, gooey, it smells good, it’s made of 100% natural ingredients and it costs very little. What a bargain! 😀
WARNING!While traveling in a chicken bus, some of your reasoning abilities may be affected. That is the only explanation I can give for actually buying cream on the bus on my way to San Jose. Later at the beach I discovered probably the only downside of this creama milagrosa: it does not have a protection factor. You can still use it after you get sun burnt, though. WIN! 🙂
PS. For non-Romanian friends, we have something similar in our country called galbenele. It is a cream made of yellow flowers that is used for burns, scratches, irritation. All our grannies use it and recommend it for any injury of the skin. The only difference is that you can’t buy it in a bus. Oh, Guatemala, we have so much in common!
Probigua. The Spanish School with a purpose
Con permiso, let me just tell you about my work here in Antigua, Guatemala. I signed up for AIESEC last year to be able to travel somewhere to Latin America. I didn’t have much trouble deciding which project to pick, the team from AIESEC Guatemala are very professional and did a great job in the invitations and decription emails. It is called “Ambassadors of Guatemala”. Who wouldn’t want to feel that kind of recognition for their experiences in another country? I was hooked. Guatemala is one of the most beautiful countries in Central America and I couldn’t wait to see what it has to offer. AIESEC together with the Govermental Insititution of Tourism and reputed Spanish schools are showing Guatemala’s beauty through all the participants’ eyes. Besides working in a volunteer project in my school, they are also offering me 2 hours of Spanish classes every day! How wonderful is that? 🙂
This is my sharp, gorgeous and very open-minded teacher, Gladys. I love our long conversations about the culture of Guatemala. ♥ Gracias.
Academia de Español Probigua – Proyectos Bibliotecas Guatemala is where I work, learn Spanish and teach English to my Spanish teachers. Probigua is a non profit organisation that has two main goals: teaching Spanish and helping education reach poor communities in Guatemala. I find this so incredibly interesting and such an unique experience because I have also worked on a similar situation in Romania through OvidiuRO. The Spanish taught to the students of Probigua comes with an intensive, total-immersion experience, featuring 3 to 7 hours of one-on-one classes daily plus the opportunity of living with a Guatemalan family to learn about the culture and broaden language skills! I am so lucky to be one of these students and to be integrated into such a nice family. Not only is Sonia a great cook, but she also has a lot of patience and helps us, chicos, with the language during meals. My room is great and I have a perfect view from my terrace.
Probigua aims high and thinks big. They are helping the children of Guatemala by donating the school’s profits to maintain the Library Bus. Additionally, they establish and preserve libraries in the many rural places whereby there is no access to books. I was heartbroken while travelling with el Bibliobus to two of the poor communities close to Antigua: Magdalena Milpas Altas – a village on Volcan de Agua and Alotenango – a village at the bottom of the active Volcan de Fuego, which actually errupted on Saturday covering Antigua with ashes for many days.
This is el Bibliobus (the Library Bus) in front of La Merced church.
Magdalena Milpas Altas
The kids had an earthquake evacuation drill and the lucky ones got to ride with the ambulance/firemen, los bomberos. It was also the school’s anniversary so the all the kids had activities in the yard and participated in a football competition.
The bullies stand aside but keep an eye out for some new victims.
It is incredible to be here and see children that RUN for the bus.They are super excited to see books and try to keep calm although you can see their sparkles of joy in their eyes while waiting for their teacher’s instructions and the librarian’s offerings ♥
I sit down with them and tell them about my country. Most of them haven’t heard of it and ask me if I am a gringo. I then switch to fairytales like Count Dracula and Transylvania as the heart of Romania and they listen carefully. 🙂 One of them, Carlos, the kid with sad eyes but a kind smile actually knows where Romania is on the map. I’m very much impressed. He pays much attention to my stories and corrects my Spanish. He then buys some sweets with his 1 Quetzal only so I can try it. He is first on the left.
We have a group picture and the kids ask me for my facebook or twitter. 🙂
At the bottom of Volcan de Fuego lies the village Alotenango. The volcano shows a bit of anxiety as we approach, it exhales fumes every now and then and some of the forests lower from the crater are burning. The people of Alotenango live in harsh conditions of poverty and lack of water. The women usually gather in the main square to wash their clothes at the local lavatorium. Their kids wander around playing with boxes in the dust. They are happy, but shy at the sight of foreigners.
Life is calm out here. Very tranquila. The time is not rushing anywhere and the people seem to know that very well. We park the 3000 book carrying bus by the main park and wait for new students to come in and ask to read something interesting.
This cutie saw me climbing el Bibliobus and decided to join. He goes in to do some basic maths practice afterwards. He is 8 and didn’t go to school that day because he hadn’t done his homework, he says. He can’t read that well, but he is good with numbers.
Out of curiosity we also visit some classes in the nearby school and find the children practicing their sewing on patterned tablecloths. They are happy to tell us the few words they know in English and then show us their masterpieces. When the picture time comes, they goof around. Kids will be kids. 🙂
Most of the children around the lavatorium are curious about us ‘gringos’ but too shy to interact. I sit down since I’m actually quite tall here and start presenting myself and shaking hands to make them feel more at ease.
My days are full here and I always wake up with a smile upon my face. I am grateful for this experience. Nothing you do for children is ever wasted.
If anyone is interested in joining the projects of Aiesec Guatemala, you can find more information here 🙂
Until next time, keep on smiling!
Hola, I’m in Antigua, Guatemala.
The sight from almost landing in Panama.
My first trip across the ocean and out of Europe: Don’t be nervous, everything will be just fine! I kept saying to myself. And then this became an involuntary soundtrack before my actual flights. Cheers, brain, I know I can always count on you for messing up my sleep and bringing up weird songs before any kind of travelling. 🙂
But now I am here (OMG!) and everything is so great and exciting and new and crazy different, but sometimes also out-of-this-world similar to the Romanian culture. It’s so hard to put in words. Maybe something of a harmonious chaos that we also master in Romania.
One other surprising thing, I understand a lot of the language, it’s incredible! It feels like it was all the time asleep inside of me. This learning process is very exciting for me. I only need to listen carefully and I understand the use of expressions. Love it so much! At times, I even keep up conversations for so long that I forget I am speaking Spanish. Now that’s really something 🙂
The people. Oh my, I don’t even know where to start on this topic. They are very hospitable, kind, patient, welcoming but also curious to know about you and your country. Here in Antigua they get a lot of tourists and they are used to sharing their lives with them. I have been welcomed with open arms into their houses (thank you Charly, Luis, Majo and Elizabeth), I met the extended family with aunts and uncles and cousins and grandmas. I’m enjoying small talk during meals at my wonderful home and I have the perfect view on the terrace of my room. Antigua is surrounded by volcanos (Volcan de Agua, Volcan de Fuego and Acatenango)and I am lucky enough to see them all 🙂
What can I say, guys, it was love at first sight with Antigua. Here, el Volcan de Agua, first thing in the morning.
Volcan de Agua is the most beautiful one, standing alone with its blunt peak sometimes wrapped in white clouds. The more cheeky one is called Volcan de Fuego. As his name hints, he is still active and kicking. Sometimes more than once per day. It’s far away so we can’t even hear the explosions many times, but you get such an adrenaline rush to see it by night! Mirna from Probigua Spanish School took a great photo of it the other day. I was overwhelmed at its sight to even move a muscle, but she managed to capture it! Such good timing! The Spanish language schools here in Antigua are renowned all around the world and have become one of the main industries along with tourism.
So enough about how amazing this entire trip is for me, let me walk you around the places so you can get the positive vibes in wonderful Antigua. The city has well preserved Spanish colonial style buildings and many ruins of churches. During the colonial times it also served as the capital of an administrative region that covered most of Central America.
View over entire Antigua from La Cerro de la Cruz.
La Merced church.
Antigua is well known for having elaborate religious ceremonies during important Catholic events such as Cuaresma (40 days before Easter Sunday), the Holy Week (Semana Santa), Easter. I will be here just before Easter time so I will document all the flowers, fruits, pine needles and paint artworks made by the artists to celebrate these events. Here you see Cathedral of San José which is located in the Central Park.
This is the sight from Palacio de los Capitanes, Plaza Central. In the background, the beautiful Volcan de Agua.
The main market. Love the colors of everything here. So many new veggies and fruits I had no idea about. Now wish me luck learning their names in Spanish with no Romanian equivalent. Quiero un camion de nisperos.♥
As for me, I wait for good light and spy on people, I’m really enjoying myself out here. 🙂 This is fast healthy food on the street. If you like how one lady is cooking, you usually stick with her. Guacamoooooleee tortilla wrap, yum! ♥
Oh, yes, this is me during lunch break soaking up the sun as much as I can before I return home. Keep bright 🙂
The Land Before Time
As a kid traveling around Romania with my family, I would make my own stories from the reality I would experience. It so happened after crossing the Carpathians into the hilly Transylvania.
I have this particular strong mental image stuck with me since childhood probably influenced by ‘The Land Before Time’ cartoon. I would imagine a fantastically flourishing world of… dinosaurs wandering around.
This plateau in Transylvania, Romania, is one of the triggers of that vivid memory. Always. I come by and I instantly get transported to that childish reverie. Ah, I can still see the long necked brontosaurus walking heavily in between these hills secured by the chain of mountains. This is where dinos ran around freely in my imagination.
And because life makes some sense sometimes, I ran into these sweet kids later today. Guess what? They were colouring dinos.
