Romanian Culture and Lifestyle

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The Romanian culture is rich in complexity culture and traditions. The distinctive culture of Romania is a result of its historical evolution. The culture has been imbibed from the Dacians, who had occupied the area in the past. One way in which the people of Romania showcase their brightly coloured ornaments and costumes is during the traditional dance during the major festivals. Beautiful traditional woven carpets, wood hand carvings, pottery and clothing are just some of the elements of traditional Romanian culture. Intricately decorated Easter eggs, painted glass and Icons painted on wood substrates art are among the special folk arts of Romania. These items can also be found in many shops, street markets and vendors near tourist attractions throughout the country.

The Romanian language is Latin based and has certain resemblance to Spanish, French and Italian languages . In the bigger towns and cities people can easily converse in English, while many also speak French, particularly the older generation from their Communist schooling days. Russian is also widely understood by the older generation for the same reason.

The four seasons of Romania, Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn are not usually in equal proportion.  Summer and Winter are much more dominant than Spring and Autumn. For this reason, many say it is a 2 season climate.

Romanian cuisine is influenced by the palates of the many foreign settlers who had travelled or occupied the land in the past. Such settlers include the Turks, Greeks, Hungarians, Austrians as well as the Germans. Pork is a favorite dish of most Romanians but there is also a variety of other meat products like beef, lamb and chicken dishes that are readily available. Fish dishes are typical of the Danube Delta. Generally meals are complemented by both bread and soup, or Ciorba, which is a national specialty in Romania.  Some Romanians consider their meal to be incomplete without a drink of the local spirit, tuica, a plum brandy is usually enjoyed before a meal along with some appetizers.

Romania is blessed with excellent wine and beer.  During special occasions a variety of delicious cakes is a po[CENSORED]r necessity in Romania. A few such local dishes of Romania include: Ciorba, Mititei (also known as Mici , Tochitura, Mamaliga.

The local transport of Romania is surprisingly well structured and affordable, offering a number of options. Travellers can choose to use the train, or which there are several  main types: Personal (p),  Accelerat (a), Rapid (r), Intercity (ic), Euro City (ec) , as well as a very competitive private train services such as Regiotrans. Also, there is an extensive network of buses, minivans, cheap taxis and in major cities, trams and an underground Metro system in the capital.

Though the Romanian culture and lifestyle shares some similarities with other east European countries, it is largely unique and an enriching experience.  Romanians are warm, intelligence & passionate people.  Street, violent and car crime is barely visible in everyday society and is nowhere near as significant as western Europe and few cities pose problems for walking late at night. Whilst one should always take basic precautions, you are unlikely to encounter any sense of feeling unsafe in po[CENSORED]ted areas, partly because Romanian society is still a strong and cohesive community force with deep family & faith values. Confidence-tricksters posing as officials in major cities are not unheard of, although extremely rare while unregistered taxi drivers overcharging foreign travellers are to be expected,  Only use recommended taxi companies that any experienced local will be able to recommend. With Google map website now carrying ratings for companies now for example, this is much easier for travellers to determine.