Originally Posted by
Test Monsterone
I have to say my first night back I slept from 8:30 to 9 the next day.
The first week I was there, like the other times I went, were like a honeymoon period. You notice things like how solid the construction is. Every house is brick and concrete... walls are thick, you don't hear your neighbors or people in the other rooms. The doors are heavy and thick, even the interior ones. Everything looks and feels like it could survive a nuclear blast. In the US houses seem like they're made out of cardboard by comparison.
But houses are not nearly as comfortable as in the US. Nobody has central air conditioning. Most modern houses have just one air conditioner that hangs on the wall in the central part of the house, but it hardly does anything.. and most of the time it's off. They have a weird superstition against air conditioners. They don't use them, even in a hot car. They think it causes colds, sinus infections, etc. Then, the toilets.. man. Wtf is up with their toilets? They don't flush in a spiral they way we are used to in the US. They just seem to toss water up in the air. Terrible design. Have to flush 5 times.
Fridges are tiny... no filtered water. No garbage disposal. Everything is miniature compared to the US. I'm sure most of the world is like this, the US and Canada being the exception.
Restaurants. Food is fresh, home cooked, amazing. Nothing processed, nothing from a bag. Romania is known for it's amazing soups, but there is so much more to it than that. Our group of 6 all had appetizers, main meals, deserts, alcohol, and bottled sparkling water for $75. You could eat out for every meal and it would be cheaper than buying groceries and cooking yourself in the US. Even the fast food is fresh and amazing. You get veggies that taste like they're supposed to. The fast food in Romania is like like most chain restaurant foods in the US as far as quality.
Life in general is more difficult. Almost everything is a hassle. Me having to pay for my surgery was a day-long process of wandering through the city, going to different buildings, trying to figure it out. They didn't accept card payments, and the ATM wouldn't dispense the amount I needed, so I had to call friends to come give me cash, that I later had to pay back. It's like this with a lot of things. Things that should be straight-forward are not. In the grocery store I bought some lemons, and at the checkout counter the lady asked me how much they weigh. In the US they weigh them at the checkout line, so I wasn't used to having to weigh them myself. You don't automatically get bags for groceries. Many people bring their own bags, so I had to buy bags for groceries.
Customer service is a mixed bag. In metropolitan places where there is a lot of foreign traffic, services are great. If you wonder in less touristy areas, you might get one of these cunts that treats you like you're making her life more difficult by simply ordering food or asking for a service. I had to get in an argument with the receptionist at a hotel in order to get extra towels. She also tried putting me and my cousin in separate buildings and acted like a complete bitch the whole time. We got to the restaurant there at 10 pm. They close at 10:30. For 10 mins nobody comes to our table. We ask one of the waiters walking around for service, and they give us the menu. 15 more minutes go by, nobody comes to take our order. Again, we ask another waiter walking around if they could take our order. The guy starts taking it, then halfway through says he can't take the order anymore because the kitchen closes at 10:30 and it was now 10:32. So we ask for the manager and she comes and starts arguing with us and then says "ok, fine I'll take your orders..." We didn't want the cooks to mess with our food so we ended up leaving hungry. Everything was closed so we had to find a 24/7 mart and ended up eating salami, yogurt, and bread for dinner that night, in the car. This isn't atypical in this part of the world.. it's gotten a lot better over the years, but some parts of the country are still like this. Years ago a waitress exclaimed "why did you call me over if you don't know what you want yet?!" when my cousin was trying to decide on what to order. I told that bitch to kick rocks and find us another waitress. But yeah, usual shit.
So, like the title, gotta take the good with the bad. Life would be very affordable here with an American salary. Women.. wow. Dimes a dozen. Everywhere you go you see hot, beautiful women. Hardly nobody is overweight. People dress well, women look like they came from a modeling shoot just walking in the town square for a coffee or icecream. Life feels more... alive, for lack of a better term. People interact, people are more direct. Also, have to love the fact that there is no racial bs going on. Everyone is basically white or tan, except for a few immigrants. I'm sorry to say, but I prefer living in places where people look like me. Yeah, diversity is great... except when it isn't. There is no ghetto or trashy type of people. There are poor people, but they still have pride and act respectfully. Romania has to be one of the few countries where you can go to and still feel like you are amongst your people and you don't have to constantly be aware of other cultures/races/religions. It's nice to just exist amongst your own... fuck it if I sound racist. They do have gypsies, but they mostly do their own thing and aren't a nuisance.
Trees... fruit trees everywhere. I ate plums, peaches, apples, grapes, and many more, right off the tree or the vine. Almost everyone there who owns a house has fruits and vegetables growing on their property. It's rare to find a home that doesn't have a few grape vines growing over a terrace, providing a nice shade underneath to sit and enjoy. The air is dry, and it gets cooler at night. None of this humidity we have over here in the eastern side of the US. Everyone has homemade liquors and wines. I brought home two 2-liter bottles of home made plum liquor (it's very strong and delicious) and brandy.
Property taxes are basically nonexistent. A few hundred dollars a year, that's it. Taxes in general are way less. When you own a home, you own a home. Where I live I have to pay 10 grand in property taxes and HOA.
Basically everyone gets a month of paid vacation a year. You don't have to work your way up to it, it's just how it is.
Again, like I said, life is still more challenging. At least the day to day stuff. I'm writing this out of my comfortable, air conditioned home in the US. Life is great here, can't complain. But, it's interesting to compare and contrast the different realities. People live everywhere and you find things you appreciate you would never even think of if you never travelled and got to see it. I can only imagine the things I would appreciate in countries in other continents, not just in Europe. Every place got it's perks and problems.
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We have goods and bads( from people to state side bussines...) Prices are huge compared to salaries... Rent is huge, gas is expensive as fuck... And the best part is that you can get everything you want from a farmacy exept roids, we only have nebido...
