homework help (what do you associate with romania?)

[Munachi]

Anyone willing to help me?

I have exams in December and part of it is writing an essay (in Romanian) so my professor gave me various topics to write essays about as a practice (and it could be that one of these topics will be the one i get in the exam...

One of them is about the image of Romania in Europe. To make that a bit more interesting, I thought I would do a kind of poll here... Basically I need to know what your image of Romania is, what you associate with it. Nothing long (after all I am the one who has to write the essay - so please not more than a few sentences). If you don't associate anything with Romania, that would be interesting to know too...

And of course also people who aren't from Europe can answer, but it might be nice to mention that you aren't from Europe...

Thanks a lot!

 

[cantdog]

I am American, but why not?

I associate Romania first with the Ploesti oil fields which were so important a goal during WW II. After that, the little gymnast who got the perfect score in the Olympics. Then, some historical stuff: the holy war with the Ottomans, the Eastern Roman Empire. Nothing very current. I've never met a Romanian.

 

[past_perfect]

Well, as far as associations go, skinny gymnasts and Ceausescu come to mind. Other than that perhaps that it is a comparatively poor country for European standards with proud and slightly melancholic people. Apart from that I know frightening little about it.

 

[sr71plt]

Dracula (who may not relate at all--that's just what comes to mind), the Ceausescus (both husband and wife), and bleak austerity. And on a more personal level, my political theory professor, who was a dispaced Romanian count.

 

[Vermilion]

The orphanages. Always the orphanages...

And today I saw a photograph by Lee Miller, when she travelled in Romania, of shoes made out of car tyres.

ETA: I'm English by the way... if that makes a difference

 

[rgraham666]

The KGB used to use people from their Romanian equivalent for 'dirty work'. Like the guy that shot the Pope. And I recall a hit they did in England with a poisoned umbrella.

Transylvania and Vlad Dracul also come to mind.

 

[wordofvirtue]

I think of my hubby's dead sexy psychiatrist who is from Romania. Her name is Alana. Isn't that so musical?? My God the things I'd love to do with her ........ she's about my height (5'6"ish), long full dark hair, gorgeous pretty face, and a body to die for. Mmmmmmmmm. And here I am without any major psych problems that would require ME to sit in her office -- just my luck!!! LOL

 

[starrkers]

Australian reply:

Ceausescu, his regime and his incredibly expensive helicopter (I actually lived in the region that bought it, stripped it and turned it into a rescue chopper); orphans; pollution; rustic rural (read technology deficient) lifestyles...
Oh, and my aunt breaking her hip in a cinema (why you would go to a cinema in Romania I don't know!) and the rigmarole needed to get her home to England to have it fixed.

 

[Black Tulip]

European here. LOL

I visited Romania once.
Beautiful country: the Carpathian mountains were gorgeous,
the Black Sea where the beach is really black sand,
very old little churches or monasteries with paintings on the outside,
of course Count Dracula, aka Vlad the something or other (can't translate into English , it's too late),
the river Danube ? (Donau),
gypsies as third rate citizens,
terrible poverty (but I visited in a time when Ceausescu was still in power),
lots of dancing and music in the evenings from students in the capital,
black earthenware with intricate carvings on the plates and cups.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

Ditto to what everyone else said - Ceausescu first on the list (pretty sad that). I think Vlad had Romanian connections, although Transylvania is mostly in modern Czech-land.

Add this: I've often wondered how close that language really is to Latin, and after all these years what chord that bit of ancient history still strikes to account for the name the people give their country.

One more thing: A girl on my hall in college was Romanian, and introduced me to espresso coffee made on a stove at home. She was cool - I miss her.

 

[Grushenka]

Russian/American reply: Only some 20 or so years ago I read an excellent history/biography, "The Last Romantic: A Biography of Queen Marie of Roumania" by Hannah Pakula. I learned more about European history from that book than ever before (she was related to both the English and Russian royal families).

I also learned of Roumania when studying ancient Roman history, and finally realized that Roumanian is a Romance language.

Good luck, and enjoy your research.

p.s. I had a boyfriend from Transylvania once, but we never discussed history or politics.

 

[Grushenka]

Add this: I've often wondered how close that language really is to Latin, and after all these years what chord that bit of ancient history still strikes to account for the name the people give their country.

See above. Roumania and other modern Baltic areas were Roman provinces, and so we have modern Roumanian as Romantic a language as Italian or French.

 

[slyc_willie]

The Danube. Timisoara, Brasov and Galati (nice little burg ). Old Fiat and Dacia taxis. The Carpathian Mountains and gypsy folk singers & dancers who just might make you believe in things like faeries and shapeshifters.

--Slyc (born & raised in Germany, but American)

 

[Munachi]

thanks! good answers so far, will be useful for my essay... looking forward to reading more answers tomorrow (bed time now)... might comment on a few things, but only tomorrow... thanks a lot!

 

[Lisa Denton]

I think of my hubby's dead sexy psychiatrist who is from Romania. Her name is Alana. Isn't that so musical?? My God the things I'd love to do with her ........ she's about my height (5'6"ish), long full dark hair, gorgeous pretty face, and a body to die for. Mmmmmmmmm. And here I am without any major psych problems that would require ME to sit in her office -- just my luck!!! LOL

Except you have the hots for a dead shrink (?)

I am a texan, which is kinda american, and I don't know much about romania, I tried to think of food and isn't there some kind of romanian cheese? I don't like funny cheeses, especially that one that smells like dogshit, so I'm not sure about that.

Anyways, the one thing that seems to me to stick out about romania is it being a breakaway ex-soviet sattelite kinda place. You always gotta wonder if places like that got a few nuclear missiles the russians left behind, and if they are pissed off about either russian invadin them, or leavin them. But anyways, seems like I heard something about thier leaders or president, but I forget what.

I guess the most important thing to me about romania is it seems kinda forgetable.

 

[oggbashan]

My version from the UK:

Romania is named after Rome and was part of the Roman Empire. After the decline and fall of that empire it was fought over by everyone, being neither East nor West. The Normans took it over and imposed the feudal system.

In World War II Romania was on the wrong side twice, first by covertly supporting Britain and France when those countries were losing and then being taken over by Germany before suffering significantly during an invasion by the Red Army.

Then its Communist rulers wrecked what was left of the country.

Now, perhaps for the first time in a thousand years, it has a chance for a future as part of the European community.

Of course I may be completely wrong.

Og

 

[hmmnmm]

I associate my wife with romania, since that's where she's from

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

My version from the UK:

Romania is named after Rome and was part of the Roman Empire. After the decline and fall of that empire it was fought over by everyone, being neither East nor West. The Normans took it over and imposed the feudal system.

In World War II Romania was on the wrong side twice, first by covertly supporting Britain and France when those countries were losing and then being taken over by Germany before suffering significantly during an invasion by the Red Army.

Then its Communist rulers wrecked what was left of the country.

Now, perhaps for the first time in a thousand years, it has a chance for a future as part of the European community.

Of course I may be completely wrong.

Og

Well, it certainly has a chance, at least. I've no idea how good or bad. I wish them well, as I'm sure all here do.

 

[TheEarl]

I'm afraid that my overwhelming knowledge of Romania is of people like Dan Petrescu and Marius Tincu (former Romanian football captain and current Romanian rugby captain).

I know that under Communist rule, Romania had a fairly handy rugby side that challenged the major European sides regularly. It was heavily supported by the government, because rugby was seen as a strong, manly game and therefore success was a marker of the success of their regime. After the collapse of the communist regime, a lot of resources were looted and international rugby's insular outlook at the time meant that rugby nearly died out there.

Nowadays, it's making a comeback (as Romanians appear to like a strong, manly game just as much as evil totalitarian governments) and the Romanian national side are noted for having a beefy pack of forwards and being very physically strong.

Aside from that, the capital and the flag, I'm afraid I know very little about Romania.

The Earl

 

[hmmnmm]

inca una si ma duc
Ciuc

am pula foarte tare

 

[Emerald_Dragon]

I'm from the USA.

I think of mountains, gypsies and some of the colorful pictures from national Geographic. It is a poor country.

I think it is also one of those countries that had a lot of orphans that people tried so hard to adopt.

 

[Chantilyvamp]

I associate romania with beauty, poverty, vampires, mafia. Right now mafia is head of the list but thats more due to a show I watched not long ago.

 

[Sapphire_O]

Things I associate with Romania:

1. The Romani (sp?). Or gypsies. People living as a commune, travelling, maybe doing some fortune telling.
2. Vampires.
3. Orphans that rich Europeans or Americans adopt.

 

[Munachi]

inca una si ma duc
Ciuc

am pula foarte tare

hehe...

 

[Munachi]

sorry double post...