Pernambuco in Bucharest

I guided in Romania in the period 11-13 July 2011, for Invitation Romania Travel, a group of thirteen Brazilian tourists from Pernambuco who made a tour around Eastern Europe visiting Warsaw, the Baltic capitals, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kiev, Bucharest and Sofia. They were leaded by Stenia Raposo, from Mirella Turismo in Recife.

The tourists were happy to grasp the highlights of the Romanian capital during their brief passage through the city, and will certainly come back soon with more time in order to discover the rest of the country. On the last day of the visit I led them to the local railway station [picture], from where the group left towards Sofia.

"Guide people in such a way that they feel they are visiting their Romanian friends"

Those are the kind comments our guests Katharine Vary-Belanger and James Belanger (US), whom we had the pleasure to guide and accommodate in the period November 24-30, 2008, wrote about their first trip to Romania:

"My husband and I decided to go to Romania on a whim. We found excellent airfare, and a friend had recently been there and spoke glowingly of a private guide she had found to help her to research her family's history there. Though neither of us has any genealogical ties to Romania, our sense of adventure drove us to contact this guide, Fernando, and arrange a trip. Fernando's philosophy is simple - guide people through the country in such a way that they feel they are visiting their Romanian friends. We saw many of the major sites, such as Bran Castle and the painted monasteries of Bucovina, but far more interesting and exciting was the insight we gained by getting to know Romanians. Fernando's wife, Elena, and her brother, Marinel, were our primary guides, and we had many wonderful moments of telling stories, trying new foods, getting drunk, and laughing. I can't tell all the stories which made this trip extraordinary: there was the emergency snow-boot purchase, the drinking of too much champagne and giggling like little girls in the back seat of the car with Elena, the visit to Elena's parents' house, being rude to the statue of Lenin... the list could go on for a much longer time than a one-week trip would normally merit. We were sad to find, at the end of our visit, that we had to return to our daily lives. Everything far exceeded our expectations, and the warmth and hospitality we experienced made this the best, most enjoyable, and most enlightening trip that my husband and I have taken together. I hope that, someday, we will be able to return to Romania; when we do, we will certainly contact Fernando and Elena, in the hopes that we may see more of their beautiful country."

Picture: Bran Castle, Transylvania, by Katharine Vary-Belanger

Martins

On June 25th, 2004, we guided H. E. Gilberto Ferreira Martins, Ambassador of Brazil in Bucharest at that time (first from the right), together with his wife and a couple of Brazilian friends, in a one-day trip to the countryside area north of the Romanian capital. Based at Fernando's Hideaway in the village of Fierbinti-Târg, where we offered them a traditional Romanian lunch and showed the local peasants farms, we visited two important Christian-Orthodox monasteries of the area, dating back to the 17th century. In the picture, the group poses together with Elena Klabin (guide) and the monk Firmilian in front of the Saint Nicholas church within the monastery Balamuci.

Frankel

On November 1st I guided the couple Gerardo Frankel and Margarida Reik de Frankel (Uruguay), who came from Montevideo to Bucharest in order to take a ship cruise through the Danube, starting on November 2nd at the Romanian harbor of Oltenita and crossing the Bulgarian, Serbian, Hungarian, Austrian and German borders till Nürnberg. They visited Bucharest's old town, the Jewish neighborhood and the royal palace of Mogosoaia (in the picture) besides some shopping in the malls and antique shops of the city.

Halloween in Romania

Halloween in Romania is celebrated around the myth of "Dracula", on the 31st of October. In Transylvania and especially in the town of Sighisoara, there are many costume parties, for teenagers and adults, that are created from the US model. Also the spirit of Dracula lives there because the town was the site of many witch-trials that are recreated by actors today, on the night of Halloween.

Source: Wikipedia

Szprowski

In the period October 10th-13th, we guided Maryellen Pienta and Michael Minning (US) through Romania. They were the first clients to stay at our Hideaway in Northern Moldavia. After 1250km by car, crossing Moldavia, Bukovina, the Carpathians and Transylvania, our guests had a wonderful time, learning a lot about this country and its people and getting to know some of the UNESCO world heritage painted monasteries: Probota, Sucevita and Humor. Maryellen's roots from around Gura Humorului - her grandfather Jakob Szprowski was an Austro-Hungarian officer's aide who emigrated to the US - will probably bring her here again for a genealogical trip. In the picture, Maryellen poses together with Sister Marcela, our guide Elena Klabin and Michael at the nun's cell in Agapia monastery. You may read Maryellen's impressions on the trip at her blog's article The Catania-Bucharest Connection and watch her travel pictures here.

Crema Leis

On 25th and 26th August our team (left) Marinel Sburlea (driver) and Elena Klabin (guide) guided the couple Abadia Crema Leis and Silvio Leis (Brazil) in Bucharest and through the Carpathian mountains, visiting highlights of Romanian tourism within and near the capital: Dracula's castle, Rosenau fortress, Peles Palace, Parliament Palace and an abandoned huge statue of Lenin... The Brazilian couple left Romania full with new information on its culture and history, planning to come back for a longer trip.

Brazilian jazzman in Transylvania

On May 20th-21st 2008 I guided the Brazilian musician Marcos Valente Jr. to the city of Reghin, in the core of Transylvania. In order to prepare his Romanian tournée next October, Marcos wanted to visit the most famous factory of musical instruments of the country - Hora - where he chose a special bass for himself. During the trip through the Carpathian mountains, he had several cultural and gastronomical experiences which gave him a general taste of Transylvania.

Easter 2007

During the Christian-orthodox Easter holiday, we guided three ladies from Brazil - Barbara Spanoudis, Marcia Schubert and Oziris Costa - through deep Romania in order to experience the peasants life and their sincere religious feeling. Hosted in Northern Moldavia, they were able to visit several monasteries in Falticeni and Neamt area, as well as the world famous monasteries in Bukovina: Voronet, Moldovita and Humor. In the picture, Oziris and Barbara, in blue pullovers, together with their guides at a traditional family house in Rosiori, Suceava, get warm for Easter mass.

Moschella

During the weekend of 1-2 December 2007, we guided the musicians Alexandre Moschella (Brazil) and his wife Fernanda Bertinato to Bukovina, where they learnt about local traditions, had meals at old Moldavian inns and visited the monasteries of Dragomirna, Sucevita, Humor and Voronet.

Jill Kasen

On September 29th and October 6th 2007, Jill Kasen (US) and her trip colleague Arleen Glikbarg (US) were guided through the remains of Jewish Bucharest. They also had the occasion to visit the main touristic attractions of the Romanian capital, mix of Istambul and Paris.

Shell

Elliot and Ellen Shell (US) - below, in front of Bucharest main railway station - spent the weekend of 9-10 June 2007 in Bucharest, the city where his family lived in the 20's, after emigrating from Ukraine and before leaving by train to Constantinople towards a new life. After a dense and touching visit including Jewish sites and chosen attractions under the guidance of Elena, family Shell left the Romanian capital to Istanbul by train as well, in order to reproduce the voyage made by his ancestrals 80 years ago.

Stern / Eiras

In October 2005, jazzman Marcinho Eiras (Brazil) and family Stern (Peru) had a weekend full of revelations. After visiting Bran Castle and Sighisoara, birthplace of Dracula, they met him during their overnight in a Szekler village (photo) close to the Transylvanian Alps. Although strangely pale the next day, they were all able to enjoy the wonderful landscape on the way back to Bucharest.

Mass

In October 2006, Robert Mass and Charmian (US) visited Romania after making a wonderful cruise down the Danube. In 3 days they visited important sites in Transylvania and had an unforgettable lunch at a peasant's house nearby Bucharest (photo).