People first
Bran and Fundata Valley This was supposed to be a whimsical stop-off at the supposed setting of Dracula's castle, (based on the real more-gruesome-than-fiction warrior, Vlad "The Impaler" Tepeş) which just happened to be on Halloween. We were headed up from the flatlands of Bucharest, through the gates of the Carpathians, into Transylvania. Then we … Continue reading Circle of Friends–Part 5: Halloween at Bran’s Castle
On the road, we headed west and south from Toulcea. After a bit of GPS only guidance, I tried to find our place on the map book and eventually found it. The countryside had gently rolling hills and flat farmlands that stretched to the horizon. Farms were bigger here with fewer houses--there were times you … Continue reading Circle of Friends–Part 4: The Capital
We arrived near dusk, partly due to the fact that Romania had just changed to daylight saving time here, but I doubt that's what they call it. As the sky was turning grey and the winds picked up, Rebecca and I found a small restaurant on the second floor of a row of businesses near … Continue reading Circle of Friends–Part 3: Tulchea and the Danube Delta
(Click on photos to see captions) In this post, we stayed at an inn and at a hotel, not writing ahead, not asking our hosts to engage or talk to us or tell us their story. It was a bit of a break from interviewing people, a bit of a diversion from our theme of … Continue reading Circle of Friends–Part 2: The North East
One delightful discovery along the way, was Iulia Pop. In planning for this trip, I had asked my sister's grandson, Drake Southwick, about people there since he had traveled to Romania about two years ago. I asked him for some contacts to help with planning our trip. One of the contacts he gave me was Iulia … Continue reading Austria, Part Three: Vienna and Iulia
We arrived in Austria, dragging. Transition days are hard on us. There's the physical work of packing up, carrying our backpacks, and pulling the "rollies" up and down stairs, up and into crowded buses or down into subways, and into the air terminal. But more than that, I think the stress of standing in line, … Continue reading Austria, Part One: Scott and Uli
Reconstruction: "Berlin should be called the city of cranes." Rebecca From the moment we landed in Berlin, we saw very little of it because of all the construction and barriers. And if they weren't fixing something, they were fixing to celebrate something. On the advice of a stranger at Tegel Airport, we took the Express … Continue reading Germany Part Two: Berlin
First stop: Düsseldorf Serendipity: the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. Some places we planned to visit were selected on a hunch. Düsseldorf was one of them. Back in April, I was pouring wine at the Berryessa Gap winery for a young couple I had just met, Dirk … Continue reading Germany, Part One: Düsseldorf
Sept. 12 Up at 2:00am, leave by 3:00am, airport by 3:45am, on the plane at 5:00am. Rebecca said something about Simon and Garfunkel and their song about Wednesday morning at 3am and that they knew when to leave. Far too early, I thought. Our first leg of the journey was a short one to Denver. … Continue reading We’re off to Florida! Our first stop.
My grandmother and father, just after arriving at Ellis Island, 1914 My father, originally named Dimitru Fritea, arrived in New York in 1914 with his mother. They were escaping Romania and the turbulence of pre-World War I political unrest. They were looking to begin a new life. My father had four older siblings, and … Continue reading The Backstory
Fridaes' Adventures 