Visit to Romania (Part 4)

We spent the last day of my trip walking into Sibiu so I could take some photos and see the place one last time. Of course, we had to get ready for the trip and Rica just had to put her sunglasses on!

Baby Lia also got ready, but she was not too excited about getting in her car seat for the ride.

We then headed into the city center.


When we got there, we found a nice restaurant and sat outside eating ice cream. This is one of Rica's favorite activities.

Afterwards, she was being a little cheeky waiting for the rest of us to finish.

We then walked around the center so I could get some photos. The center of the city has changed a lot in the last 6 years. They have put in a new fountain that the kids like to play in.

The buildings have also been painted. It looks a lot more like a town in Austria now.

There are also loads of resturants these days. So different then when I last visited.

We then strolled through the park.

And then headed to the market.

Of course, there was lots to buy!



We then headed back to the house and waited for my plane to leave. It was a great trip and I can't wait to visit again!

Visit to Romania (Part 3)

We decided to head to the mountains for our next outing. We drove through some cute villages and met the local livestock before getting there.

We then drove our way through the mountains.


We had extended family and friends with us. Here is Renate holding Lia waiting for us to get going.

We finally were on our way! Rica decided that she wanted to walk at the beginning. Hard to walk and look at things.

However, her little sister wanted to be carried the whole way. Keena carried her up the mountain, and I carried her all the way down!


We trekked our way through the mountains and hiked to the clearing (pictured below in the top right of the mountain).

After a while, Rica decided she would rather have her dad do all the work.

At the top of the clearing the clouds were closing in.

In the clearing we stopped for some lunch. Here is Rica enjoying her apple.

Grigo and Lia taking a break.

We then headed down.

After the hike, we ended the day at a friend's house where they made us huge amounts of food. Here is a picture of their house overlooking the mountains.

It was a great and exhausting day.

Visit to Romania (Part 2)

On day two, we decided to relax and take it easy. I wandered around the yard and took photos of Renate's flowers.

Meanwhile, Grigo and Grigore entertained Rica by showing her photos of herself! I love her facial expression.

Renate spent the morning cooking as she usually does. She fed us wonderful meals everyday. Here she is stuffing a mixture of pork/rice/onions into grape leaves which she had picked in the morning.

Grigore, Keena, Rica and I then headed to the park. Here is Rica in her car seat, always ready with a book under each arm! :)

The park has a great playground and Rica loves the elephant slide.

Here she is being cheeky as she stands in the elephant.

On the bigger slide, she did not want to let go!

Of course, her favorite part of the adventure was getting popcorn.

After some popcorn, she was ready to go again. Here she is getting some help from mom.

Afterwards, we walked through the garden to smell the roses.

Visit to Romania (Part 1)

After six years, I made it back to Romania to visit the family and meet my new niece! Keena and Grigo were visiting his parents for the summer in Sibiu and I was able to find a cheap flight from London. The flight to Romania was painless and beats any 12+ flight from the states!

On Friday, we spent the day at the open air museum where Keena and Grigo were married. The weather was fantastic and the place still looked the same. Here is the family as we start out.

We happen to be there on an artisan's day and there were many different people selling their crafts. Here are some of the famous hand painted eggs .

Baby Lia (her big sister always puts the "baby" in front of her name when talking about her) and Grigo.

Most of the pretty little houses were open and you could go peak inside.

We stopped by the church where Keena and Grigo got married. We tried to take a family photo outside, but the girls were not up for the photo op.

Rica has a thing with water and here she is trying to stick her hand in the water coming off this miniature water mill.

Renate and Grigore bought Rica a flute to play with. Here she is blowing away.

Of course, baby Lia could not take all the excitement.

We ended the day by the windmills.

After this, we sat outside at the restaurant where Keena and Grigo had their wedding reception. Unfortunately, the day ended in tears as Rica was stung by a bee. However, she handled it very well and within a few hours was her old self.