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1.4. Back to school

It was a rainy, cold September morning. For the first time in weeks the air was chilly. The skies were dark and grey. The atmosphere was misty and gloomy. A blanket of small, yellow leaves on the dark grey cement announces the arrival of fall. Hundreds of little shoes step eagerly over the leaves heading towards the large light blue building hidden behind some chestnut trees. It was the start of a new school year. The hectic of the day starts early in the morning. The youngest pupils, dressed up in their dark blue and white uniforms, rush with their parents to buy a bouquet of flowers for their teachers. And afterwards look for their class and mates on the schoolyard. All classes are present on the basketball field next to the old oak tree right in front of the big entrance. The school is one of the most renowned in Timisoara. The old buildings date all the way back from the late 18 th century. Back then it was only an elementary school. Later it operated as a school for girls a
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1.3. Learning English the fun way

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When I was 5 or 6 years old I got my first computer. It was running on MS-DOS and it got a few games on it like ' Alley Cat ' and ' Ski or Die '. Yet my favourite game was ' Leisure Suite Larry In The Land Of The Lounge Wizards '. And that is definitely not a kids game. I could barely read or write, English was a complete foreign language to me, but this did not stop me from playing. The game warns you from start that it is not meant to be played by a kid (alone). It also makes the player answer a few multiple-choice questions to make sure of that. Well this was for me a tiny hurdle to jump before entering the game. It took me a few days to learn all the right answers to the questions (back then there were no walkthroughs or google). My favourites still are: The most likely place to find virgins is a. Virginia b. Virgin Islands c. St. Mary's Girl's School d. Hollywood Is this software pir
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Location: Timișoara, Romania
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1.2. The Jazz Festival

Date: July 2007 Location: Gărâna, Trei Ape There is no better cure for the summer heat than attending a music festival deep in the mountains. The yearly Jazz Festival in Gărâna is the perfect weekend getaway in nature. In my teens a longed to get there. All town spoke of the mystical, misty place in the mountains, where half the city gathers for jazz jamming sessions . For me it meant the promise of an adventure away from home, parents and responsibilities. It was a glimpse of freedom. Thus you can only imagine my thrill when S., one of my boyfriends best friends, called us one Saturday morning. "So, you guys are up for 2 days camping in the mountains?" "Damn, sure!" "Great! Get ready. I'll pick you up at noon." So we had 2 hours to pack, get tents, sleeping bags and all the goodies needed for the trip. Needless to say it was a bit of a whirlwind. At noon he picked us up. Another couple joined us too. We filled up S.&#
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Location: Gărâna 327051, Romania
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1.1 Train ride to the seaside

Date: summer of 2004 Location: Timisoara -> Constanta Summer holidays while you are in school are the best without a doubt. Yet in Romania the holidays for pupils last for 3 entire months! One could argue they might be too long, but they never are. There's so much to do in these three months. Go to the pool, meet friends, visit grandma in the countryside, watch MTV for endless hours on end, go camping etc. The highlight of the summer is travelling to the seaside. Means of transportation depending on the budget. The train is the preferred choice of penniless pupils, who used to get a 50% discount based on their school id. A two-way ticket cost back then around 35 Euros. We had an open return. Looking back it was rather cheap for 800+ km. But it was an adventure in itself. The summer of 2004 was extra special for me since it was the first summer I was to travel alone to the seaside. On top of that I was accompanied by my first boyfriend and his male bes
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1.0

Hello, and welcome. :) This is a blog about life in Eastern Europe in the late 90s until the 2010s. The stories are personal experiences of the contributors. The blog aims to offer a glimpse into the everyday life of kids, teenagers and young adults in a transitional Romania. Enjoy your time here and see you soon! A
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