5 resons to stay and 5 resons to leave Romania

The first thought that crosses my mind is - what to begin with? If I talk about the
reasons that I would like to leave for, I might be considered pessimistic; otherwise, I would be
a nationalist-patriotic-optimist romanian citien that loves her country and says it!s the most
beautiful one though she never saw any other"
#ut I will start with the $positive% reasons because it!s the first impression that
matters, and the ending & which will deal with the $negative% ones &, is supposed to make the
reader aware with the problems that Romania is confronted by"
The first reason that comes to my mind are the family, in the first row, and the people I
know here' friends, relatives, neighbours, schoolmates etc" (or me, living in a country is
synonymous with living together with other people" )nd not any people but ones I know" I
was born between them, I growed and played child games with them, I loved them, they
gaved me piece * lots of advices regarding the decisions I took, they were there & with me &
in the most important moments of my life, they were happy because of me, I built
relationships with them, I care about them, I can and I am helping them, I trust that they can
help me also when I will need them to do that, and maybe the most important & I wouldn!t be
what I am now without them" )nd by staying in Romania, I thank them for all these"
The second reason would be the language" +aybe I am a very sociable person and
there would be no problem in making new friends and, why not, find some $adoptive% parents
& some couple that is older than me and to which I feel very close & that could fulfill the list
from the first reason and there will be no problem regarding it" #ut there might appear a prime
impediment' the language that I will use in communicating ,my feelings, my needs, my
problems, my thoughts- and talking with them wouldn!t be my native language" .f course, I
would speak and understand it but if I were to have kids, there is a possibility that they might
have problems in studying using a new language" )lso, in some moments I would really need
to talk and to hear someone talking in romanian, because the language that I first learned is
the one that I hear in my dreams, that I cry and love with, that which I hear my thoughts with"
The first two reasons are other ways of saying that I remain in my country because I like it in
here & I feel comfortable" The level of comfortability that I can achieve somewhere far is at
any time at a lower level" /o you can feel this, you also need to be safe & even if something
will happen to you, the family is there to help" In fact, the feelings of safeness and
comfortability are bigger*better as closer you are to your home0country"
1ven if I have never thought about it, tradition can also be a motive" Tradition, in the
way I understand it has to do with customs and identity" I live here and everything I do is I a
sign that I am a romanian" I can e2press my cultural identity over the national borders also,
but it!s harder in there' I have to struggle to keep my $national spirit% intact" Is hard to do that
in here, undoubtebly, but with the contribution of the community ,which is a society, in fact-
the problem is much easier solved" Tradition might look too abstract and not pragmatic at all"
#ut is it that would make me feel unfit in some other culture" I would have to adapt not some
other people and some other language, but some different way of thinking, taking decisions,
cooking, walking, entertaining, spending free time" )nd this makes me uncomfortable"
)nother reason may be the social status. If I!d live in some other country I would be
an immigrant" )nd nowadays, being a romanian immigrant in the most of west-european
countries, it!s not 3uite a nice way of being called by the natives in there" 4ou can feel unsafe
because of it, you can have problems in finding a 5ob & ethincal $natural% selection, your
children may have to bear mean remarks from their foreign schoolmates, your neighbours can
cause some unpleasant situations, you may not have a medical assurance & and in some
countries the medical system is not socialist & and that!s a very important issue, some
diplomas you have from here may not be considered valid0considered irrelevant and so on and
so on" The only situation that can be acceptable from the social status point of view is that
when the immigrant community is larger enough too be protective and to have ways of
winning rights for its people" Romanian communities in foreign countries - even if are
important as number of inhabitants ,Italy and /pain- - are not well represented in their relation
with the $adoptive% state" )nd this makes me feel twice before taking a decision and be more
reluctant at euphoric invitations of leaving"
The fifth reason is that I!m afraid. I!m afraid of failing there, I!m afraid that I might
comeback sooner that I would plan to, afraid of failing to adapt there, afraid of having an
ineffable feeling of longing to come back and missing the dear ones, afraid not to suffer alone
far from my family and ones that could be ne2t to me" +aybe it!s not that hard to resist, I
could came back in vacations but it!s 5ust that is a very big step and a crucial decision"
)fter these 5 reasons to stay I shall talk about those that would make me leave" I want
to mention from the beginning that I live in a country and between a people that lusted for
decades to leave, run away from Romania" The )merican dream is 5ust an e2ample of ideal
and destination for most of them0us" 4ears passed and the !67 revolution came, things
changed in a good way, the political situation is different, we have democratic laws and we
are part of the big*great european economic family" #ut, there still are reasons to leave"
I 5ust mentioned the political situation and I 5ust can!t pass over it that easy" It!s better
than before !67 but the continous media $shows% of corruption and other illegal activities that
politicians are taking care of make people feel sick of it and also feel that they are not well
represented by those they have been voted" They make Romania look like an undeveloped, 8
rd
world country where everybody can steal without being caught or leaglly 5udged" .r that
5ustice is for common burglers and the big ones can never be convicted" )lso, they are the
ones responsible for the activity of national systems ,medical, educational, transports,
tourism- and all are considered by the people of Romania as badly managed, subfinanced, on
the side of the cliff, almost dead"
I started with politics so I can talk about the medical system" The good part is that is a
socialist one" )nyone that has a 5ob can be treated and afford medicines almost for free, not
like in 9/) or other countries that refuse to believe in a governmental & not private & one"
#ecause of the low medium salary of a Romanian employee ,compared to other 19
countries-, a private medical assurance system would be 3uite deadly" #ut, that!s 5ust the good
part" The bad one is that the hospitals look horrible & one!s afraid to enter, what about to be
treated in there? The main cause is lack of money & government money" The +inisters are
5ust unable to ask for more money to repair and develop these buildings" The employees from
the medical system are poorly remunerated and they all want to leave in western countries
because the salaries in there are hugely different"
)nd this takes me to another reason' the job" In crisis or not, Romania has had
problems with unemployment starting with :77;" <obody was ready to face capitalism, free
market, and unsafeness of a 5ob" #ut now, almost nobody hires & they all want to pass the
economical crisis with less effort and loss" If we take a look at what the market has to offer=
it!s immoral' videochat or stripper0dancer0masseuse" ) normal country cares about it!s people
and of those that study and prepare for a certain craft" /tate institutions aren!t allowed to make
new employments ,even some of the old ones are retired- and the changes are somewhere far,
in some other 5 years plan"
/ometimes I feel disgusted not with the leaders of this country but with it!s people"
Their0.ur mentality is wrong" This bringed us where we are right now" >e always complain
and pass the fault on some other ones, usually on those who lead us and whom we don!t see
and whom can!t hear us" >e hide our incompetence and ignorance under some conspiracy
ideas that makes ourselves $defeat before the fight starts%" >e are unable even to hope that
something will change" .f course many things will be different in a good way in the future
years, but our inability to do something good and valid and that will resist in time is the mere
definition of this people and it should be written on our flag * arm" >e consider those who
want to change and who revolt and refuse to live in such a country as idealist fools that live in
some unreal world" #ecause in our world we see no solution" Instead of gather around some
good ideas and sustain * fight for them, we 5ust sit comfortably in front of our tv and eat
some seed or )merican-capitalist-hollywood popcorn" >e have a passive behaviour and we
are absent from the worlds history"
)nother reason that incriminates the authorities is the bureaucracy" The e2ercise of
staying in line for buying something before !67 changed to the same line, but for paying ta2es"
.r asking some documents you need and the administration is obliged to give them" .r to
receive your rights" )n average Romanian citien that wants to start a small business is
bankrupt before he starts" Together with bureaucracy comes the ta2es" )s a small investitor
you are discouraged to even think of it" The consultance is very e2pensive and you have to
finish your investement with the minimum amount of loss" >aiting for papers and state
benefits and incomes sacks your employees and your profits and in the end & your business"
This reason doesn!t have to do with a problem that we are confronted by" Is more like
a wish" I would like to leave from Romania so I can travel around the world" #ut not in 6;
days" ?et!s say= 8 years? I could visit and maybe live for short time in some places that I
would like, I would enrich my spirit with other culture traditions and tastes & both culinary
and artistic -, I would gain plenty of life e2periences, meet people from whom I will learn
many good things, see e2traordinary landscapes, observe ways of being and thinking and take
the good parts and compare them with those from Romania, well - many good parts"
Right now, I!m not in the position of taking a decision but if I were to do this and if I
would have a good offer to leave, I would probably do this" #ut not for a long time" I will
always want to come back to Romania, whatever the politics will be"