Revealing Romania Trip Winding Down
Posted Thursday, June 04, 2009 by John D Paul
Our two and a half week international reporting class that took us through Romania and Italy is coming to an end. We leave Rome for home on Friday. The group has seen interesting, amazing and historic things and met many interesting people on the venture through Romania.
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Despite Violence, Romanian opens Cultural Center
Posted Thursday, June 04, 2009 by Jhane Reifsteck
La Strada is a little piece of Romania in Rome. Adrian Nichifor opened the commerce and cultural center in March of this year—the first of its kind in Rome. The center brings Romanian products to the Romanian immigrant community in Rome, a little touch of home. Romanians can buy things ranging from Romanian groceries to wedding dresses to books . The Center is also a place for Romanian’s to gather, and where Romanian children can learn the language of their homeland. While his business appears successful, life in Italy hasn’t always been easy for Nichifor. Just this past January, a bomb was planted in his grocery store.
Nichifor believes the bomb was retaliation by Italians for the rape of an Italian girl by four Romanian boys. He believes that the chance of more violence is low. Sometimes, it seems Romanians are second class citizens in Italy.
Nichifor is one of the two million Romanians living and working in Italy. He immigrated to Italy from Bucharest, where his parents currently reside. He believes that opening a business is his destiny and that being an immigrant is just part of his life, and the lives of the other millions of Romanians that emigrate out of the country. He plans to return to Romania one day.
Don’t Touch the Artwork
Posted Tuesday, June 02, 2009 by Shaina Humphries
In America, you often see colorful graffiti in big cities on the sides of buildings, in subways, under bridges, maybe even on billboards. When you see it, you may think it’s gang-related, and even if it’s not, it’s usually washed off and removed before too long. Right?
It’s not exactly the same story in Europe.
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UI professor searches for Romanian Roots
Posted Saturday, May 30, 2009 by Breana Lee Coco-Marks
University of Illinois Journalism professor Matt Ehrlich is trying to follow his family’s roots in Hungary and Romania. He found some things in Cluj and is now tagging along with Illinois journalism students.
View Matt’s success while in Cluj in this video!
To learn more about the Ehrlich family geneaology click here.
See and hear Matt's story:
Goodbye Romania, Hello Rome!
Posted Friday, May 29, 2009 by Pamela Nisivaco
Many of our readers may be wondering why a group of journalists covering various topics in Romania would be jetting off to Rome to finish their reporting. Well, the relations between Italians and Romanians living in Italy have been quite tense. Find out why this is when you continue reading by clicking on the link below.
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Romanian University Babes-Bolyai TV Studio
Posted Friday, May 29, 2009 by Luke Cleary
Dragos Nechita, a Romanian journalism student, offers an inside look at the student TV studio at Babes-Bolyai.
Mihaela. . . Romania’s “Girl Next Door”?
Posted Friday, May 29, 2009 by Shaina Humphries
Meet Mihaela.
But don’t call her that. Everyone calls her Michou. (Mee-Shoe).
She’s 20 years old, lives on her own in a big city, and she’s very close to her mother (who lives in another country). She’s a college student, a working journalist, and the nighttime caretaker for seven orphans.
She’s your average girl-next-door, right?
Okay. . . Maybe not the girl next door in our hometowns, but in Romania, this is a normal girl.
Click below to learn more about her.
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Crossing the Little Somes
Posted Friday, May 29, 2009 by Karis Morrall
On our way to a Roma community in Gherla, we crossed a small river via ferry. Once we reached the other bank, our boat immediately turned around and headed back. As it turned out, we hadn’t actually needed to cross the river. Our hosts just knew that we would be amused. How’s that for Romanian hospitality?
Romania’s Heroes Honored on Ascension Day
Posted Thursday, May 28, 2009 by John D Paul
Many Orthodox Romanians took time Thursday to remember the heroes who fought for the country through the years. One such ceremony was held at a war memorial in the small village of Floresti, outside of Cluj.
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Why Should Romanians Care about EU Elections?
Posted Wednesday, May 27, 2009 by Pamela Nisivaco
On June 7, 2009 Romania will vote for the first time in the European Union Parliamentary elections. It is common knowledge, however, that these elections are unimportant not just in Romania, but throughout Europe. According to Adrian Avarvarei, president of the European Socialist Activists (PES) in Cluj, only about 30 percent of voters actually turn out for the EU elections. Obviously the presidential election coming up in the fall in Romania is what most Romanians will be concerned about, but Avarvarei explains why the EU elections are becoming more and more important for member states, as well as the whole of Europe. Watch the video to learn more and click on the link below to read how political parties are attempting to attract the youth vote in Romania.
