Albanian male, 28

Age: 28
Sex: Male
Nationality: Albanian
Education: Graduate Student
Occupation: Academician

What did you think about Romania and Romanians before your first contacts with this country or its inhabitants?
I don’t remember any significant impressions. Communist country, big country, poor country, general things like that. I knew of a friend who went to study medicine through an inter-government scholarship but do not recollect any contact with any of its inhabitants. A century ago Bucharest had been an important center of Albanian intellectual émigré’s, I knew that but I am not sure what this meant in terms of Romania rather than in terms of Albanians somewhere.

Did this image change after getting to know a Romanian or after visiting the country? How?
I met Romanians significantly at CEU in Warsaw. My impression of the country and its people evolved significantly though I must note two things right away. First, I met Romanians within a particular cluster of people such as the 2001-2002 Warsaw CEU bunch, which must have structured my impressions about this particular group. Second, reflecting my own upbringing, my impressions rarely focus on nationality as such, although of course people of different geographies do come across as different.
During that year I ended up perceiving the country as very close to my own in culture. I always felt at home and ended up socializing almost exclusively with Romanians.

Describe in a few words your best encounter with a Romanian.
I had two very close people who were Romanians, one of whom was my girlfriend for a period of close to a year. I guess those friendships constitute my best encounters.

Describe in a few words your worst encounter with a Romanian.
I don’t remember any bad encounters unless I consider minute things anyone of them did on any particular day. Again, given the environment, it would be a stretch for me to cast them as Romanian, when it comes to nationality I would not make any significant difference between, say, a Romanian or Bulgarian or Macedonian although I do not know as many people from those countries.

Which words come to your mind when you think about Romanians in general?
Warm
Personable
Smart
Vivacious


Which words come to your mind when you think about Romanian women?
Warm
Personable
Full of love
Vivacious
Energetic

Which words come to your mind when you think about Romanian men?
I haven’t really met many.

What is the age you associate Romania with?
My own.

What is the drink you associate Romania with?
Beer. (I do know of cujka. Still…)

What are the brands you associate Romania with?
Leather shoes. Not much actually.

Name 3 prominent Romanians
Ceausescu


What time of the day you associate Romania with?
Day

Name the country you associate Romania with?
Any of the ones I mentioned previously, but I do have a specifically warm feeling about something humble about Romanians. Everyone is ambitious all the time but claims to high culture, which get on my nerves, are least present in Romanians, from all people of the region that I have met.

What is the main difference between Romania and your country?
Nothing comes to my mind right away. Perhaps my country is way more self-flattering, but I am not sure.