Major Adulting: Visiting Romania Part 2 – House of Dracula, Haute Cuisine and Home

Visiting Romania Transylvania Dracula's House

So where we left off in Visiting Romania Part 1, I was extremely tired. I didn’t write an entry before bed because I had been awake with very little sleep for around 36 hours. This is the part where things start to pick up… but I’ll let the diary entries and the images speak for themselves. Needless to say, it was an experience – and one which I will never forget!

Day 3

8 am (Feels like 5 am)

Last night I didn’t report before bed as I just needed a solid 8 hours! This morning I still feel disoriented but it’s not so bad… Breakfast was great because there was Nesquik. Whenever I’m in mainland Europe, I find I seek out the comforts of home. (Even though I am aware Nesquik is not English!) Off to the factory today to do some more training.

10.30am

Training people can be a trial when you have a language barrier. I mean, a big barrier. My colleague can show them as it’s a practical thing but I’ve got to explain procedures and it’s a bit more difficult. Often you can tell if someone understands or not because they look confused but it’s difficult if they look confused regardless because they’re processing your accent!

2pm

Went out to get some food for lunch. It was a gorgeous chicken stew type thing with puree potatoes. Genuinely yummy! We went with the factory supervisor. She said she was surprised that in England they only kept cats and dogs, and not pigs and chickens. I guess it’s more practical to keep that kind of animal!

Visiting Romania Worcestershire Sauce Chicken and Puree Potatoes

I pointed out that her nails looked good. She said that in other countries when they have money they “buy furniture and things”, but in Romania, if they have excess money then they make their nails look good! I didn’t expect this kind of explanation on a passing comment. It seems that they don’t treat themselves often. It made me feel thankful for all I have back home.

They don’t have advertisements anywhere and I know it sounds odd but after thinking about it, it makes sense. They don’t have excess money and everyone knows where everything is so why would anyone need to advertise. Occasionally there is a sign for a local shop or beer. It’s really simple here.
Owls in Romania

3pm

Outside the factory, there are owls nesting in the trees. When I saw them I got really emotional! Probably because it was such a beautiful thing when I was struggling to see the joy here. It made me realise in that moment that it’s what I love the most – seeing nature and especially animals.

6pm

An English speaking man said that we should come back for a holiday when it’s warm. He said there are some really beautiful places. I’m inclined to believe him… But I just don’t think I could unless I had to! It’s been a tiring few days. We are driving back now and almost like a movie… “What a Wonderful World” has come on the radio.
Dracula's House Transylvania

 

Dracula's House Transylvania

11pm

I tried red wine and actually enjoyed it! It was called Vardo Patima Serii or “The Flame of the Night”. They also do drinks based around water, air and earth – I LOVE anything to do with the elements and my inner branding nerd likes this. I am going to have to try them all…

We had a lovely evening with our host. The food was wonderful, the company was great. We visited Dracula’s house and the surrounding area. It was so icy and they don’t really grit the paths so everything was super slippy! We had a great laugh walking down the hill and sliding everywhere. I can imagine this place is really iconic and is a lovely place to visit in the summer.Today has been the highlight of the trip. It was so beautiful and I enjoyed every minute.

Red Wine Romania
I finally found a red wine that I liked! Unfortunately it was the most expensive…
Stuffed Chicken and Rice
The menu said “Chicken and Rice” Needless to say, this was an unexpected surprise!
Josef. T when Visiting Romania
Very Vampiric Decor!
 

Day 4 -The last Day

9 am

It was lovely to say goodbye to the ladies and see how much progress they’d made thanks to my colleague. Everything seems to be in hand and I feel like we have accomplished what we set out to do! The people here are very friendly and they all gave us 2 kisses on the cheek to say goodbye. I am really optimistic that this venture will be a success! Time to pack up and go home – it’s a bittersweet feeling.

5pm

Through passport control, it doesn’t look foggy outside!?! Fingers crossed it will go well. I can’t wait for home and bed. I bought some Dracula themed goodies to take home with me. A bottle of Romanian brandy and a Transylvania teacup! Feeling a little better now I know we are on the way home.

7pm  – Last few hours!

We have officially arrived on English soil! Phew. Such a long and laborious journey… Only a 1 hour wait until the coach and 2 hours in the coach and a cab to my house to go! Woohoo! In retrospect, these few days has gone fast once that eternity of a first night ended. I got gradually more interested in my surroundings and the culture and just like that, I am home.
 Dracula's Potion and Transylvania TeaCup
So my trip to Romania is over and as I come to the end of this adventure I wonder- what will be my next?
Until Next Time,
Amy

Major Adulting: Visiting Romania Part 1 – Flights, Fog and Frozen Fingers

Visiting Romania - Railway Tracks

This week has been… Eventful. So this blog instalment is a 2-parter! Visiting Romania was an experience I’ll never forget, for so many reasons. I’ll let my diary entries explain for themselves… These were all written in real time and I think you can tell from my writing style how much my mood changed!

Day 1 – Outbound

Midday

I don’t fly until around 20:00 tonight from Luton so I have quite a while to wait, and a long way to go. I realise now that I know almost nothing about visiting Romania… and I feel a little bad about that! I’m brushing up on some basic phrases so I am not a completely ignorant fool and just playing the waiting game. I hope I’m ready for this – I am super nervous about the flight. It’ll be the first time I’ll have been abroad for work so I am hoping it’ll be an adventure! Coach is at 3 pm then on from Luton.

9 pm

The flight is delayed by an hour so I should arrive in Romania around 2 am. It hasn’t been the best experience. I can only say don’t fly WizzAir if you can help it! If you do, be really aware that they’re strict with their baggage restrictions. I have had no problems except snooty looks from the staff as they can’t decide whether to fine me £40 for my case being too big. Just don’t go there if you can avoid it. They wouldn’t know service with a smile if it hit them in the face with a spade.

Visiting Romania Stranded in the wrong airport
Still smiling… at this point!

2 am (local time)

We have arrived at an airport in Romania… 150 miles from the airport we should be at! The other airports are closed due to fog and low visibility and so we had to stop early. All I can say is at least I’m on the ground. It seems there will be a 3-hour drive plus transfer time from this plane. It’s not a grand start but I’m so exhausted from travel that I can’t muster up the energy to worry.

3am.

Waiting for the replacement bus service to Sibiu. Turns out that 3 hours is more likely to be 4. And that’s once we get on this bus. Still no sign of it. We are trying to make light of it but it’s a crappy situation. All flights after ours were cancelled. Wish we had been on a later one and not been one of the last in. I’d be back home after a return coach trip from Luton…

4 am… Zzz

This will be my last update today. Because nothing has changed. I’ve been waiting for a bus for 2 hours. And I have no idea when it will get here and the journey to the airport I should be at will be 4 hours following. Joy.

Visiting Romania View From The Factory

Day 2 (but it’s like Day 1 never ended…)

7.45am

I wake up on the coach to see literally nothing. White and bleak fog all around. I don’t envy the driver. Been restlessly sleeping for a few hours but it’s been really uncomfortable. Now I can see outside it’s hard to go back to sleep. People keep having their normal phone alarms go off from their normal routines. I just got a call from the factory manager asking where we were and I told him I didn’t have a clue! I don’t know what to expect when we finally get there…. just desperately need a shower. We have been travelling now for 18 hours.

10.30am

So we have arrived at our hotel which we now won’t be staying in. It’s peaceful. Breakfast left much to be desired but the shower was amazing. Going to the factory straight away so no time to sleep. I feel like my brain is functioning about 20 seconds behind me. Really odd. One thing I’ve learned is that honey tastes really good in tea… For the record, it’s -13 degrees outside.

Visiting Romania -Snowy Landscape

1pm.

Feels like I’ve been here for ages but at the same time not at all. We have been driving for 2 hours through snow-covered landscapes and I am feeling rather irritable. Our driver is pointing things out in the landscape and he introduces everything with such enthusiasm that I wish I could keep my eyes open. They do a lot of speeding and last minute swerving here and there’s snow everywhere and it just seems wrong to be going at 90km (50 miles) per hour!

5.30pm

The training went well. The women who came are really enthusiastic and seem to have previous experience. It was a little out of the norm for me – the ladies came in like a tornado of positivity, really friendly and just got stuck in! It was really bizarre but it doesn’t pay to be shy I guess. We are now off for dinner and hopefully an early night. I felt like I’ve had a 48 hour day… Zzzz.

Hotel Korona Romania
We finally arrived at our home for the next 2 days – Not a single bad word for Hotel Korona. It was wonderful!
Bar Hotel Korona Romania
We found the bar so we were happy enough!

At this point, it’s a bit like A Series of Unfortunate Events!

But believe me, it changes for the better tomorrow in…

Visiting Romania Part 2- House of Dracula, Haute Cuisine and Home!

Until Next Time

Amy

 

The Hidden Secrets of the Wizarding World: The Mina Lima Exhibition

Mina Lima Exhibition

This weekend I visited the House of Mina Lima Exhibition in Soho. I went with a group of friends / fans of the books. I decided not to go too over the top and wear a costume or anything so I just went for a witchy dress, my Ravenclaw hoody and Head Girl badge… So not that much at all…

Head girl Ravenclaw badge

The Mina Lima Exhibition

For those not familiar, Mina Lima is the graphic arts company responsible for the graphics within the Wizarding World. So that’s the book covers, the potion bottles, the icon signage… all the little details that helped to make the Harry Potter movies a true reflection of the world created by JK Rowling.

You, like me, may not realise the amount that these affect the overall tone of the movies and realise just how many graphics there were! The Harry Potter saga is full of amazing props over the course of the 8 films. The Mina Lima Exhibition filled two floors and with the release of the Fantastic Beasts movie, I also got to experience an entire 3rd floor of related print artwork.

 Grindelwald Harry Potter Newspaper
Newt Scamander Poster from Fantastic Beasts and where to find them
Newt and I had a moment
 

 

The house itself

The place looked as if the whole thing had been created separately and then mortared together. There were creaky floorboards, slanted stairs and ceilings; the whole thing was reminiscent of a creaky abandoned house, filled with iconic imagery and props.

Weasley's Wizard Wheezes

The Daily Prophet. Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. HoneyDukes Sweets.
Hogwarts Acceptance Letters. Ministry Propaganda Posters.
Howlers. House Crests. The Quibbler! All these magical quirks that make Harry Potter completely different from all the other fandoms and have brought the world to life were inside.

Weasley's Wizard Wheezes Indoor Fireworks
Harry Potter Potion Vials, Mina Lima Exhibition
Harry Potter Acceptance Letters Fireplace

Quibbler Harry Potter Mina Lima Exhibition

Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima (whose names sound like they’re straight out of a Hogwarts alumni directory!) have been honoured as eponymous characters in the Harry Potter World.
And that’s for good reason! Their attention to detail is astonishing and although I wouldn’t consider myself a graphic arts enthusiast I can definitely appreciate the amount of effort that goes into creating things like this.

The shop was absolutely wonderful. In the end, I just had to buy some badges and postcards. Later, I regretted not buying myself a print so I splashed out on a Ravenclaw one.

Ravenclaw House Crest Print
Represent!
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
We also passed the entrance to this… One day…

Mina Lima Exhibition Goodies

It was wonderful to be encapsulated by this world that I’ve grown up in once more.

Have you ever visited the Mina Lima Exhibition? What makes the Harry Potter movies magical for you?

Until next time
Amy