Romania Insider Stories

Comment: Here, but not here – the case of the smart-phone twitch

Comment: Here, but not here – the case of the smart-phone twitch

I once made the mistake of continuing, bravely, with a sales presentation to the finance department of an international company in Bucharest while my audience was busy checking e-mails, spreadsheets and surfing the internet. I should, of course, have ended the meeting and walked out as soon as I saw them shuffling into the room [...]

Published by on May 16, 2012 12:28 pm
Comment: Romania’s problem with taxes

Comment: Romania’s problem with taxes

The news that around 30 percent of the Romanian labor force find employment on the black market and do not pay taxes to the state surely comes as no surprise to anyone. Add the knowledge that many of those who are properly registered in employment do not declare their full salaries to the state, we [...]

Published by on May 14, 2012 1:05 pm
Comment: The quiet Spanish invasion of Bucharest

Comment: The quiet Spanish invasion of Bucharest

Bucharest was inundated by a sea of Spaniards for two days last week as Atletico Madrid and Atletico Bilbao fought the all-Spanish UEFA Europa League final. Most people agree that the Spaniards behaved themselves very well and caused few problems. I sat eating dinner on a terrace next to a table full of them who began singing, [...]

Published by on May 14, 2012 10:42 am
Comment: Romania, a country turned upside down

Comment: Romania, a country turned upside down

Guest writer Ronnie Smith comments on Romania’s widespread corruption and gives his personal view of what’s at the heart of everything in Romania.  Let’s start with a few interesting stories, or scandals. First one. On one long country stretch of road in north eastern Romania the local traffic police made an estimated EUR 250,000 in bribes during [...]

Published by on April 29, 2012 10:34 am
A Cold War within the Cold War – Romanian exceptionalism

A Cold War within the Cold War – Romanian exceptionalism

Guest writer Paul Wood comments on the book ‘With Friends Like These’, by Larry Watts, highlighting Romania’s communist past and its impact on both Eastern and Western European countries. The book tells a story, often overlooked by Westerners, of complex relationships between formerly Communist states and of National and ethnic interests contested therein. The recent [...]

Published by on April 24, 2012 11:17 am
Romania Insider stories: An outpost of civilisation

Romania Insider stories: An outpost of civilisation

Paul Wood, our guest writer this week, travels on the banks of the Danube, taking a stroll through the area’s history, and giving his own view on a few gems from Romania’s treasure trove of undiscovered beauties.  For Romanians, Bulgaria used to be no more than a place to pass through on the way to [...]

Published by on April 4, 2012 12:44 pm
Romania Insider stories: Of football and beer…logistics

Romania Insider stories: Of football and beer…logistics

Finally, a new National Football Stadium in Bucharest. Really a ‘wow’ building, I said to myself. I’m German and I’ve worked and lived in Bucharest for two years. I got myself a ticket for the opening event, Romania versus France. “Lucky man”, I thought to myself. I went there with another German friend who has [...]

Published by on March 22, 2012 12:51 pm
Romania Insider Stories from readers – positive impression about Romania, but not the easiest place for traveling

Romania Insider Stories from readers – positive impression about Romania, but not the easiest place for traveling

The story below has been written by one of our readers, Lynn Ungreanu, an American who has recently visited Romania. Feel free to share any stories from Romania with our readers and the world. Send us a story by e-mail: Editor – in – Chief Corina Saceanu, corina@romania-insider.com and we’ll consider it for publication in [...]

Published by on June 14, 2011 9:48 am
Romania Insider Stories from readers – Damian Galvin on restarting tourism

Romania Insider Stories from readers – Damian Galvin on restarting tourism

The article below has been written by one of our readers, Damian Galvin, a British investor who first came to Romania in 2003. A real estate investor in Romania ever since, Damian wrote the following text as a comment to one of our articles on www.romania-insider.com, which was asking readers how could we re-start Romania [...]

Published by on June 13, 2011 1:53 pm