Romania from the outside: Would you travel to Romania?

Guest writer Leon Schnell uncovers some surprises in foreign travel guides about Romania – some of which could be addressed with a quiet conversation.

If you’re following this series, you might recall me mentioning that it’s impossible to find books about Romania in South African bookstores, even in the packed travel guides sections. Not difficult: flat-out impossible. This was only confirmed for me recently, when I visited a warehouse clearance sale of one of South Africa’s largest national bookstore chains. Picture the scene: a warehouse full of tables loaded with thousands of books, loosely organized by topic, with shoppers scurrying around in a desperate quest to fill boxes (yes: boxes) they’re carrying or dragging behind them on trolleys. Browsing the table loaded with unwanted and unloved travel guides to distant and obscure places, I felt certain that I’d stumbled on the secret. Surely here I would find a dusty tome on Romania, never delivered to bookstores but faithfully ordered along with books on the rest of Europe. Not a chance, I’m sad to say. I don’t roll over that easily, however. I know Romania exists, because I am married to a woman who claims to come from such an exotic land and has supporting documentation with curiously shaped edges and many stamps (no doubt from the Queen of Stampilas) to prove it. Fortunately, thanks to the wonders of the Internet, I’ve discovered that travel guides on Romania do in fact exist, but what I discovered might surprise you. First up: The Rough Guide to Romania If you’re in Romania now, did you know that ‘bear and wolf tracking’ is listed as an outdoor activity a tourist might be interested in? There’s a Dracula reference as well, but at least it’s included at the end of the book’s description as an apologetic ‘of course’. This just happens to be the first item you’re presented with if you search ‘Romania’ on Amazon.co.uk. Next: Let’s Go series Buoyed by my earlier success in finally finding a travel guide to Romania – ok, a reference to one – I looked through the 2013 Let’s Go range of guides, but couldn’t find anything on Romania. The Yucatan Peninsula? Yes. Guatemala? Yes. No Romania. It’s probably hidden somewhere, but a searchconfirmed my suspicions: neither it (nor ‘Bucharest’) existed. At least in the bustling world of student travel, anyway. Finally: