HONEST Q&A | American Moving To Romania | Moving Abroad Pt. 24

I have been asked a lot of questions about my move from America to Romania; so today I am coming to you with all the answers!
We chat about making new friends, the best and hardest things about moving abroad, food, safety and SO MUCH MORE!
And today we even explored a new part of town to visit the CUTEST coffee shop!
Thank you so much for experiencing life, learning, and growing with me XOXO

[@sierramarie]

Thank you for being here! I am so thankful to experience life, learn and grow with you! XOXO

[@WARGODS-ez1bu]

hey bring more americans here we love white americans, I hope you call Ro your home

[@Sofia-0001]

Wherever you live just do what makes you happy. Don't bother about having to adapt. If adapting is what makes you happy that's a different thing, but even so, that doesn't have to be stressful but exciting. Romania has many gorgeous places to visit, so you can never get bored. Cheers!

[@sierramarie]

This is great advice, thank you! ❤️ I love the opportunity to travel and explore new cultures. Romania is such a pleasant and beautiful place to visit. Cheers ☺️

[@dameanvil]

01:08 🇺🇸 Moved to Romania due to husband's job; her own company couldn't sponsor. 02:17 🛡️ Feels safer in Romania than hometown in the US. 03:30 🍔 Food in Romania is less processed, more authentic; less sugary. 04:25 🥗 European food quality is better, stricter standards than the US. 05:14 🌍 Favorite part of being in Europe is personal growth and exploration. 05:55 🇷🇴 Romania's beauty, architecture, and kind people are highlights. 08:56 💬 Language barrier in Romania was a significant challenge. 10:48 😊 Misses the friendliness and small talk culture of the US. 12:07 👥 Initially had no friends in Romania; now using app to meet locals. 13:55 🌎 Enjoying the opportunity to explore various countries in Europe. 15:02 🛍️ Misses easy access to familiar brands and products in the US. 16:23 ⌛ Uncertain about long-term plans; considering moving within the US. 17:56 ❄️ Wants to avoid harsh winters, considering Utah or Texas.

[@stanciuflorin5328]

You have a sensitive and generous soul! You are welcome in Romania! I hope you meet and make many friends! We Romanians do not make friends easily, but when you are our friend, you are a friend for life! ❤😊

[@sierramarie]

Thank you kindly! ☺️

[@moldovandorin6187]

Bullshit

[@mickael1277]

Hello! Life Hacks: Assume all people below 40 year old knows English in Romania, because in most cases they do. We are taught English since 1st-12th grade and in University 1 or 2 years, so in theory everyone should speak the language to a certain level. The second one would be an advice on language that I would give myself if I were in your shoes, try to learn the alphabet of Romanian language, how every single letter of the alphabet is pronounced. If you learn one letter a day to take it easy, in 31 days you would have learned how to speak Romanian technically because Romanian is very close to Latin in the sense that it is spoken as it is written compared to other languages, so if you can pronounce the letters you will be able to read anything in Romanian. A language that is spoken as it is written is much easier to learn in my opinion, hope it helps!

[@sierramarie]

Thank you so much for the life hack and tips! This is extremely helpful ☺️

[@mickael1277]

You're welcome!

[@sierramarie]

Can someone tell me how many times I said SO between 9:29-18:42 😂😂😂

[@dtf.eternal5857]

You've said it SO many times 😂😂😂

[@dtf.eternal5857]

Yous guys went back to the US?

[@sierramarie]

Yes, we came back a few weeks ago!

[@alieNussss]

Happy to see you around. Welcome to Romania, hope you will enjoyyour time here. Much love from Sibiu ! :)

[@sierramarie]

Thank you 🙏🏻☺️

[@bucharestred]

Great video, well done Sierra.🤗

[@sierramarie]

Multumesc 😊

[@PahoNGM]

As a Romanian, smiling at strangers, for no reason, feels creepy to me , it feels like I am not respecting their privacy. No offence, as you said, is just a difference of culture. You will get smiles from Romanians by showing a gesture of kindness or respect. It can be as little as allowing a granny to pass you on the aisle, helping someone to lift a heavy bag, allowing a mother with small kids to get in front of you while waiting in line or opening a door for somebody. So.. please don't be offended, it's us not you. 😄

[@sierramarie]

That’s so funny because we’re in the US & at the airport this lady kept staring at me and every time she would smile and I was getting so creeped out 😂😂 she was super nice but I was like uhhhhhh hellloooooooo 🤣

[@PahoNGM]

@@sierramarie 😂You are getting Romanianized, in next year's Q&A you are going to tell us about your blood addiction 🧛‍♂

[@sierramarie]

😂🤣😅🤣

[@SvengelskaBlondie]

As a Swede, I would find it creepy as well if someone was constantly smiling. Either they are a bit psycho, a bit loopy or busy doing a commercial for some kind of toothpaste brand 🤣

[@sierramarie]

@wariods3588 😂🤣🤣 I now see how it is super creepy! So funny!

[@SpiderF27]

I'm glad to hear that you have a good time in Romania. I hope you'll have only good experiences over there!

[@alexciupy]

After a year, you will have a great affinity for this country... I assure you!

[@sierramarie]

This is reassuring- thank you for the kind comment 💜 The longer I’m here the more I learn and more amazing it becomes!

[@kelseytaylor6314]

hey im an American about to move to Romania and im so scared but watching your video helps xx

[@sierramarie]

That is so exciting! Honestly, one of the most amazing experiences of our lives. I wish you luck on your journey! Which part of Romania?

[@getazlate8206]

Don't be scared my darling, nothing to be scare about.Romanians are nice people, very warming,and for sure you are going to have a blast.

[@sierramarie]

I agree with this! I felt very safe and was always met with kindness while living in Cluj!

[@Radutm]

In Eastern Europe smiling at strangers is considered a mental illness or sign of alcohol / substance intoxication. English speaking - again people speak but they do not want to just a cultural thing (we do not really like strangers) . It happened to me in Slovakia they closed the bar and we were the last people they keep it on their language until they kick us out in English.

[@ClubuldeEnglezaYouTube]

👍👍👍

[@Libertarianach_na_h-Alba]

The whole thing relative to people not smiling is more of a thing about mainland Europe in countries like Belgium, etc and I've even found that as a Scot as Scotland is entirely different. Plus the fact, Kansas from where you're from (not sure if regarded as the American South) got its famous hospitality from us Scots, The Scots had fought and colonised the entire American South so there's a lot of people that had Scots heritage and to a degree some of the cultural stuff remains. As for Scotland, yeah, the scenery is something that cannot go a miss, thus the road through Glencoe up to Eilean Donan Castle and across to Skye are recommended, plus there is Stirling, home to the famous Stirling Castle, Bannockburn battlefield & Wallace Monument. On a side note: Duolingo is a free language learning app, I've been using it to study Scottish Gàidhlig, it might have Romanian on there and is great for repetition, etc.

[@sierramarie]

That is a really interesting observation! I remember Scotland being very friendly, maybe that is why ☺️ Wow that is intriguing! I actually found out I have Scottish heritage when I visited, which was a really amazing experience & partly why I think I loved it so much there 😁 I would love to research more on the history and colonization into the US, any documentary or article recommendations? I will keep note of these things for when I go back, thank you for the suggestions! Also, I have not tried Duolingo yet, I’ll have to check that out ☺️

[@Libertarianach_na_h-Alba]

​@@sierramarie if relative to books, Arthur Herman wrote a book that covers a fair bit titled 'How the Scots Invented Our Modern World,' he covers even the history of the Scots that went there to what is now the States. James Webb was another who wrote 'Born Fighting' and even did a documentary programme on that which is worth checking out. Yeah, there is a lot to see here in Scotland, no problem at all. As for Duolingo, yes, it enables you to also use keyboard function that gives you good practice on typing where the spelling becomes second nature. I can certainly say that when it comes to learning Gàidhlig (Scottish Gaelic) and the words for how they're spelt is entirely different from pronunciation. I'm sure Romanian is an option on there? Unsure, but it's worth the help as it'll get you to learn a lot of fundamentals and maybe more.

[@sierramarie]

Really great response! Thank you for the suggestions. I look forward to diving in to learn more!

[@RaduRadonys]

@@Libertarianach_na_h-Alba Yes, Romanian is on Duolingo, although their accent is quite strange and funny for a Romanian ear :) but at least the written part is fine.

[@Hangout24]

I've never met you in the most beautiful city of Romania,Oradea

[@RaduRadonys]

This is the first video of yours that I watched and to be honest I was 100% sure you're Romanian by the looks :)) You don't look American to me , don't know why, maybe because you look just like a former fellow colleague student :) anyways, nice vlog, you got a new subscriber! Where is this filmed? In which part of Romania?

[@sierramarie]

That’s funny- I have heard a lot people don’t immediately think I’m American, until I speak 🤣 then they are like oh yesss, we see now lol We are near Cluj area! Thank you for subscribing! ☀️

[@firstprototype]

You will come around, nobody's perfect, you will be just fine 🙂 ✨️ ✌️ #bekind #shareitfoword

[@ardeiuti]

New subscriber here

[@sierramarie]

Welcome 🤗 I am so excited you’re here!

[@danvision5086]

💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙

[@Crowe_77]

fell in love with your voice...do u consider doing ASMR?

[@sierramarie]

I haven’t thought of ASMR before, that would be interesting 🤔

[@eddiOrtiz]

ofc Romania is warmer than Kansas.. but u live in Transylvania= Crapathian mountain region= colder... its like u move too the rocky mountains..

[@sierramarie]

It’s really interesting because the weather in Cluj almost exactly matched the weather in Kansas- even 5,000 miles away! The only difference is I had to walk in the winter snow in Cluj (didn’t have a car) where in Kansas we could drive 🤣

[@Isaac-bk4we]

What's this app you speak of btw?

[@BROo554]

🇷🇴🤝🇺🇲

[@cruelson9072]

Language barrier issues? Which city are you in? I can only imagine that you're in a small city or on the country side Bucharest might make you feel a lot more familiar considering it's the biggest city in Romania and there pretty much everything everywhere, the big plus there being that almost everyone speaks english to some degree(don't espect 70yo outdoor market grandma to speak english, maybe french or russian lol) Also you should definitely visit museums, famous land marks, mountains and castles

[@sierramarie]

In Cluj! Mostly people out and about at restaurants or shopping had great English. It was the phone calls or online deliveries that i found didn’t speak English. Hard to call and make a doctor appointment when the prompt was in Romanian 🥲 There is so much beauty to explore in Romania for sure!

[@cruelson9072]

@sierramarie definitely recommend checking out different area because they differ a lot from region to region even tho the population is homogeneous, the architecture and cultural values have different values and highly recommend visiting Sibiu especially during mid December when all the carnavals and celebrations start 😀

[@TotoTitus]

you sound like one of those americans who is so bubbly and sweet you can never get angry at them

[@SvengelskaBlondie]

4:38 the fact that USA allows trans-fats in food is mindboggling, it's slightly better than the Chinese favourite (gutter oil). That and cramming High Fructose Corn syrup just cause it's a very cheap filler, both of those are reasons id never move to Burgerland..

[@sierramarie]

I totally don’t blame you! It definitely is disturbing what is allowed and considered “food”! Eye opening for me after being abroad, for sure!

[@user-lq8kd5xl9x]

americans are getting big and loud. your voice is pleasant !

[@PopescuSorin]

before the soviet occupation and the brutal communist dictatorship installed by USSR, Romania was a constitutional monarch with a king and a queen :D you'll probably find buildings from that time and then the sad communist flats (soviet architecture 🤮🤮) and then the new stuff built after 89. i wish we could demolish everything that was built between 1945 - 1989 (soviet occupation - communist regime) but that would be extremely expensive. if you want to get a feeling how Romania was before communism visit the old towns

[@sierramarie]

That is so interesting to think about & how that time wasn’t that long ago! Walking around town, I definitely think it’s easy to notice the different eras based on the architecture. It really is inspiring to know what Romanians have been through and overcome!

[@iasmina12345]

When did soviet union occupy Romania? Here was a regime supported by ussr but we were never part of the ussr.

[@Radutm]

@@iasmina12345 1945 - 1956 full military occupation and economical dependency (SOVROM's). Please learn history before using internet :)

[@iasmina12345]

@@Radutm Romania's head of state: 1940-1947 Mihai I, 1947-1952 Ion Parhon, 1952-1958 Petru Groza, the soviet army was stationed here, but Romania was never part of USSR, we did't have Stalin as head of state . I'm sure that you know how are called in Romanian the people who read but don't understand what are reading about.

[@Radutm]

Parhon and Groza were nominal heads of state. In power it was communist party who was responding to Moscow without any question. And the red army was not station i, t was a full military occupation.

[@Whyzle]

If you want a warmer country, try to move in the Philippines

[@sierramarie]

I’ve heard amazing things about the Philippines!

[@hillarymuntz3111]

I want to move my kids to the UK so badly. America feels more and more unsafe by the day. Unfortunately I can’t get their dad on board 😑

[@sierramarie]

Where in the UK would you like to go? I think it takes time, maybe just keep watching moving abroad videos and he will start to notice the pros and cons. My heart goes out to you & wish you luck

[@marianpaveltech]

Every place have pros and cons. For ex: in Romania you get 2 years home after you give birth to stay with the kid and you are getting paid 85% of your income and you can get some few months even before giving birth.

[@raduromanesti6408]

Uk is also bad oldo not as much as America, go to Germany

[@hillarymuntz3111]

@@sierramarie Scotland is my dream 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 I get to visit later this year which I’m SO excited about

[@sierramarie]

Omg that’s so awesome!! 😆 I’m so glad you get to go- Scotland is one of my very favorite places, you’re going to love it!

[@sorinichim4737]

I myself I think all proceeds food coming from McDonald's or other brands are garbage food. No ofence. Try our traditional cuisine! You'll be amazed

[@sierramarie]

It definitely is not quality or nutritional food. The traditional foods will never be able to compare, they are amazing!

[@user-xt7zv3xk7q]

What city is this you are in?

[@sierramarie]

Cluj-Napoca

[@decembrie4889]

You are so beautiful girl! Hope Romanian gives you with beautiful moments}{}{}{}{

[@sierramarie]

Thank you!

[@64marro]

My dear, delicate I think you have a lot of potential, you are such a delicate human soul with a very good sense and with a chosen education. it is clear to me that you are looking for your personality and your way. I also think that, although moral qualities are so rare today, it is also a bad thing. It puts barriers, it puts brakes on your personal development. DO NOT wait for your husband to come home from work and you have all the time in the world to look for your identity. You are in Romania, in Europe... take advantage as much as you can to know, to understand, to look for opportunities. There are so many things to do. This time will not return to you in another chance, NOW is the time to open up to life without fear. I don't know what to recommend to you, but abandon your fear... especially since you are among a people who are good and beautiful, who are willing to show you with pride what they are. Romania and the Romanians is a school... learn and profit! COURAGE!

[@sierramarie]

Thank you Marian. This is really touching and such a wise message. I really appreciate you taking the time to reach out. Everything you say is so insightful! I definitely think there is a sense of finding direction for me after moving, that I never felt before. So many things to learn in this season! I agree we can be in our own way though. I am definitely taking this message in to process, learn and grow from it. Thank you again!

[@64marro]

@@sierramarie hard today, easy tomorrow. I am 59 years old and I come from so many times.. The Romanian royalty of my grandparents, the communism of my parents and when I was your age I fought to free Romania from this Russian mess called communism. December 21, 1989 is the day when the curse of the grandparents was erased with the sacrifice of the grandchildren. Hard years followed, very hard to adapt democracy to minds sick of communism. SO .. I know how hard the transition is. BUT YOU pass from one culture to another..what can be more beneficial..TO LEARN, TO CHOOSE between what you are and what you can become. I lived in New York for a while and when I couldn't anymore, I returned thirsty to my roots...Romania. YOU .. have the chance to be the best in the world (THIS IS ALL YOU REMAIN) .. not with America, not with Europe. Life is a continuous grinding of events and people and does not take into account geography or language. You need a kick in the ass .. as we say in Romania .. to move forward))) (I hope you don't mind the joke..WHAT IS A STORY, A PROVERB)

[@sierramarie]

Wow! I can imagine how hard that must have been & the personal transformation to get to where you are now. You have so much wisdom to pour out! What a life you have lived! Thank you for sharing your story with me, that is truly inspiring. Being able to learn from others and grow is what makes this world such an amazing place! Thanks for the little kick in the ass 😂 Everything we need to become the best version of ourselves is within! I am truly grateful for your comment, this has brought a smile to my face today! 😊

[@danascully6698]

De ce o dai de gol pe fata ca ti-e amanta? Tu ai idee ce inseamna "mistress"? Poate vede barbatu-so postarea si ti-o capeti tu dupa aia!

[@64marro]

@@danascully6698, merci pt corectie ,ai dreptate desi modul de exprimare si ideea transmisa e destul de rumaneasca.

[@iliriacum666]

How do you support yourself financially? Ofc…feel safer every where in the world compared with US except Latin America which is in different level of violence

[@sierramarie]

My husband has an IT job in Cluj ☺️

[@iliriacum666]

@@sierramarie ofc he does...was guessing about that

[@ursdaniel]

I am so "worry" for you, that you will end up falling in love with Romania and Europe, that you wont return to US, except to met your parents!!

[@sierramarie]

This is possible 🤔

[@ursdaniel]

@@sierramarie as for the future, I suggest to attend some sport events in Cluj Napoca. The city has soccer teams and basketball team. It will be such a great experience!!

[@sierramarie]

Great idea!!!! Do you know of a website or something where I can find local events?

[@TigerGreene]

I have my volume on maximum and literally can't hear you. Then the ads come on and it's deafening. Can you please like speak up, or buy a microphone?

[@sierramarie]

I bought a mic for future videos ☺️

[@fpostolache]

Boring

[@sierramarie]

Why?

[@fpostolache]

@@sierramarie shall I make a drawing ?! Most things are nonsense.

[@edutzugaya]

if you moved into the transilvania region, then yes, they dont even speak their own language let alone romanian which they shoud ... that region is doomed because they refuse to learn any other language than their own. move south, you cand talk in english pretty much with anyone

[@ThhVkk]

What on earth are you even talking about?

[@GrumpyGamer11]

You know why you feel safer in Romania than you did in your hometown in the US? Guess what you have that we don't? Hint: 13% of the US population.

[@suspendedtwice4sayingrasis261]

The same 13% that commits more than 50% of all the violent crimes? 😄

[@GrumpyGamer11]

@@suspendedtwice4sayingrasis261 nooo, that can't be right... Because the 13% includes women. So it's more like 6-7%/56%