The First Moments in Romania

It's been over one whole month since my husband and myself moved from America to Romania. Let's talk about it. 

First, we will unpack leaving from the airport.

My mom and her boyfriend gave us a ride from Greenville to Charlotte, NC which is about 2 hours from where we are from and where we were staying, (thanks for the ride!) When we arrived at the airport, we unloaded our things and we had a brief moment of difficulty because we realized one of our intended carry on bags was likely too large. We then had to shuffle things around to where we could change what would be our carry on bags. It was stressful! I highly recommend checking these things beforehand. Luckily, we arrived 3+ hours before our flight. We went up to the front desk and we had paid to be TSA PreCheck. At first, the man was not approving Will and it was not pulling Will up in the system. After a couple of different inputs, it finally located Will. We both went through PreCheck and we loved that!

We flew from Charlotte to London as a layover and then from London to Romania, in flight the total was around 8 hours. 

When we landed in Romania, it was 1:30 AM local time. We had been travelling a full 24+ hours at this point.

Let's talk about when we arrived with all of our belongings:

Again, it was late and this is our first time stepping off on Romanian ground. We had (as pictured) 5 suitcases, 2 duffel bags, and 2 backpacks. BOLT had no XL at this time, so Uber or taxi would be our only option. The issue with a taxi was we did not have cash yet. It was imperative that we use Uber. We tried ordering Uber XL. We were cancelled 3 times. 

We thought we were going to have to get a taxi, but then an Uber XL appeared.

At first, we thought he was going to cancel when he saw all of our luggage. He explained that his car was for 6-8 people, not for luggage. We were used to Uber XL in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina where we would be picked up by a van or big truck so the luggage wouldn't be an issue. The driver looked concerned. We tried to tell him if he took us we would tip generously. 

Finally, he thought about it and agreed to take us. We felt a huge weight lifted off of us. 

He picked us up around 2:30 AM. 

After arriving at the hotel, checking in, showering, and winding down. We finally went to sleep at around 5 AM local time. We had decided we wouldn't sleep all day and try to conquer jet lag straight on. 

When we woke up, I made us start waking up around 11 AM local time. This means we probably had around 5-6 hours of sleep. 

We left the hotel sometime between 12-1 PM local time to get some food and get out of the hotel. 

Yes, we did go to an "American" themed restaurant. Judge all you want, but this was a smart choice to me. Firstly, I've never been to Romania before this and knew little about the language or the food yet. Secondly, I wanted to make sure I got some food in my system especially since I knew we might be so tired that we may not go out again that day. 

So, we went out to an "American" themed restaurant. 

Us at the hotel:

Fries from the restaurant:

They don't have Diet Coke in Romania, Coke Zero or Pepsi Zero! Referenced with Will.

Shawarma: I thought this was good! Honestly, I was so tired so it was hard to eat because of how tired I was.

Will's burger:

Our first selfie:

Even though we were exhausted and we are still finding our way, these are the key takeaways from our first encounter:

1. Make sure to have a transportation plan with more than the standard amount of luggage

2. Prepare before going to the airport

3. Be ready for jet lag 

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