Visiting your birth country while living in a different country is always an interesting experience. You know every corner of the city but everything is still different, new buildings have been erected, old ones renovated, businesses have moved or new ones have opened. That is the experience we have whenever we visit Cluj, a vibrant city in Romania which since the fall of communism is changing and growing seemingly every year while still somehow remaining the same especially in the residential areas with old communist area buildings.
One thing that we hope will never change is the selection of sweets. It is sooooo much more varied than in the US and so much better in our opinion.
The downtown area is a preferred area for strolls with many small stores and some interesting restaurants.
Looking back at the photos from this trip we notice many changes, the downtown area now is much more pedestrianized and there are a lot more impediments to ensure cars to not park on the sidewalks.
What hasn’t changed are the number of festivals, there is always something going on in the downtown area. This is because the downtown is anchored by the Cluj University, one of the biggest in the country.
Cluj was also an important medieval city in Transylvania with the medieval walls still visible from place to place and a couple towers being preserved as museums.
Unfortunately only the downtown area was relatively well preserved, as you go towards the periphery you notice more and more boring communist buildings. Still there is always something to look at like open air markets or simply the crazy traffic.
Food wise one of the specialties in Romania is “mici”, grilled skinless sausages. You can find them everywhere and if you are invited to a party it is almost certain they will be on the menu one way or the other.
