Pârscov-Brussels one-way ticket

19h30. Camelia and I are both sitting in bright red armchairs, facing each other. She has brown hair, brown eyes and is 1 meter 60 tall. We are both tired from working all day but we still go on with the interview. Her cat sits on her lap and we start talking about her life.

First of all, tell me a little bit about yourself.

My name is Camelia, I am turning 50 this year and I was born and raised in a Romanian village called Pârscov. I moved to Brussels 16 years ago.

Can you describe Pârscov?

It’s is a small village located between some hills where 5000 people live.

-hat was your job in Romania before moving to Belgium?

I had a job of secretary and translator for a consultancy firm in Romania before coming to Brussels.

Why did you choose to move to Belgium?

My job in Romania was a temporary one. I wanted a long-term job and I knew Belgium, which I visited in 1990 with a group of students. I won a contest for secretaries for the European institutions and I was offered a job three months later.

How was the journey?

From Romania to Belgium, I flew by plane. The journey took almost 3 hours. It is the fastest way to travel between the two countries.

Where did you live in Brussels for the first few months?

I chose to rent a room in the Bed&Brussels network. First I stayed one month in a family and then two months in another family. After that I rented a flat for a year.

How did you adjust to life here?

At the beginning, I found it difficult to live here (in Brussels), I had to adapt myself to a different type of food (for example I thought the vegetables had no taste at all). I found Brussels a crowded city. I really enjoyed the Belgian coast. I missed my friends and family and I often went home during my holidays. But after a year or so I met my partner and I made new friends.

When did you decide to stay permanently?

When I met my future partner, I felt more integrated, as he’s Belgian, and I knew I would stay for a long time.

Do you prefer Romanian or Belgian weather?

In winter, I prefered the mild weather in Belgium to the cold frozen weather in Romania. But I miss sunny days in November in Romania. Summertime in Romania is very warm, but I also like summers in Belgium even if its less sunny and it oftens rains. Spring is very similar in both countries.

Did you have some stereotypes or a culture shock when you came?

Not really because I already visited Belgium once before moving here and a few of friends lived there already, giving me an accurate representation of what living here is like. But a difference between Romania and Belgium was the punctuality which was better in Belgium. Brussels is also a very cosmopolitan city and I met a variety of different people, something I couldn’t have done in Romania.

This was a great interview. Thanks to Camelia for accepting my offer and talking to me about her interesting life story.

Mathias Petroons / S4FR / EEB1 Uccle