I interviewed a Romanian that immigrated to the U.S. in 2002. She was born in Vulcan, but spent her last 15 years in Romania in Constanta (pictured above). Here is what she had to say.
Her Experience Learning English:
When, where, and why did you learn English?
I started to learn English at the age of 38 when still in Romania to be prepared for my immigration to the USA. I started by listening to TOEFL cassettes in conjunction with reading the manuals and checking the dictionary for word meanings. To improve my conversational skills, I started attending church service – that was done in English – every Sunday with a one hour chatting session with Charles (the preacher) once a week. I made progress, but I was still far away of being proficient.
I started to learn English at the age of 38 when still in Romania to be prepared for my immigration to the USA. I started by listening to TOEFL cassettes in conjunction with reading the manuals and checking the dictionary for word meanings. To improve my conversational skills, I started attending church service – that was done in English – every Sunday with a one hour chatting session with Charles (the preacher) once a week. I made progress, but I was still far away of being proficient.
A friend gifted me a book – How to Win Friends and Influence People, in English. I was very interested in the subject, so I persevered in reading it with my dictionary, stopping every few words or so to check meanings and make notes. It took me one month to read it, but I succeeded.
After a few months of arriving in California I enrolled in college attending various classes for two years. Most of them related with Business Administration and Economic Studies. I chose those subjects due to my background in economics and the multitude of standard international words used in these sciences. My husband made it a rule to speak Romanian at home and my interaction with native speakers was very limited beside school. It took me a long time until I was able to think and dream in English, but I got there eventually. |
What was the hardest part about learning English for you?
Everything was hard at first. Romanian is a phonetic language, English is not. Spelling the word in one way and pronouncing it in a different way was maybe the biggest issue and still is.
English and Romania:Is it common for Romanians to be bilingual? If so, what languages are common?
Due to our old and rich history, Romania has a few minority populations, meaning nationals from Hungarian, German, Turkish, Armenian, Serbian, Bulgarian and a few other origin cohabiting the country. Those people are bilingual, speaking their native language and Romanian. |
How has English in education changed since you attended school?
In the past, when I was in school and during the communist era, the languages most studied were Russian, French and German. Only a few privileged schools in the country and a few classes in each school were allowed to teach English. These schools were the ones where people with power and influence in the Government had their children enrolled. However, many professionals chose to hire private teachers to teach their children foreign languages. It was very fashionable to do this and still is. Nowadays, in all schools the main language studied is English. |
What percentage of people would you guess speak English in Romania?
Around 30-35%. Most of the young generation, people in their thirties and younger, speak English. How easy is it for tourist (who don’t know Romanian) to visit Romania? Easy, everyone in the areas related with tourism speaks English. |
About Romania:
What is the number one thing everyone who visits Romania should see?
It is not a big country, maybe half the size of California. I would say a few days tour to the Danube Delta and of the North provinces of Maramures and Bucovina would probably be the most interesting. |
What are your favorite things to do in Romania?
My favorite things were going to the beach during the weekends and visiting with friends. In Romania it is customary to visit and be visited by friends and relatives, party with them, and have fun. What sights do you think make Romania desireable? Romania is a beautiful country with an old, rich history. We have beautiful, wild mountains with great resorts for hiking and skiing, seashore resorts for rest and healing with thermal waters. We have the Danube Delta that is fascinating with rare vegetation, old cities, old castles and monasteries. The food is delicious and Romanians are known for their hospitality. The country side is also interesting and different from other countries. |