Travel Blogger in Romania | Episode #5: Tim Leffel

Hello! Let’s meet Tim Leffel from Cheapest Destinations Blog. He’s the fifth person who said yes to our interview for the project “Travel Blogger In Romania”. Born and raised in the US, Tim has been a travel blogger for quite some time now. He came to Romania to discover it and find out more about this destination, and he blogs about it.

Interview with Tim from Cheapest Destinations Blog:

 

1. How long have you been travelling for?

It's been more 23 years now.

 

2. Are you a backpacker/long-term traveller/business traveller, or do you live and work abroad?

When I started out I was a long-term backpacker, but now I am a full-time travel writer and generally average one trip per month.

 

3. How many countries have you been to?

I don’t know, I don’t keep track of that. A lot!

 

4. Quickfire questions:

Favourite season? - Spring.
Beach or mountain? - Mountains usually.
Urban or rural? - Both depend on what I want to do. But I’d rather live in a city.
Next destination on your list? - I'm planning to go to Honduras and Los Cabos (Mexico) next month.

 

5. How did Romania find its way on your list of destinations?

Romania is a terrific value for travelers, with a lot to see and reasonable prices. It’s half the price of Western Europe, but with good food, beer, and wine.

 

6. Expectations vs. reality in Romania

It was mostly as I expected, with plenty of photogenic beauty. I guess the most surprising thing was how empty many of the villages were. It seems like everyone has gone to another country to work!

 

7. How was your experience with the traditional Romanian food?

I liked the food a lot, tasty and filling.

 

8. How did the Romanian people seem to you?

They’re not as warm and open as in some other countries and it seems hard to get to know them personally, but that’s partly because of the language differences, without so many English speakers. They have a lot of pride in their country.

 

9. Do you have any funny travel stories from Romania?

Well, the first time I visited was by accident, in December of 1998. I was on a Tarom flight from India to New York City. We missed our connection in Bucharest and they didn’t know what to do with us. Instead of putting us on another airline as anyone else would do, they made us wait three days and nights until the next flight to New York. They put us in a hotel, but wouldn’t give us our luggage, so we spent three days and nights in the clothes we traveled with, in the winter coming from India, with no coats!

 

10. Did you convince anyone to travel to Romania?

Yes, a lot of my blog and book readers have visited the country after reading my writings about it.

 

11. What is your least pleasant experience in Romania?

Stray dogs, a decimated historic center, racism against the Roma people, a difficult language to understand.

 

12. Could you ever live in Romania?

Yes, there are parts of Transylvania that seemed like nice places to live, especially Brasov. Not to mention that there’s really fast internet in Romania, which makes it a good place for digital nomads who work from a laptop!

 

13. Do you have any pieces of advice or tips for aspiring travellers?

Just start saving a little money and go. People who don’t travel much think it has to be expensive, but people who do travel a lot know that it can be cheaper than staying home if you choose the right destinations.

 

14. Do you believe in vampires?

I love the stories, but no, I don’t think they’re real.