Amanda Knaup tells us about the groups visit to the Black Sea. You may notice an additional person in the pictures. That is Adonis Ichim, one of Teodoriu’s graduate students who met up with the group while presenting with Dr. Teodoriu at the conference.
We traveled to Constesti on the coast of the Black Sea in order to attend the Black Sea Conference. We arrived late on Saturday night and went straight to bed. On Sunday, we were given the freedom to explore the town and wander through the shops, many of which were not open, yet, because the summer season does not begin until late June. We ate a late lunch on the terrace along the main thoroughfare where we enjoyed some delicious, local foods such as chicken schnitzel and peasant potatoes, a common Romanian side dish similar to our skillet fried potatoes.
Our hotel, which overlooks the water where the remains of a shipwreck can be seen, was only a 20 minute walk from where the conference was held. Not having to be there right away, we took our time walking along the beach and checking out shops along the way. We arrived at the conference venue right around lunchtime, and were treated to traditional Romanian foods such as ciorba de peste (fish soup), which is very delicious. Afterwards, we wandered around the exhibition hall before attending some of the lectures taking place. By the time the conference ended for the day, it was 6:00 p.m. and we headed back to the hotel and changed before meeting for dinner at a terrace restaurant near the resort where we dined on further traditional Romanian food such as fried fish, lamb, potatoes and more schnitzel.
On our third day in Costinesti we took a day trip to explore the city of Constanta, an hour’s train ride. Along the way, we saw beautiful country side and were even able to see the Constanta Port where some offshore platforms and drilling ships could be seen just off the coast. Upon arrival, we took a bus from the station to Mamaia. Here we took a gondola (a suspended cable car) up above the beach overlooking the Black Sea. Unfortunately for us, it began to pour, so we took shelter and warmed ourselves up with coffee. Once the rain cleared, we walked around some of the shops until the rain started again. Luckily, by then, it was lunchtime, so we found our way to the a place along the terrace that served traditional food and provided us with blankets to keep us warm while we ate. Ciorba de pui (sour chicken soup) and grilled lamb and schnitzel also did a good job of warming us. After lunch, we walked around a bit more before heading back to Constinesti where we enjoyed an evening of traditional Romanian music and food along the terrace.
