Radio România Internațional

Tag: relaxation

  • Fruit Picking

    Fruit Picking

    Being deeply invested with their urban life, people often forget how much joy several hours in nature can bring, mainly when specific activities, such as fruit picking, are included. Thus, several initiatives of this kind, have recently been created, such as the one known as “Beautiful Orchard”, which is only 20 kilometers from the capital city Bucharest.

    Dana Banciu, initiator of the aforementioned project, told us more:

    Dana Banciu: “There is a story behind this orchard, which has over 400 fruit trees and a surface of 12 thousand square meters. At the end of 2019 we decided to open this orchard to visitors. We were inspired in this project by our daughter, who is now 15 years old and who during kindergarten and later in school used to invite her classmates here to pick cherries and other fruits. And whenever they came here, they wouldn’t leave soon and this happened also with our relatives, who came here to celebrate various events and liked it here so much that they nearly forgot to leave. It’s practically a place in the middle of nature and we like to make kids love nature so and for this reason we are welcoming them whenever they come as part of various school and kindergarten activities.”

    It’s all about living together, living in harmony with nature as our host wants to emphasize.

    Dana Banciu: “Behind the orchard, there lies a beautiful little hardwood forest and we invite our visitors whenever they come here to let their guards down and enjoy everything nature has to offer and take a hike through that little forest. The forest is six-seven meters from our orchard and I would describe a hike around it as purely magic as you almost forget about the everyday troubles of life and what future may bring about. And this is how the magic of this place works!”

    Dana Banciu has also talked to us about the types of events their orchard can host:

    Dana Banciu: “The events we host here are either anniversaries, parties, various weekend events, workshops, and practically any type of event, which can be held in nature. The events we stage on weekdays, include school trips, when we provide tours of our orchard, telling the kids about the way we are taking care of the fruit trees here, their development, the role played by the leaves and pollinators, like the bees for instance. We tell them about the role played by oxygen and the global warming. And while in the forest we are trying to connect with nature by means of our senses, we hug a tree for instance. We also have an ‘open doors’ day when we place invitations on our facebook page for families to come here and enjoy a picnic, a hike through the forest I mentioned before, a couple of hours of relaxation in nature”

    But how do children feel when they come here?

    Dana Banciu: “When children come here, they never get bored, you know. We are often asked by parents and teachers if they need to hire an entertainer or something. But here in this orchard, children never get bored, although this is no playground as we have already specified in our presentations. Although we have a couple of swings here and there, this is far from being a playground. However, whenever they come here, children are completely fascinated, you know. They leave the place with rosy cheeks and sweating because they have been given the chance of getting involved in various activities undergoing in an unstructured area. They are facing a lot of positive challenges here and you need not tell them what to do. They are free to roam the place and they don’t get bored at all, but on the contrary, they learn things. Like I said, all children are fascinated when they get here.” 

    But besides hikes and other events the most tempting thing in an orchard is fruit picking.

    So, Dana Banciu has made an invitation.

    Dana Banciu: “Our orchard is a season orchard with over 400 fruit trees and the first to ripen here are the cherries. Next come the apricots, apples, pears, quinces and grapes, because we also have a vineyard here. So our visitors can pick fruits and eat as much as they can. And if they like a certain type and want to take them home we can sell them some. And if it’s a good year, and we have plenty of fruits here, we launch an invitation to fruit picking. “

    From spring until late autumn, people can come here, or to other places like this, to enjoy a day like they used to in their grandparents’ orchards in the countryside.

    (bill)

  • Global Wellness Day

    Global Wellness Day

    The Global Wellness Day is rapidly drawing near, and, this time around as well, we say Yes! to the invitation extended to us to discover the latest on the domestic SPA market. This
    year as well, we are invited to view life from a fresh perspective, under the
    slogan One Single Day can change your entire Life!

    The founder of a spa
    platform, desprespa.ro, Ioana Marian, has launched an invitation for us:

    Global Wellness Day is the moment when you
    can discover, when you can have your own hands-on experience of what SPA and
    wellness actually mean. You can participate, free of charge, in all sorts of
    wellness activities, correct breathing, stretching exercises, meditation, you
    can even do mini-SPA therapies, all that offered free of charge. The event
    takes place on the second Saturday in June, this year it will be on June
    10th.


    The initiator of a SPA center in the capital city, Alin Simion, gave
    us details on the concept underlying the setting up of the center. It was a
    center that started off from the need for self-development and out of love for
    his wife, who always had that dream.


    A key element
    was the care for the client, the care for the human being as such. And that pushed us forward
    towards our own personal development, I work with myself a lot so I could be a
    more balanced man, while the professional aspect followed suit, as well as the understanding
    of our client’s needs. We opened the center in 2011, I met my wife at the Dalai Lama Center in Tibet and, taking one step after the next, we went from strength
    to strength, we’re now in our third location, a superb location we ‘re so proud
    of. It so much resembles what we wanted for ourselves, from the very
    beginning: to be able to offer people a beautiful and elegant SPA environment,
    with a lot of nature and perfect-to-a-fault services.


    Invoking, though the name of the center, that kind of feminine
    energy we all have, irrespective of our gender, the center creates a special atmosphere.

    Alin Simion once again:


    The spirit is one of intimacy, where people can discover
    that very particular thing we call home. That particular thing means relaxation,
    intimacy, enhancing people’s intellectual or self-knowledge capacity. We offer
    classical beauty services, we offer over 90 types of massage, SPA rituals or signature
    rituals we laid so much emphasis on, as we wanted each and every one of our
    therapists to offer a signature therapy, at once allowing them to introduce
    themselves for what they truly are, using everything of what they learned all
    along their professional career. We have the personal development and self-knowledge,
    coaching side, we have yoga and meditation. Furthermore, we organize very many
    courses and events. We try to offer a
    personalized solution to each and every person visiting us.


    The founder of the desprespa.ro platform, Ioana Marian, heaped
    praise on Romania’s SPA market being on the rise in recent years. It literally progressed
    from scratch only to reach its extremely diverse dimension of today. However,
    Ioana Marian said, there is still a lot more work to be done, to that end.


    There are still many regions that have not just as
    yet acquired the status of a center in its own right. As we speak, my estimation
    is that of 30 to 35 centers have the status of a SPA proper, and which are
    not salons. The SPA experience entails the relaxation of all five senses, and
    not the tactile one alone. Besides, in another development, we cannot possibly speak
    about a SPA proper in the case of the hotels or guesthouses pointing to the
    existence of their own spa center, while the moment you step in there you see they
    actually have a swimming pool, a sauna, maybe a massage room. There is no SPA
    there, actually. What a consumer wants is a complete switching-off for himself,
    since he is stressed out when he enters there. Everybody knows that after an hour
    they spent at the SPA, he emerges a different man out of that treatment
    facility, not only is he more relaxed, but also he has a lot more energy.


    Ioana Marian explained what the elements were, that contribute to
    the transformation you experience in a SPA center, from a stressed-out individual to a
    person who is completely relaxed and full of energy.


    That is possible, in a SPA, thanks to the
    atmosphere: through the setting you find in the SPA, more often than not
    elements of nature, plants, stones, living elements that come with their own
    energy and which contribute to your state of well-being. There are also the colors
    that relax you, green, tree-bark brown, then there is the smell, through the essential
    oils you can feel. It’s just as f if you took a walk through the forest. You can hear the murmur of the water, you breathe
    in those essential oils and, after a simple walk through the forest, you already
    feel you are a different person. Here, apart from the water and the plants and
    the soft sound of music, you also benefit from a therapy offered by a
    professional. As in the SPA centers we work with therapists who graduated from
    a faculty, whether it’s the Physical Education Faculty, the Kinesiotherapy
    one or the Kinesiotherapy Faculty offered by the Medical School, which means a
    lot more than a massage course pursued for a couple of months .


    We have also found out that this month, the
    first awarding-ceremony Gala was held, for the SPA centers across Romania. It was a
    one-of-a-kind event, meant to encourage performance. Therefore, we invite you,
    wherever you may be, to say Yes! to a special day: the Global Wellness Day!

  • February 15, 2022

    February 15, 2022

    Covid Ro — Romania is considering lifting the anti-Covid restrictions according to certain criteria, such as the drop in the number of new cases of infection, and in the number of patients in intensive care, the health minister Alexandru Rafila announced. He said, however, that there was no timetable for relaxation. The Romanian authorities have reported today almost 22,000 new COVID-19 cases out of 91,500 tests in 24 hours, and 204 deaths, 9 of which from previous days. 1,155 patients are in ICUs.



    Energy — The Romanian PM Nicolae Ciuca is today chairing a meeting of the Inter-ministerial Committee for Energy, to later participate in a working meeting with officials in the field. Last Wednesday, the prime minister had a similar meeting with several ministers, in which they assessed the measures necessary to protect the population and the business environment from the effects of rising electricity and gas prices. On Monday, the Romanian government adopted a financial scheme that will help the local authorities to get through the winter months, when they received high energy bills.



    Ukraine — The Russian troops deployed for several weeks near the border with Ukraine have started returning to their garrisons, the Russian Defense Ministry officials have announced today amid Western fears of an imminent military operation. According to AFP, the announcement is the first sign from Moscow in this crisis with the West, which has lasted since the end of 2021. Since December, Russia has deployed more than 100,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian border, raising fears in Kiev over an imminent invasion of that country. Moscow has always denied any intention to start a war, but has asked for guarantees for its security, such as the promise that Ukraine will never join NATO, which the West has refused to do. The announcement of the troops’ withdrawal comes ahead of talks scheduled for today in Moscow between the Russian President Vladimir Putin and the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as part of the efforts to deescalate the situation on the Ukrainian border. On Monday, in Kiev, the German chancellor had called on Russia to take advantage of the dialogue offers meant to defuse the crisis and at the same time gave assurances that Germany would resolutely continue its economic aid and support for Ukraine. In turn, the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky declared February 16 as a day of “unity” against the backdrop of US warnings of a possible imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine at this time. The West has repeatedly warned Moscow of unprecedented sanctions if it attacks Ukraine, and the US and several other countries have deployed new forces in Eastern Europe.



    Talks — Romania and Canada have similar views on the worrying security situation in the vicinity of Ukraine and the Black Sea region and on the need to continue action towards de-escalation, shows a communiqué of the Romanian Foreign Ministry, after Monday’s telephone conversation between the Romanian FM, Bogdan Aurescu, and his Canadian counterpart, Mélanie Joly. The two ministers welcomed the concrete measures taken within NATO and together with the allied states, which prove the solidity of the collective commitment towards the security of the allies on NATO’s eastern flank.



    Tennis — The Romanian tennis player Irina Begu (54 WTA) was defeated by Ukrainian Daiana Iastremska in three sets, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, today, in the first round of the WTA 500 tournament in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, which has total prizes up for grabs worth almost 770 thousand dollars. Begu, a semi-finalist in St. Petersburg last week, was defeated after two hours of play. Also today, another Romanian, Gabriela Ruse (59 WTA), coming from the qualification rounds, plays against Paula Badosa (Spain), 3rd seed and 5th in the world. The winner of this match will face in the eighth finals the best ranked Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep (23 WTA). A champion in Dubai in 2015 and 2020, Halep defeated, on Monday, in the first round, in two sets, the American Alison Riske. (LS)

  • February 12, 2022

    February 12, 2022

    NATO — The presence of NATO troops in Romania is proof of the Allied solidarity and of the fact that, although there is a real risk that Russia might invade Ukraine, Romania is not alone, said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. On Friday, he visited the Mihail Kogălniceanu military base in southeastern Romania, along with Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis and the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoană. The first Stryker armored personnel carriers have already arrived here, and 1,000 U.S. troops are expected to arrive from Germany to strengthen the Alliances Eastern Flank. With the arrival of the Task Force Cougar detachment, the number of American soldiers in Romania will increase to almost 2,000. Besides the US, France has also announced its willingness to send troops to Romania. A NATO member since 2004, Romania already hosts 900 American, 250 Polish and 140 Italian soldiers. A US Air Force detachment of about 150 soldiers and eight F-16 Fighting Falcon planes has been conducting joint training missions, for about two weeks, with the military and F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft within the Romanian Air Force since Friday. The American planes will also perform enhanced air-policing missions, together with Romanian and Italian aircraft, which have been in Romania since December last year. A senior Pentagon official said the United States had decided to send an additional 3,000 troops to Poland as well.



    COVID-19 — The number of new COVID-19 cases continues to decline in Romania. On Saturday, 18,750 new cases and 157 deaths were reported, 13 of which were from previous days. The COVID-19 incidence rate calculated at 14 days for Bucharest is, on Saturday, 38.02 cases per thousand inhabitants. This is the highest contamination rate recorded so far in the Capital. The authorities are considering the possibility of relaxing the protection measures taken in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, gradually, following the model of countries that have already overcome the peak of current wave, said the head of the Department for Emergency Situations (DSU), Raed Arafat. In his opinion, the new cases are on a declining trend, and if the pace is maintained, we might get rid of restrictions before the Easter holidays. In turn, the coordinator of the National vaccination campaign, military doctor Valeriu Gheorghiţă, said that in the future, vaccination against this virus will be seasonal, after the model of the flu vaccine, but the vaccine will be adapted to the strain specific for that period. He announced that, at present, the vaccination rate among the adult population is 50.5%.



    COVID world — The acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic will end this year if the target of 70% of the worlds population getting vaccinated is reached, said World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. He estimates that this will happen by June or July. In another development, the Chinese drug regulatory agency on Saturday approved the conditional use of treatment with Paxlovid, produced by Pfizer, being the first anti-COVID-19 tablet approved in this country for the treatment of coronavirus infection. Chinese officials say that studies on the drug are still needed and that the results will be submitted to the Beijing authorities. In Europe, Belgium has decided to relax anti-COVID-19 measures in restaurants, nightclubs, pubs and cultural venues after the country overcame the peak of Omicron contamination. In turn, Austria continues to relax restrictions. As of Saturday, people will only have to wear FFP2 masks in shops or museums. Iceland also plans to lift all restrictions by the end of February, two weeks earlier than initially planned.



    Moldova — Romania supports Moldovas efforts targeted at making reforms, getting closer to the European community, as well as increasing resilience in key sectors for citizens, the Romania PM Nicolae Ciucă said after a visit to Chisinau on Friday. He also said that Romania is the first trading partner of the Republic of Moldova and one of its main investors. A series of bilateral documents were signed at the end of the joint meeting of the Romanian and Moldovan governments, including the Intergovernmental Agreement on the implementation of an assistance program based on a non-reimbursable financial aid of 100 million Euros from Romania. Nicolae Ciucă and his Moldovan counterpart Natalia Gavriliţa also signed the Joint Declaration on strengthening cooperation in the fields of economy and investments. Cooperation agreements have also been concluded in the fields of defense, justice and home affairs. The Romanian PM was received by the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, whom he ensured of his full support for the implementation of the reform measures, especially in the field of the rule of law.



    Russia — The Russian President Vladimir Putin and the US President Joe Biden will have a telephone conversation today, the RIA news agency reported, quoting the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Also today, Vladimir Putin will discuss with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, according to the TASS agency. A Russian military invasion of Ukraine, marked by a massive air raid campaign and a “rapid attack” on Kiev, is a “very real possibility” in the coming days, the White House warned. Russia maintains more than 100,000 troops and fighting equipment near the border with the former Soviet republic. Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis believes that ensuring a consolidated deterrence and defense posture in a unitary and coherent manner on the entire eastern flank from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea contributes to regional stability as well as to the security of the alliance as a whole. Present at the consultations that the US President, Joe Biden, had, on Friday, with leaders of NATO and the EU institutions on the topic of regional security, the Romanian president expressed his firm support for the continuation of the political-diplomatic dialogue with Russia solutions to de-escalate the situation without compromising NATO’s fundamental principles and the international law. (LS)

  • When will restrictions be lifted?

    When will restrictions be lifted?

    After several European countries such as the United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, France, Spain and Italy have progressively diminished restrictions, the Romanian authorities are also considering the possibility of gradually relaxing the anti-COVID measures. Experts say that there is a declining trend in both the number of infections and the occupancy rate of hospital beds, but still the number of patients in ICUs remains the same. According to the head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, Romania could get rid of restrictions before Easter, at the end of April.



    Raed Arafat: “We have the clear intention to follow the examples of other countries, which have reached the peak of this wave before us. So, the measures that Romania will implement will be very similar, from what I can tell you now, to those implemented by other countries in this regard. The only difference between us and them is the rate of vaccination. The tendency to take measures in the future or to give up measures will be very similar to what other countries have done, and we can already see the results of these measures in those countries.



    In turn, the health minister, Alexandru Rafila, believes that, in a few weeks time, Romania will reach a COVID-19 incidence rate of one case per thousand, at which point the relaxation of restrictions could start gradually. And he recalls the measures related to wearing a protective mask and the Green Certificate.



    Alexandru Rafila: “Restrictions need to be lifted gradually, and people need to understand that they still have a responsibility towards their fellows. We do not rule out the emergence of new variants that may affect certain communities or certain vulnerable groups. I hope this is the last wave that posed major problems. In the next 3-4 weeks, we will reach a number of cases similar to that reported in mid-December, and then, of course, we can discuss a reassessment of public health measures and even the lifting of some restrictions, such as this digital certificate.



    Alexandru Rafila reminded, however, the importance of vaccination, especially in the case of vulnerable people. The coordinator of the vaccination campaign, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, announced that over 8 million people had at least one vaccine dose, which means a percentage of vaccination in the adult population of more than 50% and in the general population of 42%, which still is a small percentage compared to most European countries. However, he expressed optimism about the evolution of the virus and said that in the future, vaccination against this virus will be seasonal, like the vaccination for flu, and the vaccine will be adapted to the strain of that period. (LS)

  • Less restrictions during the holidays

    Less restrictions during the holidays

    With a vaccination rate below the EU average and with more permissive restrictions than in other EU countries, Romania will ease sanitary measures during the winter holidays. The National Committee for Emergency Situations has approved the relaxation of restrictions, and the extension of the state of alert by another 30 days, from December 9th. The decision comes, according to the authorities, following the decrease in the national infection rate below 1.2 per thousand inhabitants, and the further reduction of the number of COVID patients in ICUs. The approved measures include wearing a protective mask outdoors only in crowded areas, such as markets, fairs or bus stops, and indoors. Access to restaurants and shops will be allowed until 10.00 p.m. instead of 9.00 p.m. Sports competitions and cultural activities can unfold until 10.00 p.m.



    The level of attendance of up to 30% valid for certain activities has been upped to up to 50%, as in cinemas, theaters and gyms. Nevertheless, access will be allowed only to the vaccinated people, those who have had the disease or who have been tested. Night traffic bans on unvaccinated people will be lifted, and their access to shopping malls will be allowed based on a negative test result. Until now, only those vaccinated or who had the disease had been allowed to enter malls. The new rules also state that accommodation units, which so far could only receive vaccinated people or people who had the disease, will be allowed to also receive people presenting a negative test result.



    As for the Christmas and New Years Eve parties, restaurants will be able to stay open, according to Secretary of State with the Interior Ministry, Raed Arafat: “For the Christmas and New Years Eve nights, there will be no time restrictions for restaurants. Restaurants can stay open all night long, but the occupancy rate will be of only 50% and the people will have to present the required documents.”



    At the same time, the New Years Eve outdoor events will not be restricted in terms of the number of participants, but organizers are required to allow access only to those who are vaccinated, had the disease, or have a negative test result.



    We remind you that to slow down the spread of the new African variant of the coronavirus, Omicron, the National Committee for Emergency Situations has established new measures for people arriving in Romania during the winter holidays. Those coming from European Union countries will present the green certificate attesting that they were vaccinated, had the disease in the last 180 days or have a negative PCR test result. Those coming from outside the EU, including those who have been vaccinated, must provide a negative PCR test result, and those who were not vaccinated or did not have the disease in the last six months will be quarantined. (LS)

  • July 2, 2021

    July 2, 2021

    COVID Over 340,000 Covid digital certificates were generated in the first 12 hours since the launch of the certificat-covid.gov.ro platform. As of 1 July, the Covid digital certificate is available for travellers in the EU. The document proves the owner has been vaccinated, has recovered or recently tested negative for the disease. Also as of 1 July, further relaxation measures are in place in Romania. The vaccine rollout continues, and a new batch of Johnson & Johnson vaccine is due to arrive in the country today. On Thursday some 19,000 people received their doses. Authorities urge citizens to get immunised and warn against a new wave of infections. Yesterday 31 new coronavirus infection cases were announced, out of some 26,000 tests, and 5 people died in the past 24 hours. A total of 430 Covid patients are currently in hospitals, 67 of them in intensive care.



    RESTRICTIONS In Romania, the National Committee for Emergency Situations Thursday updated the list of countries and regions with high epidemiological risks. Travellers coming into the country from regions with a combined rate of COVID-19 cases above 3 per thousand in the past 14 days must isolate for 14 days. The UK stays in the red zone, alongside 22 other territories, including exotic destinations like the Seychelles and Maldives. The 18 regions in the yellow zone include, among others, the United Arab Emirates, Cyprus, Russia and Portugal. Countries with an infection rate below 1.5 per thousand are on the green list.



    LAW Criminal liability for human trafficking and exploitation, sexual assault, and torture in children is no longer subject to time limits in Romania, under a law signed on Thursday by president Klaus Iohannis. The act, which amends the Criminal Code, also increases punishments for failure to report a crime, while also criminalising the failure to report human trafficking and exploitation and sexual offences against child victims.



    MILITARY Romania and Germany signed on Thursday, in a ceremony at the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base 57 on the Romanian Black Sea coast, a statement of intent concerning the development of bilateral relations in the field of aviation. In the presence of the air force chiefs of the 2 countries and of the UK, a demonstration was held showcasing the joint fulfilment of an enhanced air policing mission. Taking part in the exercise were aircraft in the MiG-21 LanceR unit, alongside Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft of the British Royal Air Forces and the German Air Forces, deployed at the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base 57.



    COIN The National Bank of Romania will issue on 7 July a new silver coin to mark 100 years of diplomatic relations between Romania and Japan, the institution announced in a news release. The obverse of the coin features Caraiman Peak in the Bucegi Mountains, while the reverse features a traditional Japanese gate, tori, overlapping the image of Mount Fuji reflected in the Kawaguchi lake.



    TENNIS The Romanian player Sorana Cîrstea Thursday qualified into the 3rd round of the Wimbledon tournament, the 3rd grand slam of the year, after defeating Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, in 3 sets. Cîrstea (45 WTA) is to play Saturday against Emma Răducanu (338 WTA), who managed to beat the Czech Marketa Vondrousova in one of the tournaments major surprises. Today, Irina Begu (74 WTA) attempts qualification in the round of 16, in a match against Iga Swiatek of Poland, (9 WTA and seed no. 7). In the doubles, Romanians Horia Tecău and Raluca Olaru, with their respective partners, have qualified in the second round of the mens and womens competitions. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

  • Anti-pandemic measures will be relaxed according to plan

    Anti-pandemic measures will be relaxed according to plan

    At the next Government meeting, the relaxation measures to be applied starting June 1 will be adopted, the Romanian Prime Minister Florin Cîţu has announced, mentioning that there is no reason not to go further with the phased lifting of restrictions. He said he had talks with those directly affected and, as a result, some measures will be improved.Cîţu has stressed, again, that the goal of the vaccination campaign is to eliminate the pandemic and mentioned the very good figures regarding the infection rates.

    The head of government has also stated that the vaccination has shown results, and the third wave of Covid 19 has disappeared. Indeed, the pandemic has been on a downward trend in Romania lately. The capital and all counties now have infection rates below one case per one thousand inhabitants. The pressure on hospitals has also decreased, with only a third of the number of patients being admitted to intensive care as compared to the peak period. However, the number of daily deaths associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection remains high. More than 30,000 Romanians have lost their lives since the beginning of the pandemic.

    The vaccination campaign has gone well in big cities, Bucharest being the leader with over 43% of people over 16 immunized. It is followed by Cluj County (northwest) with about 40%. The counties with the lowest vaccination rates, between 15 and 17%, are Suceava and Botosani (northeast), Giurgiu (south) and Bacau (east). Immunization through less conventional methods, hoping to attract as many people as possible, has also been used. Thus, the Ministry of Culture, through the ‘Marin Sorescu’ National Theater in Craiova (south) and the Bucharest National Library, will resume, starting Friday, vaccination marathons, and in Iasi (east), through the National Museum Complex ‘Moldova’, a ‘drive-through’ vaccination center will be opened. Both the first jab and the booster will be administered, and citizens will receive invitations to shows or to participate in a raffle.

    In another move, between May 31 and June 1, there will be an anti-COVID immunization marathon dedicated to teenagers aged 16 to 18 years old in centers set up nationwide. The president of the National Vaccination Coordination Committee, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, has specified that the young people, accompanied by parents or legal guardians, will be able to come anytime, not only after 2 p.m. as it is now. There will be one or several centers in each county, depending on the available staff, and they will be open 24 hours a day. On Thursday, a pro-vaccination media campaign will be launched by the Government, which is meant to be ‘louder’ than the ‘anti-vaccination voices’ as the Prime Minister has stated. (MI)

  • May 23, 2021 UPDATE

    May 23, 2021 UPDATE

    COVID-19 The PM of Romania Florin Cîţu said the vaccine rollout must be stepped up so that the relaxation measures planned for the forthcoming period may be implemented as soon as possible. Several vaccination marathons are held this weekend in various towns in the country, and drive-thru centres are operational. Since the end of December, over 7.3 million vaccine doses have been administered in Romania, with nearly 3.2 million people receiving the booster dose as well. Meanwhile, the number of new Covid-19 cases in Romania continues to drop, with 307 new cases reported on Sunday out of nearly 18,500 tests. This is the lowest number in nearly 11 months. In hospitals, the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care is 590. Also, 56 COVID-related deaths were reported for the past 24 hours.



    COUNCIL The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis takes part on Monday and Tuesday in a special European Council meeting to be held in Brussels. According to the presidency, the head of state will plead for quick and consistent implementation of the digital green certificates at European level, but will reiterate that these must not affect citizens freedom of movement. Iohannis will also call for a European mechanism to be put in place as soon as possible to ensure vaccine donations to non-EU countries. the main topics on the agenda of the European Council are the EU-wide coordination of COVID-19 measures, fighting climate change, and the Unions relations with Russia and the UK.



    MIGRANTS Romanian border police in Borş Sunday found 30 Syrian and Iraqi nationals trying to cross the border illegally into Hungary. According to the police, the migrants, aged between 3 and 34, were hiding in a truck registered in Turkey, with a Turkish driver, heading for France.



    EUROVISION The lead singer of the Italian band Maneskin, winner of the 65th edition of the Eurovision song contest, will take a drug test upon their return to Italy, following drug use speculations, announced the European Broadcasting Union, which organized the competition. The allegations were sparked by competition footage showing Damiano David leaning over and touching a table with his nose. The band firmly denies the accusations. The Italian band won this years Eurovision contest with the rock song that had previously won them the San Remo competition as well. Romania failed to qualify into this years Eurovision final. Over the years, Romanias best performances in this competition were two 3rd places (in 2005 and 2010) and a 4th place in 2006.



    ARREST Belarus forced a Ryanair aircraft to land in Minsk, so as to arrest a dissident journalist on board. Roman Protasevich played a key role in the protests against the re-election of Aleksandr Lukashenko. According to independent media, the Athens-Vilnius flight was diverted over an alleged bomb scare. Roman Protasevich, the founder of the Nexta online news channel, which covered the police brutality during the protests against Aleksandr Lukashenkos election, was arrested at the airport and faces capital punishment.



    ROWING Romania won 6 medals on Sunday (one gold, one silver and 4 bronze) at the Rowing World Cup in Lucerne, Switzerland. In the country ranking Romania came 7th, after the UK, China, the Netherlands, Italy, Ireland and Germany. Romanian athletes won the gold in the womens double sculls and silver in the lightweight womens double sculls. The 4 bronze medals were in the womens pair, mens pair, mens four and womens four races. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

  • Romania in the Green Zone

    Romania in the Green Zone

    Against the latest downward trend of
    the infection rate with the novel coronavirus, new relaxation measures have
    come into effect in this country as of May 15th. Outdoor mask
    mandates have been lifted though they remain in place when it comes to crowded
    places like public transportation facilities, supermarkets, meetings, concerts
    and other types of gathering.




    The night curfew has also been lifted
    and restaurants, bars and beer gardens can now stay opened between 5 and 24
    hours. Outdoor sporting facilities are allowed to stage competitions with an
    attendance of 25% of their capacity. But these events can be attended only by
    people who got their vaccine at least 10 days before the event, by people who
    can produce a negative PCR test taken in the past 72 hours or a rapid antigen
    test not older than 24 hours.




    Cultural events can be attended by a
    maximum of 500 people who must observe certain rules. We together had a
    difficult year. We were all wearing masks and had to keep the social
    distancing. We together got vaccinated and I would like to thank the Romanians
    for their understanding. We have a vaccine rollout in full swing and an
    all-time high of 120 thousand people vaccinated. A rollout that continues as
    the Romanians have understood that the only way out of this pandemic is
    vaccination, Romania’s Prime Minister Florin Citu said on Saturday night while
    attending the pilot-show at the National Theatre in Bucharest. According to
    Citu, new relaxation measures are to be applied as of June 1st,
    provided this downward trend continues.




    On the very first day of this
    much-desired relaxation, the Romanians left in large numbers for seaside and
    mountain resorts, which resulted in a series of traffic jams on the country’s
    main motorways.




    Those who decided to stay at home
    went to barbeques with friends or went for a stroll in parks, which during the
    weekends turned into overcrowded places.




    Authorities in Romania have planned
    another three relaxation stages on June 1st, July 1st and
    August 1st. Restrictions will be gradually lifted but they are conditioned
    by the number of vaccinated people and the infection rate. The vaccination
    targets have been announced by president Iohannis, 5 million by June 1st,
    6 million a month later and 7 million by August 1st.




    Under these conditions, next month
    will be seeing outdoor events with up to 1,000 participants, whereas outdoor
    weddings and other religious services can be attended by 70 people. Indoor
    festivities are limited to 50 people. The number of participants in suchlike
    events is expected to rise gradually starting July and August 1st.


    (bill)

  • May 15, 2021

    May 15, 2021

    Covid-19. Today is the first day in which the relaxation measures
    decided by the Romanian Government after the decrease of the infection rate with
    the new coronavirus across the country are applied. Thus, the protective mask
    is no longer mandatory outdoors, but wearing a mask is still a must in public
    transport stops, markets, fairs and in areas where rallies, processions,
    concerts or other types of gatherings take place. Traffic restrictions during
    the night have also been lifted, and restaurants, bars and terraces can stay
    open from 5 till midnight. Also, outdoor sports competitions can be organized
    and held, at 25% seating capacity. Cultural events are also allowed, with a
    maximum of 500 people who must follow certain rules. If the pandemic maintains
    its favorable evolution, with the decrease in the number of contamination
    cases, other restrictive measures will be lifted on June 1. On Saturday, authorities announced 729 new cases of Covid-19, out of 33,000 tests run nationwide. The Strategic Communication Group also reported 72 Covid-19 related deaths. Currently, there are 784 patients in intensive care.






    School. 90% of the Romanian pupils will physically return to
    school on Monday. There are about 2.6 million children living in localities
    where the rate of infection with the new coronavirus is below one per one thousand
    inhabitants. The Minister of Education, Sorin Cîmpeanu, has stated that there
    are 2,527 such localities. Another 654, including Bucharest, have infection
    rates above one in one thousand, and school will continue online. The Minister has
    also stated that the syllabus for this year’s exams has been adapted, due to
    the fact that most children attended online classes, but that the level of
    difficulty of the National Assessment and Baccalaureate examinations will
    remain the same.






    DNA. The general mayor of Bucharest, Nicusor Dan, announced
    that he has filed a complaint with the National Anticorruption Directorate
    (DNA) concerning an estimated damage of several million euros. Elected, in
    September 2020, as an independent, supported by the governing PNL and USR, the
    mayor says that the municipality registered the damage during the previous
    administration, led by the Social Democrat Gabriela Firea, currently a senator.
    The ‘criminal scheme’ is all the more ‘cynical’, as the cemeteries in Bucharest
    are concerned, Nicusor Dan said, also stressing that, taking into account the
    legal provisions and the involvement of several public institutions in this
    case, he cannot provide, for now, more details.






    Volleyball. Romanian men’s volleyball national team meets, today, on home
    turf, in Ploieşti (south), the Swiss national team, in a new match from the
    second tour of Group E of the 2021European Championship preliminaries. The
    Romanians defeated Albania 3-1 on Friday, after winning the match in the first tour
    in Nitra, Slovakia. The winners of the 7 preliminary groups and the best 5
    occupants of the 2 places qualify for the final tournament of the 2021European
    Championship. The final round will be organized in four countries, Poland, the
    Czech Republic, Estonia and Finland, between September 1st and 19th. (MI)

  • May 10-14

    May 10-14

    Relaxation measures come into force on May 15th, thanks to a downward infection trend in Romania

    The COVID-19 pandemic maintains its downward trend in Romania, the infection rate falling, this week, below the threshold of 1.5 cases per thousand inhabitants accumulated in 14 days. Further urging people to get vaccinated, in order to meet the targets set to ensure herd immunity, the authorities decided that measures can be relaxed as of 15 May. A step-by-step relaxation, according to the head of state Klaus Iohannis, who announced on Thursday a timetable that includes steps until September 1. A reassessment will take place at the end of summer to establish the measures to be put in place in autumn.

    Klaus Iohannis: As of May 15th, wearing a mask outdoors is no longer mandatory, with a few exceptions, such as in markets, fairs or public transport stops. The second measure to come into force immediately is the elimination of circulation restrictions at night. Also, shops will resume their normal opening hours. Also as of this weekend, open-air sports events are allowed at 25% seating capacity.

    Other measures will be taken on June 1st, starting with an increase in the allowed accommodation capacity, number of people in restaurants and participants in weddings or other festive events. As regards schools, most pupils are likely to go back to school physically in the following weeks, the president said. -Jingle –

    PM Florin Citu explained in Brussels Romania’s priorities, as established under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan

    This week, Romania’s PM Florin Citu has met in Brussels with several members of the EC to explain Romania’s priorities, as established in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The Government keeps its commitment to ensuring a sustainable post-pandemic growth, with focus on reform and investment, Florin Citu said:

    The NRRP has two components. One focuses on reforms, which the Government committed to under its governing program, the fiscal-budgetary strategy and the convergency program. The other one is the investment component. The resources that Romania will get will go to the economic sectors that are most productive. Florin Citu

    We had 3 major goals for this visit, to clarify and agree on major reforms with the European Commission, to establish that Romania will ask for all 29 billion, including loans – at this time only Romania and Italy will access the entire amount – and establish the most advanced investment components and what is left to work on the others. We have reached all 3 goals, said Cristian Ghinea, Minister of European Investments and Projects, who accompanied the Prime Minister to Brussels.

    Spring economic forecasts on Romania

    The Romanian economy registered a less severe fall last year than expected, and the return to the pre-crisis economic activity level is likely to take place before the end of this year, according to the European Commission’s spring forecast. Noting that there is still a degree of uncertainty due to the unpredictable evolution of the pandemic and due to potential problems in the supply of vaccines, the European executive estimates that Romania’s Gross Domestic Product will increase by 5.1% this year and by 4.9% in 2022.

    These positive signals are extraordinarily gratifying, but I reiterate the call for caution – we must maintain the record pace of public investment, while controlling budget expenditures for Romania to record sustainable economic growth, Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare said. According to the Commission, Romania’s budget deficit will decrease to 8% of the GDP this year and 7.1% of the GDP next year, from a level of 9.2% last year. Inflation is expected to rise slightly to 2.9% this year, followed by a decline to 2.7% next year.

    The 5th anniversary of the missile defense system in Deveselu

    In Bucharest, the celebration of 5 years since the missile-defense system in Deveselu (southern Romania) became operational was marked by an event organized by the Senate’s Defense Committee. The Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, recalled that the Deveselu facility represents a Romanian-American contribution to collective defense within NATO. At the same time, it represents an extremely important dimension in the security and military cooperation between Romania and the United State, within the Strategic Partnership for the 21st Century concluded by the two states, the minister added. Bogdan Aurescu also referred to the B9 Summit hosted on Monday in Bucharest by President Klaus Iohannis, a summit also attended via videoconference by the US President Joe Biden. The event in Bucharest also marked the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Agreement between Romania and the USA on the location of the ballistic missile defense system.

    The Romanian Foreign Ministry monitors the situation in Israel and the Palestinian territories

    The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has strongly condemned the rocket fire launched from the Gaza Strip, targeting civilian areas in Israel, and deeply regrets the loss of life in recent days. The head of diplomacy in Bucharest, Bogdan Aurescu, set up a working group, which met urgently to permanently monitor and assess the situation in Israel and the Palestinian territories, as well as to identify the main directions of action to support Romanians in the area affected by conflict. The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has raised the alert level for the area affected by the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian territories and recommends avoiding travel to the region. (MI)

  • May 14, 2021 UPDATE

    May 14, 2021 UPDATE

    COVID-19 Roughly 3.8 million people have been vaccinated in Romania and two thirds of them have got the booster dose. In the last 24 hours a record-high number of 110,000 people have received a COVID-19 jab. All the Romanian territory is now in the so-called green zone as the epidemic has been contained in most of the regions. According to the Strategic Communication Group, in the past 24 hours 835 new SARS-CoV-2 cases have been reported, out of over 34,000 tests conducted nation wide. 105 people died, bringing the death toll up to 29,413. In Bucharest the infection rate dropped to 1.21 per thousand, and the number of vaccinated people is over 1 million. The vaccine roll-out continues, without the need for prior appointment, in all the centers across the country, including 10 drive-throughs in major cities. The coordinator of the vaccination campaign Valeriu Gheorghiţă said on Friday that the goal of 7 million people vaccinated by August 1 is “realistic, but it depends not only on a good organisation but also on citizens willingness to get the vaccine. This has to do with the information provided to them, and in this respect Gheorghiţǎ appealed to opinion leaders to get involved in the vaccination campaign.



    RECOVERY In its National Recovery and Resilience plan (PNRR) Romania has included a number of reforms in several key areas and its pledges have been well received in Brussels, PM Florin Citu says. According to the head of the Bucharest executive, the plan is credible and doable and the cabinet members must work hard in the forthcoming period to complete the projects that are to be funded. During the visit he has recently paid to Brussels, the Romanian Prime Minister has assured the EU officials of Romania’s commitment to implementing the reforms comprised in the governing programme, in the fiscal-budgetary strategy, as well as in the convergence programme. Romania has pledged to present its PNRR by the end of May, with a one month delay against the original EU timeframe. Half of the EU members have so far presented their national plans for funding.



    RELAXATION PM Florin Cîţu Friday promised governmental support for the hospitality industry, an economic sector severely affected by the pandemic. He said a strategy will be implemented to promote Romanian tourism both domestically and abroad. The head of government said things will gradually return to normal, with a first stage scheduled to start on May 15, and the second one on June 1. The new measures include, among other things, the scrapping of mandatory face covering while outdoors, as of Saturday, except for crowded areas, and the lifting of the night curfew. Shops will also resume their normal opening hours. Meanwhile, the National Committee for Emergency Situations Friday approved 4 pilot events in the cultural field, with 3 opera shows and 1 theatre play welcoming viewers up to 70% of the halls seating capacity.



    POLL 45% of the Romanians intend to change their job after the pandemic, shows a recent poll conducted by an online recruiting platform. The main reason of the respondents is a higher pay. 11% want to go through a retraining programme whereas 9% are ready to leave the country. The categories standing the most chances to find a job are IT experts and qualified workers.



    MILITARY The national defence minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciucă had a meeting on Friday in Bucharest with gen. major David H. Tabor, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command Europe (SOCEUR). The two officials reviewed the security developments at the Black Sea, the Afghanistan pull-out calendar and bilateral cooperation avenues in terms of special operations forces. The expertise of our American partners in special operations will certainly improve the way in which our troops will adjust their strategic transformation process, so as to be prepared for any challenge, minister Ciucă said. He added that Romania acknowledged and appreciated the constant support of the US for the deterrence efforts regarding the Russian Federations aggressive actions and for ensuring stability at the Black Sea.



    PROGRAMME Eagerly awaited by many Romanians, a scrapping programme for home appliances started on Friday, with tens of thousands of people enrolling on the dedicated online platform. The programme will have 3 stages, starting with the more energy-consuming home appliances, fridges and washing machines. The total budget is over 15 million euro, and should include 200,000 beneficiaries, who will get vouchers ranging from 40 to 100 euros for scrapping their old appliances. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

  • Relaxation measures in Romania

    Relaxation measures in Romania

    On May 15th last year, Romania went out of the state of emergency declared for two months because of the new coronavirus. Several pandemic waves followed, and last autumn the threshold of 10 thousand cases of infection per day was exceeded. The health-care system was under severe pressure, additional beds were needed in ICUs and non-Covid hospitals were turned into units capable of treating Covid-19 patients.



    Today, a year on, things are better and some of the most restrictive measures imposed then are to be lifted. This is possible as all areas have been declared green, with an incidence rate below 1.5 per one thousand inhabitants, an infection rate below 5% and a good vaccination pace, with some 100,000 people getting the jab per day. Protective masks will no longer be mandatory outside, with the exception of crowded places, and this is just one of the measures Romanian authorities announced on Thursday.



    Here is President Klaus Iohannis with more:


    As of May 15th, wearing a mask outdoors is no longer mandatory, with a few exceptions, such as in markets, fairs or public transport stops. The second measure to come into force immediately is the elimination of circulation restrictions at night. Also, shops will resume their normal opening hours. Also as of this weekend, open-air sports events are allowed at 25% seating capacity.



    The post-pandemic relaxation will be done gradually, and the next stage is due to start on June 1st, the head of state said. As of then, weddings and other festive events will be allowed outdoors with a maximum of 70 people, and indoors the limit will be 50 people. If, however, the organizer of the event can guarantee that all the participants are vaccinated, the restriction regarding the total number of participants allowed will be eliminated, just like in the case of gyms. The good news came together with a call for caution and for observing the restrictions that are still in place.



    Prime Minister Florin Citu:


    It is very important for all Romanians to understand that, although these relaxation measures are coming, the pandemic is still not over. Masks will have to be worn indoors and in bus stations, as well as in crowded places. We’ve taken a major step now, earlier than we had anticipated, but it’s not over yet. We must go on with the vaccination process, as we’ve been able to take these measures exactly because we have been vaccinated.


    So far, 3.7 million people have been vaccinated in Romania, and two thirds of them have also got the second jab. (MI)


  • Vaccination, a chance for relaxation

    Vaccination, a chance for relaxation

    A year ago, all over the world, except in countries led by leaders as vocal as they were irresponsible, restrictions became the new normal. Accompanied by drastic health measures and the authorities’ effort to convince the population that hygiene and physical distance are mandatory, not just necessary, restrictive measures have been the way to curb the number of infections, deaths and the collapse of health systems.

    What has changed radically in the last half year has been the emergence of vaccines, seen as a chance to return to life as it was before the pandemic. In Romania, just as elsewhere, the call for vaccination is also a plea for normality, which has become the leitmotif of the public messages launched by authorities.

    The relaxation of anti-COVID measures, going as far as eliminating the obligation of wearing a mask outdoors, but not earlier than August, depends on the vaccination rate, Prime Minister Florin Cîţu has said. He has stated that the target is 5 million people vaccinated by June 1, when some of the restrictions will be lifted if things go well. A relaxation of the restrictions for the summer period in tourism and the HoReCa industry will be considered, depending on the pace of vaccination, and the main beneficiaries will the Romanians who have got the jab.

    Florin Citu: It is clear that we can talk about not wearing masks on the beach, for example, or if we go to the mountains, on a hike, but we can also talk about facilities for vaccinated people. We can talk, for example, about restaurants and hotels receiving guests at 100% capacity if they are vaccinated. We can talk about private events for vaccinated people. We will hold such pilot events in Bucharest and Cluj and I am sure that the results will be good.

    The Bucharest authorities are working on a strategy for the vaccination of children aged 12 to 15, once the Pfizer vaccine is approved for this age group. The first vaccination target for adults, 5 million until June 1, is possible, the head of the national vaccination campaign, doctor Valeriu Gheorghiţă says, but he also stresses the importance of precaution:

    Any relaxation measure is important to come with a very careful epidemiological surveillance, a monitoring of at least two weeks, to highlight the possible impact, and so gradually other measures can be relaxed. For this reason, it is important that as many people as possible get the vaccine, because a vaccinated person is a much better protected person and the possibility of infection decreases.

    In big cities, vaccination works well. The champions are the capital Bucharest and Cluj (northwest). Nationwide, nearly 3.5 million people have received at least one dose, and more than 2 million have got both jabs. Romania is now ranked sixth in Europe and 18th in the world with regard to vaccination rate. (MI)