Romanian teens find similarities with Sudbury youth

Despite minor variances like what time of day pancakes should be eaten and what they call a "simple" American fashion sense, four Romanian girls staying with host families in Sudbury said they have found more similarities than differences between the two cultures.

"Americans eat pancakes for breakfast," said Cristina Burlacu, a 14-year-old from Bucharest, explaining that pancakes are dessert fare back home. "I thought, 'treats for breakfast?"'

"They seem to dress very simply," she added. "We are always very stressed about what we are going to wear tomorrow."

Through all the subtle nuances, however, the girls say they have found a culture that mirrors their own to a surprising degree.

"We are just here to find out what other teenagers like us do," said Burlacu. "It has really changed our way of thinking. We always thought that America is a big country far away, but the people are just like us."

The four teens - Roberta Tripeca, 13; Ana Marie Moise, 15; Iulia Maties, 14, and Burlacu, have been staying with host families since June 28 through the Educational Enrichment for Romanian Children program.

The program was founded in 1980 as a non-profit agency aiming to bolster relationships between professors in Romania and the United States, said the group's Executive Director, Daniella Floru. Over time, the mission of the organization evolved and in the mid-1990s the group began bringing Romanian students to America.

Now a private enterprise, the program continues to bring low-income, English-speaking Romanian students who excel in academics to America for their summer program, where the teens attend camp at the Middlesex School in Concord and College Academy in Maynard.

Floru said the group aims to provide "bi-directional" education - not only giving the Romanian teens a glimpse of American society, but also showing the host families what it means to be a teenager in one of the newest additions to the European Union.

"These children are a reflection of the changes that are happening in Romania," she said. "You bring these young kids here and it gives you a glimpse of what is going on."

Since the fall of the Communist Bloc in 1989, Romania has undergone a series of reforms and built up relations with the rest of Europe. Program Director Michelle Ciurea said that the four teens in the program, who were born after the fall of communism, demonstrate the brighter nature of a new Romania.

"We are attempting to broaden minds and broaden horizons on both sides of this program," she said.

"The surprising thing has been what these kids are like," she said. "We all kind of expected shy, withdrawn kids. Instead we are getting these kids who look like any American middle-schooler."

The teens also acknowledged the differences between their generation and the older ones who lived under the burden of communism, saying that older Americans seem to have an inherent kindness not shared by those who lived under communism.

For now, however, they are just enjoying the trip, keeping busy with excursions to museums in Boston, camping trips in New Hampshire and a weekend on Cape Cod.

"It's been awesome," said Burlcalu. "At this age, it's important that we came here."

While the teens don't go back home until August 3, Ciurea said the program is already gearing up for next year, and the all-volunteer organization is looking for potential host families and volunteers. Anyone interested in helping out can contact her at michelleciurea@yahoo.com.