Bucharest for Digital Nomads
My first impression of Bucharest was, honestly, “Damn!!! It’s not warm at all!” I am a freelancing digital nomad, but I hate making decisions and I don’t like planning trips that much. I don’t like researching the forecast or where to go. I came to Bucharest firstly, because I was going to travel somewhere close to Kiev by train since I don’t like flying, and secondly, I wanted to go somewhere warm because I don’t like the cold. So, I decided to come to Bucharest by train. I thought the weather in this city would be like it is in Greece. I was wrong! 🙁
I ended up having to buy a winter jacket, socks, and t-shirts because I accidentally washed my white t-shirts with red bed sheets. I made many mistakes while I was in Bucharest.
Cash/Card Trouble
Some bastard cloned my ATM card and I had to cancel it making me unable to withdraw cash anymore. I have a credit card, so I can survive, but it sucks that I cannot enjoy street food or some museums anymore because they don’t accept credit card….
Luckily, I had a friend who bought an external HDD. So, we used my credit card to pay the HDD at the cashier and she gave me the cash for it . From now, this is only way I can get cash 🙁
I bought a wide angle lens, M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 9-18mm F4.0-5.6
I got a new lens for my Olympus Pen, M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 9-18mm F4.0-5.6, very wide angle lens. It would’ve been 50 euro cheaper if I had bought it from Amazon Japan and had it delivered to my house, but that would’ve meant I could not have used it until I got back to Japan! So, I bought one at one of the biggest camera shops in Bucharest.
A wide angle lens is perfect for taking photos in cities. The M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 9-18mm F4.0-5.6 is very cheap compared to others — which are also smaller.
100% recommended!
Super busy with work
Being busy at work is both heaven and hell for freelancers. Being busy means you get a lot of projects, and they are not just regular projects, but highly profitable ones — otherwise you would turn them down. But, being busy means, you know, being busy. Nobody likes being busy at work.
I found a really good place to find leads. I reached out to them and the response rate was pretty good, maybe even too good. So much so that I had to work 8-10 hours a day for 3 weeks straight. On the bright side, I actually made a lot of money!
The most beautiful pub in Bucharest
Eden garden is a hidden gem in Bucharest. It’s an open air pub near Romana and Victoria. It’s a little bit hard to find so you might need to get some help from locals.
Digital Nomad friendly Cafe, M60
M60 is a digital nomad friendly cafe. You can charge your laptop, and the Wi-Fi connection is pretty decent. You will see a lot of people working on their laptop there.
The London Club, aristocrats pool hall
If you like playing pool, you are gonna love the London Club. Even if you don’t, you would at least enjoy taking photos there. The building used to be a mansion and it was built by a rich jerk in the 18th century as a gift to his lover. It was not originally a pool hall.
How to travel around Romania
To travel around Romania, I recommend going by train or bus. You can buy train tickets online from CFR website.
Day trip to Constanta and Brasov
I have decided to change my traveling style a bit. I used to travel to many different cities, renting an Airbnb in each place and staying there for a minimum of two weeks. For example, when I was in Poland, I spent 2 weeks in Wroclaw, 2 weeks in Gdansk, 2 weeks in Warsaw and 5 weeks in Krakow.
This time, I have decided to make more day trips or two day trips from the capital city, thus avoiding the troubles of having to pack a suitcase.
I made two of these trips while in Romania; Brasov and Constanta. Both of them are within 3 hours by train from Bucharest. Constanta is honestly kind of depressing in the winter. There are a lot of abandoned buildings, homeless people living there, and gray skies. Romanians travel there just to go to the beach in summer, so it was like going to Santorini in April. There were a lot of closed cafes and restaurants.
Brasov is famous for the Dracula castle — The Bran Castle , but I was told that it’s a tourist trap, since Vlad Tepeş, the famous inspiration for Dracula, didn’t actually live there. He lived in another city called Sighisoara.
Next stop is Istanbul!!!! I am going to stay there for both Christmas time and New Year’s. I hope I will have friends to hang out with there during those family festivities 😀 If not, I am just gonna do my taxes. 🙁