Romania, Day 3

We did lots and lots of walking around the city today. There are so many stray dogs in Cluj. It makes me so sad to see so many beautiful dogs wandering the streets, and without human companionship. I watched a father and son completely avoid the dog. All I could think about is walking around a city or town in the US, and most people would stop and pet a passing dog. At least I would, and I know several friends would. It's apparently a major problem here. I haven't seen too many cats, actually I haven't seen any cats.

I've also noticed that unlike NYC or Philly, hardly anyone walks around with headphones in their ears. I found that a bit surprising.

The morning started with a walk through Parcul Central, an absolutely gorgeous park with a long central path and interesting plants and very old buildings, on the way to Babes-Bolyai Universitatii. Our first presentation was in Facultatea de Studii Europene. I was not surprised to hear that most students know at least 2 languages when they enter the program. I really take it for granted that everyone speaks English in the US and in England. I've felt disappointed over the past few years that I am not adept in another language. I've really enjoyed learning Hungarian, and learning Romanian while I'm in the country these past few weeks. I definitely want to learn another language in my free time in the near future.

Next stop was the Avalon building, Facultatea of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy. We had the chance to observe the second virtual reality laboratory in the world being utilized for psychological research. Currently, the virtual reality neo cube is used to simulate virtual classroom environments in the assessment of ADHD. We had the opportunity to interact with some of the trial programs, such as walking through a riverside town, the riviera, and a rollercoaster. The lab is currently working on changing the ADHD virtual reality assessment tool to treat ADHD. The other thing I found really really cool was a virtual reality helmet was used to treat pain in burn victims and during physical therapy. The virtual reality simulated a calming world of ice and rivers with dolphins, along with audio. The study conducted indicated a significant reduction in pain for patients interacting with the virtual reality world. It was so incredibly interesting. I really hope that this technology will come to the US, and I think it would be especially helpful in behavioral modification and pain management.

We then had the opportunity to explore the facilities of the UBB TV and Radio stations. It was great for me to see how their radio station was set up and programmed. I spent some time speaking with their programming director to get an idea of how things were different from US radio.

Our next stop was the Facultatea de Ştiinţe Economice şi Gestiunea Afacerilor - a brand new building finished in 2007. It really angers me that universities put so much money into the business school, yet the journalism and social work schools have facilities lacking in technology and functionality.

Our short lunch break was spent at Vertigo Espresso Social Bar on the Piata Unirii, the main square of Cluj-Napoca where the gorgeous St. Michael's Cathedral is located. Here is a picture of Maureen, Caitlyn, Mallory (my roomie), and me:

Next up, we walked down Strada Decembrie to Facultatea de Sociologie şi Asistenţa Sociala, Faculty of Sociology and Social Work. We passed Catedrala Ortodoxa on the way.

Also on Strada Decembrie, Biserica Sf. Petru si Pavel:

At Facultatea de Sociologie şi Asistenţa Sociala, we had a lecture on Romanian social work policy and service delivery in the country. It was very informative. I had expected there to be a lack of specialized treatment or residential care for developmental disabilities, and I was certainly correct. Those who require residential care are placed in nursing homes or hospitals for long term care. It was shocking that the US is working so hard to de-institutionalize many populations in need of residential placement to maximize independence and practice normalization, whereas in Romania, it is the opposite. The closet service to community care is a personal assistant program for the handicapped, both children and adults.

After our lecture, a group of us somehow managed to coordinate flagging down three taxis and communicating to non-English speaking taxi drivers to take us to Gara - the train station. I was so proud of myself! At Gara, I managed to buy my train ticket to Budapest - it was so much cheaper than buying it on the EuroRail website. Next, we bought round trip tickets to Brasov.

I'm surprised at how comfortable I feel here, but I really do think it's because I really like the students that are here, and we've really bonded in the few days we've been together. I am really loving Romania, and almost wish that I had chosen to participate in the additional two week service learning program.