WHO
WE ARE

It all started in the late 1990s…

…when several young individuals living in different places (Bucharest, Suceava, Cluj, San Francisco), without having met each other, were spending their nights (the phone line was cheaper in the wee hours!) on travel forums while using the typically weak dial-up internet connection with one common goal, that of promoting a still little known Romania emerging from its 45 years of bleak Communist regime, as well as the countries around it. We found ourselves answering dozens upon dozens of questions on train schedules, available accommodation here and there in a country still relying on old, often decrepit hotels and a handful of new B&Bs, museum opening hours, local crafts and cuisine or hiking trails, as well as the odd inquiry about the situation in the war-torn Yugoslavia. Not once the dawn (and the 6 AM deadline for the cheap dial-up connection) found us surrounded by books, maps and scraps scribbled with train connections, phone numbers or e-mail addresses, all that at a time when information was not a mere click and Google search away as it nowadays is. We were to meet in person at a later point, but for the time being that did not matter, as we acted as if we were in the same room, sitting at the same table and working together for a common goal, believing in a set of similar values.

Years passed and we went our own separate ways – some in the hospitality industry, others in IT or marketing -, still meeting online every now and then until the once vital travel forums slowly became less popular or were altogether shut down as the world moved towards readily available online information, while Romania in particular developed its ground infrastructure and opened up to foreign visitors. Traveling extensively to countries around the world, we however kept on searching for the lesser known, untouched and often hidden gems granting Romania and the region their splendour, from the heritage of the plethora of ethnic groups in the country to the remote hamlets up the highlands to ancient crafts, from the myriad of waterways in the Danube Delta to the little visited artists’ houses complete with their art collections in Bucharest. And then, some of the former heterogeneous, but solidary group decided to put together all that we were given in our professional, as well as personal life, all experience, knowledge and curiosity so as to share them further with our fellow humans.

Dramatis personae.

Here are some of us,
the team behind Orbis Unum
and the journeys within it.

Andreea

Growing up in Communist Romania, when people were not allowed to own passports and travel abroad, I have always dreamt of visiting the world. And, after the Romanian revolution, when the opportunity arose, I started to travel and have never stopped exploring since then. Travel has been my constant hobby. I travel for the reasons most people do so: to experience different cultures, to try new food, to see historic or natural sites, to see familiar things with new eyes, in a word, to always develop my knowledge of the world. Then, from my first trips, I discovered that I like to be the one in charge of planning any outing and that my family and friends liked to have me as an organizer and guide when going anywhere, to rely on me for the hows and whens. Which is why, after a successful career in software design with a major processor producer, 20 years of acting as a private investor and graduating Philosophy in my 50s (odd as it may sound, it felt natural after having graduated Computer Science some 30 years before!), I have decided that the time has come for me to turn my passion blending in my interest in travel and existential questions into a giving back project. To help those who, like me, cannot imagine life without experiencing the many wonders our planet has to offer, without pondering on what one more step farther down the trail might reveal. And I found that Romania, my home country, the one I feel closest to, as well as fondest of, is the best place to do so.

Alex

My interest generally in wandering and in Romania, respectively the region around it in particular, goes back to when, a 6 year old at the time, I started traveling and hiking with my father, and hiking or cycling all over the Carpathians, come blizzard, come sunshine or torrential rain, was to become a lifetime interest. Later on, my studies, constant roaming across some 80 countries and incurable curiosity determined me to write guidebooks on Romania and Bulgaria, as well as to work in the travel business while putting together bespoke tours and theme events, something I have done for 25 years. For more than a decade I also worked on marketing campaigns, and the common ground of my two professional interests (marketing and tourism) was the fact that both dealt with human emotions and expectations; my extensive reading of and interest in Social Psychology definitely had a say here. Therefore, I found the same joy and ultimate interest while running cycling or cultural tours for both individual travelers and groups, and working on field events or conferences for hundreds of people, mountaineering escapades from the Andes to the Ruwenzori and the 5 AM running always observed with enthusiasm and religiosity. Summing it all up, I believe that whatever I do needs to refer to the people involved in that project and the experiences, respectively the memories generated. At the end of the day, it is all about what I give others, because giving is what we have control over. The rest is down to curiosity, research, humility and the eternal “qui rogat, non errat”.

Bucur

An elusive character just like the legend-torn shepherd settling in a clearing in the extensive Vlăsia Woods, hence founding Bucharest, our polyglot Bucur is a well worn figure that has led countless tours across the world, including across Romania back in the years when pioneering work enthusiasm met the “make the best of the poor infrastructure” de rigueur optimism many took for fanaticism, while others pragmatically enjoyed the raw authenticity of. Therefore, even now, when the country and region are from many points of view (especially those despicable, but necessary logistics) ages from those early years, we think of Bucur. Every time we need a hand at polishing our ego, a second, third or one hundredth opinion or just a language polish, we reach out and Bucur is guaranteed to kick back, his senses always ready for some fresh Bukovina sheep cheese, the mouth-watering Wallachian pastry or Maramureș horincă. Therefore, we have chosen to add Bucur’s note on all of our tours here instead of our own rationale. To be more precise, we have let him say why he would embark (well, in fact he often did) on that particular journey. And we have always greatly benefitted from the inspiration in his say, the great Stoic way:

“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.”

Marcus Aurelius