My 1st country, the country of origin, is not Russia but Romania.  I was born in communism time, therefore the resilience towards dictatorship and stupidity. I am very allergic to doing idiotic things, just because somebody feels in power to order without a second glance.  I grew up with a desire to travel the world and learn as many languages as possible.

The first step in achieving this dream happened when I was 18, and I received a scholarship to do my University studies in the 2nd country – Bulgaria. This happened, of course, after the revolution against the dictatorship of Ceausescu. Luckily for me, or thanks to the poor TV regime in my home country, I got a chance to acquire a taste of the Bulgarian television. At that time we had 3 hours at TV in the evening filled just with programs about how the socialism is doing beautiful things for the country or speeches of our beloved president, Nicolae Ceausescu.

I was forced to learn Bulgarian from watching the shows from our neighbors south of Danube. My parents blackmailed me into translating the international movies doubled in Bulgarian for them. This was the only condition that they impose for me if I wanted to watch the Bulgarian television. Now looking back, what started as a necessity becomes a life changer.
I was amazed when with what I learned from TV I was admitted to the University of Shumen. All my effort in translating for my parents helped me to pass the exams and study in my new country, Bulgaria. After I graduated, I returned to the 1st, where I stayed for 10 years.

In 2009 I moved to the 3rd - Canada. I was thrilled, I got two in one: English and French in the same country. After I arrived, I realized that the French were not quite the French I was expecting, but whatever I survived. My trip to the 3rd was not fun. In Germany, the guy from the custom called me the Russian bride. What’s up with you people? Russia is not even in Eastern Europe. Romania and Russia are different like day and night, for God’s sake, we don’t even speak the same language. And no, Romania was never part of the Soviet Union.