🌍 From Bucharest to Johannesburg: A Romanian's Unexpected Life in South Africa

Episode #0033

When you're young and idealistic, the world feels like a blank map waiting for your signature. That’s exactly the spirit Sergiu carried with him when he left Bucharest, Romania, to chase something far less tangible than a paycheck—adventure.

But no amount of teenage bravado could have foreshadowed the 14-year journey that followed.

“I was young and stupid. I wanted life to be like a movie.”

Sergiu's departure wasn’t spurred by politics, family drama, or even a job offer. It was a leap into the unknown, inspired by the simple desire for something more. South Africa, a country he'd heard about from Romanian friends through a church group, became his one-way ticket to a story worth telling.

He promised his parents he’d go to college there—and technically, he did. But after a year of studying, he dropped out and found himself working on a rural farm, watching barefoot kids walk 10 kilometers to school each morning.

Visa Dramas & Lost Paperwork: The Bureaucratic Jungle

If adventure had a nemesis, it would be the South African immigration office.

Sergiu’s story is marked by absurd visa renewal sagas: lost paperwork, delayed applications, even living "illegally" for two years while waiting on an appeal. Once, the authorities lost his police clearance in the mail—twice.

Compare that to his wife (a native Afrikaans speaker) who breezed into Romania with no issues, and the frustration becomes almost comedic.

Crime, Caution & Carrying On

At first, the countryside felt safe—idyllic, even. The worst that happened was a tractor battery theft.

Then came the harsh contrast of city life.

Unemployment hovers around 35%. People knock on your car window at night—with a weapon (real or fake). Friends have been hijacked at gunpoint by crime syndicates. Kids don’t play unattended in malls. And red lights? At night, they’re more of a suggestion than a rule. If no one’s coming, you drive. Period.

“You're not a soft target if you're alert,” Sergiu explains. Awareness isn’t paranoia—it’s survival.

A Family Rooted in Two Worlds

Despite everything, Sergiu stayed. He married an Afrikaans woman, had four kids, and made a home in a quiet suburb where he still checks his rearview mirror before pulling into his driveway.

Rugby Saturdays are a family ritual now. His four-year-old scores touchdowns, and the community gathers with food trucks and music. For a brief morning, life feels simple again.

Still, he's haunted by memories of barefoot children walking hours to school. “Imagine your child doing that,” he says, shaking his head.

Gated Communities & Parallel Universes

In South Africa, the economic divide isn’t just wide—it’s architectural.

On one side: slums and dusty roads. On the other: palatial gated communities with golf courses, pharmacies, schools, even hospitals. Entire self-sustaining cities for the elite, where people don’t need to leave—unless for vacation, in another safe, upscale zone.

“You drive out the gate and you’re immediately met with poverty and begging,” Sergiu says. “Inside, it’s another world.”

Integration & Identity

His Afrikaans in-laws weren’t thrilled about their granddaughter dating a Romanian. There were grilling sessions—both metaphorical and literal. “They all wanted to see if I could braai,” he jokes. “I still can’t.”

He’s not into hunting, either. Not really into guns. But he tries to blend in, even if he’s still more "Mici and Amandine" than "biltong and bucks."

Though fully integrated—permanent resident, working in steel, raising a bilingual family—he still slips Romanian references into chats and misses the lightning-fast summer storms of Bucharest.

Raising Third Culture Kids… Who Don’t Speak Romanian

“I’m ashamed,” Sergiu admits. His kids don’t speak Romanian. He’s tried—FaceTime with his parents, Romanian cartoons, one-day-a-week language rules—but life gets in the way. The dominant language at home? Afrikaans. The funny one? English.

And Romanian? That’s now a bridge he’s constantly trying to rebuild.

Would He Do It Again?

Absolutely.

It wasn’t the life he expected—but it's the life that shaped him.

He found love, built a family, and witnessed both the darkest corners and the most beautiful complexities of humanity. South Africa isn’t safe, not by European standards. But it’s home.

His advice for other Romanians thinking about the move?

“Never let your guard down. Even the nicest guy might just see dollar signs.”

Final Thoughts: Humility, Faith, and the Long Game

Sergiu credits his faith for keeping him grounded. His actions—giving kids rides to school, helping elders get home—are quiet, powerful reminders that being a good person isn't always loud. It's consistent.

When asked what he still holds onto from Romania, he doesn’t say food or festivals. He says this:

“I like things to be done properly. No shortcuts. That part of me… that’s still very Romanian.”

🎧 Listen to Sergiu's full story on the podcast Whereabouts Tales
It’s a raw, sincere, and surprisingly warm exploration of life between continents, identity, and what it means to build a home far away from where you were born.