Bucharest - Post Report Question and Answers
Morale among expats:
Average. Some love it. Some hate it. - Jan 2013
Great. - Aug 2012
Low - May 2011
Low, especially at the U.S. Embassy. This is largely due to post management and embarrassingly-poor funding. - Jul 2010
I think it is pretty good. Embassy and business seem to get along just fine. It is important to have balance between activities with work and school. Also, it is important to be positive. I think if I only hung out with embassy people, or school people, etc. it would not be the same experience. It is important to make your "bubble" big! - Dec 2009
Depends on who you hang with and what your general outlook is. We really enjoyed Bucharest, as did our friends. Others, not so much. We focused the things we loved about it, rather than what Bucharest was lacking. - Dec 2009
Depends on who you're with and if they're willing to make some effort. For a lot of us, it's pretty high and we like living here. Those stuck in the suburbs who don't make the effort to get out seem pretty unhappy. The families at the U.S. Embassy seem to be the unhappiest of all the expat groups and aren't satisfied until everyone is as unhappy as they are. I don't know what the deal is, but they sure don't like being out of the U.S. We've learned to steer clear of them. If you're willing to accept you're in a foreign country and have some initiative, this is a great place to live. Romanians are very friendly towards Americans and are hard workers. We've liked getting to know them. - Dec 2008
Low. The folks we have met over the past year both inside and outside of the U.S. mission community speak openly about their dislike of Bucharest. The high (and rising) costs, gritty ugly city, traffic and cigarette smoke will wear you down. - Feb 2008
Moral at the embassy is okay but slipping. Hopefully some changes this summer will turn things around. - Jan 2008
It varies by place of work. - Jan 2008
