RSA History

  • April 8, 2007 - Orthodox Easter Dinner & RSA Elections. This event was co-organized by RSA (MIT) and RGC and HRA (Harvard) and had a record participation of more than 80 people. This year's menu included lamb chops and polenta (friptura de miel cu mamaliga), drob (an Easter delicacy made of lamb organs), potato salad (salata de boeuf), eggplant salad (salata de vinete), cozonac and Easter eggs. The excellent food was cooked by a team composed of MIT and Harvard students and their friends: Florin Albeanu, Alexandru Andoni, Mihai Badoiu, Dan Buzan, Stefan Carp, Alexandra Costin, Andrei Cristea, Dorian Croitoru, Claudiu Damian, Nicolae Done, Dan Iancu, Florin Morosan, Daniel Nedelcu, Daniela Nemerenco, Ruxandra Paul, Ana Sarbu, Alexandru Salcianu, Laura Serban, Emanuel Stoica, Ciprian Stratulat, Simona Tescu. They were helped by Andra Geana, Imanuela Costiner, Daniel Dumitran, Marishko Kosovsky, Petra Pajtas, Mihai Patrascu, Ana-Maria Piso, Victor Costan and Virgil Petrea. Special thanks to Florin Morosan for the roasted peppers specialty, and to Bogdan Fedeles and Stefan Carp for the transportation.

    On the occasion of the dinner, the RSA members elected a new executive board: Emanuel Stoica (president), Dan Iancu (vice-president), Ana-Maria Piso (treasurer), Victor Costan (secretary), Dorian Croitoru (sports chair) and Patricia Tcaciuc (social chair).

    The night before the dinner, a group of 35 people went to the Easter Vigil at St. Parascheva Romanian Orthodox Church in Wakefield, MA. The trip was only possible with the generous help of Marian Simion, Octavian Bucur, Claudiu Badea, Stefan Carp, Mihai Ibanescu, Alexandru Andoni and Dan Iancu. (E.S.)

  • March 13, 2007 - Spring Dance Party. Our traditional spring event attracted about 60 people and even had visitors from as far as Chicago ;). (E.S.)

  • November 24, 2006 - Thanksgiving dinner. This was the second time we organized a large scale thanksgiving dinner. More than 55 people were present and tasted several delicacies: stuffed peppers, eggplant salad, mashed potatoes and, obviously, turkey :) The event was organized by Dan Iancu and Emanuel Stoica helped by Radu Berinde and Stefan Carp. The team of cooks (in alphabetical order): Mihai Anton, Victor Costan, Catherine Huang, Dan Iancu, Florin Morosan, Daniel Nedelcu, Petra Pajtas, Mihai Patrascu, Virgil Petrea, Ana-Maria Piso, Alexandru Salcianu, Laura Serban, Vlad Slavici, Claudiu Stan, Emanuel Stoica, Simona Tescu, Ana Visan. (E.S.)

  • October 20, 2006 - Fall Dance Party. Organizers: Emanuel Stoica, Virgil Petrea, Dan Iancu, Mihai Patrascu, Bogdan Fedeles, Daniel Dumitran si Dorian Croitoru. (E.S.)

  • September 24, 2006 - Welcome BBQ at MIT. The welcome berbecue gathered this year about 55 people (a record number in the last four years), mostly students from MIT, Harvard and other colleges from the Boston area. Many thanks to the organizers and contributors: Emanuel Stoica (reservation, shopping, organization), Virgil Petrea (shopping, organization), Dan Iancu (organization), Daniel Dumitran, Alexandru Andoni and others. (E.S.)

  • September 2006 - New people.
    Ana-Maria Piso (UG 1), Raluca Ada Popa (CS & Math, transfer, 2), Victoria Popic (CS, transfer, 3), Nicoleta Neagu (Operations Research, postdoc).

  • July 27, 2006 -Fruits and Volleyball. This event had an unusual attendance for this time of the year (~30 people). Two groups were formed, one playing volleyball, the other soccer. All of us enjoyed the splendid weather and the various fresh fruits offered (grapes, peaches, cherries, watermelons, kiwi, etc.) Event organized by Emanuel Stoica and Dan Iancu. Special thanks to Cristian Jitianu. (E.S.)

  • May 21, 2006 - End-of-term Barbecue. A menu consisting of chicken breast, burgers, feta cheese, tomatoes, radishes, mushrooms etc. was offered to about 35 people who joined us from MIT, Harvard, BU., Bentley C. and other Bostonian surroundings. Being caught in the rain after two hours of barbecuing, we moved to a lounge in Ashdown, the nearby graduate dorm, where we spent another two hours playing table-tennis and chattering :-). Event organized by Virgil Petrea and Emanuel Stoica, helped by Dan Iancu and Alexandru Salcianu. (E.S.)

  • April 28, 2006 - International fair (I-fair) at MIT. The talented cooks of RSA prepared several Romanian specialties for the annual I-fair at MIT. The menu included salata de vinete (egg-plant salad), mamaliga, sarmale in foi de vita (stuffed grape leaves). Many thanks to the organizers and contributors (in alphabetical order): Alexandru Andoni, Alexandru Salcianu, Daniel Dumitran, Daniel Nedelcu, Emanuel Stoica, Gheorghe Chistol, Mihai Badoiu, Virgil Petrea. (E.S.)

  • April 23, 2006 - Orthodox Easter Dinner & RSA Elections. The event co-organized by RSA (MIT) and RGC and HRS (Harvard) had a record participation of about 75 people. West Dining Room in Ashdown House was absolutely full. Exceptional food cooked by a MIT-Harvard team composed of (in alphabetical order): Alexandru Andoni, Corina Tarnita, Cristian Jitianu, Cristiana Strava, Dan Iancu, Daniel Dumitran, Daniel Nedelcu, Emanuel Stoica, Emanuela Voinescu, Florin Morosan, Gheorghe Chistol, Mihai Anton, Mihai Badoiu, Mihai Patrascu, Nicoleta Marinescu, Radu Berinde, Silvia Suteu, Stefan Carp, Virgil Petrea. A notable performance belongs to the tandem Emanuela Voinescu - Silvia Suteu that cooked amazing "cozonac". We also thank Alexandru Salcianu and Bogdan Fedeles for their support.

    On this occasion, the RSA members elected a new executive board: Emanuel Stoica (president), Virgil Petrea (vice-president), Dan Iancu (treasurer) and Mihai Patrascu (secretary). More details about the elections can be found here

    Our event was covered by the Romania media. Here is an article in the national newspaper "Adevarul". (E.S.)

  • March 25, 2006 - Romanian Dance Party. An impressive turnout of about a hundred people. Excellent music and a friendly atmosphere. In addition to the MIT students, a very significant number of Harvard and Wellesley students were among the guests. Other colleges from the Boston area, and even relatively remote places, such as Mt. Holyoke and Brandeis were represented. Event organized by Emanuel Stoica, Virgil Petrea and Gheorghe Chistol. Many thanks to Alexandru Salcianu and Radu Berinde for their help. (E.S.)

  • Feb 9, 2006 - Alina Mungiu at Harvard. Alina Mungiu, president of the Romanian Academic Society, a prestigious Romanian think-tank dedicated to good governance and development of Romania, lectured at Harvard at the Center for Government and International Studies and met with a group of Romanian students from Harvard and MIT the following day. A few weeks later, she wrote an article in "Revista 22" (a highly respected national weekly of the Romanian intelligentsia) about her visit to Harvard. The article in Romanian can be found here (see the section "Harvard pentru saisprezece"). (E.S.)

  • Dec 25, 2005 and Dec 31, 2005 - Christmas and New Year's Eve in Cambridge. Events organized by Emanuel Stoica. We benefited from the remarkable cooking skills of Alexandru Andoni, Alexandra Costin, Claudiu Stan, Cristian Jitianu, Emanuela Voinescu, Florin Morosan, Georgeta Vidican, Luminita Pogoja, Mihai Badoiu, Mihai Patrascu, Mihai Popa, Nicoleta Marinescu, Octavian and Cristina Bucur, Ramona Georgescu and Stefan Carp. Special thanks to Mihai Badoiu, Mihai Ibanescu and Alexandru Salcianu. (E.S.)

  • Dec 3, 2005 - Romanian Short Movies - II. Following the success of our first projection of short films on May 8, 2004, we decided to screen yet another six great short films produced in Romania by three young and promising directors: Corneliu Porumboiu, Cristi Puiu, and Ivo Baru (a native of Macedonia, Ivo is a student at the Bucharest University of Dramatic Art and Cinema). More than 75 people, many of them non-Romanians, came to the event. The event was organized with help from Corneliu Porumboiu, Cristi Puiu, Ivo Baru, and Alina Salcudeanu from the Romanian Film Centre. Event organized by Virgil Petrea and Emanuel Stoica with significant help from Radu Berinde (subtitles) and Alex Salcianu (website and authorizations). (A.S.)

  • Oct 28, 2005 - Romanian Dance Party. The traditional fall dance party attracted, as usual, a large turnout. (E.S.)

  • Sep 23, 2005 - Welcome BBQ. The annual welcome BBQ organized by RSA for the newcomers, and attended by everyone, old or new, MIT or Harvard affiliated, Cantabrigian or Bostonian. The barbecue was followed by the traditional volleyball game. Event organized by Gheorghe, Emanuel, Virgil, Pris with the help of Alex A, Alex S, Dumi and many others. (E.S.)

  • September 2005 - New people.
    Patricia Tcaciuc (UG 1), Andrei Galusca (UG 1), Dorian Croitoru (G, Mathematics), Timea Pal (Political Science, G).

  • Aug 23, 2005 - Romania's Old National Day. August 23 used to be Romania's National Day during Communism. RSA organized a mock celebration, complete with Communist-era propaganda songs and sensational archival footage, to make sure no one forgets those terrible days. After a break of 15 years, the 40+ participants enjoyed the Vietnamese Fried Shrimp Chips, one of the very few products one could still find in shops in the last years of Communism (according to popular rumors, this "abundance" was due to a mistake in the trade agreement with Vietnam). Event organized by Alex Salcianu, with help from Gheorghe Chistol, Emanuel Stoica and Virgil Petrea (our archive curator!). "Mobilizing" emails (in Romanian): 1, 2, 3, 4. Archival materials presented at the event. (A.S.)

  • July 16, 2005 - RSA Fruit Outdoors. Event organized by Gheorghe, Emanuel and Virgil.

  • May 1, 2005 - Orthodox Easter Dinner + RSA Elections. More than 50 people came for the Romanian traditional food and RSA Elections. Made possible by the following volunteers (random order): Alex S, Claudiu, Corina, Mihai, Stefan, Dan I, Florin, Pris, Emanuel, Dumi, Gheorghe, Radu, Daniel, JD, Elena, Dan B, Alex A, Tudor. (A.S.)

  • Apr 22, 2005 - International Fair (I-Fair). Fantastic Romanian food (no exageration!) cooked and sold by genuine MIT RSA members. Here is the menu: salata de vinete (eggplant salad), sarmale (grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat), and cozonac (a cake). Many thanks to the volunteers: Alex Andoni, Gheorghe Chistol, Dana Ciubotaru, Tudor Leu, Liliana Robu, Alex Salcianu, Emanuel Stoica etc. (A.S.)

  • Apr 8 & 9, 2005 - Mara Nicolescu and Nae Caranfil in Boston! Together with the Romanian Student Associations from Harvard (G and UG), we invited Romanian Director Nae Caranfil and Actress Mara Nicolescu to visit Boston and present two of their movies: "Filantropica" and "E pericoloso sporgersi." Each movie screening was accompanied by a dialogue with our guests. The two events were very successful, with more than 400 people attending! Many thanks to the organizers from MIT and Harvard (in alphabetic order): Florin Albeanu, Florin Constantin, Dan Iancu, Tudor Leu, Alex Salcianu, Silvia Suteu, Serban Tanase, Radu Tatucu; also, many thanks to Iuliu Vasilescu and Daniel Nedelcu for their essential technical help. The events were made possible by the generous support of our sponsors: Romanian National Center for Cinematography, Harvard Graduate & Undergraduate Councils, Kokkalis Program, "Minda de Gunzburg" Center for European Studies, MIT Center for Bilingual/Bicultural Studies, Ann Radcliffe Trust. (A.S.)

  • Feb 11, 2005 - Romanian Dance Party.

  • Nov 28 + Dec 12, 2004 - Romanian Voting Center at MIT. With the help of the Honorary Romanian Consulate, New England, once again RSA organized a voting center at MIT, on the occasion of the Romanian parliamentary and presidential elections. Many thanks to the volunteers! Here they are (in random order): Dan Iancu, Silvia Suteu, Stefan Hornet (Harvard), Iuliana Pasca (Wellesley), Alex Andoni, Emanuel Stoica, Florin Albeanu, Claudiu Stan, Mihail Bora, Georgeta Vidican, Michel/Mihai Ibanescu, Mihai Badoiu, Gheorghe Chistol (MIT), Dan Pletea (Northeastern), Nicu Farcut, Mihai Vaduva, Dan Buzan, Radu Iorgulescu. RSA Coordinators: Alex Salcianu and Tudor Leu. Check out the pictures and the results in our voting center! (A.S.)

  • Sep 18, 2004 - Screening of "Occident"; director Cristian Mungiu in person! Screening of the film "Occident" (Romania, 2002) by Cristian Mungiu. We were honored to have Mr. Mungiu in Boston specifically for this event, at the invitation of our association. The screening was followed by an open discussion with the director. Impressive turnout: more than 300 people attended, half of them non-Romanians. Full details on the event web page; pictures also available. Event organized by Alex Salcianu, with help from Laura Ceia-Minjares, Adrian Corduneanu, Alex A, Gheorghe, and Tudor. Made possible by the generous support of the Romanian National Center of Cinematography, MIT Council for the Arts and the MIT Center for Bilingual/Bicultural Studies. (A.S.)

  • September 2004 - New people
    Elena Grigorescu (CS, G), Radu Berinde (CS, 1).

  • Aug 7, 2004 - Volley BBQ! Great summer BBQ organized by Alex Vasile! Big attendance (30+ people), very good steaks, and intensive volley. Thanks to Mihai B. for helping with the fruits and the (soft) drinks!

  • Jul 3, 2004 - Volley + Fruits Event The intensive volley played by the RSA members requires good fruits (that's how our GSC funding application looked like)! Great event organized by Emanuel Stoica and Viorel Costeanu with the help of Mihai Badoiu.

  • May 15, 2004 - Spring BBQ. Plenty of mici at our end-of-term BBQ! Check out the pictures and the "mici" recipe! The end of the term is always a hard time for MIT students and the purpose of barbeque was to make the people come out of the clusters and breathe some fresh air. In spite of the heat many people stayed until the end, played some voleyball and had a chat. Our Romanian friends from Harvard joined the bbq and we had a great time. Many thanks to the organizers: Alex Andoni, Alex Salcianu, Dumitru, Gheorghe, and Ioanid.

  • May 8, 2004 - Romanian Short Movies. Screening of six fantastic short movies by three new Romanian directors: Cristian Mungiu, Cristian Nemescu si Hanno Höfer. More than 80 people, many of them non-Romanians, came to the event. See our event page for more details. Many thanks to the people who made this event possible: Cristian Mungiu, Alina Salcudeanu, and the Romanian National Center of Cinematography.

  • Apr 23, 2004 - International Fair (I-Fair). Once again, the legendary RSA booth displayed Romanian folk art and sold traditional Romanian food: salata de vinete (eggplant salad), sarmale (grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat), and cozonac (a cake) - all cooked by RSA members! Check out the pictures from the event and from the cooking session the day before. Many thanks to the volunteers who cooked the food and manned the booth: Alex Andoni, Alex Salcianu, Claudiu, Dumitru, Emanuel, Gheorghe, Michel, Mihai Badoiu, Mihai & Corina Patrascu, and Tudor.

  • Apr 11, 2004 - Orthodox Easter Dinner + RSA Elections. Best Easter Dinner so far! Last year, we wrote the same thing, but there is no contradition: we simply keep improving every year! More than 60 participants enjoyed "bread and circus", i.e., Romanian traditional food and RSA Elections. This year, the event was made possible by the following volunteers (random order): Stefan, Corina, Liviu (all three from Harvard), Viorel, Alex A., Michel, Claudiu, Ioanid, Dumi, Tudor, Oana, Cristina, Cristi, Emanuel, Gheorghe, Mihai Badoiu, Mihai Bora (MIT). Plus, the last one on the list, the organizer Alex Salcianu :) Pictures available here; Casiana's short film coming soon!

  • Mar 12, 2004 - Romanian Dance Party. Party organized again by Alex, Ioanid, Mihai and Viorel, on the flimsy pretext that two of the organizers are graduating soon (Ioanid and Viorel). We were lucky not to have the campus police break the party again, although the night guard came about four times to tell us to keep the music down. Here are the pictures.

  • Dec 25, 2003 - Christmas Party. Party at Florin Albeanu, one of our favorite MIT alumni (despite his now being at Harvard :) The food was pretty good, the "sarmale" were of course the piece de resistance, but the pork steak cooked by Corina (also a Harvard student...) was arguably the tastier dish. Except for Pylot (sound asleep, visiting us from Berkeley) we all ended up playing "Mafia", a great party game based on lying and deceit. Many thanks to all who contributed, and especially to Florin, the host. The pictures are here.

  • Nov 14, 2003 - Immigration Workshop. Mrs. Krockmalnic answered questions about work visas, student visas and other related issues. About 20 Romanians from the Boston area attended the event. The event was organized by the Law Offices of Gabriela M. Krockmalnic, the Honorary Consulate of Romania in Boston, and RSA.

  • Sep 19, 2003 - Romanian Dance Party. Our traditional dance party at the beginning of the (academic) year, this time organized by Alex, Ioanid, Mihai and Viorel. With the special participation of alumni Stefan Carp and Florin Morosan, the party turned out to be quite fun, as you can see from the pictures.

  • Sep 6, 2003 - Welcome BBQ. The traditional welcome BBQ was once again a success, bringing together many Romanian students from MIT, Harvard, BU, etc. Some of us chose to consume the calories just ingested by playing volleyball on the grass (courtesy of Michel and Claudiu). The salmon turned out to be very popular and disappeared almonst instantaneously. We also had pistachios and other expensive goodies, as the Graduate Student Council gave us more money than usual. The barbeque ended with a visit to Cambridge Brewing Company. Pictures are available here.

  • September 2003 - New people
    Gheorghe Chistol (Physics, 1), Lia Costiner (1), Victor Costan (CS, 1), Daniel Octavian Dumitran (CS, transfer 2), Virgil C. Petrea (Math, 1), Monica Duval-Lungulescu (Postdoc, Chemistry), Alina Grigorescu (Research Visitor, Biology), Alexandru Jalba (Postdoc, Urban Planning), Dan Parjol (Postdoc, Physics), Liliana Robu (MBA, Sloan), Bogdan Tanasa (Postdoc, Center for Cancer Research).

  • Jun 28, 2003 - Summer BBQ. Very successful Summer BBQ: about 30 people showed up (quite impressive for this time of the year), and the two hour BBQ was followed by a four hour volleyball game! Special thanks to the organizers: Alex, Claudiu, Dumitru, Jon and Michel.

  • May 17, 2003 - Spring BBQ. This end-of-term BBQ was organized as a joint event with the MIT Organization of Serbian Students (MOST) and featured amazing food: pork steaks, salmon, burgers, Balkan sheep cheese, tomatoes and watermellon! More than 45 people took part (the biggest attendance for our Spring BBQ so far). Many people played volleyball for a long time after the end of the actual BBQ. Special thanks to the organizers of this great event: Alex (Salcianu), Alex (Andoni), Claudiu, Cristi, Dumitru, Zhenya, Filip (MOST), Ioanid, Michel, Tudor, and Viorel.

  • Apr 27, 2003 - Orthodox Easter Dinner + RSA Elections. Last year, we wrote: "the most successful RSA Easter Dinner so far (it will be difficult to make it better next year, but we promise to try!)." Well, not only did we try, but we actually did it! Convince yourself by looking over the pictures from the event, courtesy Ioanid. Many thanks to the many people who helped us buy the ingredients and cook the food: Alex Andoni, Alex Salcianu, Andrei, Calin, Claudiu (special thanks for coordinating this great event!), Corina, Cristi, Daniel, Dumitru, Emanuel, Ioanid, Liviu, Michel (great baclava!), Mihai Badoiu, Mihai Patrascu, Stefan, Tudor, Viorel. The RSA Elections had the following outcome: President - Alexandru Salcianu, Vice-president - Cristian Cadar, Secretary - Tudor Leu, Treasurer - Alexandr Andoni.

  • Apr 25, 2003 - International Fair (I-Fair). For the fourth consecutive year (!), the RSA booth displayed Romanian folk art and sold traditional Romanian food: salata de vinete (eggplant salad) and sarmale (grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat) - all cooked by RSA members! Check out the pictures! Many thanks to the volunteers who cooked the food and manned the booth: Alex Andoni, Alex Salcianu, Claudiu, Cristi, Dumitru, Mihai and Tudor.

  • Feb 28, 2003 - Romanian Dance Party. Our traditional start-of-the-term party, this time organized by Alex (Salcianu), Alex (Andoni), Claudiu, Dumitru, Ioanid and Tudor (alphabetical order). Around 70 people gathered for an evening of international music, dance and fun!

  • Oct 25, 2002 - Romanian Dance Party! A little distraction from classes and research is always good! Fall Term party organized by Viorel, Ioanid and Alex. As good as the previous ones! Convince yourself by looking over the pictures (courtesy Ioanid).

  • Sep 15, 2002 - Welcome BBQ. Our traditional start-of-year BBQ, this time with even more people than usual! In spite of the unfavorable weather forecast, more than 70 students (many of them new in Boston) enjoyed the good food and the actual rain-less weather! Pictures available here.

  • Sep 13, 2002 - Visit of the Romanian Foreign Minister, Mircea Geoana, to Boston. At the invitation of Harvard's Kokkalis Program, H.E. Mircea Geoana gave a talk at the Kennedy School about the international context of Romania's likely invitation to join NATO in Nov 2002. Before the talk, 20 students from the Boston area (among which about half were from MIT!) met with him and had an informal chat. After the talk, we went to Au Bon Pain and enjoyed a few drinks and sweets. Here's the page we set up for the event.

  • Sep 2, 2002 - Romanian Movie Night. Romanian Director Dan Pita presented his movie "Hotel de Lux" (Luxury Hotel), which was awarded the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival in 1992. The movie was followed by a discussion with the director. In spite of the long week-end (Labor Day), more than 70 people (some of them non-Romanians) attended the event.

  • Aug 22, 2002 - Welcome Party at Ioanid's, in Ashdown. Reinvigorating an older tradition, RSA decided this year to throw a party for the new Romanian students. Out of the 9 new students, 5 of them came to the party. Plenty of pizza, plenty of soda, and errr ... some other drinks (thanks to Claudiu and Ioanid). Pictures are available here.

  • September, 2002 - New people
    Oana Catu (Physics, G), Daniel Nedelcu (Chemistry, 1), Mihai Patrascu (CS, 1), Claudiu Prisnel (Chemistry, 1), Gabriel Popescu (Postdoc, Spectroscopy Lab), Emanuel Stoica (Math, transfer 2), Dan Stratila (Operations Research, G), Alina Turian (Sloan, MBA), Iuliu Vasilescu (CS, G), Georgeta Vidican (Urban Planning, G).

  • Aug 21, 2002 - Meeting with Romanian politician and entrepreneur Adrian Stanciu. The ones of us around for the summer met on campus with Adrian Stanciu, vicepresident of the Union for the Reconstruction of Romania, and founder of Arexim corporation (now Xerox Romania). The open discussion was centered on Romanian politics. No comparision with what you can get from talk shows - we have definitely enjoyed Adrian's candid answers to our politically incorrect questions:). The discussion, which drifted to new issues - education and entrepreneurship in Romania - was later continued in an informal environment at CBC.

  • Aug 17, 2002 - Trip to Singing Beach, Manchester. Very good choice for those who came, as it was one of the hottest days of the summer. The temperature was responsible for more time in the relatively cold water, and also for decreasing somewhat our volleyball skills - but we didn't complain much:)

  • Jul 27, 2002 - Trip to Singing Beach, Manchester. Lots of fun with the strong waves. Lots of calories spent playing volleyball. Singing Beach is the best beach around Boston. Join us next time to find out how the place got its name. Pictures coming soon.

  • Jul 20, 2002, 1 pm - RSA Summer BBQ! One of the most populated Summmer BBQ's in RSA history. We also inaugurated the RSA volleyball net and some of us got so carried away that kept playing for 4 hours continuously! Pictures coming soon.

  • Jun 2, 2002 - RSA Outing to Nantucket!. Cristi led a group of 14 people in a nice trip to Nantucket. We biked a lot, we drank beer by the ocean, and we watched a World Cup game. Pictures, courtesy of Stefan Carp, are available here.

  • May 19, 2002 - Spring BBQ!. About 25 persons showed up for the traditional RSA end-of-term BBQ and enjoyed mici, telemea de oaie, and hamburgers! Pictures are available here.

  • May 5, 2002 - Orthodox Easter Dinner + RSA Elections. The most successful RSA Easter Dinner so far (it will be difficult to make it better next year, but we promise to try!). Many thanks to the many people who helped us buy the ingredients and cook the food: Adrian, Alex Andoni, Alex, Bogdan Calota, Catalin, Claudiu, Cristi Cadar, Cristina, Dumitru, Darko, Ioana Dumitriu, Jon, Michel, Mihai, Oltea, Tudor, Tiberiu, Viorel (great varza calita!). Ioanid took many nice pictures at the cooking session, religious service and the dinner. The RSA Elections had the following outcome: President - Claudiu Stan, Vice-president - Alex Salcianu, Treasurer - Alexandr Andoni, Secretary - Cristian Cadar.

  • Apr 26, 2002 - International Fair (I-Fair). The same flawless organization and excellent food as at I-Fair 2001, but on a bigger scale! The RSA booth displayed Romanian folk art and sold (at very small prices) traditional Romanian food: salata de vinete (eggplant salad), sarmale (grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat), and cozonac (a delicious cake!) - all cooked by genuine MIT students! In addition, RSA sold a limited quantity of traditional Easter Eggs (hen-made, hand-painted). Many thanks to Darko Marinov who brought the eggs from Romania and to the many volunteers who cooked the food and manned the booth: Alex, Adrian Corduneanu, Catalin, Cristian Cadar, Claudiu, Ioanid, Jon, Pylot (aka Daniel Preda), Michel, Tudor, and Viorel.

  • Feb 16, 2002 - Romanian Dance Party!
    Yet another start-of-the-term party organized by Viorel and Ioanid. The same fun as at our previous Romanian Dance Parties, but at a much higher level :) Pictures are available here. Many thanks to the volunteers who helped with the setting up and the cleaning of the room: Alex, Alex Andoni, Dumitru, Claudiu, Katrina, Serban and Tristram.

  • Jan 31, 2002 - Talk by Romanian Historian Dinu C. Giurescu
    RSA members were very honored to receive the visit of the Romanian Historian Dinu C. Giurescu, member of the Romanian Academy. More than 60 people, some of them non-Romanians, came to listen to Prof. Giurescu's talk on Romanian Education in the Commnist Era. The talk quickly turned into an interactive question-and-answer session that covered many issues of the Romanian society under the communism. The discussion was later continued in an informal environment at Sail Loft. Pictures are available here.

  • Jan 27, 2002 - Romanian Dinner
    The second edition of the Romanian Dinner was as big a success as the first one! The dinner was preceeded by a serious cooking session (11 hours!!!) the day before. The ever popular piftie, sarmale cu mamaliga, ciorba de vita and cozonac were cooked by genuine Romanian MIT students. Pictures are available here (courtesy Ioanid), and here (courtesy Catalin). Many thanks to the volunteers that made this event possible (random order): Tudor, Pylot, Alex Andoni, Dumitru, Michel, Catalin, Claudiu and Alex.

  • Oct 6, 2001 - World premiere screening of "Reconstituirea"
    "Reconstituirea" is a documentary made by the young film-maker Irene Lusztig; it explores the ramifications of the "Ioanid Gang" bank heist of 1959, one of the most controversial political cases in the history of communist Romania. About 15 RSA members (the Boston "Ioanid Gang") enjoyed the screening at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

  • Sept 29, 2001 - Co-organizing the Ashdown Centennial Ball
    Ashdown House, the most important MIT graduate dorm, home to many RSA members and the place where most of our parties and dinners are held, reached the respectable age of 100 years. A group of enthusiast RSA members - Alex, Catalin, Claudiu, Michel and Tudor - contributed to this event by cooking traditional Romanian food: sarmale and cozonaci. The food was very appreciated by the participants at the Ball: everything vanished in a very short time!

  • Sept 22, 2001 - Romanian Dance Party
    A beginning-of-term dance party from Viorel, Ioanid, and Claudiu. Great music, atmosphere, and lots of nice people! Pictures are available here. Many thanks to Alex, Benoit and Tristram for their help.

  • Sept 15, 2001 - Welcome BBQ
    Our traditional "start-of-academic-year" BBQ. Perfect organization, delicious food, great mood! More than 40 people participated, among them most of the new Romanians at MIT. 100% Romanian food was served: "mici" and "telemea de oaie".

  • September, 2001 - New people
    Alexandru Andoni (CS, transfer 2), Andreea Cepoiu (transfer from Brandeis), Andreea Chisca (freshman), Dumitru Daniliuc (freshman), Radu Raduta (freshman), Ruxandra Tentis (Sloan, MBA).

  • August 5, 2001 - Six Flags Outing
    Fourteen of us drove to Springfield, MA, and we experienced the magic of Six Flags. Names like "Mind Eraser", "Scream", and "Twister" will be forever imprinted in our memory.

  • July 28, 2001 - Summer BBQ
    Our regular summer BBQ was not that regular this time: we had Romanian "mici" masterfully prepared by Claudiu and Viorel. Could this be the rebirth of a tradition? If you scroll down the page towards the proto-history of the club, you'll see that we last had "mici" at MIT five years ago!

  • June 30, 2001 - RSA Outing
    Claudiu led a group of bold RSA members in a small expedition to Martha's Vineyard. It was a great day for those who participated: sun, ocean, biking on the beach and, of course, the unavoidable sunburns!

  • May 19, 2001 - Romanian BBQ
    Our regular end-of-term BBQ. Quite a few people showed up, and we got to play volleyball, too! Ioanid took pictures with his newly purchased digital camera (see the pictures).

  • May 3 and 6, 2001 - Princess Margarita and Prince Radu in Boston
    (click here for details)
    * As the first event of their visit in Boston, on Thursday, May 3, Prince Radu gave a lecture at Harvard's Dunster House, called "Romania, My Country" (in English), followed by a book signing of his recently published biography about HM Queen Anne of Romania. The event ended with an informal reception, at which we had a chance to talk to the Princess and her husband and have the book signed by Prince Radu.
    * The same night, Catalin Francu delighted a Romanian audience with 'Crema de zahar ars' (Romanian custard), prepared in Ashdown House (see pictures).
    * On Sunday, May 6, Princess Margarita and Prince Radu attended the religious service at the St. Parascheva Romanian Orthodox Church, and then attended a luncheon offered in their honor by the members of the church and an artistic program offered by the children attending the Romanian Sunday School of St. Parascheva. Smaranda's children, Ada and Victor ended the artistic program with a folk dance from Transylvania, to the delight of all guests (see pictures).

  • Apr 27, 2001 - International Fair
    This year's participation for RSA at the I-Fair was a success, with flawless organization by Claudiu, Michel and Alex. The Romanian stand was covered with folk art decorations, just purchased by Ioanid from Romania. The food was very good: stuffed grape/cabbage leaves with polenta (sarmale cu mamaliga - 3 for $1), Romanian cake (cozonac), eggplant salad. Sale team composed from Camelia Turcu, Catalin Francu, Simona Jelescu (all of whom were dressed in the traditional Romanian blouse, "ie"!). Cooking team: Alex, Camelia, Catalin, Claudiu, Michel, Pylot. Check out the pictures taken at the Romanian stand and at the cooking session.

  • Apr 15, 2001 - Easter Dinner + RSA Elections
    As a premiere, our Easter dinner was held, instead of the Student Center, in Ashdown House, in the regular party room (West Dining Room). As usual, traditional Easter food was served, after intense cooking sessions in the previous days. The delicious food was prepared by the following cooking wizards: Alex, Anca Ferent, Catalin, Claudiu, Michel, Pilot, Viorel (MIT), Monica Postelnicu (BU) and, last but not least, Ingrid and Stefan (on a short leave from Harvard). Check out the pictures at the cooking sessions: Part1 and Part2; and at the dinner. Another premiere, the elections for the executive committee of RSA were very short (approx. 15 minutes). That was due partly to the firm wand of Camelia Turcu, partly to the fact that the candidates ran unopposed. The resulting committee was: President - Claudiu Stan, Vicepresident - Alex Salcianu, Secretary - Catalin Francu, Treasurer - Mihai Ibanescu. Here is a list of the previous executive committees.

  • Mar 20, 2001 - Taraf de Haidouks in Cambridge
    The renowned Romanian-Gypsy band Taraf de Haidouks came for the second time in Sanders Theatre, and delighted the audience with great traditional Romanian music. We organized quite a large group (48 people, among which 3 Serbian friends from MIT!) and took advantage of the 20% discount from World Music.

  • Feb 9, 2001 - Romanian Dance Party / 2001: A Dance Odyssey
    A beginning-of-term dance party from Arthur and Ioanid, merged with a Romanian dance party (as it was announced to the GSC). Good music, nice light effects, great traditional dances (Ciuleandra, Zorba the Greek, etc). Many thanks to Viorel, Alex, Michel and Claudiu for their help.

  • Jan 21, 2001 - Romanian Dinner
    In the good old Romanian cooking tradition, preparations for a serious dinner have to start at least one day in advance. So following that tradition, we had an intense cooking section on Saturday, Jan 20, and dinner was served only the next day, on Sunday. We had 'sarmale' in grape leaves, borsch (a 20qt pot!!), goulash, stuffed eggs, etc. It was a success, around 40 people came. Many thanks to Michel, Claudiu, Alina, Catalin, Ana-Maria, Pylot, Alex, Anda. Here are some pictures (on snapfish.com), courtesy of Alex.

  • Dec 16, 2000 - Romanian Carols in Lobby 10
    A bunch of part-time Romanian tenors and soprannas sang Romanian Carols in MIT's Lobby 10 so that passersby could listen. We didn't have a major commercial success, but we enjoyed ourselves. "Jos la Bethleem" was our favorite. Singers: Ana-Maria, Corina, Vasi (visiting sopranna from Bard College), Ioana, Stefan, Walter, Catalin, Bogdan, Florin, Adrian, Tudor, Michel si Pilot. Here are some pictures (on snapfish.com), courtesy of Alex.

  • Dec 1, 2000 - National Day dinner
    Joint Harvard-MIT event: about 25 of us went to John Harvard's Brewhouse, and had a pretty good time, despite the spectre of the November 26 elections.

  • Nov 26 and Dec 10, 2000 - Romanian Voting Center
    Parliamentary and presidential elections in Romania. RSA organized a voting center at MIT (in the Student Center), together with the Honorary Romanian Consulate, New England. Many volunteers, smooth organization (volunteers from MIT included Ioanid, Claudiu, Michel, Cami Turcu, Alex Salcianu, Catalin Francu, Cristi Cadar, also with a cameo appearance of Stefan Carp, our beloved ex-president on a short trip to Boston!...) Check out the pictures.

  • Sept 29, 2000 - Romanian party!!!
    (Note that the exclamation marks are part of the title, just like in the case of 'Yahoo!' or 'Sash!' :-)
    Great dance party in Ashdown House organized by Ioanid, Dragos and Viorel. We had quite a few Romanian guests from outside MIT, including musician Adrian Jojatu, who delighted the audience at his accordion (the high point of his recital was Perinitza, a tradional Romanian song and dance). The party ended, as any respectable party should, at the arrival of Campus Police - late at night...

  • Sept 22, 2000 - Welcome dinner
    Pizza dinner at Ioanid's place in Ashdown. Almost all new MIT students were there, plus a few new people from Harvard. Besides Bertucci's pizza, we got good music and quite a few drinks. What kind of drinks? Well, you know - don't ask, don't tell :)

  • Sept 16, 2000 - Welcome BBQ
    Not as punctual as the previous barbeque (to say the least), but great participation and great food! At the apogee there were 35 people, as reported by reliable sources. The barbeque ended up with 15 of us renting three boats on the Charles and enjoying the wonderful weather. Ok-ok, maybe some of us got a little wet, but overall it was a great outing! Here are some pictures.

  • September, 2000 - New people
    Alexandru Dan Ionescu (Mathematics, Postdoc), Dan Stefanica (Mathematics, Postdoc), Dragos Oprea (Mathematics, G), Corina Tanasa (EE, G), Dan Muntean (Architecture, G), Maria-Magdalena Iordache (Sloan, MBA), Gabriela Leu (Nuclear Engineering, G), Marius Albota (EE, G), Cristi Cadar (CS, transfer 2), Tudor Leu (CS, 1), Danut Maces (Chemistry, 1).

  • Aug 29, 2000 - Activities Midway
    The first chance for incoming students to find out about our association. The "catch" was quite good: seven Romanian students that were not yet members of the association came by our table.

  • Jul 08, 2000 - Romanian Summer BBQ
    Scheduled for 1pm, this barbeque excelled in its punctuality. The first burger was laid on the torture table (i.e. the grill) exactly at 1:00pm.

  • May 13, 2000 - Romanian BBQ
    Stefan's swan song. Beside hamburgers, steaks and chicken, Pilot brought us some tomatoes and tasty Bulgarian (!) cheese from Haymarket.

  • Apr 30, 2000 - Easter party + Elections
    Delicious meal cooked by Alex, Alina, Ana-Maria, Claudiu G., Claudiu S., Florin, Michel, Pilot, Stefan, Theo, and others that we intentionally left out :-). After lunch, with the accompanying piano music of Bogdan, we had elections. President: Ioanid Rosu, Vice-president: Claudiu Stan, Treasurer: Mihai Ibanescu, Secretary: Ion Bita. Here are some pictures.

  • Apr 29-30, 2000 - Easter
    This year the Romanian church, which was so gracefully housed by the Armenian church in the last 3 years, finally found a place of its own. The service was held by Father Nicolae at the "Sf. Paraschiva" Romanian church in Wakefield, MA. People gathered outside after the service, and enjoyed the beautiful weather and a delicious meal and wine.

  • Apr 28, 2000 - International Fair
    Romania did very well this year! We had two tables, one decorated with Romanian art objects (thanks to Smaranda Moisescu and Roxana Von Kraus) and the other with food. Alina, Ana-Maria, Anda, Claudiu, Michel and Pilot cooked "sarmale" (stuffed grape leaves), "mamaliga" (polenta), "cozonac" (Romanian sweetbread), and "pasca" (Easter cheesecake). The sale was a total success, we sold our food in no time. Check out Michel's picture in the ISO room with the Romanian three-color hat on! Here are some pictures .

  • Apr 21, 2000 - Spring Dance Party
    Yet one more dance party by Ioanid and Arthur, in Ashdown.

  • Feb 11, 2000 - Millenium Dance Party
    Dance party in Ashdown House, with Ioanid as a DJ (at his newly purchased PC!). A few new faces from Northeastern and BU. And, as the title suggests, yes, there was a lot of dancing...

  • September, 1999 - New people
    Smaranda Moisescu (Sloan, MBA), Alex Salcianu (CS, G), Adrian Corduneanu (CS, G), Claudiu Stan (Physics, G), Viorel Costeanu (Mathematics, G), Ioana Dumitriu (Mathematics, G), Catalin Francu (CS, transfer 3), Ovidiu Gheorghioiu (CS, transfer 3), Flaviu Iepure (Mathematics, 1).

  • Jul 10, 1999 - Romanian BBQ

  • Apr 23, 1999 - Romanian President's visit
    MIT and Harvard joined forces to welcome the Romanian President, Emil Constantinescu who stopped in a short trip to Boston at the Harvard Faculty Club. Students asked him to explain Romania's position with respect to the Kosovo crisis. Nice food and reception afterwards!

  • Apr 11, 1999 - Easter
    Easter service at "Sf. Paraschiva" Church in Worcester.

  • September, 1998 - New people
    Raul Tataru (Mathematics, G), Bogdan Fedeles (Chemistry, 1), Simona Jelescu (Management, 1), Irina Goia (Mathematics, 1), Florin Albeanu (Biology, transfer 2), Claudiu Giurumescu (Chemical Engineering, transfer 2).

  • May 24, 1998 - Romanian BBQ
    Stefan's first BBQ! At the end we sat in a circle and told "bancuri" (jokes).

  • May 2, 1998 - RSA Elections
    Geo Candea set up a webpage and people voted on the internet! President: Stefan Carp, Vice-presidents: Alina Vrabioiu and Adrian Soviani, Treasurer: Camelia Turcu.

  • Apr 19, 1998 - Easter
    Again Easter service at "Sf. Paraschiva" Church in Worcester. The next day, party in the Student Center organized by Marina.

  • Sep 6, 1997 - Welcome party
    Very animated party at Ioanid's, almost all new students were there. The party went until 6 in the morning!

  • September, 1997 - New people
    Ana-Maria Castravet (Mathematics, G), Juliana Maxim (Architecture, 1), Ioana Urma (Architecture, 1), Mihai Ibanescu (Physics, transfer 2), Teodor Agapie (Chemistry, 1), Mihai Badoiu (CS, 1), Ion Bita (Chemical Engineering, transfer 2), Camelia Turcu (Brain and cognitive sciences, 1), Daniel Preda (Physics, 1).

  • Apr 27, 1997 - Easter
    The Romanians went this year to "Sf. Paraschiva" Church (the new Romanian church in Boston, hosted for the service in St. James Church in Worcester, MA). Father Nicolae Simion, a young priest just arrived from Romania, conducted the service. On Sunday, Easter party in the Student Center. Voichita, Ruxandra and Ioanid cooked + Adi and Vali Ivan came with some really great food! Here are some pictures.

  • Jan 24, 1997 - Slide presentation of Romania + Party
    In the 3'rd floor of the Student Center, organized by Marina and Ion Berindei, and presented by the latter. Quite successful: a lot of people came to the presentation, many of them non-Romanians. Among them, the creator of Emacs, Richard Stallman!
    After the slide presentation, a party at Ioanid (see pictures).

  • Nov 3&17, 1996 - Romanian voting center at MIT
    Big event! Voting center for the general and presidential elections in Romania. Organized in the MIT Student Center by RSA (Marina, Razvan, Sergiu and other volunteers), and the Romanian Honorary Consulate of New England. Victory for the democratic forces in Romania all across the board. Results overall for the general elections: CDR 30.7%, PDSR 23%, USD 13%, UDMR 7%, PRM 4.5%, PUNR 4%. For the presidential ones: Emil Constantinescu 54.5%, Ion Iliescu 45.5%. Needless to say, the results in our voting center were overwhelmingly for CDR and Constantinescu. To be more precise, in the first round of elections, on Nov 3, out of 152 people who voted, around 130 were for CDR and Constantinescu.

  • Sep 3, 1996 - Romanian BBQ
    That started a long and healthy tradition of barbeques at the Johnson BBQ pits. Razvan blessed us again with his "mici", new and improved recipe.

  • Sep 1, 1996 - Romanian party
    Ioanid's welcome party for the new students. There were lasagna, a lot of people, a lot of beer...

  • September, 1996 - New students
    Anda Degeratu (Mathematics, G), Catalin Zara (Mathematics, G), Stefan Carp (Chemistry, 1), Alexandru Popa (Chemistry 1), Alina Vrabioiu (Chemistry, transfer 2), Constantin Chiscanu (Mathematics, 1), Doana Cecan (Chemical Engineering, 1).

  • June 2, 1996 - BBQ at McGregor
    First Romanian BBQ at MIT. An exquisite American-Romanian gastronomic experience. Hamburgers from Star Market + "Mici" cooked by Razvan Bena. Fred Floru was the head chef!

  • May 3, 1996 - Romanian church choir
    The first meeting of the choir. Marian Simion, newly arrived in Boston at the Holy Cross, gathered a few of us and some Romanians from the Boston area, and started rehearsals for a church choir. The rehearsals were to be held in MIT, building 1.

  • April 13+14, 1996 - Easter
    A large group went to the Romanian Church "Sf Ioan Botezatorul" from Woonsocket, as in the previous year. The next day, Easter party. Voichita (with Ioanid as a disciple) cooked "sarmale", "mamaliga", "cozonac", etc.

  • Dec 25, 1995 - Christmas party
    Andrei fulfilled his promise and organized a great party, in Tang Hall. Mainly traditional Romanian dishes, but boy, what dishes...

  • Nov 24,1995 - Party + Elections
    Big party in Tang Hall 24'th floor, organized by Ioana Popescu. At the end, there were elections - President: Marina, Vice-president: Andrei Radulescu, Secretary: Razvan, Treasurer: Adina.

  • September, 1995 - New people
    Andrei Radulescu-Banu (Mathematics, G), Dana Pascovici (Mathematics, G), Ioana Popescu (Mathematics and Operations Research, G), Adrian Ivan (Nuclear Engineering, G), Adrian Soviani (CS, 1), Michael Leonida (CS, 1).

  • May 27, 1995 - Party in Tang Hall
    Ruxandra's birthday party. Here are some pictures.

  • May 7, 1995 - Marina's birthday party
    Great party, with a LOT of Romanian jokes ("bancuri").

  • April, 1995 - Easter + Party
    A large group went to the Romanian Church "Sf Ioan Botezatorul" from Woonsocket, Rhode Island for the Orthodox Easter service. The next day, we had an awesome Easter party in McCormick, which set a long-standing tradition for us!

  • February, 1995 - Party + Elections Party in the Student Center, after which the constitution was approved by the members and elections were held (with a dramatic vote for the vice-president). President: Marina Meila, Vice-president: Dan Ionescu, Secretary: Razvan Bena, Treasurer: Adina Stan-Petre.

  • January, 1995 - The birth of RSA
    After several discussions, Marina, Geo Candea, Razvan Bena, Dan Ionescu, and Cristina Hristea decided to create a Romanian Student Association. The constitution was written and approved by ASA the next month.

  • December, 1994 - Romanian Party
    Big party in Tang Hall organized by Radu Constantinescu. A lot of us met there for the first time. There were professors, grads, undergrads, people from the Boston area, everybody.

  • September, 1994 - New people
    Voichita Marinescu (Brain and cognitive sciences, G), Sergiu Moroianu (Mathematics, G), Ioanid Rosu (Mathematics, G), Eric Pop (Physics, 1).

  • April, 1994 - Easter
    The first Easter trip, jointly organized by MIT (Razvan and Radu, who rented a van), and Harvard (Costin). Service at the "Sf Nicolae" Church in Worcester, MA.

  • September, 1993 - New people
    Geo Candea (CS, 1), Cristina Hristea (CS, 1), Razvan Bena (Physics, 1), Dan Ionescu (Mathematics, transfer 3), Mihai Farcas (MBA, Sloan), Adrian Amariei (MBA, Sloan). At Wellesley: Ioana Popescu (Mathematics, transfer 3).

  • September, 1992 - New people at MIT
    Marina Meila (CS, G), Ruxandra Golinescu (Nuclear Eng, G), Adina Stan-Petre (Biology, 1) and Alex Rotaru (Physics, transfer 2). Same year the first Romanian students came to Harvard: Costin Popescu (Physics, transfer 3) and Serban Nacu (Mathematics, 1).

  • September, 1991 - The beginning of the proto-history
    The first Romanian students come to MIT: Florinel Morosan (Nuclear Engineering, G) and Radu Constantinescu (Mathematics, G).

Note: Many of the events organized by the association are sponsored by the Graduate Student Council . Thanks!