In December 1989, Romanians overthrew dictator Nicolae
Ceausescu, ending more than forty years of Communist
totalitarianism. Twenty years later, Romania is a thriving
democracy, an economic success, and a member of NATO and the
European Union. What's the story behind the Romanian
miracle? Join former United States ambassador to Romania Jim
Rosapepe and his wife, award-winning journalist Sheilah
Kast, on an amazing tour of an amazing land beyond Dracula,
beyond orphans, beyond Communism, to the vibrant culture,
unique history, and 21st century skills that define modern
Romania. You'll travel to Bucharest, the capital city once
called the Paris of the East, where centuries-old Orthodox
Christianity thrives in tandem with cutting-edge information
technology; to Maramure in the north, where the Holocaust
took a great toll on a once vibrant Jewish community that
included Nobel Prize-winner Elie Wiesel; to Transylvania,
home not just to Vladepe , the real-life Dracula, but to the
historic struggles between Romanians and Hungarians, now at
peace; and to fascinating spots in-between. Along the way,
you'll meet people, famous and unknown, who have made
Romania - people like King Michael, who in World War II, at
age twenty-two, led a coup to unseat a fascist dictator,
only to be forced into exile by the Communists; Ion Iliescu,
both a leading figure during Communism and Romania s first
democratically elected president; and Judith Katona, a young
woman who, like many Romanians, went abroad to study after
the Revolution but returned to create the new Romania. More
than a travelogue or memoir, Dracula Is Dead: How Romanians
Survived Communism, Ended It, and Emerged since 1989 as the
New Italy presents Romania through American eyes, taking you
with Jim and Sheilah as they discover a remarkable country
of boundless hospitality, brilliant skills, and a bright
future in a peaceful Europe. As a strong, creative,
charming, democratic nation following years of dictatorship
and isolation, Romania really is the new Italy. See for
yourself.
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