Sightseeing in Galati

Sunday, September 20, 2015

We met for a nice buffet breakfast then we were met by our liaison, Samantha, and her mother, Oana.  After a bit of consulting we gathered together and had two vans to take us around for the day.  Marian was the man driving our van.  Perry was our main translator.  We also met a couple of other volunteers from the shelter.  

Chantal and Linda at the rose gardens.

 Our first stop was at a money exchange office.  They do not accept US$ at the businesses and we did not want to use credit cards for small purchases.  Then off to the Botanical Gardens.  The facility has several areas: rose garden, Japanese garden, large koi pond, green houses and more.  It was quite pretty.  We attended a showing at the planetarium of the solar system.  It was in Romanian, so we didn’t learn much, but the pictures were nice!

local residents.

Next stop was the large mall so everyone could get some lunch and make some purchases.  I wanted some Gelato… and I found it!  Had a lovely combination called “Sweet Sin” containing lemon, chocolate and hazelnut gelato, cream, nuts and chocolate.  Definitely sinful!

Then we went to the public gardens.  Very popular area for the locals.  There were two weddings going on there!  Pretty roses and other flowers, a large fountain and nice walkways.

Several weddings going on today!

The highlight was going to the shelter!  The dogs were so cute and friendly!  There were over 200, I believe.  Many of them are in large areas together.  They get along amazingly well.  We all had favorites picked out very quickly!  Even with the huge numbers of dogs, they were clean and very well cared for.  Any had a similar look, others were different, all distinct.  They love to visit and jump on people.  

Jamie found a friend!

None of the dogs get adopted in Romania.  Most go to Germany!  They have a sister shelter in Germany and the dogs are channeled through that shelter.

Ginny and a little love bug.

Stacy with a darling puppy.

All of these dogs live well together.  The shelter is very clean and the dogs well cared for.

Who can resist those eyes?

After returning to the hotel for a quick cleanup, we all walked down the road a piece for dinner at the Panoramic Restaurant, where Perry works.  We all had a good time there.

Back to the hotel for a nice rest.  Tomorrow we will do more sightseeing before heading for clinics the next day.  It has been fun getting to know the various members of our team.  Quite a variety of really neat folks.

Until tomorrow!

A church next to the hotel.