About
Hi, I’m Monica. I’ve filed many positions so far, but my most defining role has always been that of a traveling writer.
I’m also a foodie and culture buff. I love hunting down hidden, whimsical places and the hip & alternative. I am drawn to eclectic design and patterns from around the world. I love unique properties, be it an old silo turned design hotel, a boat hotel or an eco retreat in the middle of the forest.
Growing up in Bucharest, in a Parisian-style house my great-grandfather had built in 1933 – the same house where my father was born – put its mark from early on, on who I would become.
This is where I grew up to love architecture and books, porcelains and black & white photographs from yesteryear, with the living proof of Bucharest as “Little Paris” a century ago. This is where I developed my love for the 1920s, wearing my grandmother’s red flapper cloche hat and dancing shoes. This is where we had long family dinners, when my grandfather would sit at the end of the table and write in the family journal.
Photo credit: Andreea Mitran. Click for full image.
My parents met in Moscow while traveling and my grandfather, an award-winning civil engineer and university professor, traveled well into his 80s to Egypt, Australia and many far-flung spots I could only dream of as a child. With one aunt in the U.S. and the other in Paris, multiculturalism was always part of our family. It was these formative years that led me to a life of travel and purveyor of culture around the world.
As a teenager, my parents purposefully sent me on trips alone. I vividly remember getting lost from my group in Italy, and terrifyingly finding my way back on remote cobblestone streets, lessons of fear not (and find a way) I’m grateful to have learnt early on. At age 20, I followed my heart to New York City. I studied journalism and trained in many aspects of the creative world – as an MTV intern, a South Bronx reporter, and a young correspondent learning the ropes of broadcasting in the CBS 60 Minutes studios. I roamed the streets of New York for nine years, as a model and student first, and a travel blogger later.
Until one day, I packed my bags and left New York to travel for several months (California > Burning Man > Arizona & Utah > Australia > Papua New Guinea > France). It turned out being a once in a lifetime adventure that eventually had me moving back to Europe. Since then, I’ve penned articles for both print and online publications, from BBC Travel and National Geographic, to Business Traveller and Skylife Business. I’ve become a regular Lonely Planet writer and The Telegraph contributor. I’ve also collaborated with brands and tourism boards from all around the world, from Air France and Visit Norway, to Viking Cruises and Rotterdam Partners.
And yet, my journey is just starting. After 12 years abroad, I’m back in Bucharest. Not in the same Bucharest I left in 2005, but in an effervescent, bohemian, eclectic Bucharest that’s more creative than ever. I’m here to uncover its facets and expose its untold stories.
I remember what my grandfather had scribbled down on a note back in 2005 when I left Romania. Don’t forget where you came from. And I certainly never did; I came back to discover more of my city, and in hindsight, more of myself. Welcome.
How can I help?
