Welcome to Cluj!
First things to know after you’ve just landed
Last update: October 9, 2024
Dear friend,
Bine ai venit – welcome!
The families, volunteers & staff of the Fuller Center for Housing of Cluj, Romania, welcome you to our project. Thank you for your willingness to serve, to inspire others and to help families who never had their own place to live.
Our volunteering program is centered on the belief it should be easy to help. You work hard, and we work hard to create a supportive environment. While you are here, we’ll do our best to make you feel welcome and have a great experience on the building site and beyond.
Of course, we understand that you’ve just landed in a new, unfamiliar country, where people use different units for everything and wouldn’t know what a Fahrenheit is (or how to spell it!). We’ll help you navigate the city, but keep in mind – you’re safe. The city has good public transport, well-lit streets, and low crime. We have friendly people, and most young adults will speak English.
Until we all meet in person, this little guide should provide some basic orientation.
Enjoy your time here, and again, thank you for your service!
About Romania
Romania is a country about the size of Oregon, located in South-Eastern Europe, north of the Danube and bordering the Black Sea. Since it sits halfway between Europe’s geographical boundaries (the Atlantic Ocean and the Ural Mountains), we like to believe it’s in Central Europe, but nobody believes us. Our neighbors are Hungary, Serbia, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Bulgaria.
There are 19 million people living in Romania, according to preliminary data of the 2021 census, out of which 8.1 million are of working age, 4.2 million are retired or welfare beneficiaries, about 3.4 million are in school or college, 1 million are homemakers, and 1 million are provided for by others.
We estimate that 5.7 Romanians live abroad (online figures vary from 4 to 12 million, so go figure). According to the UN’s International Migration Report, from 2007 to 2015 Romania experienced one of the highest emigration growth rates globally, second only to Syria, which was at war during this period. Approximately 3.4 million Romanians left the country in that timeframe alone. Which speaks volumes about quality of life and trust in government.
After World War II, Romania was under the thumb of a Communist dictatorship that made it one of its first priorities to exterminate “undesirables” such as intellectuals or the so‑called “bourgeoisie”. Thousand were killed in prisons; “enemies of the state” were tortured. Privately owned land and homes were confiscated, and farmers were forced to work for state-owned co-ops. Many families were forcibly relocated to big cities, in newly built neighborhoods of apartment buildings. The state would offer each citizen a job and a home, which makes some nostalgic. These people generally don’t remember that the job was sometimes in another part of the country altogether, and the home would be chosen by the state based on family and party membership. By the end of the ’80s, rationing was in effect for bread, meat, milk, and eggs.
In December 1989, we had a revolution and started on our way to democracy and capitalism. We are (told we are) there. Romania joined the European Union in 2007, and its economy has been growing for quite a while now, with many people working in IT, automotive, textile manufacturing, farming, and industry, as well as in the tourism sector. However, the reality is very different in large cities versus smaller, rural communities. So much so that we have a saying: There are two Romanias.
We have some of the best broadband internet in the world in our cities, as well as the largest number of homes “equipped” with outhouses instead of flushable toilets in our villages.
That could tell you something about people’s priorities.
The city of Cluj‑Napoca
Welcome to Cluj‑Napoca, a vibrant city in the heart of Transylvania, Romania! Known as the unofficial capital of the historical region, Cluj‑Napoca seamlessly combines its rich history with a modern and lively atmosphere. Whether you’re a history enthusiast, a nature lover, or a foodie, this city has something for everyone.
* The above was actually written by ChatGPT
The city you’re in stands in the place of Napoca, a settlement founded by the Romans in the 2nd century AD. Over the centuries, it has been part of the Kingdom of Hungary, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Romania. Nowadays, it’s well known as a center of the IT industry & overall economic hub, as well as for its 5 state universities, diverse architecture, and vibrant arts scene.
When it comes to exploring the city, you’ll find a mix of styles, from Gothic and Baroque to Renaissance and Art Nouveau. Outside the city center, the communist regime left its mark with neighborhoods built in a brutalist, grey architecture.
Five bishoprics of different religious denominations have their headquarters here, as well a Roman Catholic vicariate, and a synagogue. St. Michael’s Church, a stunning Gothic-style Catholic edifice, dominates the city’s central square, Piața Unirii.
The Art Museum, the Ethnographic Museum (with its splendid outdoor park featuring old, traditional wood beam homes and churches), and the temporary exhibitions at the Transylvania Museum of History offer a window into Romanian culture. The long-established National Theater and Opera, the Hungarian State Theater and Opera, the Transylvania Philharmonic, have been joined on the cultural scene by independent theatre companies like Create.Act.Enjoy and cultural centers like #Reactor.
Housing in Romania
In Cluj, Romania’s most expensive real-estate market for years now, our non-profit housing program has been working for 25 years to provide shelter to people who live in sub-standard conditions, lacking basic amenities, or in overcrowded conditions.
- 45% of Romanians live in overcrowding (e.g. several generations of a family in a single room). Access to decent housing is a huge issue for a large part of Romania’s population. Although the country leads the EU in the number of privately-owned homes, there’s also lots of poverty in rural areas.
- 21% of Romanian household dont’ have adequate plumbing – bathtub, shower or indoor toilet (in 2022 – compared to an EU average of just 1.5%).
- 10% of Romanians live in homes with leaking roofs, humidity on walls or floors, mold in the pavement or around windows.
- Construction prices of new homes went up 49% between 2010 and 2020 in Romania, compared to an EU average of just 17% in the same interval, making access to housing a practical impossibility for people on minimum wage, which stands at a little over 300 EUR after taxes.
- Prices of construction essential materials have gone up 100% to 300% since 2020, influenced by the COVID pandemic, the supply chain crisis and the war in Ukraine. This includes common things like wood, concrete or rebar that we use on our build site.
- 1 in 5 renters in Romania spend more than 60% of their income on rent. That’s double the EU average of 1 in 10.
Non-profit housing programs run by NGOs, such as building the “Britta Sofia” social housing community, need a lot of long-term secure investment, as they need to buy construction materials on the free market, while not having nor real predictability of income neither a profit after the building is completed.
Millard Fuller, visiting Cluj to mark the first 100 homes built in Romania
The Fuller Center for Housing of Cluj, Romania
The housing program here in Cluj was founded on May 13th, 1999, by a group of local volunteers who joined Millard Fuller in the belief that our actions can show God’s love for humanity.
We’ve built 100 new homes across 7 different communities in Cluj County, while almost 1,000 spaces were renovated or upgraded in some way (for instance, through proper insulation).
We were involved in energy efficiency and disaster response programs, as well as some “out-of-the-box” programs designed in partnership with other NGOs that aimed to provide housing and fight marginalization of Roma.
Since 2016, we’ve started working independently, using the name “PRIMA DATĂ ACASĂ” or “ACASĂ” for short (which would translate to “first time at home” and “at home”, respectively). We diversified our programs to include initiatives in other fields where we knew our construction know-how could come in handy. Such projects include renovating schools in remote communities or upgrading rural medical offices that were themselves a risk to people’s health.
On August 11th, 2022, our team signed the Covenant Partnership with the Fuller Center for Housing, enthusiastic to once more be part of a global team, with a common mission and a common faith in the goodness of people’s hearts.
This is why, from the founding members of the Fuller Center here, half are people who have volunteered in the program since 2002 and even since „day 1” in 1999.
The Fuller Center for Housing of Cluj, Romania, is legally distinct from PRIMA DATĂ ACASĂ, but the two operate as one team (and, indeed, are one team). While the Fuller Center transitions to managing everything related to the low-cost housing program, ACASĂ continues to look for new opportunities to contribute to the other two pillars of a prosperous community: health and education. You will see both names and logos in use on our worksite in Jucu de Sus, which is commonly managed.
Meet the team
Andrei Aroneț
executive director
Andrei began his volunteer work for us in 2002, when he helped a college professor in creating a newsletter, something he was promised would “take 15 minutes”.
Having served for 18 years as volunteer, Andrei joined the executive team in 2020 to lead the organization in the post-pandemic landscape, and championed for partnering with the Fuller Center. If he looks tired, don’t worry: he’s been known to wake up at 3 AM just to watch the latest rocket launches from the US.
Viorel Dodea
construction site supervisor
“Vio” is part of our first generation of partner families in Cluj. He stood out on the work site through his skill, and he was asked to also join our staff.
For more than 20 years now, he’s dedicated his life to helping others build their first homes and to coordinating volunteer teams from across the world.
Vio speaks Romanian and fluent Google Translate.
Horia Țuțui
civil engineer
Horia joined us in 2021, which is why 2021 was a good year. With a college degree in civil engineering, Horia is skillful both on the worksite and when he needs to track papers in triplicate across institutional desks.
In his free time, he’s a referee at motor competitions and rallies, but don’t get him started on cars, or we’ll be here all day.
Teodor Păcurar
construction worker
Stolo is our neighbor from Jucu, living across the street from the work site. He has years of experience in building with us and is the best person to go to when you need some equipment, as he knows where everything is by heart.
When not working with us, he’s hard at work in his garden.
Alexandra Hurducaș
volunteer coordinator
Alexandra has serious job experience as an “angel”. That’s the actual name given to a person that takes care of an artist invited to a festival, and makes sure the guest has everything they need. Which means, you’ll be in very good hands during your stay in Cluj. She has 10+ years of experience in the live events industry, HoReCa, IT and NGOs. Alexandra just joined us in fall 2024, so don’t quiz her on our history, but she could talk for days about her ideas moving forward.
Text continues below photo
How our housing program works
The system envisioned by Millard Fuller works by giving families a hand up, not a hand out.
We invest labor and capital with the faith that working families that earn less deserve a chance to provide a better future for their children. A new home is something that will change the destiny of that family – tomorrow and forever.
Partner-families
Families apply to our office or online and are directed to one-on-one or group information sessions on our worksite in Jucu. Those wishing to apply need to put in 100 hours of volunteer work (less for single-parent families), need to have regular, legally earned income, and are selected based on their current housing conditions.
While a decade ago most families we selected used to live in unsafe structures or buildings without basic amenities such as heating, running water or a toilet, nowadays most partner-families face overcrowding. Although they might have basic utilities, we find parents and their children living with grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins, sometimes 8 people or more in 2 not very large rooms. Such spaces are usually not owned by their relatives, but have been in turn received through a state housing program, and some of the families we are helping have been facing evacuation from their current homes.
Sweat equity and repayment
The Fuller Center for Housing of Cluj requires families to put in “sweat equity” hours, that is, to work at building their own home and the home of their neighbors. Normally families would need to put in 1,000 hours, but the amount is adjusted based on home size and the specific situation of the family (with provisions for single-parent families, families with health issues etc.).
In exchange, we sell homes at cost and offer an affordable 20-year non-profit mortgage. A typical family in our Britta Sofia community in Jucu will pay $100 – $170 per month, without any interest or fee. Amounts paid by families are only indexed by inflation, but this is also capped. For instance, in 2022, inflation stood high at almost 14%, but families paid 3%.
The build site
We are currently building in the commune of Jucu, in Jucu de Sus village, on a large plot of land that was leased by the Jucu City Hall & Local Council for 49 years, with the option to extend.
The village has grown significantly in the last 10 years and is a good place for families, being both close to Cluj-Napoca and with local opportunities. Large factories located in Jucu’s industrial park offer thousands of jobs, and parents have schools and kindergartens locally, though some will still commute to Cluj.
Our homes have sturdy concrete foundations and wood wall frames, sheeted in plywood and fireproofed. Insulation is provided by a thick layer of rock wool inside the walls, as well as EPS (expanded polystyrene) boards on the outside. For cost effectiveness, all homes we build are duplexes: each building includes two housing units. They are all connected to the public utility networks: electricity, natural gas, running water and sewerage.
In the buildings we’re working on in 2023, one apartment has two rooms and a useful surface of approximately 592 square feet (55 square meters), while the other has a single room and a useful surface of around 376 square feet (35 square meters).
But every home is special: homes were designed to grow when the family grows. See if you can spot how this happens when you come to Jucu!
SAMPLE DAILY SCHEDULE
7 – 8 AM Breakfast at hotel
8:30 AM Departure from hotel to Jucu de Sus
A bus from the Semano transport company will be present in the hotel parking lot. Trip takes 30 minutes.
9:00 AM Daily briefing & warm-up, safety training.
9:30 AM Volunteering
(with at least a 15’ break at 11:15)
1 PM LUNCH
2 PM Volunteering
4 PM Site clean-up and handover of tools
4:30 PM Departure to Cluj. Earlier if R&R activities planned.
Trip could take 30’ to 1 hour depending on traffic.
7:00 PM Group dinner at a restaurant in Cluj-Napoca or free time (dinner might be sooner or later based on R&R activities).
The sample schedule above is flexible, and we’ll talk about it with your group to reflect your preferences for the time in Cluj. Your trip leader has received a link to an online team Google calendar, that will reflect any changes to schedule in real-time.
Your hotel: UniversT
CONTACT & SERVICES
- You are staying at Univers T Hotel, at no 53-55 Alexandru Vaida Voevod Str.
in Cluj-Napoca. - From your phone, you can call reception at +40.743.77.11.77
(normal rates apply).
DOING LAUNDRY
The hotel provides this service for a fee. Rates should be posted in your room, where you’ll also find a bag and a form for you to fill in.
Leave your clothes in the bag, with the form attached, for the cleaning crew, or bring them to the reception desk. Pay attention to fees, since laundry services are quite expensive in Romania.
NEARBY ATTRACTIONS
The hotel is right next to Iulius Mall shopping center, featuring plenty of a cinema multiplex, hundreds of shops, two restaurants with seating areas, as well as dozens of other restaurants in the food court including vegan and vegetarian options.
You might spot familiar brands, but also plenty of opportunities to try something new.
Currency exchange? Go to the mall. ATMs or bank branches? Go to the mall. Pharmacy? Go to… you got it.
Public transport in Cluj
Public transport works quite well, with a modern fleet of trolleys, electric buses and trams. Tickets cost 3 lei / one ride, without changing lines. Rides can be paid for with paper tickets bought in advance or by using the contactless payments terminal inside the bus/trolley – see below how.
If you get caught without a valid ticket, the fine is 70 RON. You will also lose 15 minutes of your life while ticket inspectors fail to spell your name. In triplicate.
Every Friday, all public transport is free within the city limits.
The nearest public transport station is in front of Iulius Mall. Exit the hotel, go across the parking lot, and take a left. After you’ve gone past the mall entrance, you’ll find the bus stop on the street some 50 yards to your left. A display panel in the station should provide estimated times of arrivals for all lines, and a machine there can be used to buy paper tickets.
From your hotel, take bus lines 24, 24B or 25 to “Sora” station and you’ll be in the city center!
Validating a paper ticket
Each paper ticket has two ends valid for two different trips, so it will cost 6 lei . Changing lines means you’re starting a new trip.
1. As soon as you board the bus, insert an unused end of the ticket, printed side up, to be stamped.
2. The machine will print the date & time. Make sure you validate your ticket as soon as you board. Keep the ticket on you.
Paper ticket, shown validated at both ends
Paying by card
If your card supports contactless payment, you can use it directly at the POS located inside each vehicle. Please note that we are not able to reimburse such payments, as no receipts are issued on board.
1. Approach your card to the contactless payment terminal pictured here.
2. Watch for the screen to flash and display “TRANZACTIE APROBATA”, meaning “TRANSACTION APPROVED”. This can take a LOT of time. Wait for it.
3. To buy another ticket, press your card again, press START and then press your card a second time for confirmation.
Make sure the approval message has appeared on screen – this can take up to 10 seconds. Double-check your banking app on your phone if you’re not sure, to avoid a fine.
Use this machine located inside buses to pay contacless by card.
Text says: POS no longer issues receipts. The transaction is confirmed by the message “Approved” on screen.
Ridesharing
Both Uber and Bolt operate in Cluj-Napoca, so you can order cars or even rent scooters. Uber is generally a bit cheaper than Bolt, but we careful with dynamic pricing, as a 20 lei ride can easily go up to 80 lei during peak hours (or if it’s raining).
Taxis
Cluj-Napoca has a fleet of about 2,400 taxis operated by various private companies. You can call one using any of the numbers below. A ride will cost 4.05 lei / km during the day and 4.75 lei / km during the night; a starting fee equivalent to 1 km will be added to any trip.
- Clima Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 943
- Nova Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 949.
- Diesel Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 946.
- ProRapid Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 948.
- TerraFan Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 944.
- Pritax Taxi – phone: (+40) 264 942.
You can pay for the ride in cash or by card (all taxis need to accept card payment, but please let them know at the beginning of the trip, to make sure their equipment is working).
Ask the taxi driver to provide the receipt (no stamp or fiscal node needed) and hand it over to the trip leader for reimbursement.
Financial info
Reimbursement of expenses
During your trip dates, the trip budget will cover all accomodation costs, meals, transportation & agreed-upon entrance fees.
For any cash payments from funds provided through the trip budget, except taxis, help us in being fiscally responsible by making sure you get and keep the receipt, ideally with our fiscal code on it.
Whenever you buy something – even a bottle of water – please ask any cashier to put our TAX ID on the RECEIPT issued at the cash register.
In Romanian, that’s “COD FISCAL” for “fiscal code”, and it’s RO11898730.
CURRENCY
The Romanian currency is called “leu”, with the plural “lei”. Think of these as less valuable dollars. One “leu” is divided by 100 “bani”, the plural of “ban”. Think of these as cents, but with even less of a chance of being picked up if found in the street. Sometimes, you’ll see “RON” instead of “leu” or “lei”. That’s the banking symbol for the currency, like “USD” is for dollars. “100 RON” simply means “100 lei”.
There are coins of 1, 5, 10 and 50 bani, and notes of 1, 5, 10, 20 (rarely seen), 50, 100, 200 and 500 lei. Notes are not made of paper, but a special polymer, so they feel a bit like plastic, but are much sturdier.
EXCHANGE
To exchange dollars to lei, the safest way is to go to a 0% commission exchange office, or to a bank branch. You can find both in Iulius Mall, next to your hotel. Never exchange money on the street or “unofficially”!
- Official rate of the National Bank of Romania as of March 12, 2025: 4.56 lei / $1
- Rate you would get at Transilvania Bank exchange desk on the same day: 4.46 lei / $1
SHOPPING & PAYMENTS
All prices displayed for any item or service is the final price, with no added tax. It’s actually illegal for a business to add something to the sticker price of a displayed product. Credit card, especially Visa and Mastercard, are widely accepted, with farmers market and some small shops still working cash-only. You can find ATMs at the airport, in the city center, as well as in Iulius Mall, next to your hotel.
TIPPING
Tipping is not mandatory, but a 10% tip would be expected for a restaurant meal. Guides, drivers and others may also appreciate tips, though they do not necessary expect them.
In an emergency
IN CASE OF IMMINENT THREAT TO THE HEALTH, LIFE OR PERSONAL SAFETY OF YOU OR ANYONE AROUND YOU, IMMEDIATELY CALL
This is the European equivalent of US “911” – it will connect you to police, ambulance, firefighters as needed.
112
Your contact from the Fuller Center Cluj:
Andrei Aroneț, executive director
+40.722.34.29.34