Bucharest to Beijing:A Translator’s Cultural Connection

When Laura Calingraduated fromthe Universityof Bucharest inRomania， she never imagined thather next step would lead to theheart of China. After enrollingat Beijing Language and CultureUniversity （BLCU）， Laura decidedto move to Beijing where shecould embrace the colorful cultureand rich history of China. “I wasso captivated by everything thatI didn’t even notice time slippingaway，” commented Laura on herarrival in Beijing.

A Career Rooted in China

By the time she finished herlanguage courses， Laura hadgrown to love the culture and thepeople of China， so she decided tostay to start a career. Her vocationled her from the bustling streetsof Beijing to the vibrant cityof Shanghai and even to otherparts of Asia. Eventually， Laurareturned to Romania to be withher family. However， the pull ofChina remained strong， and shefound herself longing to returnand explore even more.

Laura’s passion for Chineseculture and her proficiency inthe Chinese language inspiredher to create a cultural bridgebetween Romania and China. Sheenvisioned translating traditionalRomanian children’s stories intoChinese， hoping to sow seeds ofmutual understanding in youngminds. Laura observed thatChinese children were eager toread books and that parents oftenread to them from a very youngage. She realized that introducingRomanian culture to youngChinese readers through bookswould be a great idea.

Translating children’sliterature is a delicate taskthat involves more than justconverting text from onelanguage to another. It requiresa thoughtful transposition ofcultural elements. For Laura，the cultural context in whicha story is set plays a pivotalrole in shaping its narrative，character development， andvalues. “Literature for childrenfunctions as a window intodiverse worlds， providinginsights into different ways ofliving， belief systems， and socialnorms，” Laura noted.

Challenges and Triumphs

With this goal in mind， Laurabegan translating traditionalRomanian children’s storiesinto Chinese， fostering uniquecultural exchanges betweenthe two nations. However， achallenge she soon faced whenchoosing stories was difficulty inidentifying which ones would bemost relatable to young Chinesereaders. “I finally decided toshare Ion Creanga’s works，which are quite humorous andinformative as well as leavinga great impact on the brainto promote thinking outsidethe box，” she said. ChildhoodMemories ， a collection of hisnovellas and short stories， makeIon Creanga a major figure ofRomanian literature in the 19thcentury.

With initial steps completed，Laura embarked on her passionproject — translating storiesfrom Romanian to Chinese.“There’s always more to learn，and it never really ends，” Laurasaid of her translation experience.“Translation is a challengingcraft that requires the skill ofa sculptor， the sensitivity of amusician， the analytical abilityof a researcher， and the deepinsights of a linguist， culturalambassador， and poet.” Herunderstanding of both Romanianand Chinese cultures has greatlyaided her translation work.

And so， days turned intomonths before Laura finishedtranslating the stories and startedlooking for a publisher. “Findinga publisher was challenging，”she said. “I was continuallymotivated by Yang Qing， one ofmy Chinese friends， who workedhard to connect me to variouspublishers.” She expressed deepgratitude to her Chinese friendsfor their support during herchallenging days. With the helpof a Romanian publisher， Laurawas finally able to connect withLiaoning People’s PublishingHouse. “It was like a dreamcome true，” Laura recalled. Thepublishing house was impressedby her idea， concept， andtranslation work， making all theefforts worthwhile.

Looking to the Future

Holding a printed copy ofThe Bear Tricked by the Fox： ACollection of Romanian FairyTales in her hands for the firsttime brought intense emotion toLaura. “My hands were shiveringwith excitement， and I wasthrilled to see my name on it，”she said. For Laura， seeing hertranslations printed in the Chineselanguage provided a tremendoussense of accomplishment. Laurais excited that her project isnow available to a wide range ofreaders. Her translated book canbe easily purchased on popularonline platforms like Taobao andAmazon.

Looking ahead， Lauraenvisions continuing her workand translating more content forChinese readers and vice versa，aiming to bridge the cultural gapbetween Romania and China.She also hopes that her child willcontinue this mission. Deeplyconnected to Chinese culture，Laura is dedicated to teaching herchild the Chinese language. “Ifyou ask me what heritage I’ll passon to my child， I would definitelysay it would be my Chineselanguage skills，” she grinned. “Iwant to pass this on to the nextgeneration， including my ownchild.”