Twenty years ago, during the first, raw years of Bill Clinton’s presidency, the world was a vastly different place. The “Iron Curtain” had fallen and a dozen countries (including Romania) were now free to follow their own path. A German musical band was singing about the winds of change and millions of people were speaking in hopeful terms about a peace dividend. With the long … Continue reading The Black Hole of Romania
I was doing some research for something else when I found an old (previously secret) telegram in the archives of the American State Department that made me laugh. In August of 1976, the “Stejar of Scornicesti”, Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceasescu made a rare trip to Chisinau, which was then part of the Soviet Union. He then went to Russia to meet the Soviet leader Brezhnev … Continue reading The Ancient Romanian Art
Right now the number one show in Britain is Channel 4’s “Benefits Street”, which allegedly focuses on people receiving “benefits” or government money. Episode 2 heavily featured immigrant Romanians (often pronounced Rumanians on the show), one a gypsy family from Romania and the second a group of 14 agricultural workers from Romania. Despite the fact that neither the workers nor the gypsy family were receiving … Continue reading Benefits Street
Well this week Romanian journalists haven’t had to resort to stealing videos and photos because there’s been non-stop coverage of a domestic incident, the crash of a plane (link in English) in the Apuseni Mountains near Cluj. This story is still ongoing and I’ve been closely monitoring the media but I’ve decided to hold off on a lengthy article because it seems like every hour … Continue reading Frozen Tears
Well apparently my dozens of articles on the subject, written in straightforward prose, were not enough so therefore I’ve decided to spell things out once and for all. I assure you that everything I am saying here is quite serious and not some kind of ironic joke or attempt to be “politically correct”. Please remember that I not only know and interact with gypsies on … Continue reading 10 Reasons I Love Gypsies
All Things Romania 