The Grandmaster

Many years ago I was eating dinner in a restaurant in Bucharest when my companions began pointing and whispering excitedly. It turned out that Gheorghe Hagi was eating at a nearby table. I not only didn’t recognize him by sight but I had literally never heard of him despite the fact that he is widely considered to be this country’s greatest football (USA: soccer) player … Continue reading The Grandmaster

Politics In Romania: Puppet Theater

You know, living here in Romania, you’d think I’d be more interested in politics, politicians and what’s happening on the political scene. The truth though is that I really don’t care very much at all. Frankly I’m not missing out on a whole lot. Just about all of the political players of any consequence are holdovers from the Communist era, a group of graying, balding … Continue reading Politics In Romania: Puppet Theater