novembre 2009

Look, everyone...look what's happened to people expropriated at Basarab to make way for new construction... it is unbelievable. I wonder whether my coffee is too strong and I am hallucinating. The couple in the film (click on blue link above) were thrown out of their home on 24th September of this year. They were told the day before that their home would be demolished tomorrow, were cursed, beaten up by the police and terrified. Today they are living in an outhouse that served for their pigs and chickens. They are senior citizens,... [Lire la suite]

Such shameful foulness... Doina Cornea robbed???? It's like robbing Mother Teresa. How can anyone do such a thing??? Such a brave and determined woman who fought so hard against the oppression, cruelty, mental paralysis and cultural decapitation under communism...burgled???? I don't have much faith in the police - none actually - but I hope if they catch them, these scumbags will receive the worse punishment possible. I have been reading some of the offensive comments in different newspapers regarding this appalling crime to... [Lire la suite]

Dear Everyone, I cannot comment on the article below as I haven't read the book. However, London seems to be quite taken with it and it's reported to be the long overdue reference to Roumania we've all been waiting for. If it's a history book by which I mean a REAL one, then anyone delving as I write, please let me know and I'll get to it. Rosapepe was a 'wishy washy' US ambassador to Roumania. David Funderburk, I'm told, was by far the very best. The country certainly needs some positive and optimistic publicity. We could well do... [Lire la suite]

Horror. Absolute horror. It doesn't matter whether there's an election or not, does it. I should stop kidding myself. People don't behave any better even during election campaigns. There has been yet MORE destruction in Bucharest. Yet more obliteration of heritage, beauty and a nation's respect for its own history. Where this time? Firstly, str. E. Grigorescu nr 1 just opposite Icoanei Park. I had hoped that there at least it would be safe. But no. And why should it be anyway when just around the corner, the bulldozers have been more... [Lire la suite]

A sad and heartfelt farewell to this wonderful and much loved actor. It has been a tragic year for Roumanian theatre indeed. The following from Yahoo News: Gheorghe Dinica, well known Romanian actor, dies By ALISON MUTLER, Associated Press Writer – Tue Nov 10, 12:17 pm ET BUCHAREST, Romania – Gheorghe Dinica, a Romanian actor who delighted his country by portraying characters such as villainous politicians and defiant Gypsies in dozens of plays and movies, died Tuesday. He was 75. Dinica, famous throughout Romania,... [Lire la suite]

Thank you NYT for the article below: NYT: Bucovina, the place where art and faith embrace E-mail Print PDF The Bucovina region in the far north of the country, wrote the Romanian scholar Silviu Sanie, is “one of those blessed realms where sacred and secular monuments have enriched the enchanting natural landscape,” New York Times writes in an extensive feature story on the Romanian region.“During a recent week’s stay, I found this description remarkably apt,” the author says. “Once the easternmost province of the... [Lire la suite]

Bucharest born Tudor Banus: Painter, artist, engraver, author, book (see pix right - "The Muppet Show Book" by its inventor and "Particularly Cats" by Doris Lessing) and press illustrator whilst also being a friend of mine (which certainly adds to your interest, I'm sure). Do please take a look at his very well-done and easy to navigate homepage. Tudor is having two vernissages at the Galérie Paul Amarica, 21 rue Washington, 75008 Paris, métro George V on 19 November 18h30-21h and 21st November 18h-20h30, with... [Lire la suite]

Wow! Just think how much easier life could be with a pair of these! I'd put them on your Christmas list if I were you! This from the BBC: Smart spectacles aid translation The spectacles are due to go on sale in Japan in 2010 Spectacles that can provide subtitles have been created by hi-tech firm NEC. Resembling glasses but lacking lenses, the headset uses a tiny projector to display images on a user's retina. NEC said it planned a version that used real-time translation to provide subtitles for a conversation... [Lire la suite]

Dear Everyone, This whole 'flu' issue is becoming way too complicated....what are we supposed to think? There's H1N1, Novel and Swine Flu viruses and noone seems to know which is which or whether they are all the same or...which one has a curly tail and a snout... So, here's some info to help you sort it out once and for all from Wiki Q&A: All swine flus and H1N1 viruses are forms (sub-types) of the Type A Influenza. There are "H1N1" influenza viruses that are not "swine flu", some types of the... [Lire la suite]

The Passport and Nadirs by Herta Müller The Nobel prizewinner has yet to convince Tibor Fischer of her artistry Tibor Fischer The Guardian, Saturday 24 October 2009 The Passport by Herta Müller, translated by Martin Chalmers 99pp, Serpent's Tail, £7.99 Nadirs by Herta Müller, translated by Sieglinde Lug 126pp, Nebraska, £9.99 I have a lot of sympathy for anyone who grew up in Ceausescu's Romania. In Hungary, in Poland, in Czechoslovakia, even in East Germany, things weren't great for the majority, but if you... [Lire la suite]