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(Photo: Sarah in Romania) After a quarter of a century, the Libraria Ioan Dalles (Diverta for the last seven years) is no more. Intent on visiting my very favourite bookstore in all Bucharest this afternoon, you can imagine the shock to find it gone. Libraria Ioan Dalles, yesterday's gloriously dusty bookworm's paradise is now nothing more than a mousehole (a tiny one) of mostly second-hand books. I couldn't believe my eyes. What had once been a fabulous labyrynth of books old and new, cultural events, venue for fairs and festivals,... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source) Woke up to the vertiginous news that Bucharest's mayor Sorin Oprescu was taken into custody by the DNA in the early hours (see video here) on suspicion of taking bribes between 2013-15. He was filmed receiving a nice fat back-hander last night, basically caught en flagrant delit. Had to pinch myself several times to believe it. AP report: 'The anti-corruption prosecutors' office said in a statement that from 2013-2015, firms which had contracts with Bucharest city hall were obliged to pay up to 70% of their profits... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source - Litera) Bucharesteans are getting terribly good at coming up with strategies to promote reading. Romania Insider published THIS article this morning on a recent project between Meridian Taxi and Editura Litera, The Mobile Library (Biblioteca Mobila), where clients can browse through books as they're driven to their destinations. Published by Litera, Alice Munro, AP Cehov, Sinclair Lewis, Frantz Kafka and Mihail Bulgakov are just a few of the authors you'll find in a Meridian taxi - and they'll be changed on a monthly... [Lire la suite]

(Image source) We were so looking forward to being at Sala Palatului last Tuesday night for the Israel Philharmonic (Enescu and Mahler) conducted by Zubin Mehta. Since the George Enescu Festival is the country's greatest classical music (and cultural) event of the year, getting hold of tickets has become more and more difficult. All around me I could hear a whir of English, Italian, German, American, Spanish, Czech, French, Russian. Everyone who spoke to me (apart from the friend I was with) did so in (mostly accented) English.... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source) Agitated speculation continues to surround the latest drama engulfing Romania's former royal family. On August 1st, King Mihai decided by royal decree that 30-year-old Nicolae was not up to royal standards and formally cut him out of the succession to which he was third in line, withdrawing his title of ‘Prince of Romania’ and the style ‘Royal Highness' effective immediately. "[The King thinks] Romania will need a head of the family who is dignified, moral, thinks of others and is hardworking, respecting the principles... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source - 1936, 2nd edition) The cookery book, in an advanced stage of tatters (though cunningly held together with wrapping paper, willpower and paper clips), sits on the work surface in the kitchen ready for action. Its discoloured pages have seen a lot of the world and witnessed much of life. Full of scrawled notes in the margins dating back decades, the countless jottings on bits of coloured paper pinned to corresponding recipes are a reminder of what to do and what not to do next time. Today, chiftele is on the menu and we... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source) Today, June 24th (the feast of St John as well as magical Sânzienele or Drăgaica), marks Ziua Universala a Iei - the Universal Day of the Romanian Blouse. As I walked down my nearby boulevard earlier this afternoon, almost every woman I passed was wearing one. Me too. We smiled at each other, stopped to comment on our blouses, where they'd come from, who'd made them. The short walk to the Post Office took me over an hour! But why is the ie (pronounced ee-eh) such an important national symbol? Handed down from mother to... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source - Tudor Besleaga) The press are always quick to jump on stories about unsavoury Romanian ex-pats running amok and ripping off the UK's benefits system, but there are thousands of Romanians living abroad working hard, studying their pants off and making a success of their lives that we never hear about. This post, therefore, is dedicated to one such success story with a future ahead of him that could potentially change the face of coronary patient care worldwide. Tudor Besleaga is a UCL Mechanical Engineering graduate... [Lire la suite]

(Photo source) I cannot believe my eyes. Mayor of Bucharest Sorin Oprescu is to be awarded France's highest honour by Jean-Marc Todeschini, French Minister of State for Veterans and Remembrance, in a ceremony in Bucharest this Thursday 12th March at La Résidence de France (str. biserica Amzei 13-15) with François Saint-Paul, France's Ambassador, in attendance. (Strada Biserica Amzei nr 13-15)in Bucharest. What has Oprescu done to deserve such an honour? Is it his undying dedication to destroy Bucharest brick by brick perhaps?... [Lire la suite]

As if Romanian culture and those that strive to preserve it haven't had their fair share of battles and insults over recent years, culture is now about to be further taxed. The draft law (to replace Law no. 35/1994), signed by 84 trans-party MPs, has caused massive outcry among Romanian intellectuals, and public opinion is equally revolted. This new tax, says Nine O'Clock, is to be applied to any cultural 'product' in Romania, from books, theatre and films to exhibitions and concerts, and the income it makes will enrich 'creators’... [Lire la suite]