Archive for the ‘Not so serious’ Category

Posted on August 16, 2010 - by admin

No playing allowed.

The above picture is extremely humorous…however, many who have not lived in Romania, or who are not familiar with Romanian culture, won’t quite see why.  Perhaps I can explain it…perhaps not.

Many, many Romanians have left Romania since January 2007, when Romania and Bulgaria were allowed to participate in the EU.  While many are working and working hard in Western European nations now, there is much theft and begging.  In fact, just this week, authorities in France evacuated many Gypsy camps.  Italy has perhaps been the most vigilant, bulldozing camps of Romanians who are squatting on land and working illegally.  It’s true that much of the illegal activity is being carried out by Gypsies.  Well, they also tend to be talented musicians (the accordion is a common instrument), and often make money by playing in popular tourist areas in Western Europe.

This sign above is posted in Denmark (I believe) but in the Romanian language…except for the word ‘play’, which is strange  ’Cante’ would be the Romanian word for playing an instrument.  I don’t know why there is one English word on the sign.  Translated, the sign says, “It’s forbidden to ‘play’ without a license.  Begging also forbidden.”

Posted on August 2, 2010 - by admin

Smart Blond

Posted on June 7, 2010 - by admin

Cherry Picking – part 1

Why is this part 1?  Because it’s cherry season, and within a week we are due to pick another bumper crop at Dr. David’s house.  Those will be the ones we will use to make the cherry juice and cherry jam we have become world famous for.  But, we had a nice little picnic this afternoon with a bunch of people from our church, on a small piece of land owned by a couple, also in our church.  Here’s some snapshots of the afternoon:

Posted on June 6, 2010 - by admin

Tattoo me!

The other night, Becca was sitting on the couch with her pregnant belly exposed.  One of the kids (can’t remember who) said that her bellybutton looks like a nose (because it does, you know, sticking out a little bit from the increased regional pressure.)  So, I grabbed a marker and drew 2 eyes above the bellybutton and a mouth below.  That of course started a trend with all the kids lying down and asking me to tattoo them.  Below are the results:

Posted on June 2, 2010 - by admin

Rock Climbing

Romania just celebrated “Children’s Day” and someone set up a very small rock climbing wall at a local shopping center.  All the kids had a shot…Sebastian was so giddy!  He was laughing and giggling, until he got about 6 feet up in the air…then he started crying uncontrollably.

Posted on May 12, 2010 - by admin

What was that bump?

No kidding.  I saw this sign today on a car that was parked outside our ministry offices.  I don’t think it was intended to be a joke.  I think it was just a well-intended, yet poor translation job.  Unfortunately, since most babies do not ride in any form of child seats in Romania, and because there is no car seat law in Romania, it’s all too possible and common that there could be a baby in the road.  In fact, a few months back, one of the screens at the local mall was playing a public service announcement to encourage parents to put their children in child seats.  The ad showed a little girl playing in the back seat and then flying through the windshield after her father (the driver) got into an accident.

Posted on May 4, 2010 - by admin

Permission Granted

The sign above, which reads “standing on the grass is permitted”, is a unique sign in Romania.  Unfortunately, we still see signs to the contrary.  We were at a wedding last summer and the grass in the park nearby where most of the kids wanted to play had a sign on the grass that said, “It is strictly forbidden to walk on the grass”.  I could sort of understand this sentiment if the grass was like that found in an English garden, but the funny thing is that the grass looked horrible.  It was mostly weeds, had not been cut in a long time, and looked like an abandoned field.  Below is one citizens story…

One of the stupid ideas inherited from the communist regime was that never ever, in any circumstances, was one allowed to step on the grass in a public park. From my childhood I remember that any strip of green grass had a sign on it saying “Don’t step on the grass!”, sometimes with the smaller addition “Fine xxx (some amount that my parents were not prepared to pay) lei”. After 1989, when Romanians were finally allowed to own a passport and I got to see the world outside my country I was puzzled to find out that most corners of the world don’t have this policing of the grass. The first time I stepped on the grass in a park I felt a bit guilty and I asked myself why is it OK to do this in other countries and why is it not OK in Romania? But some things change with time and last summer I’ve read in the press that from now on the citizens of Bucharest will be allowed to step, sit, loiter, etc on the grass in public parks. To be honest I didn’t really believe it to be true. Yet, lo and behold, to my surprise, Cismigiu Park is full of signs like the one the above photograph.  I guess I lived to see the day – some girl named Andreea

Posted on April 28, 2010 - by admin

Coffee is better in Romania.

You can tell if you are a true coffee lover by this simple test:  does the photo above produce a strange flutter in your heart?  Coffee lover.

I know I’ve ranted about this before, but since I am hi-lighting the good things about Romania, this important topic has come up again.  While there are exceptions, in general the coffee in the U.S. is bad…just plain bad, and the coffee over here (in Romania and Europe in general) is good.  Now, I have to be honest and admit, that the good coffee in Romania, actually comes from Italy or Austria or Germany.  But, that’s a minor detail, because it’s true of the good coffee in the U.S. too.  So, in that respect, we are even.  In fact, you can get most of the good coffee sold here, in the US too, and oftentimes Amazon.com is the place to find it.

What people in the US call French Roast would be illegal to drink in France…please, no French jokes or comments about Freedom Fries.  The French might not be the ones you want watching your back in a war, but it would be a darn good idea to have them making the coffee for the soldiers.  That being said, one advantage of Romania’s proximity to Western Europe, at least geographically speaking, is the access to the goods and the talents that produce good drinking coffee. Some like it straight, some like it with milk, some with sugar, some with both.  Some like it iced.  Some like it with just a dab of whipped cream on top.  No matter how you like it, it’s good and it’s better here than there.  Am I going over the top in my attempt to demonstrate that some things are better in Romania than in the US?  I feel like I have to because I’ve knocked Romania too many times in other blog posts.

Now, regarding Starbucks.  I am not about to knock them.  I have been known to frequent the establishment.  But, if you are an American and you go to Starbucks because you think you are getting the best coffee in the world…well, I’m sorry; you are mistaken.  I realize that it might be the best option around, but it’s not the best in the world.  It’s mostly milk, and it’s not smooth, and it makes you have a bowel movement before you can leave the store.  The benefit of Starbucks is that you know what you are going to get no matter where you go.  If your drink of choice is a Venti Carmel decaf Latte Extra Hot with a drop of chocolate and a sprinkle of cinnamon, you have 99% chance of getting it made the same all around the world.  Let’s be honest…Starbucks is the McDonalds of coffee.  And, they are not selling coffee.  They are selling office space!….and if you live outside North America, free internet access!!!  Sorry suckers, it’s true.

So, for all my complaining about life in Romania, here’s one for the team.  The coffee you can find here in most places beats the tail off the coffee you can find in some of the best places in the U.S.

One disclaimer:  Coffee at Denny’s can taste pretty good along side a Grand Slam Breakfast after a cold surf session. Sorry Becca, it’s true!

Behold…a Denny’s grandslam with an empty cup of Joe.

Posted on April 27, 2010 - by admin

Public Transportation

To say that public transportation in the U.S. is not good is quite the understatement (with exception to a few of the largest and oldest cities).  In the west, if you don’t have a car you are pretty doomed.  It can be hard to find and keep a job, go shopping, make it to a doctors appointment, etc.  Unless you live and create your life within a one square mile of a downtown city, which is still nearly impossible for most people.

But, in Romania, you can usually get from city to city via train or maxi-taxi (a van that seats 8-15 people but have been known to pack in over 20).  In town, you can take buses, taxi, or trolley.  In Bucuresti, there is an old and dirty, but reliable subway system that will at least get you within walking distance of 70% of the places you may want to go.  There have been days when I have taken a taxi to the airport, flown to Bucuresti, taken a bus from the airport there, gotten on the subway to the neighborhood I wanted to reach, and then taken a trolley to the intersection I needed to find…walking the rest of the way.   Taxi, plane, bus, subway, trolley, all within a 2 hour period.

Back home here in Cluj, we have only one car, so whenever it’s necessary for us to be going in two different directions, it’s usually a bus, a taxi, or our own feet that come to the rescue.

Posted on March 6, 2010 - by admin

Pie Chart

Had to post this.  Anyone under 40 should appreciate it.