Something strange happened to me last week. I was at the recycling bins with my 7 year old son Luca (who likes to practice karate chops on chunks of polystyrene) when a garbage truck pulled over. Two fat guys got out, wandered over and helped us to load our Ikea waste into the containers. I couldn’t understand it, what on earth had got into them? I’m used to garbage men being morose and sarcastic, reluctantly moving the waste they’re hired to shift but never lifting a finger to do more. Why were they suddenly being helpful? Could it be because of the crisis? Are they afraid for their jobs? (more…)
Category: On Romania
Does Serbia need a brand?
When discussions about promoting Serbia take place the following comment often comes up: “shouldn’t we develop a country brand?” The short answer is “NO”. I am from Scotland, I now live in Romania, and I would like to share my opinion of branding countries. I hope that Serbia can learn from the mistakes of others.
A lot of money has been wasted by successive Romanian Governments in developing absurd country brands and it certainly hasn’t resulted in more tourists or investors. Their most recent slogan was “Romania – Land of Choices” and I am still trying to work out what it means. (more…)
Waiting for 2012
I was asked to write an article for Dilema Veche on the theme “what can we expect in 2010?” and this is what I think. But what do you think? Please leave your comments below. Rupert Wolfe Murray
This year will be much like 2009: political infighting, economic crises and passive discontent. Nothing new or useful can be expected from the new government and the media will be filled with the arguments and illicit affairs of Romania’s irresponsible leaders. (more…)
It’s a disaster
Preparing for disasters is an industry and also an attitude. There are lots of professionals flying around the world advising governments how to prepare for earthquakes, floods and natural disasters; thousands of humanitarian aid agencies rush in when disaster strikes and there are public officials everywhere whose job is to prepare the public for the worst — not to mention firemen, policemen, medical workers and soldiers who invariably form the front line of any disaster relief efforts. I have some experience of this profession. (more…)
Confessions of an addict
Last Christmas I bought myself an 80 megabyte iPod. This was a bit of a cheat considering it cost more than the presents I got for my loved ones, but I bought it through the company and justified it that way. Although iPods look amazing they are a pain in the butt because in order to use them you must download iTunes, Apple’s software, and this takes up 80 megabytes. And iTunes has its own way of organising your music, which I have still failed to understand, and this bugs me as I spent a long time thinking up a good filing system for my music. (more…)
Doing the Transfag
See my photos here
When I first heard about the Transfagarasan road it was described with a sense of awe, as “the higest road in Europe”, as an engineering miracle commanded by Ceausescu who ordered it as part of his military strategy. A quick look on the internet shows that it isn’t the highest road in Europe, but neither is the Col de la Bonette, the French claim which is challenged by the Brits from the Hidden Europe magazine who say: “There are tarmac roads in the Alps which are higher, and if you are prepared to take gravel roads into account, then many are much higher.” But at an altitude of 2000m the Transfag is no slouch and I reckon it is about the 5th highest road in Europe. (more…)
Digging a hole
Making films is probably the most boring profession in the world — as well as the most glamorous. They say making films is like going to war: lots of hanging around while not knowing what the hell is going on; and then a sudden, brief, unsatisfactory burst of action.
Although documentaries are generally more boring than feature films they can be more interesting to make. When making observational documentaries, you follow an interesting character around and let him tell the story; this means you constantly hear unexpected things, get led into unexpected places, meet new people — none of which would be possible in a feature film in which every word, gesture and action is controlled. (more…)
Travelling through Kitsch
In Romania, as in every country, there are stereotypes about which places are worth visiting. If I tell people I am from Scotland many say they would love to visit Edinburgh but it is rare you hear people saying they want to see Glasgow, which is a more interesting city in many ways. When I travelled round India (20 years ago) everyone said I should avoid Calcutta (now Kalkota) as it is just a vast sprawling slum full of insolent Bengalis. But I found it to be the most compelling place in India. (more…)
Romania’s antique army
When I saw Romania’s army marching through Bucharest last week it struck me how out of date Romania’s military is. The brass band music and gendarme uniforms are from nineteenth century France, the authoritarian voice-over and elderly commanders are from Soviet Russia, and the 50 ton tanks are WW2. None of it is useful against modern day threats.
An out of date army is designed to resist territorial invasion whereas a modern army is a flexible unit which can respond immediately to unknown threats. Unfortunately (more…)
Traveling into the unknown
Trying to compete with the west when it comes to tourism cannot succeed if the locations and infrastructure are as poor as they are in Romania. Romania’s beaches and ski resorts are promoted abroad even though they cannot possibly compete with what Turkey, Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary have to offer – not to mention France, Spain and Italy. (more…)