Bizarro Spectral Erosa

One of the only people in black was wearing a black T-shirt and looked an awful lot like our friend Paul who we met at Augusta's Goth night, Spectral Erosa. He had the same shoulder-length hair and pleasant face. He was even built very much like our Paul and spent the evening fooling with his camera and taking photos of his friends, a very Paul thing to do.

Bucharest in the Morning

There is the old man with the cheerful Irish setter. They walk together a lot, the dog trotting wide circles around him, careful not to go into the street until the man does. The dog always looks as though he is smiling.

Bucharest at Night

Some nights, it's quiet. Ghostly, even. On some well-lit corners, there are clusters of taxis.

The Great Weather Switch

I have a friend who is very concerned about the fact that I don't have a television. He thinks I should know what is going on in my homeland. I think that is very nice of him. I tell him I read CNN.com to make him feel better.

Beer and Birth Control in a Handbasket

Imagine that--a woman knowing she needs birth control without being told by a doctor. Maybe Romanian women are simply smarter than American women.

Sometimes It Is Just a Walk in the Park

That place had cobbled walks, a paddle boat and autumn leaves. The place I found the other day...well, let's just say it didn't.

American Investment in Bucharest

The only thing visible to the naked eye, Michael, is the presence of McDonald's and KFC (Bucharest folks looove their fried chicken), and I'm sure a few other places that I can't get my brain in right now. Coke has a big honking advertisement downtown that is a giant bottle bigger than the Sweetheart Cup that pours Coke from itself...

Haunting the Streets

On the way back to the apartment from the movie last night we saw a young guy up ahead dancing in our direction. Then he danced in the other direction for a few feet and then he came back. Not something you see on the streets every day.

Studio Bar

About half the guys in the Studio Bar have long hair and a beard. Mark has long hair and a beard. Pair that with our perpetual look of discombobulation and it probably seemed pretty obvious to the guy where we belonged.

We Have Become Romanian Mall Rats

Mall culture in Bucharest is like Windsor culture in Augusta. Skinny middle-aged women show off their angular figures and smoke cigarettes. And there we are, Americans on the loose, paying $5 for a tiny-bass Espresso.

Nicolae Grigorescu

That's because I depend on Grigorescu. His is a familiar, friendly name I'm always glad to see, because he gets me home when I've been out.

You May Have Been in Bucharest too Long If...

...you find yourself keeping an eye on dogs to figure out when to cross the street in certain parts of town.

Out in the Streets

I won't even go into the details of the Mexican restaurant we found the other night. I may need therapy after that one.

A Bit of Time Travel

Maybe Douglas Adams wasn't attempting to entertain us. Maybe he was trying to warn us of our inevitable, albeit very silly, doom.

The Off-to-Work Crowd

They walked single-file, with bags in their hands. And there were seven of them. If they had been singing, "High-ho, high-ho, it's off to work we go," I would have...well, I don't know what I would have done, but it was quite a sight.

More Culinary Delights

La Ma-ma-mama!

So that's the scoop on that. I know my family will be disappointed I'm not eating something terribly exotic, but the most exotic thing I eat is mutbal, which is made out of eggplant. It is also not Romanian.

Gazing From My Balcony

One girl's windowed room is full of books, so I wondered if she was a student or a bibliophile or both.

Snow

In Georgia, there is such a thing as a "snow day." It's magical. It's wonderful. It's a day when the world looks like a Christmas card and ordinary people drive into ditches.

S.O.S.!! (and Tube Cheese)

As far as updates go, I have a raging leak in the bathroom, my apartment has been overtaken by mold and my phone just ran out of credit.

Stumbling Upon History

Romania was probably the place to be on that particular night, because that particular night is when Romania became part of the EU. I tapped Mark and pointed. "Look," I said. "History."