Comments on: Berlin Diary

By: Nick

Nick — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:13:03 +0000

You really do have a problem with dogs, don’t you? Over the past few years in Bucharest, I’ve had no problems; they’re pretty good natured by and large having been or descended from household pets (in fact Romanians I know have adopted street dogs and they’ve fitted in), and most of the time they’re regarded as communal pets.

Admittedly, dogs tend to like me, and I understand that it can be disconcerting with kids, but still, a little balance would be good.

Now, Greece is a different matter entirely.

By: Marius

Marius — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 20:44:11 +0000

Funny, I’ve had the opposite experience with the public transportation system in Berlin. I found it to be working perfectly, to the second. Not to mention travelling w/o a ticket once in a while – during my vacation there last year (just for fun, I don’t do that in general).

Definitely a great city, full of possibilities.

By: Davin Ellicson

Davin Ellicson — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:44:34 +0000

Craig,

I am indeed well aware of this. Why is their no violent crime though? I would imagine it is a hold over from Communism when everyone feared the Securitate? Am I right?

By: Parmalat

Parmalat — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:49:13 +0000

Today I drank a few glasses and I had to take a cab. Just my luck, I found a driver who was either more drunk than I was or the booze was such a custom for him that he seemed drunk and smelling like alcohol even when he didn’t drink. And he started to tell me some stories:
“Back in 1990 Iliescu gave order so that in groceries stores alcohol wasn’t sold anymore; the World Cup was on and he said people were gonna drink and make scandal on the streets.
And back then I had a job as an unqualified worker for pharmaceutical company that produced pills and other medicine. And I had a combination with some women so that they stole alcohol that could be found in the company’s depots and sold the alcohol to me.
And also I knew a hag in Berceni who was selling alcohol to all neighborhood. And I took a bottle of alcohol which I had from work, mixed it in a 20 litres butt with water and added some almond essence which smells exactly like plums so that people would think they drink tuica made of plums. And I went to her to sell the mixture. I took the alcohol with 40 lei a bottle and sold the mixture to her with 70 lei a litre.
And she was asking me – is it tuica made of plums? oh yes it is! like hell it was made of plums, she didn’t know that often I added water from a spring which was near her house.
In a few months I bought a Dacia car which was 120.000 lei back then. I remember that I even sold 400 litres in a single evening. The whole neighborhood was waiting in line to buy “tuica” so they can watch the footbal games”
=))

By: Craig Turp

Craig Turp — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 10:18:12 +0000

Being safer than almost any city I could care to mention is one of the genuinely excellent things about Bucharest. Violent crime is almost unheard of.