I see a fair amount of “Romania? I’ve never really considered Romania before” in people’s eyes when I talk about visiting the country. Posts illuminating my love for this underestimated land can be… Continue reading
At the souvenir gauntlet outside Castle Peleş, mixed in among the customary snow globes and magnets was a selection of more unusual items. The array of carpets, clothing, and card games was a… Continue reading
When Pulp Fiction informed me that people in Amsterdam put mayonnaise on their fries, I was cooperatively grossed out. Mayo was an acceptable ingredient for way down the ingredients list, but it should… Continue reading
It is not the symbol anyone in Bucharest would choose for their city, but the massive Palace of Parliament lands in every visitor’s awareness like a walrus in the penguin exhibit. Conceived by… Continue reading
It’s been true for a year and a half now, but I had never felt it as acutely as I did on the flight from Amsterdam to Bucharest: this is a very awkward… Continue reading
It’s one of those things I never noticed until someone pointed it out, and now it’s all I see. Every time I merge onto Interstate 580, where I used to only see the… Continue reading
Happy Today, everyone! (Whenever your today happens to occur.) Most of my energy these days goes to classes, taxes, finally leaving the apartment to go camping next week, negotiating a work contract for… Continue reading
Covid, the Great Disruptor, is helping us ask questions we didn’t ask before. For example, we could ask “Wait, I keep craving a return to my old life, but how did I feel… Continue reading
The sky is blue. In former years, that was a basic sentence for English language instruction. In 2020 it’s cause for celebration. Last week the Bay Area (and much of the Pacific Northwest)… Continue reading
“Over a dozen protesters arrested after protest turned violent Saturday night in Oakland.” A headline too routine to read, a story so familiar the news agencies barely bothered to write it, mostly posting… Continue reading
The signs appeared about a month ago on a corner near where I live. The work of local artists, each page had the face of someone killed by police, and their name. It… Continue reading
