“Travels to a Different Time” : 21July1974: Motru, Romania: Bartering with a Poor Romanian Dude: My Celebrity Status Continues: Police Chief Warns About Associating with Me

Considering the rain leakage into my tent I woke up in a good mood. I was on the road at 06:30. On a ride in the back of a truck one guy my age went berserk when he saw my belt. He really went nuts when he saw I had a pair of jeans in my knapsack. My jeans were in bad shape but better than his tattered jeans. I sold the jeans for about $3 and for my belt I traded him for a big jar of Romanian honey and his leather belt. He must be strutting about in his hometown with his “new jeans” and belt. I really had pity for this guy. Next a ride in a worker’s van. I was let off at a tiny village and some gypsy women wanted to buy my jeans. I get offers to sell everything I own! I stopped in a Buffet and had some tasty meatballs and the worst Romanian beer I have ever had. As I was eating some bonko professor from the USSR kept babbling on about what I have no idea. When I entered the Buffet everyone stopped talking and were staring at me. Ah it feels good to be famous!

A truck diver picked me up next and we passed one small town after the other. It was roasting hot until we headed up the mountains. The driver had to stop his truck to let the radiator cool. A man came running down the hill asking to buy some gas which was siphoned off. We reached his destination Motru. I found a hotel which resembled those ugly socialist high-rise monstrosities. It was super cheap and they don’t seem to have a discriminatory tourist pricing like they have at the Black Sea probably because they have no tourists in this small town. I had a shower in a bathroom that was crumbling apart.

I have some Romanian currency to spend because I am close to the Yugoslav border and plan to enter Yugoslavia where the Romanian lei will be worthless. I had met a student when I arrived in town and he took me to my hotel and said we should meet for dinner which we did despite the fact he was warned by the police chief not to be seen with me. We had a good dinner of cutlets, rice, carrots, two bottles of water and a bottle of wine for $4. He saw a picture of me in my wallet and asked if he could have it. He roared back home and brought me his photograph and we exchanged addresses. On the way back to the hotel I stopped at a pastry shop for a pastry and an ice cream. I decided to stop at the cinema at watch a movie. It was so hot a couple of guys took off their shirts. I returned home at 11 and the lights were not working in my room so I had to lug a lamp outside in the hallway for illumination. I fumbled around and then off to bed.

“Travels to a Different Time” : 20July1974: Simeria, Romania: Ducks and Chickens Running Around the Street

Up early to perform my morning ablutions and readying for my next destination Sebes. I had to take a bus to Sibiu to get to the main road. A toothless peasant in front of me reeked of wine and we were sandwiched in. I had to mash my way out. I got my first ride going to Sebes on a large diesel truck and we were going at a good clip until we got to two railway crossings with a 20-minute wait at each one. We stopped at a restaurant and he bought me a beer. Romanians are generally a friendly lot. Sebes was totally uninteresting so I pushed on to Simeria walking past stunned Romanians staring at me. An Australian couple picked me up next and took me to Simeria. I walked to the campground and pitched my tent next to a Romanian doctor who had recently visited Montreal. I had yet another cold shower and it felt good to get the grime off. Afterwards a whole litre of water and three ice creams. It was a charming small town with ducks and chickens running around the streets. I walked along the river which was muddy yet Romanians were swimming in it. I returned in the campground just in time as rain thunder and lightning struck. Unfortunately a few things got wet in the tent. Damn Romanian rain!

RKS Retro Film: “The Blue Gardenia”

“The Blue Gardenia”, directed by Fritz Lang, was released in 1953 and Anne Baxter plays Norah Larkin, Richard Conte plays Casey Mayo and Raymond Burr as Harry Prebble.

This 60-year-old plus film remains watchable and is not stale. Norah is in love with marine George who is in Korea fighting in the Korean War. Norah decides to celebrate her birthday with table settings for two and a bottle of champagne and George’s picture at the table. Poor Norah opens a letter from George saying so sorry I have fallen in love with a nurse and will marry her. He writes “best wishes for your future”. Distraught she ends up with the lecherous Harry Prebbles at a Chinese restaurant called Blue Gardenia. Prebble sketches models. Prebbles loads up Norah with extra rum laced Polynesian Pearl Divers. Harry had ordered the waiter to make sure there was lots of rum in Norah’s drinks. He keeps on encouraging her to drink and she ends up plastered and had it not been so dastardly she plays a drunk almost comically. Things are sweetened with Nat King Cole performing “Blue Gardenia” in the restaurant. Smooth!

Prebbles takes up Norah to his apartment and attempts to rape her but she takes a poker and swings at Prebbles hitting and shattering a mirror. She stumbles home leaving a few clues one very Cinderellaish. She can’t remember much about the evening but the inference is that she killed Prebbles.  Prebbles is a “lady’s man” and there are no doubt hints of a very angry women yelling with Prebbles over the phone at the beginning of the film.

Norah begins to believe she is the murderer and big shot columnist Casey Mayo persuades her to come out in the open so she can spill the beans on what happened and gain some public sympathy. He may be a newspaper man but he has compassion.

And yes things turn out happily.

The theme of sexual assault carried out by professional predator is topical. The quest for a story is also a phenomenon today although newspapers are largely a thing of the past. Murders are hot news and always have been.

An enjoyable watch and you can catch the movie gratis on Tubi here https://tubitv.com/movies/575312/the-blue-gardenia?start=true

RKS Wine: Argentinian Well Knowns

The Catena family has been making wines in Argentina for over 100 years so you’d assume they know something about wine. Longevity does not equate with quality though.

Let’s check out their Alamos Selección 2018 Malbec from Mendoza in Argentina. On the nose this black cherry purplish colored wine is rich and dense. It is bursting at the seams with blackberry, black currant, cassis and Chambord. On the palate equally dense, prolific and creamy blackberry, fresh baked blueberry pie with tinges of coconut. Although not a complex wine there is some beauty in its direct and forward power. Although you can sip it with pleasure it is one of those wines that teams up better with food such as a grilled Argentinian meat platter. When the label says the wine has a deep-lush finish that is entirely accurate. Matching this with vegetarian dishes is more problematic perhaps portobello burgers or a very rich pasta sauce with San Marzano tomatoes. If you know how to make a good black bean burger, unlike me, there is the texture and taste to pair well with Malbec. You really can’t lose with this wine. It feels like 15% alcohol on this but it is a “mere” 13.5%.

(Alamos Selección 2018 Malbec, Mendoza, Bodega Alamos, Vista Flores, Tunuyán, Argentina, $16.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 32280, 750 mL, 13.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 93/100).

While the Catena family has been in play in Argentina you might want to call Susana Balbo a relative newcomer producing high quality wines. Her Malbecs and Torrontés are winners but this is my first dive in her Signature White Blend a combination of Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Torrontés.

On the nose this platinum-coloured wine has aromas of zingy lime, Sauvignon Blanc on steroids and white grapefruit. Delightfully weird and unique. It is as if there is a fight amongst a Torrontés and Sauvignon Blanc that creates a mushroom cloud of singular uniqueness. On the palate the riot on the palate has domesticated itself and calmed down. Unfortunately, the grapefruit has rather taken over somewhat like a Niagara Riesling stopping short like Frank Constanza on Seinfeld and the thrill of the aromatics dies on the palate https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQmtOkO6ajc

(Susana Balbo Signature White Blend 2020, Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina, $21.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 5558734, 750 mL, 12%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 83/100).

“Andrij the Orphaned Ukrainian Rescue Dog” :Chapter 14:  Bob’s Confidential Memo to Ukraine’s Ambassador to Canada

Dear Ambassador:

We Canadians understand the desperate conflict the Ukrainian people are facing because of Tsar Putin’s blitzkrieg on your country.

We understand the valiant actions of Andrij in Kiev of late setting an example for democratic strength throughout the globe.

President Biden of the United States of America has discussed with your President Zelensky the role that Andrij will play in Canada over the upcoming days. I believe your president has communicated his understanding with President Biden to you.

As Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada you will suggest to me your activities for Andrij. I will have the power to accept or reject them. I will be the legal guardian of Andrij when he is under my care and when unable to do so my wife Fay will have decision making power.

There are the best interests of Andrij and of the Ukraine that will govern my decision making which will be based on the health of Andrij. He will not be under your disposal 24 hours a day. I will ensure he has sufficient rest, exercise and supervision at my home.

While within my compound I will have responsibility for his security but you will have responsibility for his security and that of myself, Fay, Dylan the Westie and any guests we invite to functions outside of my compound. Should Andrij be required to make any international appearances I will have the right to accept or reject them and it will be your responsibility to arrange for security outside of Canada.

No payment for my services are required. All expenses for the care and maintenance of Andrij shall be my responsibility while he is under my care and control.

At the expiry of one month of Andrij being in Canada I will have the right to formally adopt Andrij and you shall expedite that with all necessary Ukrainian approvals. By mutual agreement we can extend his Canadian public appearances on a week-by-week basis.

If you are in agreement with these principles, please contact me and a detailed memorandum of understanding will be prepared for your signature.

While I understand the important role Andrij has to play here in Canada I know Andrij has suffered deep emotional turmoil and possibly post traumatic stress disorder and his health is of paramount concern to me and I trust to the people of Ukraine.

GOD SAVE UKRAINE.   

“Travels to a Different Time” : 19July1974: Sibiu (Transylvania), Romania; Cultural Break

Romanian travel for me has been different than the beach life in Yugoslavia and Greece. There is more time to experience town and city life. The experiences are not always great! I woke up about 10 and since I set up tent near a tree I had the shade which was a plus on another hot day. I washed up and brushed my teeth in freezing cold water. Again a dearth of hot water for low end travellers like in Yugoslavia and Bulgaria. I am being mistaken for a German frequently as what few tourists there are usually German and the population is mostly of German ancestry. The Cathedral of Sibiu is beautiful and was completed in 1906. I noted that in the 30 pages in the guest book there was one Canadian, the ambassador to Romania. I guess I travel in good company. Meatballs, orange juice and bread for lunch at 70 cents. Next was the Brukenthal Museum. Germanic name as it was named after governor Baron Von Brukenthal in the mid 1800’s. It was the first museum in Transylvania. An excellent museum for such a small town with some intricate pottery, looms, native clothing and a reproduction of an 18th century Romanian home. The best of all were Dutch paintings with Reubens, Van Essen, Van Haarlem, Van de Verme and Ian Lingelbach. The Romanian, German, Austrian and Italian paintings were so so. I took the bus home after buying some bread and cheese. Had a freezing cold shower. There is a water heater but it seems it is there for ceremonial purposes only. I headed out to Dumbrava Park which was directly across from the campground. Not as spectacular as the parks in Bucharest but still impressive. I was supposed to meet a student who was going to show me around but he did not show up. I suspect the police told him to stay away. It wouldn’t be the first time. I met some guys from Amsterdam and they told me what to expect should I travel there. We went to a bar for a beer and listened to old rock music. I wanted an evening snack at the campground cafeteria but in true Romanian fashion there was no food left. I brushed my teeth and was in bed by 11.  

“Travels to a Different Time” 18July1974: Heading North from Bucharest: Sending Gypsies Running in Fear!

Too much spaghetti and beer bloated me up and had a sweaty sleep. However a shower, more spaghetti, apple pastry and mineral water revived me. I had a mess to clean up with spaghetti sauce all over the walls. Caked pots in short an East German beer disaster! At noon a farewell to Sorin. A couple of buses took me north of the city. I plan to eventually cross into Yugoslavia and head further north up to Germany. The outskirts of Bucharest are particularly ugly full of shoddy and drab high rises. And there is more coming by the amount of construction you see. After reaching the highway there were a crowd of Romanians hitchhiking but being a weird looking tourist I had the edge and quickly flagged a ride in a van. It was super hot and the road to Ploeşti was very dull and dreary and Ploeşti looks like an industrial eyesore. We stopped outside Ploeşti for some Borsec spring water which is my favourite. As we headed north the flat ugly plain changed into rolling hills and forests. They left me off at a tiny town and I caused a commotion. I entered the small town square and when people saw me there was complete silence for 5 seconds and all you could hear was a plate crashing to the ground. This small little town has never seen anything like me. I said hello to a group of gypsies and with terror in their eyes they ran off. As I walked to the highway a group of kids approached me wanting to buy anything I would sell them particularly blue jeans. That sale would leave me with too much Romanian currency and I am leaving the country soon. I received a ride in a petrol truck and the driver kept on yakking away with me understanding very little. I think he was happy to have some company!  Next a lift in a Russian made car that squeals loudly at every corner like it was some massive curve. I got a lift right to a campground in Sibiu. Someone had left their headlights on so I had no trouble setting up my tent. I headed to the campground cafeteria and to my surprise my mineral water, orange drink, cabbage salad, rice, French fries and a cutlet for $1.40 was actually quite good.

“Andrij The Orphaned Ukrainian Rescue Dog” : Chapter 13: In Canada Meeting Reggie the Egyptian Rescue Dog, Dylan the Westie, Bob and Fay

Our Navy Jet lands in the Niagara Airport in Canada. It was chilly in Washington but the chill here in Canada is just like home in the Ukraine. I am whisked to a private terminal where two dogs come racing out to meet me. They bark and wag their tails and do circles around me. We chase each other for a bit and goodness this fresh clean air and exercise clear my head and my rage. That Reggie is so clever he purposely did this to relax me. After our fun Dylan and Reggie sandwich me between them like they are a personal security detail and I see two people coming out to greet me. Knowing what I have been through they walk slowly towards me and Reggie tells me they are Bob and Fay and they will be your friends for life. I feel their vibrations and they are friendly so I walk up to them and wag my tail and Bob kneels down and welcomes me to Canada. Fay snaps on a new collar and leash and gives my jowls a friendly rub. No one has done that to me since my master and mistress were killed by the Russian invaders.

Bob calls me over and sets down a bowl of cold Canadian water. How did he know I haven’t had water in hours? I need someone like Bob who knows dogs and will manage and take care of me. I am a brave and obedient dog willing to make sacrifices for my country but I need someone to take care of me and see that I am rested and well fed.

A Royal Canadian Mounted Police detail has been assigned to protect me and we are all whisked to a big black van with a car in font and a car in back and three City of Toronto police motorcycles with their lights flashing leading us to Toronto.

In a couple of hours we are at Bob and Fay’s fancy house on the Bridle Path in Toronto. What a grand house. Bob and Fay take my bag and put it in the closet. All three canines have beds with the U.S. Presidential Seal on them. Dylan and Reggie have Winnipeg Blue Bomber blankets. Bob says to me you can have this regular blanket but soon you will have a hockey team blanket. We are going to have a Toronto Maple Leaf blanket very soon.

Fay takes Reggie and I out to chase a tennis ball for half an hour. Oh it is so good to simply be a dog and have fun! We have a late-night snack while Bob has a glass of Kentucky Bourbon that President Biden sent him. In fact President Biden just spoke with Fay to see if I arrived safely. Fay said we are going to have a talk about helping out Joe tomorrow. We watch the BBC news with Bob and scamper off to bed. These bomb flashes and noises are still bothering me and Reggie tells me the next day I was crying in my sleep.

RKS Retro Film: “Roma”: A Mexican American Film That Explores Societal and Relationship Devastation

The 2018 Mexican American film “Roma” received 10 Oscar nominations for the 91st Academy Awards and won three including Best Foreign Film (Mexico’s first Best Foreign Film win). Alfonso Cuarón won for Best Director.

The film, shot in black and white so beautifully, can be seen as a study of near devastation of human relationships and of 1971-72 Mexican society.

I had not seen the film so when I saw the title of “Roma” I thought it might be about Rome or perhaps about the “Roma” people but instead most of the film was shot in the Colonia Roma neighbourhood in Mexico City. Sofia (Marina de Tavira) and her husband Dr. Antonio live with their children in a modest neighbourhood with three servants that work day and night cleaning up dog shit, doing laundry, cooking, serving food, minding dogs and children, driving and a never-ending series of chores. The children love Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio) the indigenous domestic and she is very good with them. Is this a Mexican “Upstairs Downstairs”?

Life seems to power on in harmony except for husband and father Dr. Antonio who is off to Montreal on a research project from which he never returns. Actually he is diddling around with a mistress of which Sofia is well aware of but she protects the children by lying to them that he has his research project extended in Montreal. Meanwhile Cleo is diddling around with Fermin (Jorge Antonio Guerrero)e a self-proclaimed wreck of a man supposedly saved by his addiction to martial arts.

At this point there is domestic and societal harmony until Cleo confesses to Sofia she is three months late and lo and behold she is pregnant. While Sofia is willing to stand by her Fermin is nothing but a vermin towards her. That rejectiion scene is shot in some ragged barrios in a poetic and vivid fashion.

In the meantime, there are hints of social unrest with violence attendant to land expropriations. At a student demonstration Mexican police open fire on demonstrators killing and maiming many while Cleo and Sofia’s mother are at a furniture store buying a crib. A paramilitary gang, Los Halcones, breaks into the furniture store shooting patrons and Fermin is one of the thugs. Cleo breaks water and a rather gut-wrenching scene follows at the hospital.

Sofia takes the children to a Tuxpan seaside” vacation” and Cleo saves two of Sofia’s children from drowning as they get dragged out by the tide.

The children are informed by Sofia that Dr. Antonio is not coming home and a viewer must be rock bottom at this point. But as the family returns home from the Tuxpan vacation and Cleo takes the laundry for cleaning life is back to “normal”. Marina de Tavira won the Oscar as Best Supporting Actress.

The film is still vibrant and resonating despite its 4 years of age.

You can see the trailer here https://www.criterion.com/films/30124-roma

I saw this on Netflix.

RKS Retro Film Rating 94/100.

RKS Wine: Portugal Comes on Strong in 2022 Tastings

I can’t recall encountering a Portuguese dud in 2022. And the best wine so far is not from the Douro but from Beira Interior. Alentejano wines are proving to be solid wines at more than reasonable prices. We try a 2019 Coutada Velha Signature 2019 which is a Vinho Regional Alentejano.

There is some Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend as well as Aragonez and Trincadeira. It has been aged 8 months in French oak.

As for aromatics a good deal of blackberry, blueberry jam and black cherry. Minor notes of root beer and blueberry pie. The nose is assertive.

On the palate there is no doubt you are staring a full-bodied wine in the eyeballs. Fresh picked blueberries, dark chocolate and some black licorice. There are moderate tannins to a wine that verges on the descriptive term of “juicy”. I sense a straight at you wine with no intricacies hiding in its fold. I think this wine might cruise into 2025 and improve slightly on its journey. A prime example of a judicious use of oak that nurtures and does not overpower a wine. The label states that meat and game are good matches which makes sense but says “oven fish dishes” would also be good food pairings. With red wine and fish one has to be careful as too tannic a wine ruins both the dish and the wine. So I will say try with a Bachalau which has more ingredients than “pure fish”. And with over 300 recipes for that Portuguese “national dish” many will suit the wine particularly if tomatoes and black olives are in it!

(Coutada Velha Signature 2019, Vinho Regional Alentejano, S.A. Diniz Arraiolos, Portugal, $15.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 11152, 750 mL, 13.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 90.5/100)