“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)

“Travels to a Different Time” : 17July1974: Bucharest, Romania: Too Much East German Beer: Jumped by Gypsies at 2 a.m.

I finally bought the sheepskin vest and with help of some black-market exchange I ended up paying $20. The day was roasting hot as I went to the market to purchase ingredients to make another batch of spaghetti. I purchased all the ingredients at the market and went into the “tourist shop” to buy East German beer but none available. I use the words “tourist shop” as anyone with Western currency can buy goods not available to those without Western currency. Therefore Western currency is in demand on the black market. A good way for a low budget Canadian traveller to stretch a travel dollar.

After the sauce had bubbled to perfection Sorin and I went to play tennis at a beautiful park called Herăstrau on a lake of the same name. We met a few of his friends and Pusha.  We played some tennis and Frisbee and went into a beer garden in the park. A large tub of prized East German beer arrived full of ice. You really don’t want to drink Romanian beer as quite frankly it is undrinkable. I noted some Romanian guys entered and pointed to our East German beer but the waiter said they had none which was clearly untrue. It so happened Sorin was a regular at the beer garden with his friend the son of the Ministry of Energy and they only drank East German beer. Get the picture. The six of us consumed 25 bottes of delicious brew. After leaving I played tennis in the street with some Germans. As we walked further at 2 in the morning a band of gypsies jumped out of the bushes and started playing music. I said let’s ignore these clowns and walk on but Sorin gave the money which was preferable to being held by knifepoint and robbed. We returned at three in the morning and had a huge batch of spaghetti.

“Travels to a Different Time” : 16July1974: Bucharest, Romania: Stay Away From “Nick the Big Boy”: Overnight in a Romanian Villa

Up at ten for a big spaghetti brunch. Sorin loved it but with the right spices it would have been worthy for the top bureaucrats in the Romanian Communist Party! After the tasty feast Sorin left for work while I washed some clothes and started to pack up. I am planning on leaving in a couple of days. I am now at the halfway point of my vacation. I am enjoying my “down time” here in Bucharest. Good company, East German beer and lots of fruit and vegetables. I went out picking up supplies for my next dish boeuf bourguignon. Out on my shopping I saw a beautiful hand embroidered sheepskin vest for $32. I saw a similar one in Contanesti for $82. It will be a hassle to carry but it is a beautiful garment. I really never buy anything for myself so I will splurge. I took the bus home which almost jolts your guts out. It’s like being a bingo ball in a machine.

I couldn’t find beef so I substituted it with pork. He helped me with some of the preparation and had to go buy a train ticket for his mother who was going to Bacau. He said he would be back in 90 minutes but showed up three hours later and I had already eaten. His flat had that rich smell of a dish cooked in wine. He gobbled his down with a happy smile on his face. First time he has had this classic French dish. We had some tangerines and ice cream for dessert. We then stopped over at his mother’s place so he could give her the train ticket. She is jolly rotund woman. We watched a bit of television with her and headed out to a beer garden in a park. We picked up his brother and sister-in-law at Sorin’s villa and we went to the beer garden but it had run out of East German beer so we went to one of Bucharest’s biggest and best restaurants called Pescarus. Not too shabby! Like big party bureaucrats we sipped champagne, had a charcuterie platter (pastrama), ate pastries and listened to jazz. To think of all the pig slop I have eaten it seems that money can make up for what the commoners have to endure! We went to Aviator Square but couldn’t find a taxi so we stayed overnight in Sorin’s villa where I had a room all to myself. Sorin pointed across the square and said that is where “Nick the Big Boy” operates. You want to avoid that thug. There was a heavy police presence at the square.

“Travels to a Different Time” :15July1974: Bucharest, Romania: Sorin Has to Register Me with the Police: Meeting up With Pusha the Daughter of a Defector: My Imitations Cause Mirth and Terror

Up at 10:30 and Sorin and I went out to buy some milk, bread, cake and Romanian “Corn Flakes”. The milk was not very good and Sorin said if you arrived before 8:30 there was a higher quality milk available. Sorin has never had spaghetti and meat sauce! Is that possible! So we went to the market to buy the supplies. We squished into a tram and arrived at the marketplace. It was a huge market full of peasants selling produce from their personal plots. Finally an abundance of food including fruits and vegetables which is good as I feel like scurvy should be setting in soon. I purchased all the supplies needed for the sauce and we headed back in the sardine packed tram. Sorin departed for work and Chef Robert prepared his spaghetti sauce which despite the lack of spices was perhaps the most satisfying food I have seen in Romania. Another girlfriend of Sorin, Pusha, arrived and they had a cognac and a beer for me. She is not that attractive but unlike his previous girlfriend she is very intelligent. We left to see some Davis Cup matches but the line-up for tickets was too long so we walked to a nearby park and played some Frisbee. A crowd of 15 Romanians gathered to watch us. Frisbee is new to them. Some kids joined in the game. They always ask for gum and money. Many of them smoke! We then went a block away from Pusha’s family’s flat and she went into change and Sorin told me her father had recently defected in New York and it was not a good idea to go in with her as the secret police were most likely watching. The idea of a Westerner like me going into her apartment would only aggravate the situation. Sorin said that he had to register me with the police as you have to do that if you have a Westerner saying with you for more than 48 hours. We went to a restaurant and had some East German beer and a platter of cold meats. We walked home through the park and my dirty old man cough and jungle imitations brought laughter to passersby’s. Then we were followed by two musicians with an accordion singing songs to us. I then did my Fuhrer imitation which sent two ladies running down the street in terror. We hailed a taxi and dropped off Pusha.

The author introduces spaghetti sauce to his Romanian friend

RKS Film: “Visionary Gardeners”: Episode # 3 “People and Plants”

The Canadian television series “Visionary Gardeners” is a five-part series premiering March 7, at 9 p.m. ET on Vision TV and it runs for 5 weeks in half hour segments. It features avid Canadian gardeners with their own vision of what a garden is. You may think the series is about them and their gardens and that is true and of course that is interesting particularly if you are gardener. But these episodes may spark a certain reaction on your part particularly where you fall in the gardening vision spectrum?

You could be an elite gardener right up there amongst with the brilliant gardeners featured in “Visionary Gardeners”. You have the technical skills and the vision as lofty and intellectual as these gifted visionary gardeners. These gardeners are pros.

You could be a “semi-professional gardener” technically sound with a passion and enjoyment of gardening but you have no grand vision for your passion.

You could be a basic gardener happy to toil away planting this or that without any ideology or vision other than having fun and watching the fruits of your labour. You realize you must weed to fight for the plant’s health and choose the right soil for your planting.

You might be a utilitarian gardener who loves to grow fruits and vegetables for consumption without much vision other than having a penchant for that basil you’ll use to make pesto and for that tomato or cucumber that will make that perfect salad.

On the other hand you couldn’t give a damn about gardening and chuckle about the eggplant head nerds fussing and fidgeting over their garden.

Put another way “Visionary Gardeners” may assist you in establishing and validating where you fit in the gardening world. I am not saying in the “gardening hierarchy” because that may infer some sort of superiority. The point I make is that if you have fun with your gardening hold up your head high. And remember it is a fact that gardeners have a longer and healthier life!

From my viewing of the episodes of “Visionary Gardeners” there is no superiority shown by the visionary gardeners nor the creators of the series. So no guilt please! No matter where you are on the spectrum you should enjoy all the episodes for the fascinating ideology of the visionary gardeners and compelling cinematography.

The pattern of each “Visionary Gardeners” episode is simple. Pick two Canadian visionary gardeners and hear their vision of gardening and luxuriate in the rich cinematography.

In episode three “People and Plants” which airs on March 21st at 9 p.m. on Vision TV meet Chancal Cabrera from Courtenay, British Columbia and Paul Gellatly from Toronto, Ontario.

Cabrera in addition to being a talented gardener seems to be a medicine women, spiritualist and natural healer growing plants that heal and that connect plants with people. Gellatly presents as more of a technician breeding and “creating” new plants but like Cabrera he espouses a belief that plants connect people with nature.

Wherever you are on the gardening spectrum or if you are not on it at all why not view these visionary gardeners as simply human beings with a passion and a vision as don’t all of us have passion and visions whether we are gardening, writing, making music or simply living?

“Visionary Gardeners” is a new series from filmmakers Ian Toews and Mark Bradley of Victoria, British Columbia based 291 Film Company. After each episode airs it can be seen by Canadians free for two weeks at www.visiontv.ca

RKS Wine: Wine from Alentejano in Portugal

There has been an increasing number of wines coming our way in Canada from the Alentejano Region in Portugal.  They have all been red wines.

The Monte da Ravasqueira is a blend of Trincadeira, Aragonez, Syrah and Alicante Bouschet.

As for aromatics there is some black cherry, raspberry, strawberry and some spice. On the palate very smooth with very little tannic impact.  Notes of cranberry and Bulgarian cherry jam. The finish is short with just a hint of pepper. This is a solid wine which is well made and laid back like it is not trying to dazzle but simply trying to be your friend. It is good for sipping but even better with food. The label says good with grilled dishes and salads. I would say specifically with grilled pork, beef, octopus and chicken. As for salads I would think a field tomato or octopus salad.  

There is no wood involved in the wine which gives it a degree of honesty and straightforwardness. Drink by the end of 2022.

(Monte Da Ravasqueira 2019 Classico, Vinho Regional Alentejano, $13.95, Liquor Control Board of Ontario # 54842, 750 mL, 13.5%, Robert K. Stephen A Little Birdie Told Me So Rating 91/100).