24 Ianuarie 1859 – Unirea Principatelor Române

Mihail Kogălniceanu şi Unirea din 1859

Astăzi, se vorbeşte mult de Unirea Basarabiei cu România. Când aud, unora li se înfierbântă frunţile şi leşină, alţii nu pot dormi ceasuri întregi după miezul nopţii.  

Unii se arată băţoşi că numai ei ţin la ideea Unirii, iar altora nu le pasă de biata Moldovioară. Unii se tem de Unire ca dracul de tămâie, iar pe alţii îi apucă sughiţul şi nu pot trăi fără ea. Şi unii, şi alţii nu au dreptate. Ideea Unirii, ideea de întregire a neamului nostru e veche, ea a fost grija de fiecare zi a strămoşilor noştri, căci altfel nu mai existam ca popor până în ziua de azi. Această idee a fost în atenţia fiecărui trăitor de pe acest pământ românesc, ea a fost idealul naţional al poporului. Azi ne-a împânzit pecinginea rusească şi Moldova e ameninţată de pieire. Pecinginea ne mănâncă pe dinăuntru şi pe dinafară. Deci, ea trebuie lecuită. Putem scăpa de „această râie”, vorba lui Alexandru Lăpuşneanul, numai prin unirea tuturor românilor.

24 January 1859 – The founding of the modern Romanian national state

It is well known that the 19th Century represents an epoch of strong affirming of nations, of national states, so it was named “the century of nationalities.” Over a relatively short time interval, of several decades, the Greeks, Serbians, Italians, Germans, Bulgarians founded national states that gradually became important actors on the international stage, some of them – such as Germany – even with hegemonic aspirations.
Romanians, too, were among the peoples that succeeded in founding the state in its modern form, although not all of them were included in it, because of objective conditions.
A neo-Latin people, continuator and heir to the ‘Oriental Roman world,’ Romanians – like other peoples of the Ponto-Baltic isthmus, had a contorted history that made them live separated, from a political point of view, for several centuries.

 

Winter in Romania

In Memory of Glenn Frey - Eagles

Glenn Frey, Eagles founder,

 dies aged 67 , 

November 6, 1948 – January 18, 2016

Live At The Capital Centre, 1977
Frey met drummer Don Henley in 1970. When Linda Ronstadt needed a backup band for a single gig, she hired Frey, Don Henley, Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon on the advice of her boyfriend J.D. Souther. Frey and Henley later joined Linda Ronstadt's backup band for her 1971 summer tour. Afterwards, Frey, Henley, Meisner and Leadon formed the Eagles, with Frey playing guitar and keyboards and Henley playing drums.

Mihai Eminescu

Mihai Eminescu

15 January 1850 – 15 June 1889

 was a Romantic poet, novelist and journalist, often regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet.

Eminescu, the icon of the Romanian culture and the last romantic poet of Europe, is today celebrated in all corners of the world.

I am very fond of Eminescu’s work and it is hard to say which pieces would be my favourite. Apart from many, many others, the “Gloss” touches me differently every time I read it, perhaps because it goes and goes in circle with a mirror effect and symmetric style:

“Days go past and days come still
All is old and all is new,
What is well and what is ill,
You imagine and construe;
Do not hope and do not fear,
Waves that leap like waves must fall;
Should they praise or should they jeer,
Look but coldly on it all”.

…………………………………………

“Look but coldly on it all,
Should they praise or should they jeer;
Waves that leap like waves must fall,
Do not hope and do not fear.
You imagine and construe
What is well and what is ill;
All is old and all is new,
Days go past and days come still”.

(English version by Corneliu M. Popescu)

Bucharest lights

Bucharest lights

Nice Christmas market in the heart of the city.  Products ranging from traditional Romanian goods as typical food, costumes, blankets, traditional Christmas market goods as chestnuts, mulled wine to surprising things as hot beer and so on. What I liked most were the Christmas lights project onto the surrounding high, old buildings.

Happy New Year! La Multi Ani!