Mrs. Tessa Dunlop, journalist for The Independent British newspaper, writes from an interesting perspective on the Romanian capital after 20 years since the downfall of communism. Married to a Romanian man, she seems to be well-acquainted with the country's problems but I bet she does not like to live here much.
Mrs. Dunlop reminds me of the English playwright Caryl Churchill who came in the early 90's for a project-play on the Romanian revolution in 1989 - with the critical eye of the outsider, unemotionally involved and probably with the perspective of both sides - she could exactly pinpoint the critical issues.
Just like Mrs. Churchill then, Mrs Dunlop speaks about the chaotic architecture, poor management of local attractions, too many casinos in Bucharest, but also the beautiful women who are very well dressed...
However, 20 years of capitalism taught people here that Ceausescu was not the real problem in the past, but a whole well-structured system which is still visible today - so, associating Bucharest with Ceausescu may work for a British readership but it is quite far-off from the real truth. Also, I wonder whether Mrs. Dunlop has really known the real beauty of Bucharest - with its old streets, museums of art, old houses and gardens... And I also wonder whether she really took the time to feel the spirit of this authentic city which lies in little details and in people's gestures not in focusing on problems, frustrations and critical issues. Personally, I have learnt to re-discover Bucharest and I am very happy I can really see its beauty now - it's about the Spirit - of sophisticated eclecticism, not the communist buildings, for sure...
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment