Probably the Best City in the World

Today I would like to tell you about my city, Brasov. The first thing that needs to be cleared up is the pronunciation. You see, it isn't actually Brasov as you see it. The s in the word does in fact have a tail, or comma underneath it. This character makes the "sh" sound, so now try the word again and say it correctly!

The picture I have included today shows the slogan that is posted throughout the city stating that this is probably the best city in the world. I'm not really sure why it's only probably the best city, but it does make me chuckle. Let's start with some history. Brasov actually has a lot of German influence. The old part of the city has a wall going around it that used to serve as protection. Most of the wall is still intact, but the gates are obviously not used as they once were. There are also a couple of towers still around that now serve as tourist sights rather than protection. When the Germans were here, the walls were actually to keep the Romanians out. They were allowed in during the day, but when curfew came each night, they all had to leave the city and stayed to the south of the city. Originally the Germans called the city Corona, and then Kronstadt, but it was eventually changed to Brasov. Skipping forward quite a bit, after the 2nd World War, Romania was ruled by communist leaders. The most obvious landmarks still remaining from that time are all the communist style apartment buildings. They were built so that all the people had a place to live, but living conditions were not good. They were given small amounts of money and told what to buy with it.

In 1989, a revolution began in Romania to break free of the communist rule. Thankfully, the revolution was successful, but Romanians are relatively "young" in their freedoms and there is a lack of education about how to live with the responsibility of making your own choices. Because of this, and the low amount of pay, most people are still very poor. It is amazing to me that I can see some of the hopelessness in people's faces as I pass them on the street. The younger generation is growing up in freedom, but it will take time for change to happen. On top of that, Romania is experiencing financial crisis like so much of the world, and the taxes here are about to increase by 25% (I believe). The people are so angry. As we talk to the nurses at the hospital, we already know that they are underpaid and worry about how they will manage. The tax will include things like heat and electricity. We know that things will only get worse for the children that we care for.

Now that the dreary details are out of the way, let me list some other facts about the city. There are about 300,000 people living here. There is a beautiful park in town called Central Park. It is such a nice place to go and find a bench to sit on for the afternoon. There are also tons of stray dogs and cats around. More dogs than cats I think. And they don't clean up after themselves, so sometimes the sidewalks can be a bit smelly. But they never even seem to notice the people walking by. I live on Strada De Mijloc (Mijloc Street). The city center is similar to a downtown square and is very close to the Black Church, named because it survived a fire that blackened the walls. On Tuesday evenings there is an organ concert at the church, which I of course attened last week. The main church here is the Orthodox Church, but I have seen a Catholic and Baptist church as well. There is a main street for walking filled with shops and restaurants that have little places to sit outside like the picture above. Sometimes it feels like a place out of a story or movie. I'm sure there are tons of other things I could list, but this will do for now. Love from Romania!