tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post7109383570408470768..comments2023-11-05T12:59:29.404+02:00Comments on CsĂkszereda musings: Life as a bloggerAndyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11294221123964774524noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-75674392847952790682013-01-15T11:51:54.551+02:002013-01-15T11:51:54.551+02:00Hi Andy! I found your blog through your article on...Hi Andy! I found your blog through your article on education. I am a hungarian (from Transylvania) living in UK for the moment. I find your blog more hillarious than sad, even though I know it's not easy what you experience. I wish you courage, strenght and lots of happiness amongst your loved ones. KingaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-32424754993355827762008-10-07T01:08:00.000+03:002008-10-07T01:08:00.000+03:00Hi Andy,i came across this blog, and neddless tosa...Hi Andy,<BR/><BR/>i came across this blog, and neddless tosay, i loved your response!<BR/><BR/>I am from Romania (my mother is SZEKELY :), from Szekely Udvarhely, and my dad is romanian), but i've been living in US for the past 14 years. I am saddened, to see the ignorance and hatred of people prevails... One fact though, while growing up in Romania, i had countless ocasions when romanians would tell me, "go back to Hungary"...and it is sad to see that nothing changed in the democratic part of EU Romania.<BR/>i am PROUD of my SZEKELY roots!<BR/><BR/>love your blog!!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-5639964750589026632008-05-31T10:39:00.000+03:002008-05-31T10:39:00.000+03:00Sweet :)Sweet :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-59194598605706572722008-04-03T08:26:00.000+03:002008-04-03T08:26:00.000+03:00I try to avoid conversations like this in general....I try to avoid conversations like this in general. I'm more of the "why can't we all just get along?" type. I've travelled to some very interesting places in Transylvania and have noticed one major theme: Everyone loves bitching, but there's so much "poor me" out there, that no one's willing to just put their ego aside & get things done. And I don't care if you're Hungarian, Romania, Saxon or Martian, we're all guilty of it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-42400245027683289922008-03-30T20:27:00.000+03:002008-03-30T20:27:00.000+03:00Thank you. That was hilarious, and he certainly de...Thank you. That was hilarious, and he certainly deserved it. A most enjoyable post.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-6154596115396225112008-03-13T09:26:00.000+02:002008-03-13T09:26:00.000+02:00Andy,I am Romanian as well. I consider your blog v...Andy,<BR/><BR/>I am Romanian as well. I consider your blog very informative about how the Szekelys/Magyars from Romania perceive their relationship with Romanians and the Romanian state. There is little unbiased and non-politicized info around on these topics and I do appreciate your postsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-78047960288529454172008-03-11T00:51:00.000+02:002008-03-11T00:51:00.000+02:00Can't forget the Saxon town names either. For what...Can't forget the Saxon town names either. For whatever reason, the geotags on Flickr always use the saxon name...check out the geotag for <A HREF="http://www.flickr.com/photos/73233329@N00/882224288/" REL="nofollow">this picture</A> from the fortress in Deva. Not sure what the logic is there but it's probably a conspiracy by the Germans to retake Transylvania.rshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08284800108035205486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-57065882671248932822008-03-10T10:47:00.000+02:002008-03-10T10:47:00.000+02:00Thanks Dumneazu. It's not so bad really. These t...Thanks Dumneazu. It's not so bad really. These things are pretty rare, in the main. I think my favourite was when someone told me (in excellently crafted English) that (and I paraphrase a lot) I was a stupid hick who was incapable of forming his own opinion (based it seemed entirely on the fact that I lived in Csikszereda and not Bucharest)Andyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11294221123964774524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-14339995839223966932008-03-09T17:35:00.000+02:002008-03-09T17:35:00.000+02:00of course "how old" :) sorry!of course "how old" :) sorry!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18362169485607160306noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-91327690224025497722008-03-09T16:07:00.000+02:002008-03-09T16:07:00.000+02:00Tha name "CSIKSZEREDA" can be seen a document writ...Tha name "CSIKSZEREDA" can be seen a document written in 1558. Maybe that smartass could tell us, hogy old is the oldest document mentioning "MIERCUREA CIUC" .......Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18362169485607160306noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-25585341494016076182008-03-08T15:26:00.000+02:002008-03-08T15:26:00.000+02:00Have you also noticed that when your blog gets the...Have you also noticed that when your blog gets these angry comments, the writers tend to have relatively excellent command of English, often using the high literary register to try and convince you that you are hopelessly in the thrall of the Evil Neighbor Country's Propaganda Plan? <BR/><BR/>I have to tip my hat to you, Andy, that you would even try to attempt commentary about politics on your blog. I don't quite have the stomache to deal with the nationalist looney gang telling me that I could "never understand how much (insert Country name here) has suffered."dumneazuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595663581295671582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-6867166133160731492008-03-08T14:59:00.000+02:002008-03-08T14:59:00.000+02:00Some people call all Hungarians all "Asians" and a...Some people call all Hungarians all "Asians" and all Romanians "Gypsies"? What about the Hungarian Gypsies and the Romanians descended from Slavs? Oh for a giant melting pot.<BR/><BR/>I'm another English guy living in a town in Romania. In the interests of harmony and trying to be mates with everybody I tend to say "Cluj" to Romanians and "Cluj/Koloszvar" to Hungarians. This seems to work ok for me, so far.Gadjo Dilohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08998278830936531990noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-15038493443734273602008-03-08T14:09:00.000+02:002008-03-08T14:09:00.000+02:00I get the same treatment in Hungary: if you like R...I get the same treatment in Hungary: if you like Romania so much, why don't you move there, etc. It's part of the fun of blogging: the peanut gallery is right there, six inches from your face at 8 in the morning. <BR/><BR/>I think that when an east European country enters the EU, it tends to make the intellectual atmopsphere less supportive to the shriller nationalist blowhards, and so off they march to the battlefields of the World Wide Web! If you read the comments on Bourdain's Blog you can watch how the debate inevitably derails into Romanians calling Hungarians "Asians" and Hungarians calling Romanians "Gypsies." If I had a penny for every time I get that reaction... I'd be rather well off.dumneazuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03595663581295671582noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-870403922243671682008-03-08T14:08:00.000+02:002008-03-08T14:08:00.000+02:00Thanks, Iulian and Ileana for comenting.Ileana, in...Thanks, Iulian and Ileana for comenting.<BR/><BR/>Ileana, in some ways yes, and I did think long and hard abut which way round I should word that sentence, but eventually decided on the way you see it. Living here, the town's name is first and foremost Csikszereda, while obviously everyone recognises it has another name (and that other name is obviously the more "internationally recognised" one (ie it's the one that's on maps). In the end I decided (and attempted to be very consistent about this) that I would refer to towns in Romania firstly by the name which the majority of theinahbitants use, while adding the other name (if necessary) afterwards. Thus I always refer to Cluj as Cluj and Brasov as Brasov for example, but refer to Odorhei Secuiesc as Szekelyudvarhely (with the Romanian name in brackets afterwards). This policy only causes problems when I want to refer to Targu Mures/Marosvasarhely which is split about 50/50. <BR/><BR/>I can see why this policy might bother some people, and do understand where you are coming from with your comment, but I think I'm sticking with it.<BR/><BR/>Cheers and happy women's dayAndyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11294221123964774524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-51318609813038876102008-03-08T09:19:00.000+02:002008-03-08T09:19:00.000+02:00Hi Andy,Welcome to Romania :-)It is interesting in...Hi Andy,<BR/><BR/>Welcome to Romania :-)<BR/>It is interesting indeed to see someone's else view over the Romanian - Hungarian tease. Since I haven't lived among Hungarians I don't have a strong opinion about them, people.<BR/>Reading this post I couldn't help but noticing the subtitle of your blog and I wonder: since Miercurea Ciuc is a town in Romania, wouldn't have been more correct to say "...Miercurea Ciuc, also known as CsĂkszereda."?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7689571.post-33395190986090842552008-03-07T17:06:00.000+02:002008-03-07T17:06:00.000+02:00Andy, as a Romanian let me thank you for exposing ...Andy, as a Romanian let me thank you for exposing the ridiculous bigotry of some of my fellow nationals. I look forward to reading more from you. Greetings from Iasi!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com