journals from the road by Lance Dean
piii shaaa toooor
Bucharest, Romania - Arena Roman
Romania may be an eastern bloc country, but when you get there you find it has much more in common with its Roman roots than its Slavic neighbors. The language has retained the cadence and inflection of its Latin origin to the degree that, to the untrained ear, it would be indistinguishable from Italian.
The people also had retained the a striking physical resemblance to their Italian cousins, and some architectural resemblances also endure. The Arena Roman was a perfect example: an open air arena in the style of the Colosseum in Rome - simply breathtaking.
The audience also had all the passion and enthusiasm of their Italian cousins - with one notable exception: our driver Alexander took us to the venue at a moderate speed and kept both hands on the wheel. My experience with Italian cabbies is that they will forgo shifting gears simply to keep a hand free for flashing obscene gestures to other drivers. It was an unusual drive for that reason, but very pleasant.
He also answered some of our questions about Transylvania, which is a region in Romania. I'd never really made the connection before, but I guess this means that Dracula is a wop.
Wow, that really explains a lot. You know, not the blood sucking thing, but the flair for dressing (come on now - only him and Batman can pull off wearing a cape and not come across as a fruitcake), and of course the way he can play woman like a video game. And the way he runs that whole town with unquestionable authority - very Vito Corleone. Now that I think of it, I can't understand a freaking word that dago says either.