Vlad's Crib

Some folks in the world tend to put faith behind ideas so silly that reason cannot cast a speck of doubt upon their superstition. Others fall into that other folly, using poorly formed reason to explain away those things they'd rather not care to think of. But reason should allow that our human capacity for knowledge is too limited to explain things away; something not encountered does not prove it's non-existence.

Many have, over time, been silly enough to claim that there is no such thing as a vampire. They have looked at the qualifications of such a being and stated that it cannot be. But I now know differently. I am writing from Brasov, the heart of Transylvania, where my reason allows that, having seen one with my very own eyes, vampires do exist. That cruel, soulless being that has sold all association with good in order to extend life; who returns from death to impart pain upon all those silly enough to wander into the highlands of Romania. A mockery of all things holy, a thing none dare challenge as it's reputation precedes it. Yes, I have looked upon this creature with my very eyes:

Two nights previous, Natalie Imbruglia performed here.

So wretched were the cries coming from the stage, the rain pouring down must have been blessed, holy water searing the evil flesh of this creature. I felt a terrible pity for those ten people who had been lulled into attendence, as surely their souls were withering away inside of their flesh. Noises so horrid, that after giving a disc of said artist's to a good friend a decade ago, she still hasn't forgiven me.

Let this be a warning to all.

Current vampires aside, there seems to be a nice little industry springing up around some of the castles here. Just since Mr. Vlad Tepes ('Impaler'), Dragula (son of Dracul) might have spent a night or two in some of these, they have immediately become, *gasp*, Houses of Dracula! Bran Castle is cool enough though, worth the fifty-cent bus ticket. Also, fellow travelers are a nice addition to such an expedition, since it allows for silly jokes on Dracula's this that and commode every few minutes.

..............................................His coffin!

Which reminds me, the money here is very interesting. The 'lei' used to exchange at a rate of 30,000 to the dollar or such. Although it was initially cool to say things like, "Hold on a sec; I need to get a mil from the bank," practical considerations (such as billboards for autos, using most of the space for the Price) obviated the need for less zeroes. Hence, the new Lei, which look just like the old bills, only a bit smaller, and with four less zeroes. 100,000 old lei becomes 10 new lei. Unfortunately, a fellow traveler thought he could get by in Bucharest without researching the country (and currency) beforehand. Thus, after a taxi ride into Bucharest, when he should have paid 17500 old lei (sixty cents), he paid the amount in new lei. After some time, he realized that he had spent 500 euro on a taxi. He shall go unnamed, the poor fellow, but I will say this: He's a Tarheel.

Bucharest wasn't terribly interesting in my opinion, though, so I only spent a few hours there before moving up to Brasov. I took a subway to the gigantic Palace of Parliment, a building which only takes the backseat to the Pentagon in terms of sheer size, and from there, walked the entire length of the city. Meh.


Same went for Belgrade, which I hit before Bucharest. Not that great, but there was, scattered around, a massive deployment of soldiers wearing a sort of riot gear, or perhaps just some form of American Football pads. Though they were out because of the Euro-Basketball finals in Belgrade, they weren't very comforting. I made the mistake of asking one (in Serbian) how to get to a local monument, only to be shooed away under threat of PlexiBludgeoning. Hmph. This, the beat cops who were always shaking somebody down when I saw them, and pictures of Mr. Slobidan Milosevic pasted across the city, made for a rather uncomfortable atmosphere. Anyhow, not the greatest place.

So I'm off to Bulgaria in a bit. Perhaps there I'll upload some photos, since the internet cafe here seems to be the recipient of computers that Americans threw away a decade ago. Forget USB ports; Windows 3.1 doesn't support much in the way of html blogging. [Picture update 2.10.05]

Sleep well.


P.S. It occurred to me while writing the oddity of the word "deceased"; shouldn't this be limited to describing vampires and the undead? Their life ceased, and then, rising from the grave, DeCeased? I don't get it. As Dr. Nick said "You mean, inflammible means flammible? What a country."