For more info please see: http://www.blues-festival.ro/index.html

• 25th February: Raul Kusak (Romania); Homemade Jamz (USA)
• 26th February: Eden Brent (USA); Sue Foley (Canada)
• 27th February: Doug Macleod (USA); Eric Sardinas (USA)

7 days of electronic music in Carol Park, district 4. For more info see: http://www.7festival.ro

Current Line-Up:

• Ricardo Villalobos
• Richie Hawtin
• Sander Van Doorn
• Eric Prydz
• Zip
• Tanya Vulcano
• Junkie XL
• Clive Henry

Plus more…

Ticket price: TBA

Update: I have found the full version in which the police show up: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=cf6_1264800338

It is perhaps the most asked query of expats, but the answer is an easy YES.
For people who live overseas, like me, there comes a time when you miss a bit of good old Brit television. Ever since the BBC launched iPlayer there was a little hope out there for watching BBC iplayer abroad. However if you have attempted to attach while abroad all you get is ‘Currently BBC iPlayer television programs are available to play in the United Kingdom only…’ How annoying!

So its now possible Watch BBC iPlayer abroad?
Of course it is possible, if you search through Google you will find heaps of options. A lot of them are either expensive or just do not work. I’ll list them all, so you can decide for on your own, but in the end there are just a couple of true options to watch BBC iPlayer abroad. That is methods which will always work.

What you need to Do
The BBC restricts access to its iPlayer service by checking the physical location of the Internet provider you are using to connect to the Net. If it’s based in the UK you will be able to view, if it isn’t then they block you from viewing. It is as simple as that!

All you require to watch BBC iPlayer abroad is make it seem like you are located in the United Kingdom.

No Cost techniques to watch BBC iPlayer Abroad
If you’ve got access to a PC back in the United Kingdom you can make a virtual private network tunnel back to that PC and connect to the iPlayer web site thru that PC, this can cause it to look like you are in the United Kingdom.

So How Well Does It Work?
Not well to be honest, there are a number of issues. Firstly you must have a PC on in the United Kingdom all of the time, and if there is any technical problems with that computer you are going to be stuck till you get back to fix it. Second, and more importantly, while your download speed in the United Kingdom could be good you will find the upload speed is far to slow to allow consistent TV viewing.

Any other free methods to watch BBC iPlayer abroad?
Well you can look at TOR or Foxyproxy which both offer a free proxy service, which like a VPN makes it seem like your PC is in the United Kingdom. However all free proxies are too slow to watch BBC iPlayer abroad, they just do not have enough speed for all the free users. They are also quite hard to setup, without help.

The Best Option to watch BBC iPlayer Abroad
Firstly should you pick substitute or VPN options, well the neatest thing is to have BOTH! The software I use is Identity Cloaker which gives you a premium high speed United Kingdom proxy and United Kingdom VPN option. This will enable you to view iPlayer live and download programs to view when you want.
The software wasn’t originally made for television viewing, it is just a byproduct of what it does. As such they do not even state this use on their website!

There is a ten day trial available for a few euros (the free version is of no use if you’d like to watch iplayer abroad {as it is too restrictive|ass it only works for certain sites, as it does not work for TV sites). After that the software costs less than seven euros a month, so it is reallly a bargain for those among us who need to watch iPlayer abroad!

Have a look…

Vama Veche (Old Border in Romanian) is a village on the Black Sea coast. Once a quiet fisherman’s village, today it has transformed itself into a large resort, well-known for its nudist beach and rock festival Stufstock.

In previous times, it was known as a counter-cultural oasis and was a popular retreat for artistic/bohemian types. However, in recent years it has become a lot more mainstream, partly due to the Stufstock rock festival (Stuf is Romanian for ‘reed’, stock comes from ‘Woodstock’). This was founded in 2003 as part of the ‘Save Vama Veche Campaign’ in protest against what some people consider bad Romanian music i.e. manele and pop.

1st May is considered the first day of the summer season and is generally when things really get going in Vama Veche.

Sarmale Cu Varza Dulce (Cabbage Rolls)

Mititei (Grilled Mince Meat Rolls)

Cozonac (Walnut Sweet Bread)

+ More To Come!

Ciorba De Burta ( Tripe Sour Soup)

Ingredients

• 2 pounds/1 kg tripe (fresh, not processed),
• 1 leg veal or other pieces of veal,
• 4 qts salted water,
• 1 carrot,
• 1 parsnip,
• 1 whole onion (peeled),
• 2 bay leaves,
• a few pepper berries,
• 2-3 egg yolks,
• 2 tablespoons vinegar or half a lemon.

Directions

1. Wash and clean the tripe and veal.
2. Set to boil in the salted water, together with the carrots, parsnip and onion, bay leaves and pepper. Boil at medium heat until tender.
3. Take the meat out, let it cool and then cut it in strips, like noodles.
4. Move the meat to another pot, and strain the boiling liquid.
5. Let it boil a few more minutes.
6. Aside, beat 2-3 yolks with the vinegar or lemon juice.
7. Then slowly incorporate into the liquid in the pot.
8. Taste to see if it is salty and sour enough and serve immediately.

Sarmale Cu Varza Dulce (Cabbage Rolls)

Ingredients

• 1 large cabbage,
• 1 3/4 lb/750 g ground meat (mixture of pork and beef is recommended),
• 4 large onions,
• 2 tablespoons rice,
• 1 bread slice,
• 3 tablespoons lard,
• 5-6 tomatoes or 1 tablespoon tomato sauce,
• salt,
• pepper,
• chopped dill,
• 1 qt/1 l borsh,
• sour cream.

Directions

1. Grind the meat with the crustless bread slice (previously soaked and squeezed dry) and a raw onion. Place in a bowl and mix with rice, dill, pepper, salt and finely chopped onion slightly fried in two tablespoons of lard.
2. Mix everything well. Core the cabbage with a sharp thin knife and then blanch it with borsh. Then carefully remove the cabbage leaves, one by one, so that they do not tear.
3. Cut larger leaves in 2 or 3 and then place a little meat in each cabbage piece and roll in. The smaller the rolls are, the tastier they are.
4. Place a layer of rolls in the pan (take a deep one), then cover with a layer of chopped (julienned) cabbage, then a layer of thinly sliced tomatoes. Do this layering until all the rolls are made.
5. The last layer must be tomato slices or add tomato sauce. Add a heaping tablespoon of lard, pour the borsh and let simmer on top of the range for 30 minutes.
6. Then place in the oven so that the liquid is reduced.
7. Serve with sour cream.

Mititei (Grilled Minced Meat Rolls)

Ingredients

• 2 lbs/1 kg ground beef,
• 1/2 lb/250 g suet,
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda,
• 2-3 garlic cloves,
• some ground pepper,
• juniper berries and caraway,
• 2-3 tablespoons meat broth,
• salt.

Directions

1. Grind the meat together with the suet.
2. Add salt, spices, chopped garlic, meat broth and baking soda and mix everything with your hands for 15 minutes, adding two tablespoons of water a little at a time.
3. Keep the bowl with this mixture on ice for 5-6 hours.
4. Just before grilling, take tablespoons of the mixture and with wet hands, shape the rolls (they are approx. 2-3 inches long and 1 inch thick).
5. Before placing on the grill, grease them with oil and during grilling baste them with a mixture of meat broth and oil.

Cozonac (Walnut Sweet Bread)

Ingredients

• Regular sweet bread dough.

Filling:

• 10 oz/300 g ground walnuts,
• 1 cup milk,
• 3/4 cup sugar,
• 1/4 cup rum,
• vanilla.

Directions

1. Melt the sugar in the warm milk with vanilla in a pot on the range.
2. When the sugar is melted, add the walnuts and keep stirring.
3. After a few minutes of boiling, and after the filling has thickened, remove from heat and add rum. When the filling is cold, roll a sheet of dough about one finger thick, uniformly spread the walnut filling on top and roll like a jelly roll.
4. Grease a bread pan, place the roll inside, let rise for a while and then set in the oven to bake at medium heat.

http://delicast.com/radio/Romania/SRR_Romania_Cultural

Enjoy!

The only Romanian ski centre at over 1000 metres, Predeal’s first wooden house was erected in 1830 near a convent on the border crossing between Muntenia and Transylvania. Easy intermediate skiing today, the longest trail the 2.5km Clabucet.

Predeal Ski Facts