EU 27
Us Europeans - 1989 testimonials
Polish Exodus
Cracow, PL (View on map)
Posted 15 Jun 2008:Poland was isolated from Western Europe between World War II and the 1989 revolution. Before then, very few people managed to travel beyond the countries belonging to the Warsaw Pact. Emigration waves started to develop in the 1990s and came to a climax during the years following Poland`s integration into the European Union. Poles can now be found all over Europe. Some people in the rest of Europe could find it hard to believe that most Polish people still live back home in Poland.... Read more
Hungarians and Roma
Kosice, SK (View on map)
Posted 11 Jun 2008:Some voices in Slovakian polities want Slovakia for the Slovakians: a situation that is quite far from current day reality. Slovakia has a wealth of minorities, of whom Hungarians and Roma make up the biggest share. How do they seen by the Slovakians and how well do they integrate? Here`s a quick round-up of randomly collected opinions from Kosice.... Read more
Xenophobia in Austria
Graz, AT (View on map)
Posted 8 May 2008:`Da Heim statt Islam` (No Islam at home), `Wien darf nicht Istanbul werden` (Wien shall not become Istanbul) and `Wir sauben Graz` (We clean Graz) leave little to the imagination. These lines serve as official slogans of the Freedom Party FP?, which can count on almost 20% of the votes if elections were to be held today.... Read more
Separatist ideals
Verona, IT (View on map)
Posted 1 May 2008:It`s not a coincidence that my coverage about Italy ended up being divided in three parts. The first two parts had a logistical explanation. I simply needed to travel to the South of Italy to get to Malta, and then up again to catch a ferry to Greece. My third passage in Italy can be explained by the fanatic encouragements of Southern-Italians to also visit a few Northern cities, so I could see with my own eyes how much North Italy and South Italy are different from each other.... Read more
Beyond the borders
P?cs, HU (View on map)
Posted 12 Apr 2008:No country likes to see its territory distributed among its neighbours. Still, this happened to Hungary a number of times. The most drastic reduction took place in 1920, when the infamous Trianon Treaty was signed. The treaty allocated more than 70% of the territory to neighbouring countries and cut the size of the population of the country down from 21 million to only 7 million. Inhabitants of the seized areas were incorporated into the population of their new home countries and lost Hungarian citizenship. Despite no longer being Hungarians, they held on to their traditions and still form distinct ethnic groups in particularly Romania and Slovakia, but also in Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia.... Read more
Racism beat it
Cluj Napoca, RO (View on map)
Posted 27 Mar 2008:Every country has its favourite scapegoat and for Romanians it`s the Gypsies. Romanians stealing abroad? ?Gypsies. People begging in the streets? ?Gypsies. Rapists, robbers, car thieves, abandoned children? ?All Gypsies. Fortunately, some Romanians have opinions that are a little more open-minded, especially when they are directly confronted with the question: `what do you think of Gypsies?`... Read more
Hungarians in Romania
Posted 26 Mar 2008:Transylvania was neither invented by Dracula`s spiritual father Bram Stoker, nor was the region`s name born out of his creativity. Transylvania has existed for many centuries before the Dracula myth came into existence. Throughout all those years, Transylvania has almost incessantly changed ownership. Before being added to Romanian territory in the wake of WWI, it had already belonged to the Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire and the last owner before Romania: the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. The shared history with neighbouring Hungary and Austria explains why Transylvania still has a huge Hungarian and even German influence.... Read more
International traveling
Posted 25 Mar 2008:International traveling is a relatively new hobby in Romania. Escaping the country was almost impossible during the 1980s. The economic crisis of the 1990s made it quite unlikely that Romanians would leave their own country for reasons other than finding a job. After the beginning of the new millennium, conditions started getting more favourable. Now in 2008, there are plenty of low-cost airlines flying Romanians to destinations al over Europe, including the many places where their friends and family settled down in the 1990s in pursuit of a better life.... Read more
Escaping Bulgaria
Plovdiv, BG (View on map)
Posted 7 Mar 2008:Immigration is causing quite serious issues in countries across Europe, but there is no such problem in Bulgaria. The country suffers more from its own people leaving their country than from others coming in: a handful of Chinese and another few refugees from Armenia or Afghanistan. The process of mass emigration out of Bulgaria started in the early 1990s and continues in the present days. However, as time goes by, fewer and fewer people are prepared to completely change their lives just to move to another country. ... Read more
Immigration
Posted 18 Feb 2008:Being self-employed without income is not always easy, but it does give a lot of freedom. Every morning when I wake up, I can choose the subject I want to talk and write about. That usually is an advantage but not today. I had saved the subject of immigration for Brindisi, inspired by old TV images of Albanians reaching the Italian East coast. And what strikes my surprise when I get to Brindisi? Everybody is Italian. But that does not mean people don`t have an opinion about the immigration issue.... Read more
Terrorist threat
London, UK (View on map)
Posted 7 Jan 2008:9/11 in the United States, 7/7 in London and 11/3 in Madrid. Many Europeans will recognise at least one of these numbers to terrorist attacks by suicide bombers. Fortunately, these events are happening on a much less frequent basis in EU countries than in some other parts of the world. London is supposed to be one of the best protected cities in Europe, especially after the terrorist bombings in 2005. But how does it feel to be constantly reminded that your life may be at risk?... Read more
Multicultural NL
Rotterdam, NL (View on map)
Posted 4 Jan 2008:From the 1960s until present time, The Netherlands have been proud of their proverbial tolerance towards unconventional living styles. Outsiders may even think that just about anything is allowed in The Netherlands, oftentimes even by law: abortion, euthanasia, gay rights, legalized drugs and the existence of a political party protecting the rights of pedophiles. The first article of the Dutch constitution prescribes that all inhabitants of The Netherlands, when faced with the same circumstances, have right to equal treatment. The same article explicitly prohibits `discrimination based on religion, convictions, political orientation, race, gender, or whatever other difference may apply`. But how tolerant are Dutch people in everyday life?... Read more
Fryslan Boppe
Posted 30 Dec 2007:The Netherlands is too small a country to have different languages on its territory - one would say. There is one province where people would certainly disagree with that. Friesland, in the north of The Netherlands and the local language is known as Frisian. Calling Frisian a dialect would a straightforward offence to most Frisians. The language has been officially recognised and most names of villages are marked in Frisian first, then followed by Dutch. What`s worth knowing about this curious language and province?... Read more
City guerrilla
Paris, FR (View on map)
Posted 3 Dec 2007:77,78,91,92,93,94,95. They may be random numbers to someone who is not from France, but a French person will quickly associate them with the departments directly surrounding Paris: the `banlieue`. Some parts of the banlieue provide their inhabitants with reasonably quiet life at affordable prices. Other parts regularly appear on national and international news for their frequent outbreaks of violence, with Villiers-le-Bel as a recent example. The issues in the banlieue may be extreme at times, they do reveal problems that haunt all of France under the surface: unemployment, segregation, racism and poverty. ... Read more
Things Basque
Bilbao, ES (View on map)
Posted 23 Nov 2007:The further enlargement of the European Union is a hot topic these days. What exactly defines the common heritage of Europe except its geographical position? How many more countries should be allowed in and which criteria do they need to match? Regardless of this complicated discussion, the EU may be forced to increase the number of participants when existing members split up. Scotland (UK), Flanders (Belgium) and Basque Country (France and Spain) are only a few of the regions cherishing independence dreams. Bilbao sounds like the perfect place to learn more about the Basque question in particular, and separatism in general.... Read more
Costa Blanca fun
Posted 17 Nov 2007:When talking about immigrants, and especially in current times, hardly anybody will first think of the English, German and Dutch. Things are different along the Costa Blanca. 80% of the population is of foreign origin, and for once they are not predominantly from Poland, Morocco, South America or China. The Western European refugees do show remarking similarities with economic and political refugees.... Read more
Entrance to the EU
Posted 15 Nov 2007:Every country has its immigrant population. The country of origin of foreigners differs by country, but they are likely to face the very same problems. They hardly ever manage to become part of the middle class. A small proportion of exceptions occupies management-level jobs, while the majority struggle to find their place in society. Situated close to Africa and having colonial links with South America, Spain is a very logical first place for many immigrants to find a better life.... Read more
Colonial friends
Lisbon, PT (View on map)
Posted 6 Nov 2007:All countries that I have visited on my trip have been involved in independence struggles. Ireland, Finland and the Baltic States have been occupied but (re)gained independence. Scotland is having issues with England, while Sweden at one point occupied most of Scandinavia. Portugal, although a quite modest country today, was one of the world`s biggest colonisers during the previous millennium, a situation which still has consequences today.... Read more
Racism beat it
Stockholm, SE (View on map)
Posted 14 Oct 2007:Before twenty years ago, the Swedish society was almost entirely made up of Swedes. The situation has changed since then, and Sweden is now one of the countries that allows the most foreigners in. Too many, say some. They claim that the new Swedes do not integrate with the local population and that their odds of keeping up with the Swedish society ideals are slim. ... Read more
Sharing the country
Rovaniemi, FI (View on map)
Posted 24 Sep 2007:Nature-loving Finns say that Rovaniemi, the city I am currently visiting, is only a transition area towards the `real Lappland`. Although Rovaniemi is the capital of the administrative region of Lappland, their ideas about Lappland are quite different from the city of Rovaniemi. Who only gets to visit Rovaniemi misses out on Finland`s northernmost forests, tundras, waterfalls and the homeland of the indigenous population: the Saami. Ever since its independence, Finland has shared its territory with the Saami in the North, the Swedish in the South-west, Russians in the East and religious communities spread over the country. Here`s a short overview of the positions they currently hold in the Finnish society.... Read more
Coming to Finland
Posted 20 Sep 2007:Since World War II, Finland has been able to develop itself into a stable country with equal opportunities for everybody. The welfare system is well-developed, barriers to enter higher educations are virtually inexistant and charity organisations can count on broad support and generosity. It would make perfect sense for people from more troubled countries to all set course to Finland. However, you will only find very few recognisable foreigners in the streets of Finnish cities. I am on a mission today to find some and ask them how they ended up in Finland.... Read more
Liberation or occupation?
Tallinn, EE (View on map)
Posted 13 Sep 2007:Estonia does not often appear in foreign newspapers, and when it does, something serious must have been going on. Last April, the capital city Tallinn did make headlines. Russian youth groups clashed with the police over the removal of an old Soviet monument from the centre of Tallinn. The incident showed how the Estonians and the Russians, even 15 years after independence, still don`t get along with each other very well.... Read more
About Alien Latvians
Daugavpils, LV (View on map)
Posted 31 Aug 2007:When Latvia became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991, only ethnic Latvians were granted citizenship. Russians who lived in the area were only offered an `alien passport`. Today, I am travelling to the mainly Russian city of Daugavpils, in the east of Latvia, to find out about the relation between Latvians and Russians.... Read more
Tourism in Londonderry
Posted 10 Aug 2007:Londonderry is a city different from all others and it also attracts an atypical audience. No bus loads of Japanese people here and no Indians playing pan flutes. There are no obvious tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower or the Big Ben. But tourists still find their way to Derry and the youth hostel I am staying in, is fully booked on almost every day during summer. I am wondering what drives people to Derry and find myself chasing tourists in the streets.... Read more
Polish invasion
Cork, IE (View on map)
Posted 2 Aug 2007:Over the years, Ireland has had a tradition of emigration. Millions of Irish people fled the island over the years, most of them to the United States. Since the beginning of this decade, the trend has reversed and Ireland is attracting people rather than sending them out across the great big ocean. Most newcomers fly or bus in from Poland, taking advantage of the country`s EU membership and the increased freedom of travel.... Read more
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