The main thing that you have to remember on this journey is just be nice to everyone and always smile. Refreshingly, what was expected of her was the same thing that was expected of Lara Stone: to take a beautiful picture.
We woke reasonably late following the feast and free flowing wine the night before. After gathering ourselves and our packs, we headed down to our homestay family’s small dining room for breakfast, where we enjoyed scrambled eggs, toast, mekitsi (fried dough), local jam and peppermint tea.
We were making our way to the Rila Mountains, where we were visiting the Rila Monastery.
March for our Lives 2020
We wandered the site with busloads of other tourists, yet strangely the place did not seem crowded. I’m not sure if it was the sheer size of the place, or whether the masses congregated in one area and didn’t venture far from the main church, but I didn’t feel overwhelmed by tourists in the monastery.
City Guide for Vienna
Headed over Lions Bridge and made our way to the Sofia Synagogue, then sheltered in the Central Market Hall until the recurrent (but short-lived) mid-afternoon rain passed.
Feeling refreshed after an espresso, we walked a short distance to the small but welcoming Banya Bashi Mosque, then descended into the ancient Serdica complex.
We were exhausted after a long day of travel, so we headed back to the hotel and crashed. I had low expectations about Sofia as a city, but after the walking tour I absolutely loved the place. This was an easy city to navigate, and it was a beautiful city – despite its ugly, staunch and stolid communist-built surrounds. Sofia has a very average facade as you enter the city, but once you lose yourself in the old town area, everything changes.
If You Have It, You Can Make Anything Look Good
Clothes can transform your mood and confidence. Fashion moves so quickly that, unless you have a strong point of view, you can lose integrity. I like to be real. I don’t like things to be staged or fussy. I think I’d go mad if I didn’t have a place to escape to. You have to stay true to your heritage, that’s what your brand is about.
At Eurovision Song Contest 2022, Romania’s votes were stolen. What’s the reason? Politics appears to be the obvious cause. Would the Ukrainians win the Eurovision Song Contest regardless of their performance? Here are the confessions of Eda Marcus, who had to present the Romanian scores to the participating countries live at Eurovision.
Ukraine won the Eurovision 2022, but the event was marred by a scandal. Because the invasion of Ukraine and the entire military escalation in the region drew global attention and elicited millions of political or philanthropic responses, Ukraine was expected to be favoured.
It comes as no surprise that Eurovision is about politics rather than music. Everyone is aware of it, but no one is speaking out about Eurovision’s irregularities.
According to Valahai News, Romania had technical problems on the evening when the score was to be broadcasted, a few minutes before the live broadcast of the presenter of the Romanian station that broadcast Eurovision, Eda Marcus.
When Mika declares that Romania is experiencing „technical difficulties,” the following occurs:
The video above is a recording of Eda Marcus, the presenter who was forced to live-stream Romania’s points. Her expression says it all. She couldn’t believe what was happening, especially so close to the broadcast.
The Romanian host also discussed what happened behind the scenes
According to TVR (Romanian television), presenter Eda Marcus was not permitted to broadcast live the results of the Romanian judging by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The Romanian jury’s vote was overturned by the EBU.
It should be noted that the Eurovision show is taped one night before the broadcast in order to avoid unforeseen circumstances that could jeopardize the broadcast. The judging, on the other hand, is live-streamed. The jury, appointed by Romanian television to judge the artistic moments, met and voted on Friday evening. The procedure is typical. Before the organizers have the score, it is uploaded to a platform. In the case of Romania, the jury awarded Moldova maximum points, implying that the 12 points were assigned to Moldova rather than Ukraine.
The scores are uploaded to an online platform, they are processed on the evening of the show and a few minutes before I go live, the EBU practically takes out of that platform where these notes were introduced by my colleagues, a sheet that I have to show in the presence of a notary. This sheet is printed and brought to me in 5 minutes. (…) Imagine the shock of my colleague, Diana Damian, who took care of this procedure, when she handed me with that sheet, knowing what was the ranking she had given the night before when she looked at the sheet and saw 12 points for Ukraine.
Eda Marcu, presenter on Romanian television
EBU has been notified in advance of this mistake. According to the Romanian television presenter, EBU communicated something evasive.
We were told to do it as written, that they are EBU and that they will clarify the situation. That’s how I ended up with the 12-point sheet for Ukraine and couldn’t broadcast live anymore.
Eda Marcu, presenter on Romanian television
What were Romania’s actual scores at EUROVISION?
The total scores offered by Romania were the following: Moldova – 12 points, Grece – 10 points, Poland – 8 points, Netherlands – 7 points, Azerbaijan – 6 points, Australia – 5 points, Italy – 4 points, Spain – 3 points, Finland – 2 points, Lithuania – 1 point.
Despite reports that Romania had technical issues, it was announced after the contest that the jury from Romania and other countries had been disqualified. The juries of six nations competing in the second EUROVISION 2022 semi-final, according to the EBU, have been disqualified due to irregularities. Instead, a replacement aggregate result was introduced for each country for both the second semi-final and the grand final (calculated based on the results of other countries with a similar voting history). Azerbaijan, Georgia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, and San Marino were among the six disqualified national juries.
Some believe that the situation with Ukraine has deteriorated and that it has gone too far. Others argue that if the Ukrainians were already certain to win the Eurovision contest, why did they hide it? One thing is certain. Eurovision has always been a political game, with a lot of money and interest in the middle hidden behind a veil of empathy, much like this year. To avoid becoming a victim of such a game, Romania should withdraw from the competition permanently, as should many other countries.
The main thing that you have to remember on this journey is just be nice to everyone and always smile. Refreshingly, what was expected of her was the same thing that was expected of Lara Stone: to take a beautiful picture.
We woke reasonably late following the feast and free flowing wine the night before. After gathering ourselves and our packs, we headed down to our homestay family’s small dining room for breakfast, where we enjoyed scrambled eggs, toast, mekitsi (fried dough), local jam and peppermint tea.
We were making our way to the Rila Mountains, where we were visiting the Rila Monastery.
March for our Lives 2020
We wandered the site with busloads of other tourists, yet strangely the place did not seem crowded. I’m not sure if it was the sheer size of the place, or whether the masses congregated in one area and didn’t venture far from the main church, but I didn’t feel overwhelmed by tourists in the monastery.
City Guide for Vienna
Headed over Lions Bridge and made our way to the Sofia Synagogue, then sheltered in the Central Market Hall until the recurrent (but short-lived) mid-afternoon rain passed.
Feeling refreshed after an espresso, we walked a short distance to the small but welcoming Banya Bashi Mosque, then descended into the ancient Serdica complex.
We were exhausted after a long day of travel, so we headed back to the hotel and crashed. I had low expectations about Sofia as a city, but after the walking tour I absolutely loved the place. This was an easy city to navigate, and it was a beautiful city – despite its ugly, staunch and stolid communist-built surrounds. Sofia has a very average facade as you enter the city, but once you lose yourself in the old town area, everything changes.
If You Have It, You Can Make Anything Look Good
Clothes can transform your mood and confidence. Fashion moves so quickly that, unless you have a strong point of view, you can lose integrity. I like to be real. I don’t like things to be staged or fussy. I think I’d go mad if I didn’t have a place to escape to. You have to stay true to your heritage, that’s what your brand is about.
WRS wins the National Selection in Romania and will represent the country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin with the song Llámame.
WRS represents Romania at Eurovision 2022. Who ranked second and third?
WRS wins the national contest in front of Kyrie Mendel, who ranks second with ‘Hurricane’, and Doina Gaitanovici, who ranks third with ‘Ana’.
As Eurovision is a very controversial contest, both at the European and the national level, maybe you’d like to see the second and the third place as well.
WRS at the National Selection in Romania
Here is the second performance: Kyrie Mendel – Hurricane (Eurovision România 2022 – video | live).
And here is the third place: Dora Gaitanovici – Ana (Eurovision România 2022 – video | live):
Maybe some would say the second or third are better, while others would defend the national winner. Either way, the winner was decided following the jury’s decision and the public vote. More than 12,000 Romanians voted for their favourite in the National Selection – Selectia Nationala, the national competition to select the winner.
WBS wins the National Selection in Romania
Who is WRS?
WRS is the stage name of Andrei Ionut Ursu, born on January 16, 1993, in Buzau, Southern Romania.
WRS used to dance for famous Romanian singers and approached the singing career only later, in 2015. In 2017 he moved out to London and began composing music. His debut song was Why, in 2020.
Hard work always pays off! Thank you all, see you in Turin!
WBS
For those who want to see who represents Romania in the semi-finals in Turin, on Thursday, May 12, please enjoy the song:
The main thing that you have to remember on this journey is just be nice to everyone and always smile. Refreshingly, what was expected of her was the same thing that was expected of Lara Stone: to take a beautiful picture.
We woke reasonably late following the feast and free flowing wine the night before. After gathering ourselves and our packs, we headed down to our homestay family’s small dining room for breakfast, where we enjoyed scrambled eggs, toast, mekitsi (fried dough), local jam and peppermint tea.
We were making our way to the Rila Mountains, where we were visiting the Rila Monastery.
March for our Lives 2020
We wandered the site with busloads of other tourists, yet strangely the place did not seem crowded. I’m not sure if it was the sheer size of the place, or whether the masses congregated in one area and didn’t venture far from the main church, but I didn’t feel overwhelmed by tourists in the monastery.
City Guide for Vienna
Headed over Lions Bridge and made our way to the Sofia Synagogue, then sheltered in the Central Market Hall until the recurrent (but short-lived) mid-afternoon rain passed.
Feeling refreshed after an espresso, we walked a short distance to the small but welcoming Banya Bashi Mosque, then descended into the ancient Serdica complex.
We were exhausted after a long day of travel, so we headed back to the hotel and crashed. I had low expectations about Sofia as a city, but after the walking tour I absolutely loved the place. This was an easy city to navigate, and it was a beautiful city – despite its ugly, staunch and stolid communist-built surrounds. Sofia has a very average facade as you enter the city, but once you lose yourself in the old town area, everything changes.
If You Have It, You Can Make Anything Look Good
Clothes can transform your mood and confidence. Fashion moves so quickly that, unless you have a strong point of view, you can lose integrity. I like to be real. I don’t like things to be staged or fussy. I think I’d go mad if I didn’t have a place to escape to. You have to stay true to your heritage, that’s what your brand is about.
Cryptocurrency analysts say at least $13.7m (£10.2m) has so far been donated to the Ukrainian war effort through anonymous Bitcoin donations.
Researchers at Elliptic, a blockchain analysis company, said the Ukrainian government, NGOs, and volunteer groups had raised the money by advertising their Bitcoin wallet addresses online.
More than 4,000 donations have been made so far, with one unknown donor gifting Bitcoin worth $3m to an NGO.
The median donation is $95.
On Saturday afternoon, the official Twitter account of the Ukrainian government posted a message: „Stand with the people of Ukraine. Now accepting cryptocurrency donations. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT.”
It posted addresses for two cryptocurrency wallets which collected $5.4m in Bitcoin, Ether, and other coins within eight hours.
The Ukrainian Digital Ministry says the latest call for donations is to „help Ukraine armed forces” but not elaborate on how the money would be spent.
Elliptic founder Tom Robinson told the BBC: „Whereas some crowdfunding and payments companies have refused to allow donations to be made to groups supporting the Ukrainian military, cryptocurrencies have emerged as a powerful alternative.”
On Friday, fundraising platform Patreon announced that it had suspended the donation page for „Come Back Alive,” a Ukrainian NGO raising money for Ukrainian forces in conflict zones since 2014. Patreon said the page violated the company’s policies, saying in a statement: „We don’t allow Patreon to be used for funding weapons or military activity.”
Cryptocurrency fundraising is becoming an increasingly prominent part of modern conflicts worldwide. Scammers also appear to be taking advantage of the current situation in Ukraine, though, by tricking unsuspecting users.
Elliptic says at least one social media post was found to copy a legitimate tweet from an NGO, but with the author swapping the Bitcoin address, presumably for one of their own.
Big Tech has responded to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by offering assistance to Ukrainians, stymieing Russia’s disinformation campaigns and shuttering services Moscow’s military can use on the ground, moves that make the industry a de facto participant in the hostilities.
At the request of the Ukrainian government, rocket company SpaceX activated satellite internet service in Ukraine through its Starlink system, a move that keeps the country connected to the web even as Russia attacks its websites. AirBnb has offered free housing to Ukrainians fleeing the fighting, and US phone carriers have waived fees to customers who need to call Ukraine.
Big social networks, including Facebook-owner Meta, Twitter, and Google-owned YouTube face familiar questions about dealing with disinformation and propaganda. All three have placed restrictions on Russian state-run media’s access to ad platforms and continue to fact-check posts deemed false. Microsoft and Google have limited downloads of Russian state-run media services from their app stores.
Separately, Microsoft has worked with US and Ukrainian government officials to warn of hacking threats. After consulting with the Ukrainian government, Google disabled a feature that displays traffic conditions in its widely used Maps app, a move that could potentially make navigating more difficult for the Russian military. Apple ceased sales of its products in Russia following an appeal from Kyiv, which asked the consumer electronics giant to block Russians from accessing its app store because „modern technology is perhaps the best answer to the tanks, multiple rocket launchers, and missiles.
The actions taken by the Big Tech companies indicate a changing level of involvement for corporations caught in global conflict. While the industry has always had a role in war efforts – private sector enterprises build tanks, aircraft, and weapons, and sometimes pivot to help militaries during crises – companies weren’t often involved in battlefield actions. Now businesses are actors in the conflict.
Big Tech isn’t alone in taking action to support Ukraine and strike back at Russia. BP and Shell said they would cut ties with two gas companies controlled by the Russian government, Rosneft and Gazprom. A Norwegian asset management firm said it would divest from Russian businesses. Even the public media union that produces Eurovision banned Russia from its singing contest this year.
Photo source: medium.com
On March 11, American Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Romania in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. At 14:00 local time, the US representative will meet with Romanian President Klaus Johannis in Bucharest. According to a White House press release, the US vice president’s visit to Romania aims to enhance the US-Romanian partnership in response to Russia’s aggressive and unlawful invasion.
Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Warsaw, Poland and Bucharest, Romania on March 9-11. Her visit will demonstrate the strength and unity of the NATO alliance and US support for NATO’s East Side allies in the face of Russian aggression.
White House statement
Kamila Harrison also meets with Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca and other European NATO leaders to talk about how to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Source: Kamila Harris Facebook Page
The security routine for the arrival of the American vice president is stringent, and residents are advised to stay away from the city center. Additionally, the police advise against travelling on DN1, Romania’s primary highway that connects Bucharest to the country’s northwestern region, on March 11 from 12:00 to 15:00 local time.
The authorities involved have in view for the instituted security measures to interfere as little as possible with the population’s daily activities. Thus, for participants in traffic, there will be measures to improve the flow of traffic and, in this context, the Bucharest Road Police Brigade requests drivers respect the signals and indications of policemen. Drivers are recommended that on Friday, in the interval between 12:00 and 17:00 hrs, they avoid travelling on National Road 1, in order to prevent the formation of traffic jams.
The Bucharest City Police General Directorate
The official statements after the visit are to be broadcast at 15.30 local time.
