In the fall of 1997 I decided to visit, probably for the last time, the city I was born in a long-long time ago.  I wanted to meet my radio amateur friends and see how they cope under the new socio-political system, almost a decade after a bloody revolution that freed them from the dictatorship.
   I took a plane with TAROM, the Romanian airline, the only non-stop flight from New York City to my home town of Timisoara, and in about eight and half hours I arrived to the destination.  The flight was boring with two dull movies and two flat, airline type meals.  On my return I saw exactly the same two boring movies, and I think they served me the same meal I did not eat in the first place.  Just like my mother used to do; what I did not eat for dinner, I got for supper.
   At the Romanian customs I was asked the routine question:
   “Do you have any electronic gear?”
   The obvious answer was “no!” even with my suitcases full of various things for radios and computers, gifts for hams.  The customs officer stretched his long probing hand under layers of clothing I brought for relatives, and pulled out a low-pass filter asking:
  “What is this?”
  “Is something for a big car” I said giving the proper answer, under the circumstances.  The customs officer stretched even more his hand, deeper into my suitcase.  I silently placed a Voodoo curse on his fingers, and he pulled out a high-pass filter.
   “What is this?” inquired again with the inquisitiveness of a man in uniform.
   “Is something for a little car” I helped him satisfy his sick curiosity.
   Convinced that I had nothing “electronic” he let me pass.
   I even had a heavy box with 100 amateur radio magazines but I had no problem with them, except carrying it.  In New York I tied the box with a long and very thick nylon rope but the box arrive without it.  This is one of the many mysteries of flying a commercial airline.
   In the city of Timisoara I went to see the club station at the Children’s Palace what I established back in 1955.  Now the teacher and chief operator is Szigy YO2IS.  Operators are high school students like Sorin YO2LLL, Dan YO2LLQ, Cristi YO2LOM, and Bobby YO2LIF.  The station is a modest FT-250 with an all band wire dipole.  Now they have a much smaller room than I had there 40 years ago, and the available funds also shrank a lot.  Nevertheless,  the operators work with enthusiasm, build various gadgets, make QSOs, and send QSL cards.  Some of them even have personal home made stations.
   Next to see was the club station of the High School for Telecommunications YO2KJO.  There the chief is Norby YO2LGU, a student at the Technical University.  Norby, licensed in 1991, is the Sysop for the YO2KJO’s BBS.
   I visited Bata YO2LAM, licensed in 1982, a petrochemist by training but now he is running a furniture store.  Bata just moved in his new house, all white marble, inside and outside, with a special radio room equipped with an FT-1000MP transceiver, a FL-2277B linear, and a Drake antenna tuner.  It seems there is a lot of money in selling beds and mattresses, and other benefits as well, only he can tell.  In a backyard cottage I saw a roomful of big and obsolete Russian military transceivers.  On a 50 foot tower he has a TH11DX,  a 16 element horizontally polarized Yagi for 2 meters, and a wire dipole for 40-80 meters.  On a separate mast installed on the house, he has a 5 element Yagi for 6 meters, a 22 element Yagi for 70 cm, and a vertical for 2 meters.  Bata YO2LAM is an occasional contester, a DXer, a good QSLer, and an all-around nice guy.
   I saw the stations of Szigy YO2IS and his wife Delia YO2DM, quite a famous couple in amateur radio.  Szigy is a teacher.  He is running the YO2KAC club station at the Children’s Palace but his claim to fame is his prestigious EME activity.  Under very difficult conditions, having only a narrow opening, between large buildings, for his EME antennas, Szigi YO2IS managed to make over 538 EME QSOs on 70 cm, with 33 countries, 138 different stations in 5 continents, using about 600 Watts.  On 2 meters EME he made 26 contacts with 5 countries, 16 different stations, using 1 kW.  Everything in his shack, is home made and he has quite a lot of things in it.
   Delia YO2DM has a full-time job as the chief of the Timis county radio club YO2KAB.  She has her own setup, works in contests, is a DXer, and is a reliable QSLer.
   Poly YO2BX, licensed in 1956, a retired engineer, is an old friend of mine.  He is using a modest HW-101, pushing 80 Watts to a five band Windom antenna.  Poly is a builder and experimenter, operates only SSB, occasionally works DX, and he does QSL.
   Vivi YO2AFS, licensed in 1964, is an electrical engineer.  He is master builder, his radio room is full of his projects.  He does not have too much space in his own cramped apartment so for many years, every day after finishing his work at the factory, he goes to his daughter’s house where is his radio shack, and he tinkers there for hours before he goes home.  Vivi YO2AFS has a vertical for 2 meters and he was in the process of installing his new, all band G5RV antenna.  He works in contests, participates in fox hunts, and has QSL cards.
   I went with Vivi YO2AFS and Liviu YO2BCT to an outing, about 20 miles from Timisoara, where they worked on 70 cm, in a IARU contest.  We could not drive to the intended location on the top of a hill, because of the soaked and bad roads.  We went half way up, to about 650 feet, installed an array of four long 16 element Yagis, and Vivi and Liviu operated as long as the band was open, making 30 QSOs.  When there was no propagation, we tried to sleep in cars but it was quite chilly.  At least it did not rain.
   Here are some advises for people working DX:
   If you are calling “CQ DX” and a nearby ham is answering, ask him to call you again on the long path.
   If a DX station does not answer you, imitate his accent and he will pick you from the pile-up.
   If a DX station does not answer you, call him with a high pitched voice; he’ll think you are an YL and will answer right away.
   If you can not get through a pile-up, turn on your super big amplifier and yell “QRP, QRP!”
   If you worked a DX station six times, he always promised QSLs, you sent cards every time but received nothing, perhaps it is time to doubt his honesty.
   If a DX station is asking for more money for his QSL than is required for postage, he is just trying to make a “decent” living.
   If you sent a DX station your QSL with a couple of green stamps for postage, and he answers you years later via the bureau, be thankful but place a Gypsy curse on his head.
   If you worked a new country, received the QSL but the DXCC desk did not accept it because it was not a Marry Lane operation, put a Gypsy curse on the desk.
   If a DX station is working “split” and you keep calling him on his frequency, consider changing your name to “Lid,” everybody else is already calling you that.
   Let me continue with the story.  Boby YO2AAG is also an old friend of mine.  Licensed in 1963, he is an electronic technician at the local power plant.  Boby is a master builder. Most of his equipment and antennas were designed and made by himself.  He is running 180 Watts, has a very tall tower decorated with scores of antennas: a W3DZZ for 40 and 80 meters, for 2 meters Boby has a 15 element vertically polarized 15 element Yagi for repeaters, a 11 element horizontally polarized Yagi for DX, a vertical Ringo Ranger, and for 70 cm he is using a 30 element vertically polarized DJ9BW type Yagi, and another similar antenna but horizontally polarized.  Also on the tower, in boxes, are two power amplifiers for 2 meters and 70 cm.  If these were not enough, there are two large parabolic antennas for satellite TV.  Boby YO2AAG worked over 130 DX countries, 25 of them on 2 meters.  He does QSL.
   Karoly YO2GL, licensed in 1961, is an electronic technician, he maintains tests instruments for the local broadcast medium wave transmitters.  His shack is above the 10th floor of his apartment building, where the elevator motor and its control panel is located.  He has direct access to a large flat roof where he can experiment with his antennas.  This is the good news.  The bad news is that the  very strong electromagnetic field from the nearby huge transmitting tower antennas interfere with everything.  Karoly YO2GL is a contester, worked over 130 countries, and he is mostly a builder.  He has a G5RV for 10-15-20 meters, a dipole for 40 meters, another one for 80 meters, both strung between two tall buildings at about 165 feet above the ground.  For 6 meters Karoly has a 2 element Quad, for 2 meters he is using a 16 element rotatable horizontally polarized Yagi, and two connected 9 element vertically polarized Yagis.
   I heard of an amateur who wanted to buy a transceiver, he agreed on a price and told the merchant:
   “My most respected dealer, if you trust me I’ll pay you in about six months.  When can I pick it up?”
   “My most respected customer - answered the dealer -  of course I trust you.  In about six months.”
      The county radio club located in the center of Timisoara has two rooms; a nice station YO2KAB and a QSL bureau, and a small meeting room.  The chief of the club is Delia YO2DM, and its president is Zoli YO2BP, a very active ham.  The station is modest and they use a long wire strung across the street to a tall building.  At the club I met several amateurs: Aurel YO2BS, Romi YO2AEG, Noni YO2DNO, Valy YO2AQO, Sorin YO2LLL, Dan YO2LLQ, Szigy YO2IS, and Calin YO2LOG, a reporter for a local periodical who interviewed me for his paper.  In that article I blasted at the politicians who don’t know anything about the services brought to the society by amateur radio operators, and don’t allocate funds to adequately support this valuable activity.
   I had a good time in Timisoara.  I visited old friends, and made new ones.  Went twice to the opera where I saw a very good Rigoletto and a so-so Cavaleria Rusticana;  the best seat in the house costing me about three dollars.  Twice I went to the theater, both plays were good, and tickets for the first row seats were two dollars.
   I heard a story of a naive young man who got married and his friend asked him:
   “Tell me, was your wife a virgin?”
   “Well - answered hesitantly the young man - I don’t know; some people said yes, others said no!”
    I bought a bunch of books written by survivors of the labor camps and extermination prisons of the communist era.  I talked with participants to the popular uprising started in December 1989 in this city, which became the revolution that liberated the country.  Many people participated to the revolution and afterwards even many more people claimed that they have participated.  As one revolutionary said:
   “Few we were, many we remained.”
   From Timisoara I took a side trip to valley of the Jiu river, a rich mining region. On the train, in my compartment was a slightly tipsy gentleman.  When the conductor came for tickets, he could not find his.  The conductor said that he will return later.  The man was worried and said:
   “I have to find my tickets because I don’t know where I have to get off.”
   In the Jiu Valley I met many amateurs, but this is the subject for another report.
   In conclusion, I have to straighten out some facts.  A rumor is circulating in Romania that I am the Governor of the state of New York, I was the mayor in a city in the same state, I became a rich and famous attorney, made lots of money on the stock market, my grandfather came from Hungary, and I am a nice and helpful guy.  Please note: I am not the Governor of New York state, never been a mayor in any town, I am neither rich nor a famous attorney, I did not made any money in stock market, rather I lost some, my grandfather never been in Hungary, and instead of being nice or helpful, I am mean and nasty; the rest is fairly accurate.
   On the day of my return to New York, my friend Bata YO2LAM and Sandu YO2LIZ, a firefighter, came to the airport to say good-bye and probably to make sure that I am leaving.  I asked the local hams too many questions and I tried repeatedly, often in vain,  to make them smile for the camera.  It takes time, but this nation will have to smile again.