The Game

     It's been a very interesting month for me, one in which I had some very good time doing the things I like the most.

With a dear friend- Katerina Pavlidou

     The Europeans ended for me not as well as it had started. If I had a 2600+ performance after the first five rounds and a high level of chess, the tournament ended with me showing a 2440 performance and only one truly good game out of the last 6. If to consider that it was the first tournament of the year for me, after a two and a half months break, the result is normal, one that I hope to be followed by better ones :)

     As about Armenia, I enjoyed it and I am grateful for the nice people I have met there and for the friends I've made :)

     Aaah, not to forget to mention, if you remember, I was telling how much I liked the Armenian food in the last post... Well, I guess I liked it too much, as I got a very nasty food poisoning in the last days- maybe that's the reason why I started winning again :))) (I suppose it is a joke, well, the last part, the food poisoning wasn't any of a joke :P )

     I've drawn all the necessary conclusions and I am ready to play the next tournaments (or I will be in about 10 days :)

Constantin Lupulescu

     The last but not the least important thing about the tournament- Constantin Lupulescu shared the 2nd place with an impressive 2759 performance and has qualified for the 2015 World Cup, with which I congratulate him once again! 2/2 in the last two games, both with black, against higher rated players, both in French- hm... maybe I should rethink my opening repertoire ;)

     Now, about next tournaments- I will play the "Karpos Open",which will be held  in Macedonia, from the 29th of March. It is going to be a very strong tournament, I am nr.82 so far in the starting ranking list, which you can check here: http://chess-results.com/tnr121297.aspx?lan=11

     I will play another three tournaments after that, about which I'll keep you posted ( of course :D )!

     That's it so far, I have so much to write about, but let's keep the intrigue until the next posts ;)

     An idea to keep your mind busy- "Do you think your personal karma affects your level of chess?"

xoxo from Iasi ;)

Good Day

     There it is- a half of the Europeans has already passed.
     It is as I expected, a very difficult, but in the same time a very challenging and interesting tournament. I've played against strong opponents, I learned new things and I've fighted in every game until the very end. I am satisfied with my chess so far- well, it's impossible to be 100% satisfied, but I understand that there's a reason I'm still an IM and not a GM- there is place for improvement.
     We had a free day today and as a "real professional" I went to an excursion through the holly places of Yerevan. I had some very good time and I learned many new things about christianity and about the Armenian history.
     Another thing I can't help mentioning is the Armenian food- it is so tasty that I think I will try to learn how to cook some of their dishes- especially their traditional soup "Spas". I eat it at least once a day :D
     I hope that the second part of the tournament will go at least as well as the first one :)
     The other Romanians keep their chances for qualification, with Constantin Lupulescu and Mircea Parligras having the best score among us- "+2".

46	GM	Lupulescu Constantin	2643	ROU	1	1	½	½	½	½	4.0	42	2670	10	2.50	Official results
74	GM	Nevednichy Vladislav	2591	ROU	½	0	1	0	½	1	3.0	158	2308	10	-20.00	Official results
85	GM	Jianu Vlad-Cristian	2574	ROU	1	½	0	1	½	½	3.5	87	2515	10	-2.90	Official results
88	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2572	ROU	1	0	1	0	1	1	4.0	67	2529	10	-2.20	Official results
166	IM	Bulmaga Irina	2375	ROU	½	1	0	½	½	0	2.5	161	2547	10	12.10	Official results
187	FM	Deac Bogdan-Daniel	2322	ROU	0	1	½	0	½	0	2.0	202	2324	15	0.30	Official results
251		Porfireanu Serban	1903	ROU	0	0	0	0	0	1	1.0	255	1337	15	-18.30	Official results

     Here are some photos from the last days:

You can find more photos on the tournament's site: http://eicc2014.am/gallery

With Maria Gevorgyan and Katerina Pavlidou ;)

xoxo from Yerevan! ;)

     

Yerevan

     Here I am , in Yerevan- at the European Individual Chess Championship- the tournament that opens this year's chess season for me.
     I like playing the Men's Europeans, as it is the strongest tournament I play every year and there is absolutely no pressure on me, thought it doesn't mean that I don't put some by myself :D
     I've missed chess, as I haven't played for 2 and a half months and the trip to Yerevan has been a very awaited one. It is my first time in Armenia and I like it- everything has been great so far- the food, the hotel, the receipt. I hope that it will continue this way ;)
     The first round starts tomorrow, at 3 pm local time. Here is the official site, where you can find all the information about the tournament, as well as the live games and photo reports: http://eicc2014.am/  I expect to have a very strong opponent tomorrow, as I am nr.167 out of 259  http://chess-results.com/tnr123081.aspx?lan=11&zeilen=99999
     I hope to play some good games and to show my best chess!
     Romania is represented by 7 players here:

46	GM	Lupulescu Constantin	1207822	ROU	2643
74	GM	Nevednichy Vladislav	1205730	ROU	2591
85	GM	Jianu Vlad-Cristian	1208110	ROU	2574
88	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	1204297	ROU	2572
167	IM	Bulmaga Irina	13903063	ROU	2375
188		Deac Bogdan-Daniel	1226380	ROU	2322
252		Porfireanu Serban	1208632	ROU	1903

     I wish them all the best of luck (including myself :D ) !
     Here are some photos from my today's walk through the center of Yerevan:

Seems like chess is a tradition around here

With Mircea Parligras and Constantin Lupulescu

     Will keep you posted!

xoxo from Yerevan  ;)

     

Fairytale

     Here I am, in Poiana Brasov, wondering how does it come that I've never been here before.

     I took a "short" walk this morning- about 2h and a half :))) - and took my time to explore the resort. It's absolutely amazing! The landscapes are so nice and they somehow induce a peaceful state of mind and soul.       The only minus is the "too fresh and clear" air, because of which I can't stop feeling dizzy... Maybe that's why I feel like I'm in a fairytale :D
     Here are some photos:

xoxo from Poiana Brasov ;)

Horror Chess

With Raluca Sgircea

     I haven't written in a while, as I was busy with all kind of stuff and I've been strangely at peace with myself.
     Maybe you've noticed that I write mostly when I am emotional: sad, happy, excited, worried about different things. Well, it's been a very uneventfull period until now.

     The Men's European is coming up and I am really excited to play chess again, as I haven't played for the unbelievable period of two and a half months. Even my brain got emotional: I have started to have nightmares about chess... For example today- I dreamed that I lost a game because I was late for it :))) It was such a thriller- I was hurrying to get in time but somehow, my moves were slow-motioned :D I really hope that it won't happen in real life :D
     Otherwise, life's pretty good again, no worries with studying or anything else- finished all the lemons- don't need chocolate cookies anymore :D
      I was in Bucharest last week- had some quality time there, then stayed a bit with my familly and now going to Poiana Brasov- a pretty nice mountain resort :) A great trip awaits for me tomorrow-8 hours by bus... Hope to survive :P


xoxo from Chisinau ;)
   
   
   

Lemons & chocolate cookies

     How do you make a very bad day to become better?
     I have tried all the ideas I had. None of them raised my mood- even the chocolate cookies didn't help...
     I guess that there are days that simply can't become better, only worse. It seems that in this kind of days everything and everyone conspire to make one feel awful. What to do? Life gives us lemons from time to time- the best one can do with them is to make a tea with lemon and continue eating chocolate cookies, hoping that tomorrow will be a better day.
     Well, I'm done with complaining, let's focus on some other things.
     My session at University has ended successfully- I've taken all the exams with high marks and I'm pretty satisfied with it. I can focus now on chess again. :)
     It is so freezing in Iasi these days- it's impossible even to take a proper walk- so maybe it's good to get lemons and to drink teas...

These being said, going to make another tea- have to do something with all these lemons, right? Maybe I can make a lemonade as well?!

Enjoy the silence

     There's not too much to be said...
      Just wish I had more days to remember about in silence...