Robust 2019

A six-week-trip with a few days in Budapest followed by four weeks in Romania and ten days in Bulgaria.

We learnt a lot about the history and culture of this part of Europe. Wonderful monasteries, Saxon villages, Roman ruins, three capital cities and pleasant towns, all this and much more contributed to make this trip a great experience.

Full map of all Robust 2019 pages

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Thinking of our next destination: Italy and Portugal come to mind, or maybe the time has finally come for a US road trip…

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Wooden Churches of Maramureş

(vero;2020-March-11)

Provided one does not mind walking (a lot) and a bit of hitch-hiking, it is certainly possible to visit Maramureş without a private car or a taxi . Check our blog entry detailing our two hikes for some inspiration…

Bârsana Monastery: there have been records of a monastery and a wooden church in Bârsana since 1391. Both were burnt during a Tatar invasion in 1717 and although a new wooden church was built in 1720, the monastery itself was eventually abandoned in 1791. It took two centuries and the 1989 revolution to commission a new one, which was built in the 1990s some five kilometres south of the village itself. The picture shows the new monastery church to the right, the structure to the left is an open altar where priests officiate in the summer. The 10:45 Sunday services are well attended and there was quite a big crowd listening to the sermon on the day we visited.

Local women attending the Sunday service at Bârsana Monastery. Note the flat leather slippers from the two ladies on the left.

It is not only the older generation attending in traditional attire. Those fetching young women were wearing high heels.

View of the western part of Bârsana Monastery. The nun's house (closed to the public) stands isolated to the right and looks quite good with its flowered wooden balconies. The buildings to the left are part of the monastery and not open to the public either except for the middle part (with balconies) which houses a small museum displaying quite nice icons and where tourists can buy some souvenirs made by the nuns.

Close-up of the nun's house in Bârsana Monastery.

Detail of the graceful wooden roof of the nun's house.

Bârsana Monastery: the nun's house to the left and an open chapel to the right.

Many people who visit Bârsana Monastery overlook the old wooden church located in Bârsana village, five kilometres away from the monastery. This church dating from 1720 and featuring nice murals (dating back to 1806) is listed on the UNESCO world heritage list.

The old wooden church of "The Presentation of the Virgin to the Temple" in Bârsana village (1720).

Bârsana village: murals in the old wooden church of "The Presentation of the Virgin to the Temple".

We walked from Bârsana monastery back to Vadu Izei and managed to avoid much of the Sunday traffic on the busy road by following dirt roads along the river or using side lanes in villages such as Năneşti, where there was a big wedding party going on. Young men on horses where parading along the streets, people were dressed in traditional attire, it was quite interesting to watch.

Wedding party in the village of Năneşti, the guests were watching the horses striding along the road. The lady in red was a bridesmaid.

Typical rural landscape at the exit of the upper village of Năneşti.

The old wooden church in the village of Hoteni. It was built in 1657 and stood originally in the village of Tisza on the banks of the river Tisa at the Ukrainian border, just a few kilometres East of Sighetu Marmaţiei. The people of Hoteni bought it and brought it to its current location in 1895.

On the way from Hoteni to Breb, view of the Creasta Cocosului mountain range.

An intricately carved wooden gate in the village of Breb. Such gates are typical of Maramureş, we saw many in front of churches but also houses, some of them relatively new, a sign that this long-living tradition is still well alive.

The wooden church of Budeşti Josani, dedicated to St Nicholas, was built around 1643 and contains beautiful murals dating back to 1762. It is inscribed on the UNESCO world heritage list.

Budeşti Josani Church. The four turrets at the base of the spire used to indicate that the village had the right to enact its own laws.

Mural inside the church of Budeşti Josani.

Budeşti Josani Church: mural of the Last Judgement painted by Alexandru Ponehalski in the 1760s.

Budeşti Josani Church: detail of the Last Judgement mural. The animals pictured are to be understood as monsters frightening and tormenting the sinners.

The wooden church of Sârbi Susani (1639). Most villages in Maramureş have two churches: one in the upper village (Susani) often on a hill and a second one in the lower village among habitations (Josani). Sârbi Susani is surrounded by a graveyard, overlooking the road and the valley on the slope of a hill and is reached by a shaded path climbing below big trees. You can check this Wikipedia article for some details about the church.

The wooden church of Sârbi Josani (1685). Unfortunately, both churches in Sârbi were closed with no number to call for the keys.

As in many villages, there are two wooden churches in Călinesţi. This one is the Susani church (Upper), unfortunately closed when we visited. You can check this Wikipedia article for some details about the church.

The Josani (Lower) Church in Călinesţi-Căeni dedicated to the Birth of the Virgin Mary. The key-keeper is living next to the church and alerted by her dogs she came to open the door for us, so we could admire the beautiful murals dating 1754 which are hidden inside.

Inside the Josani Church in Călinesţi-Căeni.

The wooden church in the village of Corneşti was the last we visited. It was closed but this did not bother us that much as it was getting quite late and we had to hitch a ride back to Vadu Izei.

Go on to Painted Churches of Bucovina or go up to Photos