Pork

Last Saturday I got the chance to experience a unique part of Romanian holiday festivities.  It's something that people talk about a lot, but one that I thought I might not get to see as I live in a large city without any livestock in it.  Luckily, my dear friend Angela invited me to her home in a village so that I could experience it before my time in Romania comes to an end.

At this time, I would like to put a disclaimer that if you do not like the sight of blood, this blog post isn't for you.

Julie also joined me on this expedition which started early in the morning as we trekked out to the village which is about a 45 minute walk outside of Onesti.  We were headed to see a traditional pig slaughter.  Families in Romania usually have one pig that they kill a little before Christmas.  The meat is used for the holidays and smoked to last through out the winter.

The pig in question on Saturday was raised by Angela's mother-in-law.  It was actually one of a pair that she raised.  The first pig was killed last year so this pig was two years old and weighed in over 200 kilograms (440 pounds).

We started the morning by visiting the pig which was resting in its stall.  The men then brought the pig out of the stall and bound its feet.  Angela explained that if you have compassion for the pig that it makes it harder for the pig to die so it was best if we went inside.  She and her husband, let her father-in-law and some neighbors deal with the killing. We went inside to the sound of pig screams (which were terrifying) to wait until the pig was deal.  Inside, we found Maia, Angela's youngest daughter, crying on her dad's shoulder about the death of the piggy.

After staying inside for a bit we went back outside to see the butchering process.

First, the hair and top layer of skin are torched. 

Torching

Next, the burned skin is scraped off with a knife.  After the whole pig is scraped it is washed and scrubbed with hot water. 

Scraping

Maia recovered from her initial grief and joined Julie and her older sister, Anda, outside to watch the butchering.

Maia, Julie and Anda

Removing the limbs

After the pig was cleaned, the girls took part in another tradition.  They sat on the pig to bring them luck in the new year.

Sampling pig skin

The pig was then cut along the spine and the fat was separated from the meat.  The fat will be smoked to make slanina which is a traditional Romanian delicacy.

After getting to the meat, a few samples were taken out to be brought to the domestic animal vet in town.  The meat is tested to make sure it is safe to eat.  We got the all clear and Angela then started working on lunch.

butchering

the family cat was very happy

Angela making lunch

lunch

For lunch we ate sauteed fat and meat with garlic sauce and mamaliga (polenta with a course-grain cornmeal). It was delicious, but better than that was getting to share the day with a wonderful and open Romanian family experiencing their traditions.

P.S. Maia decided that she wanted to model her Christmas outfit for us.  Here is a photo of us from the day!

One Year Later

Today Julie and I got together.  We have been having unseasonably nice weather so we decided to go walking in the hills around her site.  We went on my favorite short hike.  After crossing the river out of her town you hike straight up a hill for about 20 minutes so you get nice and warm.  It's also a great leg workout.  At the top of the hill is a small community of house where chickens abound.  They were way too speedy for my camera, but I am posting this blurry photo to show how gorgeous some of them were.

 

As Julie and I hiked, we caught up on the past week of classes, some of which have been quite difficult.  We also talked about what a difference a year makes.  By this time last year we had already had a few weeks of snow and had started to become the shut-ins that harsh Romanian winters force you to be.  We also talked about how much easier it is to get out and do things versus last year when we felt almost every spare moment should be spent lesson planning. 

A year later our perspectives have changed and while we're not sure if we have gotten any better at it; at least it feels a little easier.

On the train ride back to my site I had a little surprise.  Many Romanian trains have assigned seats, but the little trains that run up and down our valley don't.  They are the lowest class of train in Romania (read both cheap and dirty); however, the train ride isn't too long so it isn't a bother.  Today as I looked for a cabin and a seat I saw one cabin was under lock and key.  I was a little afraid of what I might see when I peaked in as there is a prison next to the train tracks, but this was a happy surprise.  The cabin was full of gorgeous Christmas trees. 

I have no idea where they were from or who they were for, but they smelled glorious.  I hope they are going to good homes.

Ordinul Meritul Cultural

On Wednesday I had the great honor of attending an award ceremony in Bucharest.  Peace Corps Romania was awarded the Cultural Merit Order in the rank of Commander by the Romanian government in recognition of its collaboration with the peoples of Romania and for 20 years promoting Romanian Culture.

I think the remarks of  Minister Baconschi, Ambassador Gitenstien and our country director, Commander Crowley, speak for themselves. 

Below are a few photos from the day.

The Painted Monasteries

Beyond Transylvania, some of the most visited sites of Romania are the painted monasteries in the northern part of the Moldavia region.  The painted monasteries date from the mid-fifteen century and have frescoes that have weathered the Romanian seasons amazing well. Last weekend, I took a monastery tour with my dear friends Julie and Mil, who is back for a visit.  We had put off seeing the monasteries because they are not easily accessible with public transportation, but we were able to hire a guide who drove us to four of the main painted monasteries.  We started off with a gorgeous, but chilly fall day at Humor Monastery.

Humor Monastery

frescoes at Humor

Our next stop was Voronet, which is dubbed the "Oriental Sistine Chapel" in many guide books.  The monastery was founded in 1488, while the frescoes were added between 1547 and 1550.  The most well-know is "Last Judgement" which has many fascinating details of its era, like the Tatars and Turks destined for perdition.

Voronet Monastery

the register of saints and philosophers

the lives of St. Nicholas and St. John

Sebastian, our guide, describing the finer points of "Last Judgement"

Mil, Marta and Julie at Judgement

Our trip then took us into the mountains where we were able to take in more Romanian scenery while the temperature continued to drop.

We made another stop at Moldovita, but I didn't get a photo of that one.  Our final monastery was then Sucevita, by that time we seemed to move from fall to winter. Sucevita was the last of the monastery complexes built in the region.  It's main fresco is the "Ladder of Virtue," depicting angels ascending to heaven and others falling and being pulled from the ladder.

Sucevita

The Ladder of Virtue

snow!

 It was a fascinating and enjoyable day.

Catching Summer (continued)

As mentioned in my previous post, I spent the middle of August in a small village in the mountains working at a day camp centered around creative arts.  In the afternoons we had optional activities with the kids out of the classroom.  We played games on the field behind the school and hiked in the local hills.

red light, green light

 

a trek up to Ghimes to see an old border tower of the Austro-Hungarian empire

   

a hike up in the hills

 

Mr. Cojacaru, the school director, telling the students about what happen in the community during WWII.

 

back to the school for a bonfire and roasting pig fat (a Romanian delicacy) 

Romanian twister

Red Rover

more hill hiking

 

looking down at Palanca (the school is housed in the green and yellow buildings in the middle)

 

At the end of the week we had a exhibition for the parents and community members to show off what the kids had done all week. The visual arts group displayed their paintings and drawings, music sang songs in Romanian and English, and theater performed a short play.  Diplomas were also handed out to everyone that participated in the camp.

Mr. Cojocaru, the school director, opens the performance.

  

The music and visual art students sing a song to open the play, a modified version of "The Wheels on the Bus"

 

Students in the play

 

The audience and VIPs in the front row, including the mayor.

 

music

It was a grand ending to a lovely week at camp.