Linguistic note: Romania dropped the Cyrillic alphabet in favor of Latin characters in the early part of the 20th Century. Also, the Romanian language is based on Latin. It is much easier to understand signs here than it was in Bulgaria.
our current favorite is “splatorie” which appears to mean “wash”, as in laundry and carwash.
Commercial note: We saw a couple of autos with US State license plates. We have no clue what they are doing here.
Geographic note:
Romania is composed of three parts: Wallachia, Transylvania, and Moldovia.
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Wed. Oct 1.
We go North and enter the Carpathian Mountains.
We stop at the Castle Peles. This was where the new monarchs set up in the 19th Century. Smallish by European palace standards, but as opulent as any.
Lunch near the Castle. Overcooked fish.
We proceed to Braslov. Our hotel is the Ambiante. Very new, with lots of stainless steel, glass, and LEDs.
Dinner at hotel was OK. Good chicken soup. Mixed meat stew. Good local cabernet.
Long, excellent, evening lecture on the history of Romania by our guide, Arpi.
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Thurs., October 2.
Braslov has about 330,000 people now. The communist takeover occurred in 1946 or 1947 (depending upon the degree of formality). Collectivization of the farms and industrialization followed in the 50s and moved a lot of people into the towns. People were housed in apartment buildings with poorly insulated, small apartments. Most of these have been refitted with a layer of styrofoam insulation and new windows. And they have been painted.
Braslov has a unique history. It used to be called Kronstadt. German migrants were given financial incentives to settle here, beginning in the 12 Century. They adopted this seal showing their intention to stay.
Over the years they created a walled city that had a distinctly German appearance.
There is a big, gothic church, completed in the early 1500s. It is the easternmost large gothic structure. It is known as the Black Church because, in 1669? it was torched. The walls stood and the Church was restored, but the scorch marks remained for a long time.
In the 1540s, Johannes Honterus came and converted the congregation to Lutheranism. He also started the printing business in Romania.
Under Ceausescu (r. 1964 - 1989), one was not free to leave Romania. Ethnic Germans were sold to Germany. The price was based on the cost of health care and education. The Germans mostly left. A few hundred remain in Breslov and keep the church active.
The “new” synagogue was erected in 1901.
Most of the Jews that survived the Holocaust emigrated to Israel under a sales program similar to the deal for Germans. The synagogue still conducts services and there is a kosher restaurant.
Note about Romanian religion: The great majority of Romanians belong to the Romanian Orthodox Church. It is very powerful, but it is not formally a state religion. Romania has only had its own patriarch since 1872.
In the Middle Ages, Saxons, a German speaking group were brought to populate the part of Transylvania around Brasov. In time their sons were sent to Western Europe to study. Among them was Johannes Honter. Luther posted his 99 theses in 1517. Honter learned of them. He converted to Lutheranism and brought the Saxons to that faith by 1540.
Hungarians settled in part of Transylvania. They remain Roman Catholics. They continue to speak Hungarian.
In the mid 16th century, Unitarianism was founded in Transylvania (and simultaneously Poland/Lithuania). A small percentage of the population of Transylavnia retains that religion.
Our favorite is the Greek Catholic. Under the Habsburgs, in 1700, the Metropolitan brought several. Dioceses to the Roman Catholic Church. Our guide says that this brought up the Hapsburg stats on increasing the number of Catholics. He suggests that the congregants knew nothing about it. They continue to use the old orthodox liturgy in the Romanian language.
There are few Jews in Romania. There were many successful populations. Many were lost in the Holocaust. It is a matter of pride to our guide that most of the Jews in southern Transylvania suirvived. They left later. Ceausescu had a fund raising deal. He was paid by Israel for every Jew he allowed to migrate. They were not forced out, merely given the opportunity to leave where none wanted to be. He had already done a similar deal with the Germans.
There are no Muslim communities.
We had lunch at a downtown restaurant. Lousy beer. Sour chicken soup, mixed meat stew.
The afternoon was taken up with a visit to the “Dracula Castle” at Bron. It is a former customs house, now set up as a museum.
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