Maramures 1; Barsana and Sapanta

As we drive through Northern Transylvania toward the Maramures Region, we see many orchards, mainly apples for eating and making apple brandy (they are not used for cider).

The Maramures Region of Romania is in the northwest of the country and home to Europe's last remaining peasant culture; this includes wooden churches, traditional village lifestyles, and traditional clothing. The region is 70-80% forest and mainly hills; wood is the main resource here. We stop off at Bogdan en route to Barsana to see the wooden Church of St. Nicholas.

Although there was a monastery on the hillside site in Barsana many centuries ago, it fell into disrepair, and the new monastery (actually a convent) was established in 1993; it is very beautiful.

From Barsana, we travel west through Sighetu Marmatiei (which has a Jewish history) along the border with Ukraine, formed by the River Tisa, to Sapanta. Here, we enjoy a traditional meal at a house before going to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Merry Cemetery, which, unlike other cemeteries, seems to celebrate life; each gravestone features a humorous caricature and a short poem about the deceased. It was started by the folk artist Ioan Stan Patras in the 1930s, and the tombstones are hand-carved from oak and painted in the traditional colour of hope. It is a very colourful and interesting site.

From here, we drive east along part of the route we travelled to get to Sapanta and on to Borsa in the eastern part of Maramures; this town is located at the foot of the Rodna Mountains and known for being a good ski resort in the winter season - we are staying outside the town, at the complex in the ski resort area.Okumaya devam et