Romania Countryside – Rural Tourism in Romania
Romanian countryside is amazing. The rural scenes of village life in Romania, hay meadows full of flowers and mow by hand, storks nesting on chimneys, a medieval agricultural system that still relies on horse power, cows coming home through the village street in the evenings to be milked. The places of Transylvania echo with a past long forsaken in the west but which we remember through fairy tales and view with nostalgia.
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Many people in Romania are rich in values that really matter: family, community, tradition, self sufficiency, and above all a warmth, generosity and hospitality that makes visitors come back again and again. Slow-paced villages and gentle, welcoming people may also be the words that best describe the Maramures region in northwestern Romania. Centuries-old traditions are still alive in the rural areas of Maramures. People in the Romanian countryside still meet regularly to trade livestock, tools, seeds, grains and other agricultural products, as their ancestors did for hundreds of years. In late afternoon, old women sit outside their gates coaxing coarse wool onto spindles. Many still favor traditional dress, meaning white flounced blouses, striped woven panels covering full black skirts, headscarves and opinci, a sort of leather ballet slipper from which heavy yarn cross-crosses over thick socks. On Sunday, such dress is practically de rigueur, even for little girls. Your hosts welcomes you and offer Romanian brandy, hot tea or some fresh milk from a nearby farm. The food you get is exclusive traditional cooking such as chicken soup, grilled meat, cheese, wine and brandy, and it is all coming from vineyards and farms located in the vicinity of your place of accommodation. The rooms are old-fashioned with decorations made by hardworking old women, and woolen floor mats with folk motifs. Sheep milking and cheese making is by hand, up in the summer sheepfolds. The unique richness of flowers and herbs in the grassland gives the cheese a special character. The cheese is transported down to the village by donkey or horse and cart once or twice a week. During the summer most families are found out in their hay-meadows, scythe or rake in hand, making hay for winter feed for their cattle and sheep.
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The Romanian Living Human Treasures are spread throughout the country, and their skills and area of expertise is as wide as it is diverse. From wood carving to egg painting or embroidery, these people have inherited their skills from their parents and grandparents. Their art, their skills and their stories are genuine and give a first hand introduction into the local culture. Interactive Workshops and activities offered in the Romanian countryside include : traditional jewelry making, (painted) eggs decoration, painting on glass, Romanian traditional dances, clay / pottery modeling, nature walks, traditional cooking classes, photography. Depending on your preferences, you can enjoy a wide range of activities for all ages in Romanian countryside, make friends, have fun, learn new skills and help to preserve valuable mountain hay meadows and their plant, wildlife and traditions, discover the rustic ambiances, or surprise your family, friends, and guests with unique experiences of holidays in Romanian countryside.
