“Romania 🇷🇴 ~The Fortified Church in the Old-World Village of Biertan”
While I did not get “a bee in my bonnet,” I did get plenty riled when a sneaky bee went up my dress! For a moment I did not look as much like a tourist, as I did a lunatic; dancing around and slapping at myself on my legs, while the crowd watched on. In the end, I managed to get stung, but found the stinger quickly and pulled it out. I never did see the bee. Fortunately, I am not allergic to bee stings, but I really don’t like getting stung.(who does)? When I was a youngster, I was playing in the sprinkler in the yard, when a bee entered my ear and stung me, Trust me when I say it was traumatizing to get stung there! Ever since, I’ve been very leery of anything that stings!
Anyway, back to traveling…..After we left Sibiu, we drove directly into what felt like the most rural area of the country. We drove through village after village. they were divine! I saw more Gypsies in one day, yesterday, then I did the whole time I was here in 2013. I am intrigued by the Gypsy culture and I think the young woman and girls are very exotic-looking and so pretty. I can usually identify a Gypsy, even when they do not wear their traditional clothing, because they are very small in statue; both men and women, and the younger gals mostly wear braids in their hair. I just love all their bright colors in, scarves and skirts and sweaters, when I do see them dress, traditionally. Other than a black, wide-brim hat, I see the men and boys wear on occasion, they do not dress in traditional clothing, that I have seen.
Romani
Romani, or Romany, is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by about 5-6 million Roma people throughtout Europe and the USA. The largest concetrations of Roma people live in Turkey, Spain and Romania. In English these people are often called Gypsies.
What country has the highest Gypsy population?
ROMANIA
ROMANIA. * Roma population at 535,000 according to official government estimates, but rights groups put it as high as 2.5 million, making it the largest Roma community in Europe
We arrived in Biertan, after the lovely drive through the country. The roads are good and the signage is great. Being quite rural, there are no hotels, gas stations (horse and carts do not need fuel of this kind), and there are no restaurants or markets. At the church location, there are a few places to get coffee or water. Vendors have honey, and candy and other preserves. I bought some homemade Raspberry jam! This location would be a day trip from Sibiu, for anybody wanting to visit, so plan accordingly.
Entering the medieval village of Brieban, was like walking straight into a story-book. In a word? I would say REMARKABLE! We stayed for along while and I soaked up the experience, so I would remember this village for a long time to come. Horse and carts, loaded with people or supplies could be heard clippy-clopping through the the curvy streets, as we were touring the stronghold up in the hill. It was so magical! The occasional whinny,, or snicker could also be heard echoing around the village. In addition, the slightest aroma of horse “road apples” would be carried upon high within the slightest breeze. I am a horse lover, and spent years owning them and even getting involved in competition team roping. I no longer have horses, but anytime I smell that “barn smell,” it always take me back. I love the smell of horses, and always will!
As we strolled the grounds of the wonderful church, surrounded by a stronghold, out in the middle of nowhere, I breathed it all in, trying to memorise each moment. This was a wonderful visit! All too soon, we had to walk back out of the storybook, and continue on our way, to the next location, for more Romanian adventure!
The result is truly spectacular, even today. Biertan Fortified Church sill dominates the landscape of the village. It has three fortification walls, eight towers and the church itself was equipped from the very beginning with solid defensive elements. Beyond political aspirations, the Ottoman threat was still very real to the region and fortified churches were the main defensive structure in the rural world.
In this case, (as seen in my photo, here) an extra level was built on top of the nave and choir, and the church was surrounded by enclosing walls connected through tower gates.
Biertan’s “medieval remedy for divorce,” Although it sounds like a nightmare, the solution was quite effective as only one couple divorced in 300 years!
The local bishop was the one locking the people in the tiny prison, where they would spend six weeks working on bring their marriage back to life. While in there, they were to share everything, from a single pillow and table to the lone table setting.
Lutheranism, the religion of the Transylvanian Saxons, governed most aspects of life, and although divorce was allowed under certain circumstances; such as adultery, it was preferred that couples attempt to save their union. So, a couple seeking divorce would voluntarily visit the bishop, who would send them to the “marital prison” to see if their differences could be reconciled, before they parted ways.
If the couple did decide to divorce, after spending the long weeks in the prison, the husband had to pay his ex-wife half of his earnings. However, if he remarried and divorced again, the second wife was entitled to nothing.
“The reason to remain together might not be about love. More the reason, was the need to work and survive. Ulf Ziegler, Biertan’s current priest, at this time, told the BBC reporter. “If a couple were locked inside for six weeks, it was very hard for them to have enough food the following year, so there was pressure to get out and to continue to work together.The so-called “marital prison” is located in a small building near the village’s 15th-Century Fortified Church. Nowadays, the dark prison is a museum complete with long-suffering mannequins. (notice the woman at the table is wearing a mask)
The piece of resistance is, nonetheless, the door of the vestry. It is decorated with inlays representing fortified towers and coffins and dating back to 1515.
The door has an ingenious system that simultaneously activates 15 locks when the door is closed. A true marvel of engineering, has a particularly ingenious locking mechanism with 15 bolts that can be simultaneously activated by a key.
The mechanism stirred quite an interest at the Paris World Expo in 1900.
The fortified churches are the main attractions of the villages and cities founded by the Transylvanian Saxons, There are some characteristics worth mentioning. Most of the medieval remnants in Transylvania are built around a central nucleus. And the most important building of this nucleus is a church. Churches were the most significant treasures of the Transylvanian Saxons, and the fact that they were so valued can be seen in the multiple construction phases these edifices undertook. The medieval era was also a period of instability and wars, and that is why it isn’t surprising so many of the constructions are always accompanied by barricades and defensive constructions.
Unlike fortresses in Europe, fortified churches in Transylvania were not inhabited permanently. They had sacred functions and provided shelter for the population as defence facilities in cases of danger.
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Hello and Welcome to our Travel Blog Website, We enjoy writing about our experiences and taking photos of our adventuring along the way. Our names are: Daryl and Pen, but Daryl calls me “Bunny.” We met, quite randomly, whilst both… Read More
Sorry but I did have a giggle, could just see you popping around trying to get the bee out. A great read
Definitely giggle! It was pretty funny! But, you know the saying… “oh well, I will never see those people (the crowd) again” .
Xx
*Smile*