brasov (bra-shov, not "bras off")

we got here mid-day friday, as chronicled by the "romas are just like us: not" post. a quick addendum: what i find fascinating about the roma conundrum is that they are a people still apparently united by a penchant for nomadism, and their own language, which no one else seems to understand. the romanian we met on the train - we'll call him vlad (same as dracula), b/c that was his middle name, and i can't seem to remember his first name - informed us that many believe they came from india centuries ago, and that they continue to be treated as an under-class across central/eastern europe. though they have no real nationality, and live apart from society in the sense that most do not have passports, do not attend school or speak the same language, vlad told us that romania has the largest population of romas in the world - to the point that when they are found in neighboring countries, or found on trains outside of romania, they are swiftly sent back to romania...even if they have never even been there before. vlad also told us that romania, more than the other countries in the region, has made earnest attempts to integrate the roma into society.

back to brasov. so we got here in thursday...went into town to find a new camera for jack, who had sat on his on the train and fucked up the lens. started pouring so we found cover under one of the many outdoor cafes lining the main street. the square is absolutely breathtaking...brasov, particularly the old city, is nestled beneath gorgeous mountains...at the top of one is a hollywood-esque sign: "BRASOV" - it even lights up at night. the old city is dreadfully old - a medieval town dating back to the 1100's...and brasov is romania's second largest city after Bucharest, which we are not going to, for good reason. Everyone we met at the hostel had another nightmarish tale to tell of their time in Bucharest plus the only reason I wanted to go was to see where Ceausescu (the nasty commie dictator) got shot. And when I learned that he was shot in another city, (b/c he escaped the riots in front of the palace after all), that incentive was entirely trashed.

By the plaza is the Black Church (gothic style), which has one of the largest organs in the world - 400 pipes...too bad we never saw it, b/c we got there after it had closed on thursday, and we were late by five minutes today.

We also walked through the narrowest street in europe - 4 feet wide...found some cemetaries, walked through one...most of the plots contained 4/5 bodies, which we thought was an interesting custom. as we walked to the cable car stop, we saw some really really nice houses and expensive european cars....so there is money in romania. Took the cable car up the hillside, and just as we were about to walk to the BRASOV sign, the guy said we had ten minutes cuz they were closing soon...! argh.

friday we went to bran castle and sinaia, where pels castle is. bran is where dracula spent some time ---> major tourist trap. but i'm glad we went because the countryside is absolutely beautiful, huge mountains, quaint houses in all different colors - think cuba more than you would eastern europe - blues, turquoises, oranges, yellows, greens, limes...at sinaia we saw pels castle, which was the summer home of the first romanian king and constructed in the last decades of the 19th century through 1910-ish. we weren't allowed to take photos, but the interior (as well as the exterior) were "sick." gustav klimt even painted a frieze in the elaborate "theatre" room....the library had a secret passageway behind some books...and there were hundreds of different kinds of wood, multiple kinds of marble, and various styles of architecture featured (oriental, germanic, italian....), murano glass chandeliers, crystal mirrors, silk rugs, harps....went to a monastery too, which was beautiful. the catholic church has a strong presence in romania - not shocking - rom-ania, plus romanian sounds sooo much and looks so much like latin, i was really surprised. language has been a bit easier to get around here than in budapest surprisingly enough...i feel like more people speak english, and even those that don't, i can communicate with by speaking spanish.

last night we watched the romania-italy game...town was PACKED - couldn't find a seat in ANY bar, restaurant, cafe, until we fell upon a scottish pub and snagged two b/c a reserved party of drunken romanians said we could...it was wild! can't stand the italian national team, so i was very very pleased that the romanians drew (1-1) with the italians. after the game, honking horns, flapping flags, and shouting/screaming/cheering houligans ran through the town.

and the finale of brasov...MY MOTHER'S HOUSE.
so after carefully analyzing the town's layout and the details contained within my mother's many emails (thanks mom!) i regret to inform everyone that i could NOT find my mother's house. i found her street, but not her house. i was told that she lived directly adjacent to green, and just parallel to the black church, and that there was a cemetary...and a courtyard. no.6. was on the wrong side of the street, and i couldn't get in, b/c it's an abandoned apt building, but i walked into some courtyards on the side of the street that directly abuts the green hill and woods that the white tower and black tower (both white) are on...(pictures to be posted soon). so i took pictures of a bunch of courtyards, and the streets, and walked up to the towers and took pictures of the houses below, so i'll post these, and maybe mom you can tell me which it is? i found the temple my family belonged to, but it was closed ;(. and i never found the jewish cemetary where my great-grandfather is buried. BUT, i do have some sense of the kind of place that my mother spent the early years of her childhood in...which is worth something. brasov is a lot nicer and bigger than i thought it would be. and i didn't see any chickens running around, or strictly walk on dirt roads...;)

tonight i leave for budapest. i plan on sleeping on my bags, and pray that none of my stuff gets jacked.

pax,
amie