Related to Mihaela’s post, “Epiphany and Saint John Day“, I want to tell you about some ancient traditions, banned by the communist authorities, traditions that have rebirth and know today a new life.

“The baptism of the horses” – this practice is spread in many rural communities in the Southern part of Romania (Wallachia and Dobrudja) and happens in Epiphany Day.

The peasants who come to the Epiphany religious service bring their horses, rich decorated, to the churchyard and the priest blesses the horses with a bunch of basil and the holy water. The legend says that the one who “baptizes” his horse will have a good health and a rich harvest in the year to come, and the horse will be healthy, too.

After the religious service, all the horses participates to a race where is not allowed the use of whip or spurs, and the fastest and the nicest horses are awarded. I’ve heard about a similar custom (the blessing of domestic animals) in Sweden, but I don’t know details.

“The ice cross” – another interesting custom is the rise of ice crosses, 2-3 m high, in the churchyard, crosses who stand until they melt.

In Northern Moldavia the crosses are built by the volunteer firefighters brigade, wearing their specific uniforms and leading their flag; after that, the priest, the church choir and the fire brigade go to every village institution, the priest blesses them and the others say three times “Kyrie Eleison” (an expression in Greek meaning “Lord, have mercy”).

“The baptism of all young John” – in Talmacel, near Sibiu, I saw a very interesting custom: after the religious service for Saint John’s Day, the participants dance “hora” (a dance in circle specific to all Romanian regions) and then go to the village’s river, the young boys by foot, the young girls in chariots, following an allegoric chariot; all have rich decorated folk costumes.

At river’s banks, all the young named John are symbolically “baptized” in the river’s waters, a ritual for purification and prosperity. In the villages where this custom is kept, most of the people are named “Ion” or “Ioana”. The locals told me that this tradition is unique in Romania and every Ion or Ioana swear to continue it.

Boboteaza Traditions Come Back to Life is a post from: Rounite

Somewhere in Dobrudja, just off the Black Sea, the land of Murfatlar stretches out under the blue Romanian skies with its endless vineyards.

Dionysus himself was once dancing on these hills, blessing the wines with his magical touch. Murfatlar’s wines have been loved ever since and today they are some of the most popular in Romania and abroad.

The sun shines most of the year in Dobrudja and the Black Sea breeze carries fresh aromas over the land and enough moisture to nourish the grapes and to give that unique Murfatlar bouquet that won so many international prizes for all the wine producers in the region. You’ve never tasted paradise if you didn’t taste a Romanian home-made wine. When in Dobrudja do buy a bottle or two from a private winery.

Murfatlar’s best wines are sweet wines, particularly due to the high level of sugars present in the grapes in this region. However, if you fancy dry wines, you will not be disappointed. Representative wines from the region are Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon. Merlot and Black Feteasca are quite popular as well, but remember that the sugar level in the grapes is quite high, so the taste might be sweeter than you expect, even in the “dry” wines if you don’t buy from a certified producer.

These are: Murfatlar, Medgidia and Cernavoda. From the three, Murfatlar (the brand that carries the name of the region) is the most popular and also the one with the most international prizes.

Lacrima lui Ovidiu for example is a range of special fortified wines produced after a traditional recipe inspired by the wines of Porto, Malaga, Madeira or Xeres. These wines are unique in Romania and they’ve also managed to win international prizes in time.

In 2006 Murfatlar won the golden medal for its Murfatlar Trei Hectare 2003 Chardonnay at the most important international wine contest: Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. The same year the company won 11 other medals in important competitions. In France at Chardonnay du Monde, Murfatlar won the bronze medal for its 2004 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay Legacy. The company won over 140 medals since 2001 and it’s also the first Romanian wine company ISO 9001:2001 certified.

Murfatlar, the Land of Dionysus is a post from: Rounite