Road to Jina

Our conference in Romania started a series of field trips today and the first destination was Jina via Saliste and Orlat. We were looking at village life and farming systems and I'll say a little about these as we perceived them. Orlat and Jina are high in the Carpathians which, in this part, lie up to 2500m asl, which is over 8000 feet. Suffice to say that scenery was often stunning. En route we took time out to visit two local governments (in Saliste and Jina) to talk to mayors and their offsiders about life in mountain communities and the problems of delivering services and development. And we also had a delicious lunch at Jina. So all in all this was a perfect day.

Let's start in Saliste located astride a picturesque mountain brook. The fourth picture shows the council chamber where we met the mayor.

After climbing a long mountain road through meadows and forests we reached Orlat shown here below our lookout. These villages are in fact quite sizeable and would be called towns in Australia. Indeed, they are sometimes strung out for kilometres on either side of a single narrow road and the Carpathians support a much denser rural population than in, say, my home region, Armidale, NSW.

A flock of sheep near Orlat. We were told that the countryside you are about to see supported a large number of sheep and cattle, but the landscape was almost bare of animals which we were told were on high mountain slopes. Instead the numerous small fields were used for cutting hay for winter feed and the hay was stored in traditional small mounds like those shown at various points below.

Yes, this is still a mode of transport in the mountains and lowlands alike.

Look at these gorgeous views on a crystal clear day.

Our approach to Jina, quite a prosperous village with its council chamber where we met another mayor and staff.

More gorgeous scenery, which talks for itself. Notice the small round hay-stacks, which provide necessary animal feed for the long winter months with their 2-meter snow drifts.

We had a lovely lunch of local cheeses, meats and polenta, which you can see brewing in the pot. It was then smothered in yoghurt  to make a tasty meal.

After that, we saw even more stunning scenery!

Then we returned to Jina to stroll around the streets and see some of the traditional mountain architecture and a huge orthodox church.

And so to home. I'd like to return to this country with its wide open spaces!

AS