Swords, Spears, Slaying and Such: The Art of Medieval Warfare

The castle. Awesome! I had never been to a castle before and I’ve always loved the medieval time period in history, so it was a dream come true for me. I honestly don’t know that much about medieval things outside of movies like Lord of the Rings and Braveheart because it seems to get skipped over a lot in schools so the castle was educational too. One room in particular struck me, it was the room that was once the main entrance to the castle but was made into a defense tower. The upper floors had all fallen down but you could see where two doors once were on the second level, and in the doorways, were two big cages with spikes sticking out of them. I wonder if they were used as scare tactics with dead bodies kept inside of them for on-looking foes (like of Robin Hood Prince of Thieves). Another interesting room was the room with the body armor and weaponry. I can’t imagine going into battle holding a shield and a sword, my entire body covered in armor, and somehow having to move and flex and slay the enemy. I would be scared to death! Throughout the whole castle, I was just imagining royal people, dressed in scarlet and purple robes (I don’t know if that’s really accurate) climbing the steps in the towers, eating at huge tables, dressing for battle, and peasants in the courtyard buying and selling items. In my imagination, the castle came alive and I was kind of a part of it all. I loved the experience!

skiing & snowboarding!

AHHHHH!

[read post below]

Dreams Do Come True: Snowboarding in the Carpathian Mountains

It has been snowing periodically for the past several weeks and the mountains look absolutely gorgeous surrounding us. It is an amazing sight to be able to look out of the windows and see snow-capped mountains all around. The students and some of the staff have been talking about wanting to go skiing if there would be a chance. Snowboarding happens to be one of my favorite activities and it is the one thing I have truly been itching to do since we arrived….and we went!!!

We were not completely sure if there would be enough snow up on Straja (where the FNO cabana is and where participants go in the summer for Viata), but we attempted to take the van up the icy road. The van made it, and Straja, as we were told, happens to be one of the number one skiing locations in all of Romania. We just happen to be able to see it from the apartment we are in! Its popularity is evident by the license plates of the cars from around the whole country. Wow. It was busy, and it also happened to be Romania’s national day- how fun.

Two Romanian students connected with the FNO came with us to make sure that we could get along alright due to our imperfect Romanian language skills. I and Daniel, one of the volunteers, were the only ones to rent snowboards, but it only cost 30 lei for a nice board and pair of boots…that’s less than $15! Also, instead of buying a day pass because we were not going to be there for very long, we paid 3 lei for every time we went up the lift…which is less than $1.50 per time! What??!!?

The view was spectacular and conditions were fair- but certainly good enough! We had a nice range of skills and since the cabana is right at the face of the mountain it makes it nice to just chill there when tired. Daniel and I managed to take the lifts all the way up until we were in the clouds…how funJ We couldn’t see anything and it was definitely snowing, or hailing…it kind of hurt our faces. It was seriously like floating through a white tunnel and I’ve never experienced anything like it in my life. I still feel like it was a dream…we skied in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania!!!!!

Inebriated Turkeys and Such

So this was probably the funniest and most memorable Thanksgiving I have ever had. The week before the traditional American holiday, Thanksgiving, all of the students and volunteers here decided that we wanted to figure out a way to have turkey for Thanksgiving. Well, here in the valley, Penny Market (recently opened, with even a parking lot!) was probably our only hope for a possible frozen turkey and they had none. So we decided, hey this is Romania, people raise their own turkeys, we just had to find one. Well Aron, the guy that has been making the amazing bunk beds we now sleep on, set out on the mission of finding us a turkey. By foot, he walked through the Valley to find us a turkey, and to our surprise found us ole’ Susan (that’s the name Briana, the Bates’ daughter, gave the turkey)- that’s right folks, a REAL turkey.

As a group we decided to split up the duties as far as plucking and cooking and initially Ryan was going to be our turkey slayer, but Aron did the honors. However, it is a known fact by Romanians that it is only proper to inebriate the turkey prior to the killing. It tenderizes the meat…I mean relaxes the muscles. Aron fed that turkey a whole bottle of rum, the turkey could hardly stand and gobbled…I mean guzzled that rum with no problem. I’ll spare the readers from what happened next, but in no time we were plucking old Susan’s feathers, preparing her for the plate.

Thursday we ate to our little hearts content. I couldn’t believe how good the food, especially the tender turkey, and the best part was that we almost had more dessert than food (9 to be exact!). We invited some of the FNO staff to join us for dessert. It was wonderful.

Final Thoughts

In two days we plan on leaving this beautiful town called Lupeni, Romania. In two days we make the five hour journey south towards Bucharest. The semester has come full circle, and now it is time to reflect on what we have learned. It is impossible for me to summarize this semester in a few brief paragraphs. If anyone back home wants to know how our semester was feel free to ask us if you see us in person, we will gladly take time out of our day and explain to you the true Romania. For you will not find the true Romania on this blog, nor in pictures, or in pamphlets you might recieve. Websites do not give Romania justice, either do books you can read. Romania is a majestic place full of hardship and struggle, it is also a place full of laughter and love. I would recommend this semester to anyone who fills lead to come, but, understand this, this place will hurt you, but it will also heal you! It will teach you how to love the seemingly unlovable, it will teach you how interact with a culture far different than your own. It will cause you to rethink everything you thought you knew about life, and then some. If you are considering coming, think about your motivations first, are they true, are they genuine, than leave it before the Lord to guide and direct you. It takes a different type of person to serve in Romania, this semester is not for everyone, but for those who will come, get ready, and hang on to your hats, because your in for one heck of a ride!

IMPACT and Church!

I LOVE the youth and leaders I have gotten to know this semester. The first night of my home stay my host sister, Persida, took me to the Pentecostal church with her. She is one of the IMPACT leaders there and is also very involved with all the other programs that go on. This first night, I was able to go with her to what I would describe as "praise band" practice. It was my first night at the church and my first day with my host family; I was a little nervous and overwhelmed at the swift change of atmosphere. I hadn't spent more than an hour at the house (def. did not have the names of my 8 new host brothers and sister down) before we were going to the church and I was meeting even more people. However, God knew exactly what I needed that night and as I sat listening to them singing familiar praise songs (though in a different language ) I was greatly comforted and felt truly at peace with whatever this semester would bring.
The comfort I recieved from being with the youth that first night has stayed with me these past few months. I went to the church the night we arrived back from our 7 day backpacking trip in the Retezat (where some of us had gotten very ill), I went there after we arrived back from many of our trips; Cluj, Horezu, Hunedoara, I went there the night I got back from fall break even though I was no longer living with my family, and I went there every day when I felt the apathy I encounterd in this city was weighing me down. Every time I have walked into the church I have been greeted by the smiling faces that run to greet me and bring me hope. Seeing them working together and being involved with IMPACT and their community has been nothing short of inspiring. I have enjoyed getting to know each of them individually - watching what they each bring to the group and how they all function together.

Tonight is my last opportunity to go to "praise band" practice. I really do not think that I have been able to completely grasp that fact yet. I will still see them tomorrow and Wednesday before we say our final goodbye's. I am really going to miss walking into the church every week and being greeted by the wonderful, inspiring friends I have made there. I will miss them all very much.