Romania – Day Three, Brasov to Radauti – Time to complete the Bucket List

How I would have liked to have studied under the guidance of Vasile Oltean.

We were off to visit Romania’s very first school and were lucky enough that this gentleman was in residence during our overnight stay in Brasov. Priest Oltean has been the director of the St Nicolas’ Cathedral Museum for many years and was making it his life’s work to research some 6,000 books and 30,000 documents found by chance when vital renovation works were carried out upon the cathedral’s bell tower. During the Communist regime thousand of books had been destroyed, but these rare gems had been plastered within the interior walls of the bell tower to help ensure their safekeeping.

Oltean, having us all sit behind school desks and waving a stick to ensure our attention revealed some of the history of the church and school.

He had such a jovial air that we all were happy to pay attention, and he really did make learning fun. During his long tenure he has published his interpretation of some of these texts dating back to the 11th century, and his work is ongoing. He pulled out a bag of dusty old books to reveal ‘This is my reading for today!’. His latest work was some 800 pages in length. Thankfully this was not in English, for I am sure his charming nature would have had some of us purchasing the heavyweight for our flight back. Surprisingly, he slipped into marketing mode with as much ease and charm, offering us a potted history of the school for a very reasonable sum of 5 Lei (£1).

We were then on an 11 hour journey north-east to Radauti. Whilst the coach journey was long it did give us a flavour of the landscape and villages. Our flight into Romania last Friday had provided a view of wide landscapes patterned with coloured strips of land. During our drive today these strips revealed the extent of Romania’s agricultural land – the Transylvania region in particular growing potatoes and corn. However, tastes were changing. Our guide revealed how, as a young boy, a home always had a supply of homegrown and pickled cabbage to last through the winter. That was no longer common. In fact, the country now sees increasing imports of vegetables from overseas.

The mountains en route between Brasov and Radauti

Other foreign companies are also seeing potential in Romania, including car manufactures such as Ford and Renault, which has led to offshoots in the form of automotive parts producers. Multi-national beer and water firms have also moved in, the country having good industries in both categories,

But while not catching up on the country’s history during our lengthy, but pleasant, coach ride, we were able to hop off to see the Bicas Gorge, some 300 metres deep, and the Neamt Monastery founded in the 14th century.

The interior is covered throughout by original iconography, and its rare historical content is extended to its museum containing thousands of books. The site also includes a theological school and a more recently built church adorned with religious facades.