Today most of us are taking the optional tour to the painted monasteries, one of the highlights of the trip. We had actually hesitated on booking this tour for some reason now lost to us, but a neighbor who used to live in these parts in the 80’s told us it was not to be missed, so on her advice, we booked it. The monasteries (actually 2 of them are nunneries) were all began in the 1500’s and the frescoes painted at the time still exist – somehow preserved throughout the communist era and beyond. We’ll learn the background for the preservation during our 2 hour drive to the first stop: The famous blue monastery - Voronet Monastery.
The drive takes us through beautiful farmland filled with more sheep than you can count (especially while trying to stay awake! Yeah, boo, hiss, I know….) and fields of sunflowers waving in the breeze. It’s an overcast day with the threat of rain, but so far, we’re lucky with only cloudy skies.
Cristina, as usual, keeps us busy during the drive with the history of the Moldova region: Legend has it the region was founded by Prince Dragus who liked to hunt with his horse and dog, called Molda. They crossed the mountains chasing some special bull with a star on its head (maybe called an Oreck?) and finally cornered the bull, but it gored the dog to death. The prince buried the dog by the river where it died and named the region Moldova after it. Sweet. From a historical perspective, Moldova is called the land of the monasteries because Stephen the Great ruled here until his death, the longest reign in recorded Romania. He was very religious, and after every battle, he erected a Monastery. His ancestors continued the tradition and now there are, I think, 400+ monasteries in the region.
The number may not be accurate, but we are here to tell you there are definitely a ton of monasteries here! Every little town we pass has a Monastery, even the teensiest of villages. In one town we can see 5 monasteries in the distance. These structures have survived through Austrian rule (which basically shut down Monastic Orthodox life) and the communist rule, which was a little better because the communist rulers were afraid to ban religion outright, understanding how important religion was to their citizens. During communist times, Romanians had services at home and the government kept the monasteries and churches in shape for tourism and the profits tourism could bring them.
So, that is how these incredible structures with their frescoes remain intact and available today. Voronet was turned back into a monastery in 1991 and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993. By this time, we are arriving at Voronet, where Cristina gives us our marching orders – NO SHOPPING. We’ll have time to shop on the way out – not on the way in. What she does though, is to stop us at one of the stores where the owner gives us explanations and demonstrations about the special egg painting that is common to the region. These are real eggshells, just with the egg’s somehow extracted from them, then painted in intricate detail. The final result is a hardened shell that doesn’t really feel like a real egg, but is nonetheless. They are really neat – and the store owner is a real showman – which makes the little display even more entertaining.
After finishing with our demonstration, and Cristina promising we’ll be back to shop, we walk up to the monastery, paying our 10 lei photo fee. That fee is totally worth it. The monastery is everything people say it is. An astonishing display of artistic and religious expression that just doesn’t seem like it is for real – yet it is – standing right there in front of you….since 1530!
The monastery was built in honor of a hermit named Daniil who told Stephen the Great he should confront and fight the Turks. After Stephen the Great defeated the Turks, he built the monastery and Daniil became the first monk. Besides the obvious age and amazing artistry, Voronet is also famous for the blue color in the frescoes. It is wholly different than any other monastery, has never been replicated and no one knows how they created the color.
The frescoes were started because the congregation couldn’t understand the language in which the sermons were given, nor could they read. So frescoes were born to describe the bible stories and allegories the priests were telling. Frescoes on the round part of the building represent the heavenly church, on the back end there is an entire story of the last Judgement, including heaven and hell with the devil, the sinners, the angels and St. Peter at the gate. The stories are fascinating, and the artistry amazing – even more amazing these aren’t restored, they are original frescoes, as is evidenced when we walk around the corner to the west facing wall (I think it was west anyway!). Here the elements have all but destroyed most of the frescoes, leaving nothing but a shadow of their original grandeur.
Inside the monastery, the frescoes have been partially restored, yet, once again, we aren’t allowed to take any photographs. Typically Romanian Orthodox, the monastery is set up into the three areas of worship along with the icons and back wall hiding the altar. Frescoes are everywhere, which is why this particular monastery is called “The Sistine Chapel of the East.” Every square inch is painted with vibrant biblical scenes, including the main dome which is always painted with Jesus at the very top.
After taking our time to wander through the interior, and walk around the exterior of the monastery for the last time, we take our leave, stopping at the little cemetery at the entrance gate for a few photos of the elegantly carved headstones and grave markers. Then it’s on to the shopping! Of course. Although, really, we’ve not had many opportunities to shop and this little gauntlet isn’t all that bad – there is the one main store (that have various little showrooms – all belonging to the main shop) and they carry a variety of all the local Romanian/Moldavian wares. We end up with some wooden trivets to replace one of our Ukranian trivets of the same type that had broken, and of course eggs – how can we resist the eggs – as well as the coolest earrings with bear paw prints! There are brown bears here, not grizzlies, but similar to our black bears, and thus the bear paws. I couldn’t be happier!
Then its back on the bus for the next stop, the Humor Monastery. It’s barely a 10 minute drive away, so we are there in a jiffy, passing another horse drawn cart filled with what looks like building supplies on the way. Humor was built in 1530, with the frescoes painted in 1535 and, whereas Voronet was dedicated to St. George, Humor is dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It is build in the traditional fashion, with the round turret looking end facing north and the long rectangular part of the monastery stretching out behind it. Stretching might be a bit of a misnomer, as this is one of the smallest monasteries, but it is no less beautiful or amazing.
These frescoes are painted in a red theme, but follow the same stories and allegories as Voronet, the heavenly church, the Last Judgement, etc. Although two frescoes stand out here, one tells the story of the siege of Constantinople, to make the villagers aware of the threat from the Turks, and the other which depicts the devil as a woman. No comments!
Here again, the frescoes on the western facing wall of the monastery are degrading rapidly, while the others remain fairly intact. While not as intact as Voronet, it is said to be one of the most well-preserved monasteries in the area. Beautiful! As is the case with virtually every place of worship in the country, Humor was all but shut down in the 1700s with the Hapsburg empire’s reign, and opened up again in the 1990’s after the communist rule fell. It is now, once again a nunnery, all are depicted around the walls of the monastery.
There is a lovely brick and wooden watch tower that I bet we could climb for a view of the countryside, but no one mentions it and we are herded back out of monastery courtyard, into more little shopping stalls with more touristy items than at Voronet. We use our time to wander through the streets, looking at another monastery – not a painted one – sitting in the plots next to Humor. Then crossing the street to yet another cemetery, this one with the beautiful forested hills in the background.
Back on the bus, it’s time to head for our lunch stop – and Yuntz (our driver’s) chance to visit his wife, daughter and today, the family cat, while we have lunch. He lives here in the Bucovina region and the family always comes to meet him for lunch when we arrive for our tour. Sweet!
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