Penelope Ridgley >Village Hotel Maramure

60 ROBELO INTERVIEW PENELOPE RIDGLEY >VILLAGE HOTEL MARAMURE{<

>RIDGLEY< PENELOPE

Poveste[te-ne pu]in despre Village Hotel Maramure[.

Mie [i so]ului meu ne venise ideea tr\snit\ s\ cump\r\m propriet\]i peste tot în lume, îns\ numai în locuri vechi, tradi]ionale. La vremea respectiv\ aveam deja ceva în Sri Lanka, în jungl\, la mare, în Croa]ia, [i în Egipt, Oaza Siwa, iar acum ne doream ceva prin Balcani, astfel c\ am petrecut [apte luni colindând prin Balcani, noi [i copiii, într-o veche rulot\ american\. În cele din urm\, am cump\rat ni[te teren lâng\ Bra[ov, sus în Piatra Craiului, dar s-a dovedit a nu fi ceea ce ne doream. Nu era acolo un sim] al comunit\]ii destul de puternic. Ni s-a spus atunci c\ ceea ce c\utam putea fi g\sit în Maramure[. Am ajuns aici [i dintr-o data... (n.r pauz\) Treaba cu Breb e c\ se iese de pe drumul principal. În majoritatea satelor, pur [i simplu treci prin ele, dar în acele vremuri Breb nu era legat la re]ea [i, pe cale de consecin]\, singurii oameni care ajungeau în Breb erau cei care chiar se duceau acolo. Asta îi d\dea satului o inim\, un suflet.

A[adar, odat\ ce-am ie[it de pe drumul principal, am [tiut c\ \la e locul nostru. Eu pot s\ simt energia, sunt destul de receptiv\ la energie. Ne-am sim]it foarte bineveni]i, a[a c\ am început s\ tr\im aici, f\r\ s\ ne gândim la p\mânt înc\, doar s\ ne acomod\m cu stilul de via]\ din sat. În cele din urm\, am început s\ achizi]ion\m teren. Am început cu un lot mic, care avea s\ devin\ întâia parte a hotelului. Auzind de planurile noastre, oamenii spuneau c\ sunt nebun\! Nimeni, credeau ei, nu ar pl\ti s\ stea într-o cas\ veche din lemn. La momentul respectiv mai erau dou\ pensiuni în sat, pu]in mai moderne, dar nu exista turism în adev\ratul sens, nu era infrastructur\ etc. {i de asta ne [i pl\cea! Plus c\, din nou, aici ne-am sim]it bineveni]i, ceea ce e foarte important. Au fost locuri în care nu eram bineveni]i ca str\ini. Cealalt\ atrac]ie au

fost vechile case de lemn. Cu timpul, am început s\ le cump\r\m pe cele din satele vecine, s\ le dezmembr\m [i s\ le reconstruim aici. Cu totul, am luat [apte case pentru a fi parte din Village Hotel. Era, deci, timpul s\ venim cu o strategie de promovare. La momentul respectiv tr\iam acolo de patru ani, grosso modo.

A[a ne-am dat seama c\, de[i vom opera într-o zon\ de ni[\, turi[tii s-ar putea foarte repede integra în via]a comunit\]ii. {ti]i c\, atunci când mergi undeva ca turist, e foarte greu totu[i s\ cuno[ti localnicii, locurile secrete, s\ m\nânci cu vecinii, [i alte Tell us a bit about Village Hotel Maramure[.

Me and my husband had this crazy idea to buy some properties around the world –eyeing only very traditional, old places. At that point we already had something in Sri Lanka – that was the jungle – Croatia – that was the seaside – and Egypt – the Siwa Oasis – and now we were looking for somewhere in the Balkans. So we spent seven months in the Balkans with our children, in an old American RV, eventually buying some land near Bra[ov, up in Piatra Craiului. Turned out, it wasn’t what we were looking for – there wasn’t a strong enough sense of community. Then, people told us: “what you’re looking for can be found in Maramure[!” So we came here and immediately… (Ed: pause) The thing with Breb is you come off the main road – most villages you drive straight through, but in those days there was no connecting road, so the only people coming to Breb, were people coming to Breb! This gave the village a heart, a soul. The minute I drove off the road, I just knew this was the place. I can feel energy –I’m quite sensitive to energy! And we were really welcomed, so then we just kind of started living here – not buying land yet – just getting accustomed to the way of life. Eventually, we

asemenea lucruri. Aici exist\ aceast\ rânduial\ superb\, lumea îmbrac\ straie populare pentru slujba duminical\... \sta a fost punctul nostru forte. De aici a crescut totul. De asemenea, resursa natural\ din Breb... Este fantastic, po]i s\ te plimbi, s\ mergi în drume]ii, s\ mergi cu bicicleta, s\ te duci prin p\dure dup\ merinde, mai sunt bisericile de lemn...

La început promovarea s-a f\cut în mare parte prin viu grai, aveam patru case, cu buc\t\rie proprie... Era mai altceva… Aveam recep]ie, eram mereu acolo, zi de zi aprovizionam c\su]ele cu produse proaspete de la localnici, ou\, pâine, lapte, brânz\, unt, gem, din astea... A[adar, suntem complet preg\ti]i, fie c\ oamenii aleg s\-[i g\teasc\ ei, sau s\ ne ocup\m noi, s\ aducem de la localnici...

La Village Hotel n-a fost niciodat\ vorba despre lux. Nu avem plasme, nu avem microunde... Pentru mine, Breb este despre experien]\. Cazarea e doar o parte din schem\. Dac\ ai pat comod, înc\lzire, du[ cald, buc\t\rie utilat\, atunci e de ajuns.

Pentru c\ restul e afar\!

Ce crezi c\ v\ diferen]iaz\?

În 2008, când am început noi, nimeni nu f\cea a[a ceva prin zon\. Nimeni. Mai era o familie de nem]i într-un sat vecin, dar ei erau axa]i mai pe lux, a[a c\ noi eram foarte diferi]i. Pân\ s\ vin\ pandemia, 98% dintre oaspe]ii no[tri erau str\ini. Nu mul]i români voiau s\ încerce aceast\ ni[\, se gândeau – „ce, doamne, iart\-m\, mai e [i asta, numai lemn\rie veche?!” Vede]i voi, românilor le trebuie [pa]ir, piscine, plasme, mâncare când dore[te inimioara, din astea, cu toate c\ în ultimii doi ani înaintea pandemiei sigur am v\zut ceva mai mul]i români pe aici.

A[adar, în primii [apte ani am fost pionieri. Dup\ aia, au mai venit unu-doi români s\ cumpere p\mânt, s\ fac\ [i ei ceva pe zona asta. Dar exist\ [i reversul medaliei. În ultimii [apte ani, înc\ 45 de pensiuni s-au construit în Breb. Sunt f\cute de localnici, într-un stil modern. Poate mai g\se[ti ni[te lemn pe ici-colo, poate mai dai de ni[te materiale tradi]ionale pe din\untru, dar ele sunt pensiuni moderne. Se adreseaz\, mai degrab\, românilor. Când ne-am trezit cu pandemia, str\inii nu mai puteau veni, românii nu mai puteau nici ei veni... Am crezut (asta era în 2020, prin aprile) c\ ne g\t\m, c\ s-a terminat. Dar nu a fost s\ fie! Eram ocupa]i 100%! Am fost surprins\, m\ gândeam c\ vom pierde mult.

De[i câ]iva dintre românii care ne-au c\lcat pragul aveau s\ descopere c\ nu era ceea ce c\utau, cred c\ au fost totu[i for]a]i, în acest fel, s\ î[i redescopere ]ara, a[a cum e ea, mare, divers\ [i foarte frumoas\. A[adar, în perioada 2020-2021, pe timpul pandemiei, complexul a fost complet ocupat. Anul acesta am v\zut întorcându-se mai mul]i turi[ti str\ini, dar cu siguran]\ Breb, în acest moment, s-a împ\mântenit ca o sta]iune pentru români. Sunt trei restaurante în sat, [i câ]iva localnici au început s\ vând\ în fa]a casei straie populare, palinc\, treburi din astea, care, din p\cate, nu prea le fac cu ochiul str\inilor care vor s\ mearg\ undeva unde nu se-mpiedic\ de turi[ti. Românilor le place, mult. A[adar, Breb s-a schimbat, [i nu îl v\d revenind la forma de acum câ]iva ani. Cum spuneam, s-a împ\mântenit ca o destina]ie pentru românii care vor lux, vor mâncare bun\, cât\ doresc, palinc\, muzichie seara cu l\utarii, sau karaoke sau mai [tiu eu... Din p\cate, nu e genul meu de turism \sta.

Când m\ întrebi ce ne face diferi]i...

Prima dat\ a trebuit s\ înv\] pia]a româneasc\. Românii au a[tept\ri mult mai mari decât str\inii. Ei poate vor s\ mearg\ la vân\toare de merinde în p\dure, poate vor s\ mearg\ în drume]ie, poate vor s\ mearg\ la stân\ spre sear\... Dar, per total, îi mul]ume[te pur [i simplu s\ stea în Breb, doar plimbânduse prin sat. Pe când românilor e mai greu s\ le vinzi experien]a în sine. Din punct de vedere financiar, afacerea mea reprezint\ un stil de via]\. Nu fac profituri enorme, tot ce câ[tig reinvestesc, casele mereu au nevoie de aten]ie... Nu v\d alt\ cale în momentul de fa]\ pentru Breb în afar\ de acest turism care a tot crescut dup\ pandemie. Dar m\rturisesc c\ e un s\tuc fermec\tor, pe bune. De[i e sub ocupa]ia pensiunilor acum, trebuie doar s\ mergi o uli]\, dou\, mai în spate, [i dai de Breb a[a cum era acum 15 ani!

Ai fost vreodat\ în situa]ia s\ trebuiasc\ s\ le explici oamenilor c\ aici nu e, de fapt... hotel?

Nu cred. Avem recenzii foarte bune pe TripAdvisor, Booking, Airbnb... Cred c\ sunt 400 de recenzii, care dovedesc acest lucru. A[adar, per total, cred c\ oamenii care vin aici au o idee destul de clar\ despre acest loc.

Cred c-am avut de-a lungul anilor doar vreo dou\ familii de români care au fost dezam\gite, [i au plecat. Nici m\car localnicii started buying land. We began with a small piece – which would end up as the first part of the Village Hotel. Hearing about our plans, people would call me: “nebuna!” (Ed: crazy). Nobody, they thought, would pay money to stay in an old wooden house. At the moment there were two pensions in the village – more modern ones – but there was no tourism to speak of, no infrastructure etc., which is just why we loved it. And, again, we were really welcomed. This is another thing that’s really important for us. We’ve lived in places in the world where we haven’t been welcome as foreigners. Here –while people thought we were completely crazy – they were very sweet to us. The other thing of interest, for me in particular, was the architecture, the old wooden houses. In time, we started buying those houses from other villages, taking them apart, transporting them here and rebuilding them. In total, we built seven houses to be part of the Village Hotel. And now it was time to market it. At that point, we had been living here for 4 years on and off, so we realized that –though the market was niche – we could immerse people very quickly into the local community. As you know, if you travel somewhere as a tourist, for a few days, it’s really difficult to really get to know the locals, the secret places, to eat with your neighbors, that kind of thing… Here you’ve got this extraordinary way of life, where people every Sunday dress in traditional costumes just to go to Church etc. Well, this was the attraction for us. The business grew and grew from this. Also, the natural resource here in Breb… It’s huge – you’ve got walking, you’ve got hiking, you’ve got cycling, you’ve got foraging in the forest, you’ve got all the wooden churches…

In the beginning, a lot of it was word of mouth. We had four houses, self-catering… It was just something different to the locals: there’s a reception, we’re here all the time, and everyday we bring fresh local produce –eggs, bread, milk, cheese, butter, jam, things like that – to the houses… So we’re totally equipped for people to cook their own food, or for us to supply food, or to bring food from the locals to them to eat.

Village Hotel has never been luxury – we don’t have plasma screens, we don’t have microwaves etc… Breb to me is all about the experience – the accommodation is only part of that experience. And as long as people have comfortable beds, central heating, hot showers, good cooking facilities, it’s enough. Because the rest is all outside the house.

What do you think sets you apart?

In 2008, when we began, no one was doing anything like us in this area. Nobody. There was a German family living in the neighboring area, but they were more top-end, so we were very different. Before the pandemic, 98% of our guests were foreigners. Not many Romanians wanted to try this niche, they were like “Oh, no, it’s all wooden houses!”. You see, Romanians need entertaining – they want swimming pools and plasma screens, and food whenever they want, that kind of thing. Although, in the last two years before the pandemic, we definitely saw a few more Romanians here. So, for the first seven years, we were radically different. And, then, one or two other Romanians came to the village, bought some land and started doing something similar. But there’s a flipside to that: in the last seven years another forty-five pensions have been built, all in Breb. They’re built by the locals, in a modern style – though some of them may have a bit of wood incorporated, maybe a few traditional fabrics on the inside, but, essentially, they’re modern. It’s geared up more for Romanian tourism. When the pandemic came, obviously foreigners couldn’t come, and Romanians couldn’t come… I thought – this was in 2020, April – “well, that’s it, game over”. But no! We were full! I was so surprised, having been afraid I was going to lose a lot of business.

Although some of the few Romanians who came found it wasn’t what they wanted, I think in this context they were forced to rediscover their country – huge and diverse and really beautiful. So – 2020-2021, throughout the pandemic – we were full. This year we’re seeing a few more foreigners coming back, but essentially now we can say Breb has established itself as a Romanian resort. We have three restaurants in the village, and a few people have started selling things outside their houses – traditional clothing, palinka, that kind of stuff – which unfortunately is not so attractive to foreigners who want to go somewhere they won’t be seeing lots of tourists. Romanians, on the other hand, absolutely love it. So, Breb has changed – and I can’t see it going back to where it was before. As I’ve said it’s gathering pace now as a Romanian resort, a place for Romanians to come and stay. They want luxury accommodation, they want really good organic food which they can have here, as much as they can eat, really good palinka, they like to have a singsong at night, either with the local bands or perhaps they have karaoke or something like that. Whereas that’s not, unfortunately, my kind of tourism.

So when you ask me what makes us different… First, I had to learn my prices for Romanian tourism. Their expectations are much higher than the foreigners’. Maybe some years they want to go foraging in the forest, they want to go for a hike, they want to go to a “stâna” for the evening, but on the whole they’re quite happy to stay in Breb, just walking around the village… Whereas it’s difficult to sell to Romanians “the experience”. From a financial perspective, my business is what we call a lifestyle business – I don’t make huge profits, I’m always reinvesting, the houses always need attention etc. It’s difficult for me to see a way forward for Breb at the moment other than this tourism that has been growing since the pandemic. But I have to say it’s really a charming village, with really hospitable people. Although it’s become very busy with pensions, you only have to go one or two roads back and you find Breb as it was 15 years ago!

Do you ever find you have to educate people not to expect the hotel experience?

I don’t think so. And the very good reviews we’ve got on TripAdvisor, Booking, Airbnb are a testament to that – I think there’s 400 pages. So, overall, I think people have a very good idea what to expect when they come here. We’ve had, I think, over all the years, just two Romanian families who turned up, got disappointed, and left. Again, not even the locals believed in the idea. But then they started to see lots of tourism, lots of foreigners. They just couldn’t wrap their mind around the fact that a foreigner would want to move to a tiny village – especially since we had our three children with us as well… So, it was a learning experience for everyone. We wanted to show the locals: “here’s what we’re doing, here’s how we’re doing it, it’s good for Breb…” They kind of got it, but still most of them built brand new pensions. Although a few were like – “Oh, I have my grandmother’s house, I could do something similar!” And they’ve been just as successful as we’ve been!

This is a phenomenon in Maramure[ especially – they discard the old traditional houses and build modern houses.

When we came here we were being given old wooden houses for free – this was in 2007. They saw no value in these houses and were like – “oh, you stupid foreigner, they’re falling down…” And some of them were indeed falling down – but we used parts of some

nu credeau în ideea asta, oricum. Apoi au început s\ vin\ turi[ti, mul]i str\ini... Tot nu puteau s\-n]eleag\ de ce un str\in ar veni într-un s\tuc, plus c\ aveam [i cei trei copii cu noi. A fost o lec]ie pentru toat\ lumea. Am vrut s\ le ar\t\m localnicilor ce facem noi, cum o facem, c\ e bine pentru Breb... Cumva au în]eles, dar majoritatea tot [i-au f\cut pensiuni moderne. Câ]iva s-au gândit totu[i – „a[ putea s\ fac [i eu ceva cu casa bunicii!” [i au avut acela[i succes pe care l-am avut [i noi!

E un fenomen în Maramure[, localnicii renun]\ la vechile case de lemn [i construiesc în loc case moderne.

Când am venit aici ne d\deau case pe gratis, asta era în 2007. Nu le vedeau poten]ialul, se gândeau – „of, str\in prost\nac, nu vezi c\ stau s\ cad\?!” [i unele chiar st\teau s\ cad\. Pe acelea le-am folosit, p\r]i din ele, c\ s\ le reconstruim pe celelalte. A fost nevoie de cinci ani ca localnicii s\ vad\, brusc, poten]ialul. Cred c\ ultima cas\ pe care am cump\rat-o a fost 400 de euro, iar acum dac\ g\se[ti la 4000 de euro... E poman\! Tat\l meu – era foarte victorian – mi-a zis – „Draga mea, nu ai putea vreodat\ s\ de]ii ceva cu adev\rat. Nu e[ti altceva decât un custode, p\zind [i p\strând ceea ce ]i-a fost încredin]at.” {i e atât de adev\rat... Oriunde am tr\it [i am construit, am încercat s\ fie bine nu doar pentru noi, ci [i s\ avem grij\ de viitorul locului, s\ protej\m [i s\ p\str\m, s\ le explic\m [i localnicilor importan]a tuturor acestor lucruri. Acum nu mai sunt atâtea case care a[teapt\ s\ cad\.

Oamenii caut\ acum un cump\r\tor. Îi spune evolu]ie, [i este o sabie cu dou\ t\i[uri. Din nou, când am venit noi, cu 14 ani în urm\, erau acele por]i maramure[ene, erau un simbol de stare. {i nimeni nu mai f\cea por]i din astea când am ajuns noi. Cump\ram por]i vechi de 70-100 de ani. Vedeam pe cineva care tocmai urma s\ le taie [i ziceam – „stai, stai, î]i d\m o sut\ de euro pe ea!” Localnicii care lucreaz\ prin str\in\tate vor o vil\. O vor foarte modern\, foarte mare. Majoritatea aspir\ la ceva modern [i, cu siguran]\ în Breb [i prin vecin\tate, emfaza cade pe cât de modern, cât de mare e palatul t\u.

E [i o competi]ie s\-]i faci pensiune, mentalitatea în sat e cam a[a – „vecinul meu [i-a tras pensiune, vreau [i eu una! {i mai mare, [i mai modern\!” Deci e vorba de stare acum. {i, cu toate c\ am încercat din greu s\ lucrez cu localnicii, chiar [i cu autorit\]ile, cu Consiliul de Turism din Bucure[ti, cu organiza]iile de mediu, s\ p\stram Breb cam cum au f\cut cu Viscri, nu am reu[it. Autorit\]ile au ales s\ lase orice fel de construc]ie, atâta timp cât nu are trei sau patru etaje. Din nou, îi zice progres, [i nu pot eu s\-i învinov\]esc pe localnici c\ î[i doresc ceva nou când ei se resimt dup\ anii în care nu au putut alege în ce fel de cas\ s\ tr\iasc\, ce culoare s\ aib\, ce haine s\ poarte, ce s\ m\nânce [i ce s\ bea...

A[a c\, nu pot eu s\ vin s\ zic...

Într-adev\r, pierderea tradi]iilor e un fenomen în România. Cum st\ Marea Britanie la acest capitol?

Tranzi]ia istoriei a fost foarte lin\ la noi. Nu am avut dictatori, nu am avut regimuri, nu am avut oameni care voiau foarte repede s\ schimbe foarte mult... A[adar, am avut sute de ani s\ p\str\m aceste sate istorice, [i sunt multe. A[a c\, da, e mai greu. Chiar [i prin Vest, în Europa, e mult mai greu s\ construie[ti ceva. Unui bun prieten i-a luat trei ani doar s\ primeasc\ autoriza]iile s\ transforme un vechi hambar. În ultimii 15 ani [i aici a devenit mai greu, dar tot nu st\ nimic în calea demol\rii vechilor case de lemn.

Pentru c\ e[ti aici de ceva timp deja, cum a evoluat p\rerea ta despre România?

Îmi place tot mai mult cu fiecare an care trece. În fiecare an descop\r ceva nou în houses that we couldn’t rebuild to fix up the other houses. It took around 5 years for the locals to suddenly start seeing the value in their houses – I think the last house we bought was four hundred euros, but now if you can find one for four thousand… it’s cheap! My father – he was very Victorian –taught me something when I was thirteen years old, he said – “Darling, you could never really own anything. You’re only ever a custodian, looking after something during your lifetime”. This is so, so true. Everywhere we’ve lived and built, we tried to do it in a sympathetic way, not just for us, but for the area’s future – to protect and preserve, trying to educate locals about the importance of all this. Now, not so many houses are left to ruins anymore. People are now looking for someone to buy these houses now… It’s called progress – which is a double-edged sword. Again, until fourteen years ago, we had these beautiful wooden gates, that used to be very much a sign of status… When we first came here nobody was making new wooden gates – we were buying wooden gates that were 70-100 years old. We would see someone just about to cut it down and we’d say – “STOP, STOP! We’ll give you a hundred euros!” (Ed: laughs) The locals working abroad aspire to a villa. They want it really modern, really big… Most people aspire to have something new and, certainly in the villages around Breb, the

emphasis is on how modern and how big your new house is… There’s also a race to have a pension, the mentality in the village being very much – “my neighbor has a pension, I want to have a pension! I want my pension to be bigger than theirs, more modern than theirs!” The takeaway here is that it’s very much about status now. And although I tried really hard to work with the locals – even in the past with the Tourism Board in Bucharest, the environmental organizations around us –to try to preserve Breb more like Viscri, it hasn’t happened. The local authorities have chosen to allow any kind of building as long as it’s not three stories or four stories high. But, again, it’s called progress, and I can’t blame the villagers for wanting something new when, obviously, you had decades of not being able to choose what kind of house you lived in, what color your house was, what clothes you wore, what you ate and what you drank… So it’s not really for me to say.

Indeed, the loss of traditions is a thing in Romania. How does the UK compare, in terms of historic villages?

The transition of history has been very slow in England – we didn’t have dictators, we didn’t have regimes, we didn’t have people who were quickly wanting to change something… So we’ve had hundreds of years to be able to preserve these historic villages, and there are many of them. But yes, it’s much more difficult. Even in Western Europe it’s much more difficult to build something. I’ve a good friend who spent three years just to get the permission to convert an old barn… Here, over the last fifteen years it’s got more difficult as well, but still, there’s nothing to restrict demolishing these wooden houses.

Since you’ve been here for some time now: how did your impression of Romania evolve?

I love it more and more as every year goes by. Every year I explore something new in Romania, every year I’m just wowed by something or somewhere. It is, as we say, a regency – five countries rolled into one, from the Delta, to the seaside, to central Transylvania, Maramure[… You’ve got the Hungarians, you’ve got the Saxons, you’ve got Bucovina… it’s just so diverse! As I’ve said, I love it more and more, and in fifteen years, nothing bad has ever happened to me, we’ve had nothing but kindness, hospitality, warmth from everyone. My husband used to organize tours to the gipsy villages, to show their way of life, and we haven’t had any problems with them, either. Perhaps it depends a bit on your own openness as well, to not appear arrogant, to have a knowledge and understanding of areas and people before you actually go there. But Romania’s in my heart. Part of my soul is here, part of my soul’s in Breb, a small part of it in the rest of Romania… I’ll always love this part of Maramures! Maybe you’ve heard about the Romanian ethos “merge [i a[a” (Ed: something like: anything goes). What do you think about this work ethic?

I haven’t, but I understand what you mean! (Ed: laughs) It’s very frustrating in the village, you have to work very much on the locals’ terms. It’s very important for me to work with locals – but suddenly they disappear, to work the hay, or maybe there’s a holiday, maybe it’s raining, maybe there’s a funeral… But I try not to get too frustrated, because it integrates you more with the locals.

We like to think ourselves hospitable. Are we?

Absolutely. Our car broke down somewhere near the Apuseni mountains, at ten o’ clock at night – no phone signal… So we walked to the nearest house and knocked on the door – which in England you could never do. But they just opened the door – “yes, come in, here’s the telephone!” And then palinka appeared on the table, “placinte” (Ed: Romanian pies) appeared on the table… This is… (Ed: pause) unknown in England, this kind of hospitality from strangers. As I’ve said, I’ve never felt threatened, never felt unsafe in this country. I’ve known nothing but hospitality here. And obviously I’m a little bit biased, but the people of Maramure[ are even more hospitable, even more open, maybe because –the story goes – these villages weren’t so affected by Communism. They kind of just let them be, as people here were seen as peasants, they wouldn’t play by the rules etc. And I think this has kept them more open-minded, neighborly people. The strength of their communities has just held them together.

In England, as you know, people are very uneducated about Romania, they know the stories with the gypsies, stealing… that kind of thing… But there’s still very little knowledge, even in comparison with other Eastern

România, în fiecare an sunt uimit\ de ceva sau de câte-un loc. Este, cum îi zic eu, o regen]\. Ai cinci ]\ri într-una! De la Delt\, la mare... Ardealul... Maramure[ul... Ai ungurii, ai sa[ii, ai Bucovina... Totul e a[a divers! Cum spuneam, iubesc România tot mai mult [i, în 15 ani, nu mi s-a întâmplat niciodat\ nimic r\u. Am avut parte doar de bun\tate, ospitalitate, c\ldur\, de la toat\ lumea.

So]ul meu organiza excursii în satele de ]igani, le prezenta stilul de via]\, [i nu am avut nici cu ei probleme. Probabil c\ depinde pu]in [i de cât de deschis e[ti tu, s\ nu fii arogant, s\ ai o în]elegere a zonelor [i oamenilor înainte s\ te duci acolo. România e-n inima mea. O parte din inima mea e aici, o parte e-n Breb, o mic\ parte e-n restul României...

Poate ai auzit deviza româneasc\ – „merge [i a[a”. Ce zici, merge?

Nu am auzit de ea, dar în]eleg ce zici! E foarte frustrant, când ai ceva de f\cut practic e[ti la mila s\tenilor, trebuie s\ lucrezi în condi]iile lor. E foarte important pentru mine s\ lucrez cu localnicii, dar dintr-odat\ te treze[ti c\ dispar, s\ lucreze fânul, sau poate e s\rb\toare, poate plou\, poate e îngrop\ciune... Încerc totu[i s\ nu m\ frustrez prea tare.

Ne zicem c\ suntem ospitalieri. Suntem?

Clar. Ni s-a stricat ma[ina undeva lâng\ Apuseni, la zece noaptea, [i nu aveam semnal... A[a c\ am mers pân\ la cea mai apropiat\ cas\ [i am b\tut la u[a, ceea ce în Anglia nu ai putea niciodat\ s\ faci. Dar aici ne-au deschis pur [i simplu – „sigur, intra]i, uita]i telefonul!” Pe mas\ a ap\rut palinc\, au ap\rut pl\cinte… A[a ceva e de neconceput în Anglia.

Cum spuneam, nu m-am sim]it niciodat\ amenin]at\, n-am sim]it niciodat\ c\ nu sunt în siguran]\ aici. {i, clar sunt pu]in subiectiv\ când spun asta, dar maramure[enii sunt [i mai ospitalieri, [i mai deschi[i, poate pentru c\... Legenda spune c\ pe-aici nu prea [i-au vârât coada comuni[tii... I-au l\sat a[a, mai la voiantâmpl\rii, au zis c\ oricum sunt ni[te ]\rani, mai bandi]i, a[a, c\ nu joac\ dup\ reguli etc. {i cred c\ asta i-a ]inut mai deschi[i la minte, mai vecini! Puterea comunit\]ii i-a ]inut împreun\!

În Anglia oamenii nu [tiu mai nimic despre România. Se [tie foarte pu]in, chiar [i în compara]ie cu alte state est-europene, despre lucrurile bune din România. Percep]ia e – „vai, e lumea a treia, o ]ar\ s\rac\ cu mul]i ]igani care fur\”. Dar asta pur [i simplu nu e adev\rat. Cu toate c\ ajut\ dintr-un punct de vedere – de fiecare dat\ când prietenii mei vin aici, România bineîn]eles c\ le întrece a[tept\rile!

Pân\ la urm\, ce-]i place cel mai mult aici?

În primul rând, oamenii. Pentru mine, România e despre oamenii ei. În al doilea rând, satul meu. Totul despre el. Uita]i-v\ doar la arhitectur\, m-am îndr\gostit de ea… Lemnul \sta… Respir\, tr\ie[te! Casa mea, o veche casa de lemn, are via]\ în ea! Satul are un su-

flet, o energie bun\, oameni buni, invoc\ imagini de basm înc\. Oamenii zâmbesc! V\d frumuse]ea din ceea ce au, nu din ceea ce nu au.

{i cel mai pu]in, ce-]i place?

Aici ar fi s\r\cia, lupta pe care mul]i, mul]i oameni o duc în ]ara asta. Nu e ca s\r\cia african\, dar s-ar putea avea mai mult\ grij\. În alte ]\ri v\d sisteme mai bune de protec]ie social\, de exemplu. Sunt mul]i oameni în ]ara asta care chiar se chinuie.

Dar ce crezi despre birocra]ie?

Câteodat\, e mult mai u[or aici s\ faci lucrurile s\ se mi[te decât prin Vest! Sigur, când am început s\ construim [i ne trebuiau autoriza]iile pentru pensiune, autorit\]ile s-au dovedit a fi foarte dificile, în mare pentru c\ nu [tiau cum s\ fac\ treaba în cauza, ne ziceau –„nu se poate!” A[a c\ mergeam la avoca]i, care ne ziceau – „se poate, [i uite cum!” Iar lucrurile au devenit mai u[oare în ultimii ani, plus c\ s-a creat [i o bun\ rela]ie cu autorit\]ile.

Oamenii tot zic de corup]ia din România… Dar corup]ie-i peste tot. Exist\ [i în Anglia. Dac\ cineva vrea s\ fac\ un mall undeva unde nu e voie, se duce la prim\rie [i zice –„uite, facem dou\zeci de case la s\raci, facem un drum frumos, facem s\ fie bine pentru comunitate”. {i-[i primesc autoriza]ia. Ceea ce nu e mai pu]in corupt! Singura chestie e c\ în

unele ]\ri e mult mai “obviu”. Pe când în Vest e mai camuflat\ treaba. Dar e acolo!

Ai fost [i prin alte p\r]i ale României?

Da. Doi ani [i jum\tate am stat lâng\ Bran, sus în mun]i. Am v\zut, bineîn]eles, [i Delta, am fost prin Apuseni de câteva ori, dar mie îmi plac zonele rurale. De Bucure[ti ce s\ zic? Are o aur\ [i el. Str\inii zic c\ e un ora[ urât. Eu nu a[a cred, sunt [i lucruri bune. Dar dac\ vorbim de ora[e, cred c\ favoritul meu e Sibiu. Pur [i simplu superb. {i mai sunt [i Sighi[oara, Timi[oara, Arad...

Î]i lipse[te Londra?

Of, ce s\-mi lipseasc\...? Nici n-am ie[it pe u[\ bine [i deja m\ trezesc c-am cheltuit o sut\ de lire, iar tot ce am f\cut a fost s\-mi iau benzin\, prânzul, ni[te c\r]i, o pereche de san-

countries, about the good things. The perception from outside is – “oh, it’s third world, it’s a really poor country and it’s got lots of gypsies who steal”, which just isn’t true. But this obviously helps – always when friends of mine come here, Romania more than beats the expectations!

So, what would you say is your favorite thing about Romania?

Number 1: the people. To me, Romania is all about the people. And Number 2: my vil-

lage – everything about it. Just look at the architecture, I’m in love with this wooden architecture – it breathes, it has a heart… Even the house I live in, an old wooden house… It’s alive! This village has a soul, it has a good energy, good people, it still conjures up fairytale images – you still see the people walking down, the old ladies, carrying a “co[” (Ed: basket), and they smile! They see the value in what they have, not what they don’t have. The list could go on forever.

And your least favorite?

That would be the poverty, the struggle that many, many people have in this country. It’s not like the African kind of poverty, but I think more care could be taken. In other countries I see a better welfare system, for instance. There are very many people in this country who really, really struggle. That’s my least favorite thing.

What do you think about the bureaucracy?

Sometimes, it’s much easier to do things here than in Western Europe! Granted, when we first started building and we needed permissions for the pension, we found the authorities were very difficult to deal with, mostly because they didn’t know how to do it right, so they would turn us away: “you can’t do it!”. And we’d have to go to the lawyers’, who’d

say: “you can do it, and here’s how to do it!”. But things have gotten easier over the years, and obviously we’ve built some good relationships with the local authorities.

Also, people talk about the corruption in Romania… But there’s corruption all over the world. There’s corruption in England: If someone wants to build a huge shopping mall in a place you’re not allowed to build, they’ll go to the local council and say – “we’ll build twenty houses for poor people, we’ll make a nice road, we’ll do something for the community”, and they get their permission. This is no less corrupt! It’s just that in some countries, sometimes it’s more obvious to see where there may be corruption. In the West it’s more hidden, but it’s still there. Have you been to other parts of Romania?

Yes, I have. Obviously, we’ve lived near Bran, up in the mountains, and we’ve lived there for a year and a half, we’ve obviously visited the Delta, we’ve been to the Apuseni mountains a few times. But I like the more rural areas. Bucharest? It has a certain vibe to it –when foreigners say, “it’s an ugly city”, I don’t see it like that, there’re also good things to say. As to my favorite city, that would be Sibiu, just gorgeous. And then there’s Sighi[oara, places like Timi[oara, Arad…

Do you miss London?

Oh, what’s there to miss? Every time I go out – I’ve spent a hundred pounds and all I’ve done is bought some petrol, lunch and some books, a pair of sandals… (Ed: laughs) My family lives about a hundred miles south of London. It’s beautiful when the sun is out, but ten months of the year we have this little rain we call drizzle, it’s just a little bit of rain, like it’s almost raining. So the weather has a depressing feeling. Here in Romania, certainly in Maramure[, we have four proper seasons – it’s cold in the winter, spring is beautiful, summer days are absolutely gorgeous, with almost no humidity. So, what do I miss in England? Not London – I’ve lived in London for five years. I don’t really miss anything because, you know, I’m two and a half hours from London, and the flight costs ten euros, maybe less… I’m flying back home on Monday actually. So, there’s nothing I really miss. And when I come to Romania I don’t feel like I have to bring English tea or English biscuits… However, most of my clothes I buy from England, because here you have to be really super skinny, otherwise, people of my age are expected to wear something that I would prefer not to wear. Over the last two years I’ve been living with my mother, working on the family’s business, but my work’s nearly finished there, so next year I come back full time to Breb, and I’m really looking forward to it. Like I’ve said, part of my soul is here. You can talk to people here. Yeah, it takes a bit longer to get things done, but, you know, in Breb people walk, and you meet someone, and you say – “Ce faci! Unde mergi?” (Ed: Hi! How are you?) This is unlike the English “How are you?” You’ve actually got to spend five minutes talking to that person about how their day is going. I really like that. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. In England everybody’s in such a rush, the expectations are so huge, materialistic things are

dale… (n.r râde) Familia mea locuie[te o sut\ de mile la sud de Londra. E frumos când e soare, dar zece luni pe an picur\, aproape plou\ (dar nu chiar). A[a c\ vremea e deprimant\.

Pe când în România, [i cu siguran]\ în Maramure[, avem patru sezoane ca lumea –iarna e frig, prim\vara e ginga[\, zilele de var\ sunt absolut superbe, aproape c\ nu e umezeal\ deloc… Deci, ce îmi lipse[te din Anglia? Nu Londra. Am tr\it acolo cinci ani. {i nu preami lipse[te nimic pentru c\ sunt la dou\ ore [i jum\tate de Londra, iar zborul cost\ zece euro sau mai pu]in. Zbor înapoi luni, de fapt. Sunt foarte norocoas\, le am pe toate! Deci chiar nu-mi lipse[te nimic. {i când merg în România, nu simt c\ trebuie s\-mi iau cu mine ceai englezesc sau biscui]i engleze[ti…

Totu[i, majoritatea hainelor le cump\r din Anglia, pentru c\ aici chiar trebuie s\ fii foarte slab\, sau, dac\ ai trecut de o vârst\, s\ por]i ceva ce eu a[ prefera s\ nu port… (n.r râde)

În ultimii doi ani am stat cu mama, lucrând la afacerea familiei, dar munca mea acolo e aproape gata, a[a c\ la anul m\ întorc de tot în Breb. Abia a[tept. Cum spuneam, o parte din sufletul meu e aici. Po]i s\ vorbe[ti cu oamenii aici. Într-adev\r, dureaz\ mai mult s\ faci lucrurile s\ se mi[te, dar, [ti]i cum e, te întâlne[ti cu cineva, [i te întreab\ – „Ce faci? Unde mergi?” [i nu e o formalitate, ca în Anglia. Chiar trebuie s\-]i iei cinci minute s\ discu]i cu interlocutorul t\u despre cum îi merge ziua! Chiar îmi place asta. Îmi d\ o c\ldur\, o stare de bine. {i oamenilor chiar le pas\. Pe când în Anglia toat\ lumea-i într-o alerg\tur\, a[tept\rile sunt enorme, bunurile materiale sunt a[a importante... În tren nu vorbe[ti cu nimeni… Aici vorbe[ti cu toat\ lumea! Iau câteodat\ trenul de noapte spre Bucure[ti, din Sighetu Marma]iei. Pân\ la sfâr[itul c\l\toriei, împar]i cu oamenii merinde, poveste[ti... Chiar ai ocazia s\ cuno[ti oameni.

Englezii sunt mult mai precau]i, în special cu str\inii. Se a[teapt\ c-o s\-i jefuie[ti, c-o s\i cafte[ti... Se prezum\ c\ ai o motiva]ie necurat\ dac\ vrei s\ cuno[ti pe cineva sau s\ vorbe[ti cu cineva. Sigur, dac\ te-ai pierdut [i ceri indica]ii, le vei primi, dar de mai mult de atât nu au timp. Nu pentru c\ nu vor ei, a[a, dar asta-i societatea. Parc\ nu mai ai voie s\ ai timp, e[ti încurajat s\ faci mereu ceva, trebuie s\ fii ocupat mereu. E atât de frustrant... Importan]a faptului de a avea timp, de a-]i da voie s\ ai timp, s-a pierdut în a[a multe locuri… Nu [i în aceste zone rurale, unde e, poate, cel mai important lucru. De fapt, eu nici nu încui u[a de la intrare aici. Oamenii intr\ mereu la mine. {i-i întreb – „ai nevoie de ceva?” La care ei zic – „nu, doar am intrat s\ dau bine]e!” – „Bine, atunci, ia un loc, serve[te o cafea, un ceai, palinc\…” Stau pentru dou\zeci de minute, discut\m pu]in, [-apoi s-au dus! În Anglia trebuie s\-]i calculezi, probabil, o s\pt\mân\ în avans pentru o astfel de întreprindere. E foarte ocupat\ lumea.

A fost o provocare [coala acas\ (n.r Penelope [i-a [colit copiii acas\)?

Mare provocare! Când ajunseser\ deja la vârsta adolescen]ei, ei m\ [coleau pe mine! Ini]ial, planul era s\ lipsim din Anglia pentru doar doi ani, [i apoi ideea era s\ ne întoarcem, copiii s\ se întoarc\ la [coal\… Gata jocul! Din nefericire, ne aflam în Sri Lanka când a lovit tsunami-ul din 2004, [i cumva ne-a schimbat vie]ile pentru totdeauna. Majoritatea s\tenilor au murit. Nu sunt o persoan\ religioas\, dar faptul c\ to]i cinci am supravie]uit nu este nimic mai pu]in decât un miracol. Revenind, eu nu sunt foarte academic\. Am crescut la ferm\, participam la concursuri de echita]ie… Dar mi-am asumat pur [i simplu aceast\ încercare atunci când am decis s\ mai st\m în pribegie. {i pentru c\ nu ne aflam niciodat\ pentru mai mult de câteva luni într-o ]ar\, nimeni nu ne primea la [coal\. Nici în Breb nu sa putut, dac\ copiii nu erau aici pe tot parcursul anului [colar. A[a c\ am apelat la absolven]i de studii superioare, pictori, oameni care construiesc lucruri [i care i-au încurajat [i pe copiii no[tri s\ înve]e s\ construiasc\ lucruri… Întotdeauna am fost bun\ la englez\.

Matematica a fost un dezastru! Într-adev\r a fost o provocare, dar a[a am putut s\-mi cunosc copiii mult mai bine decât dac\ se duceau la [coal\, iar eu aveam aceea[i via]a ocupat\ ca toat\ lumea. Am acum o rela]ie foarte apropiat\ cu ei. Îi [tiu cum gândesc, le cunosc felul de a fi, ceea ce cred c\ mul]i englezi nu ar putea spune despre copiii lor.

Ne-am descurcat. La fizic\ a fost dezastru, totu[i! Fiica cea mare s-a întors la [coala în ultimul an, pentru c\ voia neap\rat s\ înve]e francez\ [i fizic\. În Anglia po]i s\-]i dai examenele când vrei, nu trebuie s\ a[tep]i pân\-n ultimul an. I-am sf\tuit pe copiii mei s\ înceap\ de la 13 ani – dou\ examene acum, trei examene la anul, [i a[a mai departe, s\ ne putem concentra cum trebuie pe materie. În Anglia adolescen]ii dau, poate, 14 examene într-un singur an, la 16 ani. {i ce stres e pentru ei! De asemenea, sistemul de recompensare… P\rin]ii spun – “dac\ termini bine, î]i iau o ma[ina!” E incredibil! Copiii mei nu au dat atâtea examene, dar doi dintre ei au f\cut facultatea. Ceea ce le lipsea din punct de vedere academic, au compensat cu abilit\]ile sociale – [tiau cum s\ se prezinte, cum s\ se vând\, nu le era fric\ de situa]ii noi, [tiau ce le place de la o vârst\ mai fraged\, [tiau cum s\ se concentreze pe ceva… To]i trei au terminat liceul,

[i doar fiica cea mare nu a continuat cu facultatea. Îmi amintesc, la liceu, celor doi mai mici li s-a spus – „de fapt, notele voastre nu sunt destul de bune, dar a]i f\cut [coala acas\, [i [tim cât de motiva]i sunt copiii ca voi, a[a c\ v\ d\m un semestru s\ dovedi]i c\ pute]i.” Bineîn]eles c\ au reu[it. Erau motiva]i. A[adar, am avut voluntari, absolven]i de studii superioare care ne-au ajutat… A fost un efort comun!

Unde e[ti tu acas\?

Asta [i eu a[ vrea s\ [tiu… Toat\ lumea m\-ntreab\… Sunt acas\ peste tot, [i nic\ieri. Anul \sta fac [aizeci de ani, [i tot nu a[ putea s\-]i spun unde voi fi în zece ani. Nu am nicio dorin]\ s\ ies la pensie [i s\ m\ întorc înapoi în Anglia... Ce s\ fac\ acolo cineva ca mine? Când

so important… If you’re on the train, you don’t speak to the people around you. Here on the train you speak to everybody. I take the night train sometimes from Sighetu Marma]iei to Bucharest. By the end of the evening you’re sharing food, you’re sharing stories, you know…? You just really get to know people.

In England, people are much more afraid, especially with strangers, they think they’re going to be mugged or beaten up. It's presumed you have a bad agenda if you want to get to know somebody or speak to somebody.

Of course, if you’re lost and you stop and ask someone, people will be helpful, but they don’t have time for more – it’s almost like you’re not allowed to have time, you’re encouraged by lots of gadgets to do more things, you must be busy all the time. I find that so frustrating. The importance of having the time is lost in so many societies, but here in these rural areas it isn’t – it’s probably the most important thing. Actually, I never lock my front door here, people walk in and out all the time. I’ll ask them “is there anything you need?”, and they’ll say “no, just popped in to say hi!” “OK then! Have a seat, have a coffee, have a tea, have a palinka…” They stay for twenty minutes, have a little chat, and off they go. In England you have to make an appointment with somebody probably a week in advance, just to have a cup of coffee.

Was it a challenge to homeschool your kids? (Ed: laughs!) Very challenging – by the time they were teenagers, they were teaching me. We initially intended to be out of England for only two years, and the plan was to go back to London, the kids were supposed to go back to school – adventure over! Unfortunately, we were in Sri Lanka when the tsunami hit, in 2004, and it kind of changed our lives forever. Most of our village died. I’m not a religious person, but it’s nothing short of a miracle that all five of us survived. Anyway, I’m not very academic myself – I was brought up on a farm and used to be a three day event rider – but when we decided to stay abroad, I just took on this challenge. Because we were in those countries for only a few months at a time, most wouldn’t allow our children to attend school. It was the same in Breb, the children couldn’t attend school if they weren’t here for the full year. So, I brought in lots of graduates, painters, and people who made things and encouraged the children to learn how to build things… I’ve always been quite good at English – Mathematics – absolute disaster, but somehow… (Ed: pause) Indeed, it was challenging, but it got me to know my children much better than if they were to just go to school in England, and I would have had the same busy life as everyone else… Now I have such a close relationship with my children – I know how they think, and I know their very being, which I think a lot of people in the English society don’t. So, we managed. Science was a complete disaster, though! My oldest daughter actually went back to school for the last year, because she really wanted to learn French and Science. In England you can take your GCSEs whenever you want, you don’t have to wait till the final year to do them. I encouraged my children to take their exams starting when they were thirteen, so they just took two exams in one year, three exams the next year and so on, so we could really focus on those subjects. Youngsters in England, they take maybe fourteen different subjects when they’re sixteen years old, before college. But the stress this puts on kids… (Ed: sigh) And the “reward system” – “if you pass your exams I’ll buy you a car” It’s just absolutely incredible! My children didn’t come out with that many exams, but two of them went to university. What they lacked academically, they made up for with their social skills – they knew how to present themselves, weren’t afraid of new circumstances, they knew what they were passionate about at a much earlier age, they knew how to focus and so on… All three of them went to college, just my oldest daughter didn’t continue to university. I remember, in college, my two younger ones were told – “actually your qualifications aren’t good enough, but you’ve been homeschooled, and we know how motivated homeschooled children are, so you’ll be given one term to prove yourself” Of course, they succeeded. They were passionate about it. So, yeah, we would have volunteers, graduates working alongside us, and they would help teach the children. It was a joint effort!

Where is home for you?

Oh, I wish I knew. Everyone asks this. Everywhere is home to me, but nowhere is home. I’m sixty years old this year, but I can’t see where I’m gonna be living in ten years’ time. I’ve no wish to retire and go back to England – what would I do… someone like me…? And when I go back to England I always say “when I’m home”, but in Romania I also say “when I’m home”. It’s so much about the people that are around me – this makes me feel home, wherever I am. I have a real wish – before I’m sixty-five, I’ll buy two horses and start in Patagonia. I’ve always been fascinated by Chile, so much so that I never wanted to go there just for a two week holiday. So, I imagine I’ll start in Patagonia, by myself, and just crisscross through the Andes, in and out of Argentina, in and out of Bolivia, until I get to Peru… And I want about two years to do it, so that if I want to stay on the ranch for three months, I can stay on the ranch, if I want to live with the penguins in Patagonia for six months, I can do that. I am a little bit nomadic. I have three or four really good friends, and obviously my children, and that’s enough. But

sunt în Anglia spun – „când ajung acasa”. Iar în România tot – „când ajung acas\” – spun.

E vorba atât de mult despre oamenii de lâng\ tine în aceast\ ecua]ie a – „casei”. Am o real\ dorin]\ – pân\ împlinesc 65 de ani s\mi iau doi cai, [i s\ încep din Patagonia. Întotdeauna m-a fascinat Chile, atât de mult încât nu am vrut niciodat\ s\ vin doar pentru o vacan]\ de dou\ s\pt\mâni. Deci, a[a-mi imaginez, încep în Patagonia, doar eu, [i o lu\m la pas, prin Anzi, prin Argentina, Bolivia…

Pân\ ajung în Peru… [i vreau s\ am doi ani, astfel încât, dac\ vreau s\ r\mân la ferm\ pentru trei luni, o pot face, dac\ vreau s\ stau în Patagonia cu pinguinii [ase luni, o pot face... Am un spirit nomad pu]in. Am trei-patru prieteni buni, [i, bineîn]eles, copiii, [i-mi ajunge. Dar nu [tiu unde o s\ m\ duc, unde sunt sau nu sunt acas\.

Cât despre viitorul Brebilor… Mul]i tineri merg s\ lucreze în construc]ii, în agricultur\, în Europa de Vest, [i a[a se întorc [i-[i fac casele astea, [i-[i iau ma[inile astea, e singura cale. Când am venit erau cinci ma[ini, acum sunt 200. Dar ceea ce e bine e c\, de[i vizeaz\ un stil de via]\ mai modern, înc\ au mult respect pentru stilul vechi. Nici în vis nu [i-ar face cump\r\turile din supermarket. 98% înc\ î[i cultiv\ propria hran\ [i-[i cresc propriile animale pentru hran\. Deci aceste sate prosper\! Auzi de ]\ranii s\raci din Maramure[… Eu nu i-am v\zut! Satele astea prosper\! Tot ceea ce se întâmpl\ acum, cu munca în str\in\tate, aceste venituri… Le folosesc ca s\-[i poat\ continua acest stil de via]\. În special pe partea de agricultura, ei se gândesc – „De ce s\ nu-]i faci gr\din\ dac\ ai p\mânt? De ce nu ]i-ai cultiva propria hran\? De ce te-ai duce la restaurant?” Am înv\]at s\ accept c\ asta e ceea ce numim progres. Prefer s\ v\d aceste sate prosperând [i continuându-[i via]a decât s\ moar\ cum s-a întâmplat în restul Europei de Est, unde to]i tinerii au plecat, unde au r\mas doar b\trânii, care vor lua cu ei în mormânt stilul de via]\. Aici femeile înc\ ]es, înc\ se merge la biseric\. Preotul ortodox din sat e formidabil, îi înva]\ pe copii despre importan]a tradi]iilor, îi încurajeaz\ s\ poarte straiele populare cu fiecare ocazie. Doar el singur a f\cut mai mult decât oricine. Când am venit aici nimeni nu mai f\cea [i]\. Acum poate sunt zece oameni! Îi încurajeaz\ pe tineri s\ continue cu tradi]iile, ceea ce e foarte bine.

Ca o concluzie – Breb se schimb\, nu mai e locul pentru care am venit, dar m\ bucur pentru Breb. M\ bucur. I don’t know where I’m going to end up, where home is or isn’t…

As to the future of Breb… Looking at the cultural side – very many youngsters go off working in constructions and agriculture in Western Europe, and this is how they’re coming back and building these modern houses, this is the only way they get the money and cars. When I first came there were five cars, now there’s two hundred. But what’s so good about this village is that although they’re looking towards a modern way of life, they still absolutely have respect for the old way of life. They wouldn’t dream of doing the bulk of their shopping in supermarkets. 98% of people plant their own food and rear their own animals to eat. So these villages are fostering. People talk about the poor peasants of Maramure[… I don’t know about that! They’re really fostering in these villages. These incomes they’re making and bringing back... It’s just supplementing – so they can continue living their way of life as they know it. Especially, the agricultural side is so ingrained in them, their thinking is – “Why wouldn’t you have a garden if you have the land, why wouldn’t you grow your own food? Why would you go to a restaurant?” I’ve learned to accept that this is what we call progress. I’d rather see these villages thriving and continue their old way of life – as opposed to parts of Eastern Europe where the villages have died, the youngsters have all left, and there’s just old people, and all their old ways are dying along with them… Here the women are still weaving, they go to the priest. The orthodox priest – he has been absolutely fantastic, educating children on the importance and value of their traditions, encouraging them to wear their traditional costumes on every occasion they can. This priest singlehandedly has done more for this village I think than anybody else. Also, when we came here there was only one man who knew how to make the “[i]\”, traditional woven roofs… Now there’s maybe ten! As a conclusion: Breb is changing and it’s not why I came here anymore, but I’m happy for Breb. I’m happy.

Foto: © Penelope Ridgley, arhiv\ personal\

John Rock Ligia {endrea

DIN S|LI{CA DEAL,

UN VALOROS MONUMENT ISTORIC CLUJEAN CE D|INUIE DIN 1680

Amplasat\ pe un deal din satul S\li[ca, comuna Câ]c\u, vizibil\ din drumul na]ional ce unduie[te printre Dealurile Clujului [i Dejului purtându-ne spre nord, biserica de lemn cu hramul “Sfin]ii Arhangheli Mihail [i Gavril” (din Deal) str\juie[te împrejurimile [i via]a comunit\]ii înc\ din 1680. Este unul dintre cele mai vechi l\ca[uri de cult din lemn clujene, fapt înt\rit de unele caracteristici de planimetrie [i detaliu pe care le-a p\strat [i care i-au asigurat locul pe Lista Monumentelor Istorice, unde îl g\sim cu codul CJ–I m-B-07747. Vechimea, decorul sculptat [i pictat, al\turi de tipologia sa, o recomand\ ca una din bisericile transilv\nene reprezentative.

Monumentul din S\li[ca are, a[adar, specificul edificiilor din lemn de la finalul secolului al XVII-lea din aceast\ zon\, precum cele din Muncel sau Gârb\ul Dejului. Dimensiunile mici, lipsa pridvorului, acoperi[ul unitar, modul de îmbinare a bârnelor sau iconostasul cu dou\ intr\ri sunt câteva dintre acele elemente care îi dovedesc vechimea. În acela[i timp, coiful conic al turnului clopotni]\ [i cei doi stâlpi sculpta]i ce sus]in acoperi[ul prelungit în dreptul absidei altarului îi confer\ individualitate.

Aflându-ne în fa]a l\ca[ului, observ\m u[a scund\ care, la intrarea în biseric\, ne oblig\ la aplecare în semn de smerenie. Alte m\rturii ale trecutului sunt urmele semi-îngropate ale unei mese a mo[ilor, unde s\tenii secolelor trecute se adunau pentru sfin]irea bucatelor la unele s\rb\tori.

Me[terii care au ridicat edificiul au îmbinat bârnele de stejar în coad\ de rândunic\ [i cheotoare dreapt\, a[ezate pe o funda]ie de piatr\. Din punct de vedere planimetric, acesta se înscrie în tipologia clasic\, cu un pronaos [i naos formând un dreptunghi unitar, care are în prelungire absida poligonal\ cu pere]ii retra[i. De pe tavanul pronaosului se ridic\ scheletul turnului clopotni]\ cu coif conic [i o galerie deschis\. Naosul are o bolt\ semicilindric\ ridicat\ direct de pe pere]i, la fel ca altarul care prezint\ îns\ tavan pe por]iunea pere]ilor oblici.

Motivele sculptate în lemn de-o parte [i de alta a celor dou\ intr\ri, cu u[ori masivi, dezv\luie repertoriul de elemente specifice ornamenticii române[ti: torsada, crucea, rozeta [i numeroase motive geometrice. Me[terul s-a oprit în mod deosebit asupra arcelor bol]ii naosului, unde a încrustat frumoase funii r\sucite [i rozete [i torsad\. Nu întâmpl\tor remarcabila cercet\toare Ioana Cristache Panait afirma c\ bol]ile bisericilor clujene sunt mai decorate decât în alte zone.

Cunoscut pentru activitatea sa de pe Valea Some[ului, pictorul iconar Alexandru

Pop din Ciceu H\[ma[ popose[te aici la finalul secolului al XVIII-lea pentru a a[terne ve[mânt de pictur\ interioar\. Inscrip]ia semnat\ [i nedatat\ „Zugravitu-s-au acest oltari prin îndemânarea [i osârdia preotului Oanca...Alexandru Popovici Zugravul”, se p\streaz\ pe peretele estic al altarului. Accentele grafice evidente în ve[mintele personajelor, cromatica echilibrat\ [i preferin]a pentru motivele decorative elaborate ce par s\ aib\ volum, se reg\sesc din plin [i în valorosul ansamblu de pictur\ de la S\li[ca.

De o parte [i de alta a u[ii de intrare în biseric\, pe latura de sud, se observ\ vagi urme ale unei picturi exterioare reprezentându-i pe arhangheli, patronii monumentului. În naos, peretele vestic [i partea de nord a bol]ii conserv\ mai bine p\r]i din ansamblul mural, în rest acesta fiind deteriorat [i înnegrit. O restaurare necesar\ ar scoate în eviden]\ busturile de prooroci [i scenele din Ciclul Hristologic de pe bolt\. Pictura din altar este relativ deteriorat\, mai ales în partea superioar\, îns\ se mai poate citi programul iconografic folosit de Alexandru Pop: figuri de sfin]i p\rin]i, Sfânta Treime [i Maria Orant\ pe bolt\, Sfin]ii Constantin [i Elena pe spatele tâmplei. Registrul celor 12 Apostoli cu Iisus în centru domin\ tâmpla, care este altfel inundat\ de motive decorative variate, pictorul fiind un mare iubitor al vrejurilor vegetale bogate, a casetelor cu diverse simboluri, a torsadelor pictate.

Din vechiul patrimoniu al l\ca[ului, se mai p\streaz\ câteva icoane pe lemn databile la finalul secolului al XVIII: Maica Domnului cu Pruncul [i Deisis, în timp ce mare parte din icoanele pe sticl\ au ajuns la Cluj, în colec]ia Mitropoliei Ortodoxe.

U[ile împ\r\te[ti realizate în acela[i secol, înf\]i[ând o Bunavestire [i portretele a doi evangheli[ti, nu sunt restaurate, dar

p\streaz\ o pictur\ frumoas\.

O veche scar\ pentru accesul în pod, t\iat\ dintr-o singur\ bârn\, atrage aten]ia într-un col] al pronaosului.

Monumentul a trecut în ultimii ani prin câteva lucr\ri de consolidare [i schimbare a [indrilei, astfel c\ nu prezint\ probleme mari din acest punct de vedere, îns\ a[teapt\ ca ansamblului de pictur\ s\-i fie redat\ str\lucirea.

Tân\rul preot ortodox Vlad Todoran a venit în parohie în 2018. Are n\zuin]e mari fa]\ de monumentul pe care îl are în grij\, con[tient fiind de importan]a edificiilor de acest fel. A încercat pân\ acum s\ pun\ în eviden]\ biserica prin diverse modalit\]i, îns\, mai mult de atât, sper\ într-o interven]ie asupra interiorului, privind cu speran]\ la acele pu]ine exemple fericite de biserici restaurate în întregime [i care ast\zi sunt o mândrie pentru patrimoniul zonal sau na]ional. Preotul adun\ comunitatea la slujb\ în vechiul l\ca[ de câteva ori pe an, la anumite s\rb\tori.

În acest fel, monumentul din S\li[ca rezist\ timpului prin grija unei comunit\]i care nu l-a abandonat [i care r\mâne con[tient\ de tezaurul pe care îl de]ine.

Consuela Bendea

Consultant artistic, Centrul Jude]ean pentru Conservarea [i Promovarea Culturii Tradi]ionale Cluj