Views of Igishu-Nou

A typical village house

Poorer parts of the village where the houses
are little more than wattle and daub.

Views of and from the fortified Saxon Church, built in the 15th Century
as a refuge from Turkish raiders. We climbed to the top via rickety
wooden stairs and a spiral staircase.

Hello Igishu-Nou

We spent the afternoon looking around Medias, including the fortified church built in the 15th Century. We had Fornetti, a delicious deep fried puff pastry filled with cheese, and bought fresh garlic and juicy cherries from the market.






In the evening Bob and I took our guitars up to the Sanctuary and played to the children. Jo had set out some seats for them and we sang for about an hour and a half. If I were ever to play the Albert Hall I wouldn't get as much as enjoyment as I got from seeing the children, with various disabilities both physical and mental, dancing to Friday I'm in Love. A wonderful and unforgettable evening.

A Grand Day Out

Yesterday we went for a drive into the mountains with Ron, Jo and Persida. Persida spent the first 6 of her 7 years living on a rubbish tip and moved into the Sanctuary after her mother died of Aids last summer. She's a lovely little girl but needs a lot of attention.
On the lower slopes there were many families and groups spending the day by the river, with barbecues and open fires, but we drove higher up hoping to catch a glimpse of wild boar and maybe a bear, but all we saw were a couple of lizards. We lit a fire when we stopped - not because we needed one but because it wasn't forbidden.
Ron told us a bit about Romania since the fall of Ceacescu; I'd noticed that in the village there were many young people and many old people but not much in between. Apparently this part of Transylvania has always had a lot of people of German descent living there and if they wanted to emigrate to Germany the German Government had to pay Ceacescu's government hard currency and he'd only let so many leave each year. With his fall, and the fall of communism, the German Government said that anyone with proof of German ancestry was entitled to a German passport. Many young people took advantage of this to leave the poverty of their villages to start a new life, meaning the loss of a large part of the workforce, and by it's nature the entrepreneurial spirit needed to start new businesses. This will obviously take some time to correct itself.








Tonight Bob and I hope to take our guitars up to the sanctuary and play to the children, though the Romania-France game is on at 7.00pm, so we'd better play before then or see our audience dwindle.
Wednesday Jo is taking us to Sigisoara, home of Dracula, so there should be some intersting pics from there.

Hills today - Mountains tomorrow

Here are some views of Igishu Nou and the children:

With some of the children on the way to a walk in the hills

Relaxing at the lodge with some beers

First days at the Sanctuary

We arrived at The Sanctuary Wednesday evening and the children were so friendly and welcoming. I've seen photos of them growing up over the past few years and it was wonderful to finally meet them - Imre who spent his first 16 years abandoned in hospital without visitors, Sergei, with learning difficulties and looking half his 15 years. Other children rescued from their life on a rubbish tip after their mother died and their father went to live on the streets. The work that Ron and Jo do out here is wonderful and they deserve all the help and support they can get.



The lodge has all we need and Jo had put basic provisions in there for us, bread, coffe and some home made wine.

We caught a bus to town this afternoon to get lots of supplies in, then a taxi back, as after the sunshine since we got here a thunderstorm came rolling in. Bob has given Jo the letter from Amy, Mitchell and Kieran at the school and hopes to have something to bring back.
A day trip to the mountains is planned on Sunday with some of the children; it's supposed to be quite spectacular so I hope to have some good pics from there.

The indigenous Roma have extended families
and all live in these ornate houses.

We were invited to stay in Deer Track Lodge by Love Light Romania, who run a hospice for children with HIV/Aids in Medias near Sibiu. I hope to be able to update this page with news and photos from our trip.

Love Light Romania