The third day began early in the morning when we prepared for the trip where our guests were about  to find out interesting things about the customs and traditions of our area. We  made the first stop at Vama, at the tourist information center where we were welcomed with open arms and where guests could admire the Oas  folk costume, the customs related to the wedding in Oas, but also the photo exhibition of a photographer who surprised the life of the village through the lens of the camera.

Then we went to Gheza Isvanfi the last potter craftsman from Vama, who explained the place from which he obtains the clay necessary for the pots , but also the natural colors he uses in the ornament. The potter made a live demonstration and presented the tools he works with.

After Vama, we headed for Sapanta, a unique place in the world because of  the Merry Cemetery, which is a point of attraction for many tourists every year. The tombstones are colorful and beautifully carved in wood. Also, on each, there is a message, usually a poem that rhymes, about the person buried underneath, about what he or she liked most in life and sometimes about the way they died. The poems are really interesting and can offer to the tourist a great insight into the lives of simple and honest people who lived in Sapanta village. Most of the tombstones are made from oak and are dyed in a special blue color. In the upper part there is a painting that depicts the person who passed away in a colorful and dynamic scene of his or her life. Underneath there is a poem.

The visit at the The Memorial of the Victims of Communism and of the Resistance from Sighetu Marmatiei was a live history lesson .. This isn’t a pretty place nor a joyful place. But it is perhaps the most explicit example of how people endured communism. To say it is a moving experience understates the elemental truth of what went on in this prison. Ask anyone in Sighet and they can tell you a personal story of the influence this prison had on their family. Ask anyone in Romania, and they can tell you of a friend, family member, or important person who spent perhaps their final years of life in this prison. It is not a pretty place nor a joyful place. But all must experience it, so humanity can remember how it feels to be confined, tortured, forced to do hard labor, interrogated, and finally murdered because of what one thought or said. Our guests had the opportunity to learn about recent history and understand all the suffering through which the Romanian people passed not long time ago.

Lunch was taken at Mara, in a place where time seemed to have stopped . In a wonderful  place, our guests could enjoy traditional Romanian dishes while admiring the folk costumes and ornaments present in any Romanian house in the area.

Late afternoon finds us admiring from the coach window the hibernal landscape of the Gutai Mountains.

Unforgetable experience, a meeting with past and present, with history,  traditions and customs…