Beautiful Romania April/May 2025 - Beauty & Simplicity.

Sapanta - The Merry Cemetery - Maramures

A journey through the timeless lands of Storybook Romania and a lesson in the beauty of Simplicity.

"It's true that in Romania I feel more relaxed, as if I'm wearing slippers.

Dumitru Tepeneag

Earlier today I wrote an Instagram post about the feelings of Simplicity that I were so nurturing for me through beautiful Romania upon my recent travels there in April/May and then I came across the above quote, which really sums it up nicely. You can read my Simplicity Insta post here:

Juniper Rose (@sanctumoftherose)

Romania felt like nourishment to me, even though for much of my journeys there I was on an organised tour that was quite intensive in terms of filling most days with activities, there was still an underlying feeling of peace, of ease, of grace of stillness, and of simplicity. A sense of coming home to a warm embrace of loving care within an incredibly beautiful landscape of nature and timelessness.

Romania is such a muse, there is a sense of longing, a call to linger there in the golden light and write, paint, draw, to create inspired by the shapes of nature and heightened senses, from towering snow-capped mountain peaks to wildflower meadows, streams, lakes and pastel painted buildings with their carved wooden gates and pitched roofs.

The beautiful handicrafts slowly created with time honoured traditions that hold the patterns of each region in their stiches and the patterns of faith, belief and superstition within their wooden carved forms.

There is so much history, mythology and folklore throughout from the Dacian and Thracian pagans to the Romans, Lutheran Saxons and Christian Orthodox people. So many different countries and cultures have intermingled within Romania and become part of the fabric of the place. It is a land full of mystery and magick around every corner for those that look beyond the surface and for those who walk with the energies of nature.

Horses still wear red tassels upon their bridles to ward off the evil eye as they carry their varying loads through the countryside. Trees hang with heavy with drying pots if there is a red one at the very top, the home has a women ready to marry. Piles of cushions and textiles are often part of marriage dowries and displayed as a status of wealth and honour. The women of the household see guests as a great honour and have a duty of care and honour to present their family in great light and so are very hospitable and friendly especially with food and drink, it really is a love language! Placing your bag on the floor is unlucky so often it is suggested that you put in on a chair or hang it on the back of a chair.

There are a lot of churches and monasteries in Romania, many of them Orthodox, many UNESCO listed including the churches of Moldavia, the wooden churches of Maramures and the Voronet Monastery - considered to be the Sistine Chapel of the East. Whilst I am not Christian, there is so much beauty in their forms and frescos. Perhaps my favourite of these old houses of faith is Snagov Monastery and one of the possible sites of Vlad Tepes (The Impaler) burial, though his body has never been found, he frequented the monastery and spent time building a wooden bridge due to access it in the middle of Snagov lake. You can read more about Snagov and Vlad on my Instagram and Facebook feeds, perhaps I will dedicate a full blog post to him in the near future, he has been a point of fascination for me for many years.

Amongst all this Christianity there a remnants of paganism and I was very pleased to see Dacian symbols carved into crosses, gates and other wooden and stone surfaces and also to visit the Romanian History Museum in Bucharest and see the Trajan Column which depicted the battle between the Dacians and the Romans along with other treasures which feature deities. There are also the ruins of Sarmizegetuza Regia - the of the old Dacian city before Roman conquest around 2,000 years ago, deep in the Carpathians, unfortunately I didn't get there this time, but I will definitely be going back to this important site. You can see my post about the Wood Carving and Dacian Symbols on Instagram or Facebook if it is of interest.

There is so much more to say, however I am still sitting with it all and allowing the beautiful energies of Romania infuse my life here at home and so I will no doubt write more in time. If you have chosen to read this or follow any of my Romanian adventures on my social media pages, thank you for your interest.

Blessings,

Jen (Juniper Rose)

Sanctum of the Rose