Romanian Festivals

 Hora de la Prislop

Hora de la Prislop is a one-day festival held at the end of August in the Prislop Pass in the northern Carpathian Mountains. In the morning, the participants attend the service in the Prislop Monastery. Once the liturgy is finished, the parade of the traditional costumes follows as each participant wears folk habits representative for the area. This represents the official opening of the festivities, followed by dances, folk music and local dishes.

The Long Way to the Merry Cemetery

Organized at the end of July, in the Maramures region by Peter Hurley, an Irishman who decided to settle in Romania, the Long Way to the Merry Cemetery is not only a festival but a national campaign aiming to promote the traditional Romanian village as a universal heritage. The festival is organized in two different locations: during the first week, the activities take place in Tara Lapusului, while in the second week they are run in Tara Maramuresului. The festival ends in Sapanta, at the Merry Cemetery. During the whole event, craft workshops, folk music concerts and meetings with the elders of the villages to share their life stories are organized. Every day ends with a party with local dances.

by Patricia , David and Maris