End of the Year Traditions

As the school year comes to a close for the winter holidays, the students are having a tough time concentrating on their studies. They have many practices for the Christmas presentations they will give. It seems every one of the 2000 students has a traditional costume tucked away someplace or another. There are the Polish students with the reds and whites of their regions. The Romanians from Bucovina which is this area wear gold on black costumes with highlights of silver and red. The men wear white woolen jerkins and pants with braid of the same colors. Over that is a fur vest trimmed in gold and black and the black goat skin hat. Both men's and women's costumes are trimmed in mink or a similar dark brown fur. I am sure it was originally to keep them warm in the cold winter months here in the mountains. They are still worn today for the same reason. Almost every day, I see men dressed in these traditional costumes going about town, taking care of business.

The twelfth form students from each class have all sorts of presentations to perform. It seems that each class has been busy. 12K had an evening of song and poetry for each of the teachers they had over their four years in the school. They decorated the multi-media room for us with fruits and nuts, homemade wine, and candles. It was a delightful scene. It was quite nice for us to enjoy their entertainment and then to enjoy conversation amongst ourselves afterwards. They disappeared discreetly and we stayed for hours.

I am not sure which other classes were involved, but I recognized 12A students in the choral presentation for the evening. They sang many traditional Romanian carols. It is uncanny how they are so similar to our own. I even recognize some of the words. There is a short clip of their singing. The camera work is horrendous and then the batteries died but the sound is worth listening to for a minute.

Another group acted out a traditional story about a girl and a boy falling in love.

And then, of course, there is the dinner, which is traditional sausages and sarmales with wine. Tonight there will be no dancing as it is a time of fasting until Christmas Day and then, look out!

So many presentations. Later there was a knock on the window. When it was opened, we were entertained by a raucous group of twelfth formers, all in traditional dress, who had written light-hearted poems about all their teachers. Each class had a poem to present. This tradition goes back to another ancient tradition. Apparently, they can not be allowed in as they represent the devil. I would guess that in another time the poetry would have been much more intimidating. It has become a grand tradition here in Gura Humorului for students to have fun with their teachers.

I have a separate post with a video of this excellent remnant of a pagan ritual. Just the costumes are fabulous. Can you imagine walking in this headpiece, much less dancing!?

When it is finally time to go home, I decide to walk as it is not all that cold. This night is still and there are very few sounds. Almost no traffic. There is a full moon for Christmas