Eastern Europe
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1000 Székely Girls… A Rite of Passage
The sun reflected it’s strong light from the cupola stage, blinding me momentarily as I stood in Csiksomlyó’s famous “Saddle,” overlooking the city of Csikszereda below. All around me streaked bright flashes of red, black, white and green converging in a harmony of young women and girls dressed in theirRead More

Freeloading on The Székely Express
I was standing on Csikszereda’s Train Platform at 7:00am. Grandma and Lalika had gone to go get a cappuccino from a machine for grandma’s routine morning coffee, while Mum and Dad skipped from one place to another, trying to warm up in the spots where the sun was shining. DespiteRead More

The Living Waters of Transylvania
Fifteen minutes’ drive out of Székely-Udvarhely in Transylvania, we have to make another stop again. Stopping here is a Transylvanian customary ritual not to be missed. We are at Homoród, the famous natural sparkling mineral water spring. We grab our empty bottles, given to us by my great-aunt, Sárika néni,Read More

ALL ROADS LEAD HOME!
We are driving down the bumpy road in the rental car that we have just picked up. Just as we drive past the last house of “Happy Town” / Boldogfalva, the bumps stop and our car’s wheels hit proper road. Grandma stops looking green and wild-eyed from all the bumpsRead More

Come Fly With Me To Transylvania
There is a ferocious argument raging in my living room, yep that’s right, a ferocious argument and why? Let’s rewind about 30 seconds. Grandma: I am not going to slave away carrying 66 bags all the way to the airport on PUBLIC TRANSPORT! Dad: You will not have to slaveRead More