Central European Lines

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Neagoe Basarab The First,known as Negru Voda(Black Prince),traveled with master builder Manole(from Nicosia) and his nine masons to find a place to build a monastery.
They found the place and begun to raise the walls.




to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

But what they built in the daylight collapsed in the night.In one night Manole dreamed that they will finish the work when they shall immure one of their sisters or wives who first will come there,in the morning.They vowed that they shall do that.It happened that Anna,the wife of the master,who brought the lunch for her husband,to be the first.So the vow had to be kept and the church was finished.Today the place where Anna was immured is marked and the pilgrims the visitors could see the place,between the two windows,on the South wall.



to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

In a transcendental way it could say that these walls do not keep inside Anna's body only,but also her soul.



to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

A strange fate did that these walls to receive the body of another woman and a piece of her soul .Forest's Song was her name or Carmen Silva in Latin



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[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

This extraordinary woman,whose real name was Elisabeth of Wied,was borne in Neuwied,South-West Germany around the middle of the 19th century.She was piano and organ player singer and painter.She knew several foreign languages but her true passion was poetry.In 1861 she made aquaitance with Karl of Hohenzollern and Sigmaringen.Eight years later he made her his bride and then The Queen Consort of new Romanian Kingdom.In this church there is,in a glass-box,a small part of her soul,a Gospel written and painted by her,Carmen Silva.



to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

After her marriage She dedicated to emancipate the womaen in a country where the power of the man had strong and deep roots and to introduce the new kingdom to the European world.During Balkan War II She spent the time beside the wounded soldiers they naming Her "mother".The fate hit this family their daughter dying at the age of four.The Song Of The Forest stopped in 1916 and Her body was brought to rest here in this corner of the pronaos.



But what did with Manole happen?

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

During they were on the roof,finishing the work,the Black Prince asked them if they might raise another more beautiful monastery.Being filled with proud their answer was that they could do



to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Hearing that Manole could build another more beautiful monastery The Black Prince,feeling deceived,pull down the scaffolding,Manole and his men remaining on the roof.To escape,they made wings,jumped and died.



to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

On the place where Manole,the chief architect,crashed a spring appeared.300 years later the monks built a well.From time to time a kind of mist covers the well... the monks say ...

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Hi,
A trip where my GPS receiver doesn't know the ways.
To travel in East Europe is not so easily.From Bucharest to Bulgarian border the road is good enough with two lane on sense,there is no traffic indicator with Bulgarian border,there are indicators with Romanian towns so if someone has not GPS receiver he looks for Giurgiu indicator.In the nearness of Giurgiu a small indicator shows the road to the border.At the border I paid Romanian bridge tax(25 RON that means around 4 Euros at returning from Bulgaria to Romania,I paid 2 Euros only).Then,as slow as a snail I crossed the Danube river

to be continued

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

On the Bulgarian bank there is a town named Ruse.The road goes to South towards the Rhodope mountains.Here,in Ruse,it must pay the road tax(vignette) at Shell or Lukoil or OMV gas-station(I avoided local station because I paid with credit card-Visa or Master Card are always available- at official change rate).In the nearness of towns the roads are with two lane on sense and it can avoid the center of the cities-that is not the rule,it seems to be rater the exception(like in Romania,of course).

to be continued

[jamn4ex]

Hungary is very beautiful. You have captured it artistically, Great work!!

[dje]

Hi Radu you have some very nice shots in this thread. Here are a couple of mine from Budapest. I hope you don't mind me posting here. They are fairly touristy shots but beautiful buildings just the same.

Cheers Dave

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Hi,
Imperial Budapest...so beautiful,so wonderful,........................................ .......

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Returning to my trip this road which leads to Turkish border and Istanbul is busy and narrow one and as You could see the unknown pieces of road begun to appear.

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

From Ruse to Plovdiv(the second town of Bulgaria) Turkish drivers make the rule!

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Slowly the landscape is changing and mountains appears

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

and the road gets more dangerously,with many curves.

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

From the beginning of that trip I knew that my Garmin GPS receiver did not know the Bachkovo Monastery(the second largest Bulgarian monastery!) but on the map I saw it is at only 10 miles from Plovdiv(the second largest Bulgarian town).Trying to cross Plovdiv to find the road to monastery I ask the people which is the road.Old people understand Russian only,the young knows English.Those who ask me knew better than me and the hotel employer!From Plovdiv the road crosses through Assenovgrad a small holiday resort.

[Radu Dinu Cordeanu]

Being connected at my Garmin I booked a double bed hotel room in Plovdiv on a street known by it.Another condition was a parking car.I found one with air conditioner and shower for 31 Euros per night(breakfast included).All seemed to be right on the paper.When I arrived the bedclothes were unchanged and the air conditioner worked as fun only.So I asked another room then all was o.k.At reception there were not the maps of the town so I walked around only.The TV in Bulgarian was not interested for us so being tired my wife and me got to sleep.Below You could see one of the Plovdiv entrance.