Carpathian Sheep Walk

a blog about Carpathian shepherds on the road, and other journeys

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Monday, 7 March 2016

Migrating blog

This is just to let you know that I'm moving this blog to Wordpress. The reason is that Wordpress is said to be freer and there's less danger of losing your (precious?) work. Its new URL is https://carpathiansheepwalk.wordpress.com/

Posted by Caroline at 15:56 No comments:

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Lambrovka 1

Ukraine and the Budjak region (marked in yellow). Courtesy of Wikipedia.

Lambrovka 2

Lambrovka pinpointed in pink. Courtesy of google.

Lambrovka 3

The young Ion Ciorogariu in Lambrovka. He was born in Tilisca, Romania, but moved to Bessarabia shortly afterwards. His father managed a flock of karakul sheep for the Jewish agricultural collective which was founded in Lambrovka by the Jewish Colonisation Association in 1927.

Lambrovka 4

Ion Ciorogariu remembers his childhood on the sheep farm in Lambroca (Lambrovka)

Lambrovka 5

Ion models one of his traditional shepherds' hats, made from astrakhan lambs' skins. In the background is Ilie Martin, who was born in Rod and helped in the initial stages of my research.

Ukrainian sleep walk

Volunteers at Kozhen Moshe (We can help), Kyiv.

Ukrainian sleep walk 2

Deceptively peaceful: a landscape near Donetsk in December 2014. We drove past devastated villages and through towns where people doggedly continued their daily lives.

Ukrainian sleep walk 3

Laura shows us paintings which have been made out of the trappings of war: decorated helmets, bullet proof vests and cartridge and gun cases. They were auctioned to raise money for soldiers at the front, and to help internally displaced persons (IDPs or refugees) who have sought safety in Kyiv and western Ukraine.

Melancholy lady

Ioan Stirimin, his wife and son, from Toma Lupas et al, Oieri margineni in Crimeea si sudul Rusiei, Editura Salgo, Sibiu, 2009

Maidan, bye bye

Oleksii silhouetted against the Maidan

Maidan, bye bye

Excuse the inconvenience, but we are rebuilding our country

Maidan, bye bye

Kiev, 6th August 2014

Tracking Romanian shepherds 1

Spread of transhumant and migrant shepherds in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From Toma Lupas et al, Oieri margineni in Crimeea si Sudul Rusiei, Editura Salgo, Sibiu, 2009

Tracking Romanian shepherds 2

Devi with herdsmen near Padava Khanchali, southern Georgia. They may have been Armenian or Azeri: most shepherds in Georgia are from Azerbaijan, I was told.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 3

Lunch with shepherds near Padava Khanchali, Samstkhe Javakheti province (southern Georgia).

Tracking Romanian shepherds 4

Pause for a much-needed rest while we were hitching to our next night's accommodation (it was rather more basic than this!). Samstkhe Javakheti.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 5

Towards a castle built near the Paravani River for Alexander the Great. I was struggling with my rucksack, but Devi's pack was twice as heavy, in spite of which she forged ahead in the terrible heat as though it were a child's satchel. Samstkhe Javakheti.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 6

Armenians in Akhalkalake's cultural centre try to help us find out more about Tilisca (or Dilisca). Samstkhe Javakheti.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 7

Looking for Tilisca: the marshrutka that took us there, with a sign showing its destination - Dilisca in Cyrillic characters. Samstkhe Javakheti.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 8

Dilisca, Tilisca: the village church, which is Armenian. According to our information the village population has been mainly Armenian since 1830. Beforehand, as far as we know, it was Georgian. Samstkhe Javakheti.

Tracking Romanian shepherds 9

A shepherd from the Kist village of Omalo, Pankisi Gorge, north-east Georgia

Piping shepherds

Tilisca, Romania, 2011

Piping shepherds

Animal fair 1

The centre of Poiana Sibiului on fair day.

Animal fair 2

Scores of little tables stood beside the road to the fairground. The goods on sale were beautiful, woollen clothes made by local women, but hardly anyone was buying.

Animal fair 3

Poiana Sibiului's wooden church.

Animal fair 4

The cemetery by the wooden church in Poiana Sibiului

Animal fair 5

Targul de animale at Poiana Sibiului is said to be Romania's largest one-day livestock market. It takes place in September each year.

Animal fair 6

You could see right across the Transylvanian Plateau to the north and west; in the distance are the Apuseni Mountains.

Animal fair 7

People brought their animals on foot, in carts, in the back of open-topped vans, trailers or lorries. A couple of huge transporters were there to take sheep away, possibly to slaughter abroad.

Animal fair 8

A cloakmaker in his sarica, made from four or five separate Turcana skins. These cloaks are known as the 'shepherds' houses' because they are their only protection against the weather when they are sleeping outside.

Animal fair 9

Covered stalls offering a variety of farming gear sprang up beside the pathways and behind them herds of 20 or 30 sheep were positioned on the banksides, not in corrals but held there by their shepherds while waiting for a private sale. I didn't see any auctions.

Animal fair 10

Animal fair 11

Animal fair 12

Mr B-S and his flock

Animal fair 13

Animal fair 14

Men viewing sheep for sale.

Animal fair 15

Carpathian sheepdog for sale.

Animal fair 16

Carpatin (Carpathian sheepdog) pups.

Animal fair 17

Two donkeys are not enough.

Animal fair 18

Dinu and a smart herd of rams; the owner and his animals were similarly well-coiffed.

Animal fair 19

Animal fair 20

Brown and white check-patterned blankets called toluri (the 't' is pronounced 'ts') are typical of this region. They are full of lanolin which makes them more or less waterproof, and shepherds often use them instead of raincoats. When they are not wearing them for this reason, they habitually sling their blankets over their shoulders (see also image 12, above).

Animal fair 21

Built like a tank: a 'semi-greu' (middleweight) stallion sporting an apotropeic tassel. Originally used to ward off the 'evil eye', the tassels now function as fashion accessories - to attract glad eyes (ouch!).

Animal fair 22

Some of the horses were very fine, perhaps because they had Thoroughbred blood from one of Romania's excellent stud farms, several of which survived the Communist period.

Animal fair 23

Animal fair 24

Animal fair 25

Fancy leather harnesses for horses.

Animal fair 26

Windowshopping: Shepherds wearing 'sarice' (sheepskin cloaks), and one in a 'caciula' (a hat made from the curly coats of Astrakhan lambs). It's hard to resist taking such photos.

Animal fair 27

She was selling donkeys' saddles.

Animal fair 28

Not only gorgeous to look at, toluri smell wonderful because they're full of oil.

Animal fair 29

Stiff sweaters, real fleece-lined jackets, and some black and white 'traiste', in the typical pattern for traditonal women's shoulder bags from Marginimea Sibiului, this area of the Southern Carpathian Mountains.

Animal fair 30

In the centre of Poiana Sibiului, these women were selling cheese: the round ones were 'branze de burduf', sheep's stomachs stuffed with fragments of cas, slightly sweet and granular sheep's cheese.

Coliba life 8

A snow sledge and horse-drawn plough are still part of the A family's normal equipment.

Coliba life 7

Mrs A at her family's summer home.

Coliba life 6

Iancu A, talking about life in the Second World War.

Coliba life 5

Maria and the still life.

Coliba life 4

Maria and her coliba with other summer farms in the distance. Although there are far fewer than there used to be, around 60 of J's shielings are still in use.

Coliba life 3

Bogdan and the lambs.

Coliba life 2

Half of the lambs strayed to the other side of a wood-lined gully where they found the mushrooms to their liking; persuading them to go back to the other side of the gully again and rejoin the main herd was harder than I thought and I cursed the fact that I didn't have a collie to help me...

Coliba life 1

While walking down with the lambs to Stanisoara fold.

Shepherds' Own Paper

Mistletoe infested the trees like giant nests: their yellow and white were the only bright colours around.

Shepherds' Own Paper

Mistletoe in flower and berry, Salaj, April 2012

Transylvanian Food Company 7

One of the harvesters arriving at TFC.

Transylvanian Food Company 8

Transylvanian Food Company 3

The flower collecting shed.

Transylvanian Food Company 6

Pickers bringing the elder flowers they have collected for weighing.

Transylvanian Food Company 2

Jim Turnbull (right) and a colleague

Transylvanian Food Company 4

Transylvanian Food Company 5

A staff member weighs and records each picker's harvest.

Transylvanian Food Company 1

Sheep in diaspora 1

A mural in a Maramures church showing the Lamb of God carrying a flag. The combination reminds me of an English pub's name: could they be related?

Eye balling sheep 13

Eye balling sheep 12

Packing up the sheep's cheese counter at the end of the day. The main varieties are branza de burduf, telemea, cas and urda.

Eye balling sheep 11

Eye balling sheep 10

Eye balling sheep 9

Eye balling sheep 8

Yes, I KNOW they're goats.

Eye balling sheep 7

Turcana

Eye balling sheep 6

Tigaie ewes and lambs feeling the heat.

Eye balling sheep 5

Turcana bucalaie (meaning black or grey-faced Turcana)

Eye balling sheep 4

Eye balling sheep 3

The ineffable Turcana.

Eye balling sheep 2

Mangalitsa pigs, low in cholesterol, high in intelligence, short on hope.

Eye balling sheep 1

The cloakmaker 1

The cloakmaker 2

Constantin and his wife

The cloakmaker 3

The cloakmaker 4

Sanding the skin

The cloakmaker 5

Sanding the skin, detail

The cloakmaker 6

Sewing by hand

Portrait of a shepherd 1

A molly sheep cleans out the mamaliga cauldron while Nicu scrapes out another bowl. He is wearing his astrakhan caciula.

Portrait of a shepherd 2

The Carpatin pups with whom I could have shared a dormitory.

Portrait of a shepherd 3

Carving a spatula before breakfast.

Portrait of a shepherd 4

Making bulz from mamaliga and sheep's cheese.

Portrait of a shepherd 5

Bulz like yellow ostrich eggs, baking in the fire. Ghita and friends gorge themselves before continuing with the lambing shelter.

Calling the bear 1

Poet Maria Sterp and her husband.

A shepherds' village 1

One of the more prosperous villages, with a huge Orthodox Church known as the Cathedral of the Mountains.

A shepherds' village 2

A shepherds' village 3

A shepherds' village 4

A shepherds' village 5

Sometimes the electric cables look like art installations

A shepherds' village 6

A shepherds' village 8

La Baie (At the sheep wash)

The following images were taken during the October sheep wash, the last appointment which the sheep have to make on their home territory before leaving on the autumn transhumance.

La Baie 1

Together with nr 2, a contrast of traditional and modern methods.

La Baie 2

Sheep farming has been profitable for some.

La Baie 3

The donkey's didn't get dunked...

La Baie 4

La Baie 5

La Baie 6

La Baie 7

La Baie 8

La Baie 9

La Baie 10

La Baie 11

Watching the sheep being herded into the wash was like seeing a ballet of maggots - and not so much fun for the animals being unceremoniously dunked..

La Baie 12

La Baie 13

Effects of drought or over-grazing. Two years without significant rain turned the soil to dust.

La Baie 14

STANA DOMNILOR

If you are following the story, these photos are arranged in reverse order, with the last ones at the top.

Goodbye to all that

Regretfully, I went home again the same morning.

In the forest

Still milking, after and hour and a half

"Dragos never took photos of me while milking". Ghita the Shepherd in the year before he went viral.

Carpatin (Carpathian sheep dog) off duty

Shepherds' hut

Sunlight on a cojoc, and some cold mamaliga waiting for the dogs.

Near Stana Domnilor, on the Cindrel range, looking north towards Sebes.

Near Stana Domnilor

Preparing breakfast near Stana Domnilor

No, the donkey was not on the menu.

Dawn flight over the Cindrel Mountains

Shepherds' caravan near Stana Domnilor

Stana Domnilor

We arrived before dawn to find the fire still going.

Jina

The Cathedral of the Mountains, where Ghita and Andreea consecrated their marriage.

Nunta 1

It looked like half of the village lent a hand.

Nunta 2

Nunta 3

The kitchen crew worked like beavers throughout, cheerfully sacrificing their own desires to enjoy the party.

Nunta 3

There were lots of special effects

Nunta 4

Waiters and waitresses dressed in identical suits.

Nunta 5

Snacks in between courses.

Nunta 6

Soft drinks and plenty of wine.

Nunta 7

During the morning, wedding guests turned up in their winter clothes.

Nunta 8

Musical entertainment from glamorous folk singers.

Nunta 9

Traditional dances: invertite, hategane and jiane.

Nunta 10

Another of the folk singers.

Nunta 11

For the civil and church wedding ceremonies which took place in the morning, godparents of the bride and groom wore traditional dress.

Nunta 12

Round dance.

Nunta 13

Round dance

Nunta 14

Folk band.

Nunta 15

The bride and groom danced with their friends.

Nunta 16

Wedding band.

Nunta 17

More special effects.

Nunta 18

Coordinated colours: some people wore traditional black and white dress, and the waiters were in black and white uniforms. To the left of the stage is a mural showing a shepherd in a sarica (long sheepskin cloak) and caciula (astrakhan cap), both of which are still widely in use.

Nunta 19

Bride and groom arrive at the caminul cultural for the wedding feast.

Nunta 20

The godparents follow the bride and groom to the hall after the church wedding.

Nunta 21

The wedding in the Orthodox church.

Nunta 22

Scene in the church.

Nunta 23

Well-wishers and the curious gathered outside the Primaria to see the newly weds.

Nunta 24

A guard of honour, consisting of male and female godparents in traditional dress and winter jackets, waiting to greet the bride and groom.

Nunta 25

Waiting for the bride.

Nunta 26

A Gypsy band played for us while we waited for the ceremonies to start. Their vigorous tunes helped to combat the January cold.

Nunta 27

Trestle tables decorated for the wedding.

Nunta 28

Friends, relations, neighbours: scores of villagers helped to prepare the wedding feast.

Nunta 29

Two days before the feast: small packets of cabbage wrapped around minced meat - proper, delicately flavoured sarmale, not the large, greasy variety 'like defensive missiles' (as Gavin Bell has described them) that you often find in restaurants.

Nunta 30

Preparations for the feast.

Nunta 31

Helping out was tremendous fun: the atmosphere showed that everyone was happy to be involved because the couple was popular, and it helped to chase away the winter blues.

Nunta 32

They made sausages in industrial quantities.

Nunta 33

Dedicated work.

Nunta 34

Making sarmale (stuffed cabbage leaves) for the wedding feast.

Nunta 35

More sausages...

Nunta 36

Do it yourself wedding, community involvement, fresh, home-produced food, jokes and laughter: what more do you want?

Nunta 37

A carnivorous wedding feast: freshly-killed, home-produced mutton and pork in the groom's family's barn waiting to be turned into sausages and grilled meats for the wedding guests..

AUTUMN ROAD Setting off from the village

After a hectic day of preparations, Ghita and his shepherds finally left home at 4.30pm, as shadows started to lengthen. Ghita's friend Dinu was going to take half his shearlings on the road as well; Ghita's sheep were waiting for us over the hills to the north.

Seven donkeys to carry provisions

No need to lead the donkeys

The summer heat lingered in October

Pause for a smoke

Dinu and his dad bring their lambs to join the throng.

Rounded hills at the northern end of the Cindrel Massif

Two years' worth of drought and centuries of grazing have given the landscape its smooth contours. In the distance, the fast-growing Gypsy quarter of the village stands out on the ridge tops. The Baiesi, the non-Roma Gypsies who live there make up a third of the total population of 6,000. Some fear that the district may become even larger, but most of those in the older quarters like to live and let live, and there are other positive sides to the situation, one of which is that many of the Baiesi are musicians. In any case, they are like all of us in that they only want a place in the sun. Still, there are tensions between the two 'sides', not least because Baiesi are building on land that is not legally theirs.

Dinu

Shepherd, and a talented flute player who regaled the Pro tv crew with an impromptu performance. He plays for the love ot it, and when I heard him again, at Ghita's wedding, I thought I had never heard anything so hauntingly beautiful.

Sheep streaming across Valea Negri to reach the salt

Mineral deficiencies can kill sheep rapidly, and when they are gestating they need extra quantities of salt.

Village night life

As if to underline the melancholy that descended once the flocks had left, light from one of the village shops lights the empty street.

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View west from Mt Cindrel (2244m)

Maria Barb and her prize Turcana ram

Walking on the Cindrel Massif

Preseli Hills and sheep

Gathering sheep on the Preseli Hills

Sitting on Sean's mother was the only way to keep her there

Andrei and Sean taking five

Sean and his mother reconciled

Sean put on weight quickly after his mother relented; even so, he still waited for lifts

Ghita's flock on the road

7am: Iosif and Andrei with half of Ghita's flock near Jibou

On the road

There were striking exceptions to the dun-colured landscape: bright yellow reeds, red and yellow dogwoods, and willows that began to flower at the tips of their branches, like ghosts coming back to life

Flowering mistletoe in Salaj

Two of Ghita's guard dogs on the cracked ground left by months without rain followed by heavy snowfall

Romanian shepherds don't often use the word transhumanta; they usually say something like 'We're going after the sheep's tails'

Strapping the plastic panniers to a donkey's saddle

Leaving Firminis, 2 April 2012

Inside the concrete bunker which we were calling home

Shepherds from Marginimea Sibiului on the road in Salaj

These pictures show Ghita's flock and his shepherds at the start of their spring walk back to the Southern Carpathians (30th March - 6th April 2012), and members of his family making sheep's cheese at one of their stani (folds) near J (September 2011); the seven lowest images in the left hand column are of another family in the same region, taken between August and September 2011.

Ghita's mother making cas in the family's lower coliba, September 2011

Going to milk sheep at Crint, September 2011

a blog about shepherding in the Carpathian Mountains, and other Welsh passions

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About Me

Caroline: As in 'interests', I've started these blogs because I want to help improve the way we live, in the so-called global village. That doesn't mean accepting what vast corporations and their lobbyists say is good for us, especially in terms of how we grow our food, how we plan for the rise in global populations, how we treat people - and wildlife - less fortunate than us.

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Sheep, unlike people, do not dissipate their energies in meaningless movement... (from H. G. Clarke, Practical Shepherding, London 1959)

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