First Visitors - Part 3 (and final)

On Thursday, we spent most of our time indoors and so do not have any pictures.  We visited The National Art Museum, located in the former royal place (http://www.mnar.arts.ro/Home). Here we concentrated only on the Romanian art.  Our time was limited, but we certainly were able to get a good overview of both medieval (mostly religious) and more modern art styles in Romania.  We then walked to SNSPA, my university, where we met my director, Diana Cismaru, and headed out to lunch.  Our restaurant is especially known for its fish dishes and other Romanian cuisine.  Patricia had some kind of fish that is a product of the Danube delta and was proclaimed to be the BEST piece of fish she or Jerry had ever tasted.

We then went to the Museum of the Romanian peasant (http://www.muzeultaranuluiroman.ro/home.html) where the first thing we did was to connect with a bookbinder I had been introduced to.  Razvan Supuran has a studio in the basement of the museum where he and others make paper, do some letter press and etching, and do some bookbinding.  He was very welcoming and enthusiastic, inviting me to come and work in the studio, a prospect I look forward to following up on.  We then enjoyed wandering the museum, viewing many costumes, household implements, and parts of building interiors that depict rural life in Romania.  There are many ethnic groups in Romania and so there are many different designs and methods used in the decorative work.

We ended the day with a relaxing evening at home: a supper of baked melon stuffed with a lentil/veg mixture (adapted from a dish Patricia had been served in Istanbul and which was excellent!) and a couple of games of Fluxx, a fast-paced card game that Amanda introduced to us.

Friday, Patricia and I went off alone to The Brancovan Palace at Mogosoaia (http://palatebrancovenesti.ro/en/) Unfortunately, Jerry had a head cold and Amanda had sore feet, but P and I enjoyed our sisters day.  This destination was recommended to me by the organist of the church Amanda and I visited last Sunday - an Anglican church to which I suspect we will return.  The grounds are large, lovely, and quiet.  The palace is interested and definitely human-scale, unlike many palaces one might view in Europe.  It was first built in the late 1600s and suffered much destruction and rebuilding throughout the succeeding centuries. 

 A view from the palace to the main gate (center) and the kitchen (left).  The building on the right is a more recent structure that was a guest house and now a hotel.

 The courtyard side of the palace, from the vantage point of the tower above the main gate.

 Although interior photography was not allowed, I was given special permission to photograph some of the doors, with which I was especially impressed.  I want to create a book of doors...

 This lovely small church was actually the first building on the site of the palace and has some lovely old paintings and icons inside.

 Many roses still in bloom...

The formal gardens in front of the palace, looking toward the lake.

It was a great visit!  I enjoyed spending time with my sister, especially, and I now have a much better overview of the city.  I know some places I definitely want to revisit for myself and I know some things I definitely want to recommend to my future visitors.  So please, let me know when you want to come to Bucharest.

And now it is time to finish up my syllabus for the class starting this week...