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Green with envy is what I’d be if I read about someone doing the trip we’re doing. I pinch myself sometimes to make sure it isn’t all a dream. This time Lynne at Dovegreyreader and I have chosen to explore the colour green.

We’re in love with Romania, which is partly why the blog is a little bit more behind than we’d like. There is just so much to see here and our days are packed with visits and impressions, more to write about and less time to time to do so.

We are loving the vernacular architecture of the rural hinterlands, where horses pulling long carts are commonplace, as are people in traditional dress. This green collage is mostly inspired by those details, from walls, verandas, doorways and gates in both town and country in the Transylvania and Moldavia regions. I love textures and the old paint on a rare neglected door creates a texture like a reptile’s skin. We have been spotting different styles and methods of haystacking on our travels too, and the picture on the right hand side shows some fresh ‘haystack trees’ – so much prettier than hay bales in plastic bags don’t you think?

The patch of grass in the centre of the collage isn’t just any random patch of grass but is real fresh growing grass displayed in the Memorial Museum to the Victims of Communism and the Resistance [to Communism] in the former political prison at Sighetu Marmatiei. It is in the cell telling the story of the repression of the peasants when they tried to resist the introduction of collectivism.  It symbolises  ‘the land, alive and free and the grave of those who sacrificed themselves for it’.  A ray of sunshine shone through the high barred window onto it. The prisoners were denied all but a fleeting glimpse of daylight. More about our visit to this museum coming in a post soon.

In the meantime, pay a visit to dovegreyreader to see what greenery Lynne has discovered.