Romania, May 2002.

In May 2002 I travelled from my home in Debrecen, Hungary to Romania with a group of folk dancers who were to take part in a village festival in Moldova. Along with the dancers my friends Elina (from Finland) Noemie and Isabelle (from France) were along for the adventure too. We spent five days in a village in Ghimes, Transylvania before moving on to Moldova. I took a digital video camera to record our journey. These pictures are just a few stills taken from the many hours of video footage. Hope you like them...

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384 x 288	Couldn't resist including this picture of one of Elina's many and varied "looks". Apparently it's very popular in Finalnd. Hhhmmmm....	384 x 288	This is Peter and Elina taking the all important beer back to "base camp". Note the horse and cart - the preferred mode of transport in Transylvania.
384 x 288	The Debrecen boys do their stuff in Moldova. The music they were dancing to was "Jump (for my love)" by The Pointer Sisters.	384 x 288	Locals in the Csango village in Moldova rehearse for the following days festivities. Despite living in the heart of Romania these wonderfully friendly peoples first language is a slightly archaic form of Hungarian.
384 x 288	The boys looking exhausted after their performance, despite Elina attempting to amuse them with her "Indiana Jones" impersonation.	384 x 288	Elina is Finnish. Therefore nothing pleases her more than a plate of food. Well, other than a big bottle of palinka.
384 x 288	Another little-known fact about Finns is that they need to hibernate for three months of the year. Here Elina prepares for the big sleep.	384 x 288	Every morning we awoke to this spectacular view. Well, except for the mornings we didn't awake due to heavy Palinka abuse the night before.
384 x 288	And this is "Base camp" although pictures really can't convey the beauty of this place.	384 x 288	These are the we travelled from Debrecen with. That's wine on their heads and they actually sang AND danced without spilling a drop.
384 x 288	Another picture of the girls dancing to "Alcohol" by Barenaked Ladies.	384 x 288	Meanwhile back in Ghimes...these are some Gypsies from the village we stayed in. I wasn't sure if the kids all belonged to the girl here (she looked about 15...so probably) but they were all incredibly eager to be photographed.
384 x 288	These guys ran out onto the street to be filmed. All the people we met in Romania were incredibly friendly. It was a perfect example of that cliche about people who have nothing but willing to share everything they have.	384 x 288	These girls were from Isabelle and Noemie's host family in Moldova. The Csango people were, without doubt, the friendliest people I have ever met. We were only in the village for 24 hours but it was something that will stay with us "kulfoldi" as long as we live.
384 x 288	Imre here did all of our cooking including my first ever Hungarian goulash. I'd heard a few horror stories about real goulash but it was fantastic...just wish I hadn't seen what goes into it!	768 x 576	On the top of a mountain Isabelle comes face to face with the blazing sun. At least she didn't end up with a bright red clown nose like some people I could mention.
384 x 288	Well, what's a holiday without a little romance? Elina and her new "boy" get jiggy.	768 x 576	That's me up a mountain that is.
384 x 288	As any English person will tell you, the French have terrible table manners. Like eating with their mouths open for instance. No wonder they got knocked out of the World Cup.	384 x 288	Thoroughly, thoroughly shagged out after climbing two...yes TWO mountains in one morning. Ghimes, Transylvania.
384 x 288	If you ever want to know ANYTHING about Hungary - music, culture, what's on TV tonight etc. as this guy.	384 x 288	Another picture of Peter, this time with Elina's boyfriend.
384 x 288	Speaking of whom...these two just couldn't keep their hands off each other. It was disgusting.	384 x 288	Ethnographer and all roung good egg Sophie tries to nick Elina's bloke.
384 x 288	Noemie in the gypsy village. She looks happy now..she won't in four hours when she's just climbed two mountains and is about to have a cardiac arrest at the tender age of 18.	384 x 288	This guy was a kick-ass violinist from a nearby village in Moldova.