...at least 1000 pages to read quest

I did it...

...during summer time I can read a lot more that I am able to during theatre work that cover the rest of the year...so, for this summer, I had in mind (I made a bet with myself) to read at least 1000 book pages. Reading books is another love of mine, it's just a shame I don't have enough time to do it as much as I want it to...

Anywho...these are my 3 books that managed to keep me busy when I wasn't out, visiting places...

"The Beautiful Foreigners" by Mircea Cartarescu,

a modern romanian writer, that I love for his sarchasm and poetry of thoughts.

Then a 4 novel book from the Reader's Digest Collection...wonderful american writers (Howard Roughan, Bernard Cornwell, Stephanie Gertler, Richard Paul Evans) with captivating stories.

And the third one that made me wanna read another book by the same hungarian author,

Jókai Mór, "The Black Diamonds".

...don't just sit around...go read a book!

 Love, Gab~

Body Painting Party @ Club Cinema

One of my big loves is make up -> stage make up, everyday life make up, fashion make up, body painting...everything that involves drawing, painting...art. If you've been reading this blog already, you'll remember different posts of stage make up I did for theatre plays and not only...

This time I had fun doing some body painting for a club party... I've worked all night, but I loved it!!! Here are some pics... :)

These were the topless dancers of the night...a bit of woman power in men suits :)

Super(wo)man & Bat(wo)man

the same, but always new

If I'm not working during summer time, even if I'm off theatre duty, I like to visit new places and sightsee again the old one I already knew... Brasov is one of this places...I've seen it hundreds of times, but each time I go there again, I always visit smthing else...

Enjoy the pics!

Natura Parc

One cute nature park opened up near my home town...check it out: http://www.naturaparc.ro

Went down to see what's up and it looks prety nice!

Read my lashes...

Probably the only place I go to dance and have fun when I'm back home visiting my family...Club Cinema...with family&friends :)

simple things to be happy :)

good times

...great relaxing time with people I love and care about...a walk @ Suceava Fortress, then a fab fruit desert with ice cream and cream @Total Chagall downtown...enjoyin' my last days in Suceava...going home in Sfantu' the next days :) Enjoy summer guys!!

The excstacy of a dream

Voronet Monastery

Last summer I've visited almost all the monasteries from Moldova, Romania. Well, today I got to see again the Voronet Monastery and visit for the first time the Humor Monastery. The only things I can say about them...are places that inspire you and fill your soul with peace and harmony. Don't have to mention how beautiful they are. These are pics that show the famous "blue" of the Voronet. Pieces of art (as they are seen through my eyes in the first place) that resisted wars, bad weather, reigns... It's a must see if you happen to visit the N-E part of Romania.

Here's some more info for the curious ones :)

Voronet is considered by many to be the "Sixtine Chapel of the East", due to its magnificent frescoes placed on the West wall. These feature an intense shade of blue known in Romania as, "Voronet Blue", a color obtained from lapis lazuli, which has been added to the lexicon of art alongside colors such as the "Titian Red" and "Veronese Green", being unique. An old romanian chronicle written by Ion Neculce (1672-1745), records that Stephen the Great founded Voronet Monastery in 1488 to fulfill a pledge to the hermit Daniil, who had encouraged the ruling prince of Moldavia to chase the Turks from Wallachia. After having won the battle against the Turks, Stephen erected Voronet in three months and 21 days on the very spot Daniil had his small wooden hermitage.

It remained a working monastery until the start of Habsburg rule in 1785, and only became a religious retreat again after the fall of communism in 1991. Today it is a nun monastery consecrated to St. George, lying at a walking distance from the Gura Humorului town. Under the abbacy of Mother Superior Irina Pantescu, this new community strives to harmoniously combine a religious life of prayer and worship with housekeeping and farm work, running a painting workshop and providing guided tours for the visitors of the monastery.

Voronet Monastery is probably the most accomplished sample of Moldavian artistic achievement in architecture and painting. The monastery was built at a time of peace with the Turks, when Stephen had centralized the state, giving a new impetus to its economy and culture. Its inside and outside paintings were made between 1534-1535, during Prince Petru Rares's rule and at the behest of Metropolitan Grigore Rosca, a salient scholar of his time. In 1547 Grigore Rosca added to the monastery a porch. The paintings on the church walls (which have been made by masters whose names remained unknown, except that of Marcu, master painter, whose name is inscribed on the left side of the entrance door) have a distinctive chromatic harmony, a special manner of composition, nerve and clarity. They are imbued with the softness and warmth of the Moldavian spirit, whereas their colors were drawn from the surrounding nature abounding in blue and green. The artistic approach of painters has a warm humanism, as religious scenes depict Moldavian living people of those times. Thus the angels of the frescoes have the sweet faces of Moldavian women, the archangels blow the bucium - a Romanian shepherd's musical instrument similar to an alpenhorn- the souls carried to heaven are wrapped in Moldavian towels, whereas the souls doomed to the fire of hell wear turbans just like the Turks - Moldavia's fierce enemies at the time.

The "Last Judgment" (the pic below) painted on the western wall of the church is probably the finest composition among the paintings of the monasteries in Moldavia. In the fire of hell (a grand funnel of live coals opening at the feet of Jesus), sinners among whom, illustrious characters, kings, popes are struggling their way out. Near the seat of judgment, Adam and Eve are represented, along with bands of prophets, hierarchs, martyrs and Moses. In another illustration, a hand is holding the scales of justice where the sins of mankind judgment are being weighed. To the right and to the left, the devils are quarreling for possession of the accused. Among the sinners, there are many Turks and Tartars, with harsh faces and fierce looks. The animals, too, take part in the judgment, handing back fragments of human torsos to complete the bodies that were torn to pieces by wild beasts. The deer alone as nothing to hand back, for in Romanian folklore it stands for innocence. At the Gate of Heaven, people rush to get in; the painter wishes to express humorously how people hurry to enter the Garden of Eden. The southern wall displays "Jesse's Tree", the fabulous genealogy of Jesus. A fresco including eight panels and almost one hundred characters develops in luxurious interweaving of vine branches and tendrils. Also on the southern side is painted the portrait of Daniil the Hermit. On the northern wall, more exposed to the elements of weather, there are still a few elements representing the "Creation of the World" and a popular legend, "Temptation of Adam", which is also painted at Sucevita and Moldovita monasteries.

Among the paintings on the interior walls of the church mentioned should be made of "The Last Supper", whereas the nave holds a painting representing Stephen the Great, his wife, Lady Maria Voichita, and their son, Bogdan. The chair of the ruler in the church is a masterpiece of wood carving.

The Church has a trefoil form proper to the medieval Moldavian architectural style, predominantly Byzantine. Voronet is quite impressive by its size, i.e. 25.50 m long (apart from the porch), and 7.70 m wide. The doors of the porch have a Renaissance framing, whereas the stone carvings of the broken arches at doors and windows belong to the Gothic style. The existence of exterior buttresses signal a Roman and Gothic architectural influence in the strengthening of constructions, and hence the affiliation to western styles of art.

Romanians consider Voronet Monastery as a place of reference for their culture. It is a place where historic and religious works were issued. Among them, it is worth mentioning "The Old Manuscript from Voronet" and "The Psalm Book from Voronet". Upon his death, SWDaniil the Hermit, who also was the first Abbot of Voronet, has been canonized as a Saint and celebrated by the Orthodox Church on the 18th of December. His tomb is to be found in the narthex, watched over by a burning flame.

Rose gardens  surround the monastery

Hope you liked my post!

Love, Gab~

Humor Monastery

Situated in a beautiful setting, 5 km north of the town of Gura Humorului, Humor church was built in 1530 by High Chancellor Teodor Bubuiog at the behest of Voivode Petru Rares, on the site of a previous monastery built before 1415. The monastery was closed in 1786 and was not re-established until 1991. It is now a small convent, served by nuns - the villagers use another church, on a nearby hillock. The church, devoted to the Holy Virgin, is smaller than other churches of the painted monasteries and does not have any cupolas. Otherwise, it preserves the same traditional three-cusped plan proper to most other painted monasteries. Humor is protected by a wooden stockade rather than a stone rampart, and lacks the characteristic spire - indicating that it was founded by a boyar, not the ruler. The belfry with a belvedere was erected in 1641, under Vasile Lupu's rule.

The small church, with a wide open porch arched on three sides, has a vault which is similar to the one at Moldovita except that the one at Humor seems to be floating, a sample of Byzantine art highly appreciated by architect experts. The open porch is separated from the nave by three columns connected through broken arches which have crossed vaults. The windows frames are Gothic. The open porch with arcades was the first of its kind to be built in Bucovina, an innovation influenced by both the local building tradition (veranda, terrace) and the foreign Renaissance (the lodge found later in the - Brancovan style- ). Another innovation is the - tainitza- (a hidden place) above the burial-vault, precious objects were kept there, especially in difficult times.

Humor was one of the first of Bucovina's painted monasteries to be frescoed and, along with Voronet is probably the best preserved. The master painter responsible for Humor's frescoes, which were painted in 1535, is Toma of Suceava, the most famous church painter of the time. If at Voronet blue is predominant, Humor is mainly painted in reddish brown (from oriental madder pigment), completed nevertheless by rich blues and greens. The Last Judgment, placed on the wall beneath the unusual open porch, is similar to the Voronet one, but, unfortunately, the Tree of Jesse has been effaced by erosion. The significant difference is that the Devil is portrayed as the Scarlet Woman, though this patch is now so faint, that it has become nearly invisible. Such misogyny had its counterpart in the peasant conception of Hell, assumed to be a cavern upheld by seven old women who had surpassed Satan in wickedness during their lifetimes. Since the women are mortal, the legend goes, the Devil (Dracul) must constantly search the world for replacements - and he never fails to find them.

Another famous exterior painting, Hymn to the Virgin, has been inspired by the poem written by Patriarch Serghei of Constantinople, and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, who is reputed to have saved the city during the attack of the Persians in 626. The Persians are, however, depicted as Turks which is a common device in these monasteries, their paintings being used in part for political propaganda in addition to their spiritual meaning. The Siege of Constantinople, displayed on a large surface, in a central position, also suggests Moldavians’ wish to defeat their enemies, the Turks. In the narthex, a mural painting displays Petru Rares and his family; the prince is also buried within the church together with his wife, Anastasia. The princely throne in the church bears Moldavia's coat of arms.

The tombstone of Teodor Bubuiog is situated under his portrait and that of his wife’s. Petru Rares and his wife are both buried in the monastery church as well. Humor Monastery held for many years the valuable 'Humor Evangelistry', a book dating back to 1473, painted by monk Nicodim and displaying a famous portrait of Stephen the Great. The monastery houses a valuable collection of icons dating back to the 16th century. The monastery, underwent several restoration works, in 1868, 1888, 1960-1961, 1967-1970, and 1971-1972, when the paintings were washed.

Love, Gab~

Run, silly dog!

So...I'm in Suceava for the next days, then I'll have to go to my home town too (but later... after the 10th of july). Here are some pics from this evening, when we went to buy some fruits and good stuff for tomorrow's breakfast. Since I bought for his 25 years B-day a remote RC car, Mate is taking it EVERYWHERE. At least we don't sleep with it too...

Before entering in the Shopping City Suceava, he had to drift it a bit. Not only kids, yougsters or adults were hypnotised by this running little red machine, but also a dog was intrigued by it...he either run towards, after or from the car...I had a lot of fun looking at both of them.

Man versus dog... :)))

forever a dreamer...even if sometimes I forget to dream...

"It doesn't interest me what you do for a living

I want to know what you ache for,

and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are.

I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love,

for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon.

I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow,

if you have been opened by life's betrayals

or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!

I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own,

if you can dance with wildness

and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes

without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic,

or to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you're telling me is true.

I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself,

if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.

I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore be trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see beauty even when its not pretty every day,

and if you can source your life from God's presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine,

and still stand on the edge of a lake

and shout to the silver of the full moon, "Yes!"

It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have.

I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair,

weary and bruised to the bone,

and do what needs to be done for the children.

It doesn't interest me who you are, how you came to be here.

I want to know if you will stand in the center of the Fire with me

and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.

I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself,

and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments."

Orion Mountain Dreamer, Indian Elder

in love ...with a ball ring

Some months ago I saw (probably on some celeb's hand ) surfing the web, a silver ball ring that I fell in love with...although lately I'm wearing all sorts of accesories but not so often silver or gold, I would love to owh a silver ball ring...I don't like lots of rings on my hand, it either should be a single one but definitely a statement ring, either 2, not more, but a very delicate and thin type. Anyways...I think I've seen one in a jewellery today...I was in a hurry...hmmm...I should go back and see what "it" has to say. :)

It looks smth like that...I think you've got the idea... :) XX

Love, Gab~

ZEN

Just hanging out in Zen Lounge in the last night in Baia...tomorow I'm off to Suceava with Mate. See u soon!

Apa...reloaded :)

• Apa lake
• Jet ski
• Sunbaths
• Volley
• Photos
• Fun
• Refreshing baths