When Winter Breaks Open There is a kind of quiet in northeastern Romania that feels older than anything else around it—a winter hush thick enough to swallow sound. And then, as the year tilts toward its end, that stillness cracks with a distinct Romanian beat. Drums thunder in the air, bells shiver, and the whole village wakes as the Bear Dance pushes through the streets like weather rolling in from another age. People often describe the first sight of it as massive brown hid

I’ve been carrying a heavy mix of emotions lately. Back home, in the streets where I grew up, innocent and hardworking Mexican immigrants are being taken into big unmarked trucks — disappeared under the cover of night. Families are left wondering where their loved one is and if they will ever see them again. Dreams are erased. People who have built lives among people they thought were friends are treated like they don’t belong anymore. Watching those videos makes something in

There are cities that decorate for Christmas, and then there is Brașov — a place that seems to exhale winter enchantment from its medieval soul. As December settles over the Carpathians, the old town begins its transformation. Lights unfurl across rooftops, garlands drape between centuries-old walls, and the entire landscape takes on the soft glow of a fairytale. Romanians put serious, loving effort into creating a festive world, and you can feel that intention in every illum

When autumn arrives in Transylvania, the air grows sharp and metallic, and the forests shed their color until only the stone of the mountains seems alive. Smoke rises from the first hearth fires, curling above tiled roofs and lingering with its sweet scent in the cold. In the West, this is the season of Halloween I am familiar with - a celebration of ghosts, costumes, and death. In Romania, the same chill carries something older. There are no pumpkin lanterns or suburban tric

Before the word “vampire” ever reached Western Europe and long before Bram Stoker turned Transylvania into a gothic legend, Romanians were already telling stories about the strigoi — spirits that slipped between the worlds of the living and the dead. These were not imagined monsters from distant castles but familiar faces: neighbors, relatives, and townspeople whose souls could not find rest. In traditional belief, a strigoi was not born from evil so much as imbalance. It was

The Keeper of the Flame In every culture, there are keepers of the flame—those who carry the memory of a people across generations, adapting it to new languages, new screens, and new worlds. In Romania, one of those keepers is Corneliu Țepeluș, a filmmaker, storyteller, and cultural ambassador whose life has been shaped by the timeless human pursuit of immortality—not the kind that denies death, but the kind that ensures meaning endures. His work bridges the mystical and the

In the heart of Brașov’s old town, framed by the Carpathian foothills, stands a monument that has watched over centuries of change: wars, fires, reformations, and rebirth. Locals call it Biserica Neagră — The Black Church. Its stone walls rise like memory itself, weathered and immovable, carrying the spirit of a people who refused to vanish. A Church Born of the Saxons Construction of the Black Church began around 1380, when Brașov, known then as Kronstadt, was one of the mos

Walk through any Transylvanian town and you’ll find echoes of another world such as fortified churches, cobbled squares, pastel guild houses, Latin inscriptions, and names like Kronstadt, Hermannstadt, and Schäßburg. These are traces of the Transylvanian Saxons, the German settlers who came nearly nine centuries ago and shaped the cultural heart of the region. Arrival of the Saxons The story begins in the 12th century, when the Hungarian kings invited German colonists to sett

Keeper of the damp earth, you rise from mud and moonlight, skin glistening like the memory of rain, eyes heavy with ancient knowing. You are not only lowly, but a vessel: the one who carries transformation in your dewey flesh. Your body bears the mark of both realms, water and soil, birth and decay, reminding us that life itself is a cycle of dissolving and return. Once, they feared your touch, said you carried curses in your skin, poison in your breath, that witches hid your

In Transylvania, as November dies and winter gathers on the hills, there comes a night when the old beliefs stir again. Between November 29 and 30, the feast of Saint Andrew, the veil between worlds is said to thin. It is a time when wolves speak, spirits wander, and villagers once guarded their homes with garlic and prayer. Known as Noaptea Sfântului Andrei, this night marks one of Romania’s most mysterious folk observances, a blend of Christian feast and pre-Christian ritua

In the shadow of medieval churches and fortified towers, one might least expect Bavarian-style beer tents, oompah bands, and lederhosen—but in Romania, especially in Transylvania, Oktoberfest has found a new home. What began as a festive export has become part of how German heritage communities, cities, and event planners articulate cultural identity, hospitality, and connection to Europe. From Munich to Everywhere: The Original Oktoberfest The first Oktoberfest was held on O

Perched above the Târnava Mare River, the citadel of Sighișoara has never been only a Saxon fortress. Its towers, stairways, and houses carry stories that linger as strongly as the scent of woodsmoke in winter. Beyond the pastel facades and watchtowers, folklore has shaped the way this medieval town is remembered. Vlad Dracul and the Birthplace of Vlad Țepeș One of the most enduring legends is tied to the yellow house on Citadel Square, known as the Vlad Dracul House. Traditi

Cat, watcher in the half-light, you move like a shadow that chose its own shape, fur humming with the memory of danger, eyes catching what the human heart refuses to see. You are not only graceful, but a mystery — the one who waits, who sees before acting, who knows what silence conceals. Your stillness is not peace. It is a listening, a poised breath between worlds, the moment before truth startles into motion. Once, they feared you. They burned your kind for choosing solit

Perched on a rocky outcrop at the edge of the Carpathians, Bran Castle looks as though it was built for legend. Its towers and courtyards rise out of the cliffs, watching over the mountain pass between Transylvania and Wallachia. For centuries, it stood as a sentinel of trade and defense — but today, it is most famous for the shadows it carries, the stories of vampires, queens, and secrets carved into stone. The Shadow of Dracula No legend clings more tightly to Bran than tha

Bear, keeper of the deep earth, you move with the weight of mountains, fur thick with the silence of forests, claws carved from the roots of time. You are not only brute strength, but a guardian — the one who stands watch when shadows draw near, the shield between the firelight and the devouring dark. Your breath clouds the cold air, reminding us that endurance and patience are also a form of power. In the old villages, your name was spoken like a prayer, your image painted o

Wolf, shadow of the forest, you move where men dare not linger, eyes burning with the fire of old banners, breath rising like smoke from forgotten battles. You are not only predator, but a guardian; the one who sees what others cannot. Your howl splits the mountain air, reminding us that exile and belonging are two faces of the same song. In the old tales, you walk beside the restless, sniffing out ghosts in the dark, yet you are also the shield, the teeth that turn away what