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| A nun walks in the yard
of Barsana monastery in the Maramures region of Romania, July 2,
2004.(Reuters) | Hidden for centuries in a
corner of the northern Carpathians , the wooden churches of
Maramures have long been one of Romania's most secret treasures.
These sleeping princesses, declared world heritage monuments by UNESCO
in 1999 for their simple beauty and superb craftsmanship, will finally be
awakened in an effort to lure tourists to a remote but charming part of
the Balkan country.
"We have amazing cultural and natural resources that we haven't opened
up to the world because we lack the infrastructure," said Ioan Marchis,
the Culture Ministry's local director.
European Union candidate Romania has launched a program to help local
communities get EU funds to make the churches more visitor friendly and
attract wealthy western tourists to this unique but distant region
bordering Ukraine.
At the church of Surdesti, which at 236 feet high claims to be the
tallest oak building in the world, the priest's wife, Maria, says potholes , lack of road signs and
information prevent tourists from reaching the 1767 UNESCO monument.
"Tourists must be able to find it to visit it," she said.
Romania failed to capitalize on its natural beauty and cultural
heritage. Hotels are basic and roads notoriously bad.
From 4.8 million tourists in 1989, the number rose only to 5.59 million
in 2003, about the same as 10 years ago.
Western countries that painstakingly re-create old towns or villages to
attract culturally sensitive tourists would envy Maramures -- a living,
breathing open air museum of centuries-old Balkan life.
Villagers, who still wear traditional costume, use animals and wooden
tools in their fields, weave by hand and are famous for carving wood,
abundant in the nearby forests.
"Maramures is very important for Europe because it sustains the old
archetypes of a world we no longer know. It's a bridge between the past
and the future," Marchis said.
Most important are its wooden churches, often dating to the early
1600s. Tall towers jutting
high above villages or fields crown the small structures blending Romanian
Orthodox tradition with Gothic elements to create a unique architectural
hybrid .
The narrow, shingle-roof churches are largely restored but the area
surrounding them often remains neglected.
At Rogoz -- one of eight churches on the UNESCO list from about 90
dotting the region -- the local community secured 160,000 euros ($198,200)
from the EU's PHARE regional
development fund to improve tourist' access.
"We only get three or four buses of foreign tourists a month now but
according to the study we submitted we could get 3,700 people a year,"
town councilor Alexandru Santa said.
A dirt road winds through the quiet village to the 1663 church and
visitors must find the local priest for the key to enter and admire its
colorful wall paintings. Chickens and geese run among graves in the
churchyard.
Santa said the EU money will be used to pave and light the road, build
a fence around the church and a tourist area with parking, toilets and a
traditional kiosk for souvenirs.
（Reuters） |
马拉穆列什的木制老教堂在喀尔巴阡山脉北部的角落里隐藏了几个世纪，长期以来它一直是罗马尼亚最神秘的一笔财富。
这些“沉睡的公主”凭着她们朴素的美丽和精湛的建筑技艺在1999年被联合国教科文组织宣布为世界遗产。现在，睡美人们终于要被唤醒，吸引游客们来到这个巴尔干半岛国家偏僻但风景迷人的地区。
罗马尼亚文化部在当地的负责人约安·马尔基什说：“我们拥有很了不起的文化和自然资源，但尚未公诸于世，因为缺少（必要的）基础设施。”
欧盟准会员国罗马尼亚启动了一个项目，旨在帮助当地获得欧盟的资助，用来修葺教堂，使它们更适于游客参观，从而吸引富有的西方旅游者来到这个与乌克兰接壤的、独特但偏远的地区。
236英尺高的Surdesti教堂号称是世界上最高的橡木建筑。在这座教堂里，牧师的妻子玛丽亚说，路上坑坑洼洼、缺少路标和信息匮乏阻碍了游客拜访这始建于1767
年的世界教科文组织的世界遗产。
她说：“游客们必须能够找到这里，才能来拜访。”
罗马尼亚没能够充分利用其美丽的自然风光和文化遗产。这儿的旅馆都很简陋，路况也很糟糕。
1989年，来这里旅游的人数为480万，而到2003年，这个数字仅上升到559万，和10年前几乎没什么两样。
西方国家煞费苦心地重建老城或村庄来吸引注重文化气息的旅游者，它们会羡慕马拉穆列什，这里是几个世纪来巴尔干半岛生活栩栩如生的户外博物馆。
仍然穿着传统服装的村民们使用耕畜和木制工具在田间劳作，进行手工编织，而且以木雕而闻名，附近的森林里有的是木头。
马尔基什说：“马拉穆列什对于欧洲来说十分重要，因为它保持了一个我们不再了解的世界原来的面貌。它是一座连接过去和未来的桥梁。”
最重要的是那些建于17世纪初期的木制教堂。高高的塔楼在村落或田野上空高高突出，塔顶上还有混合了罗马尼亚东正教传统风格和哥特式风格的小建筑物，创造出一种独特的混合型建筑风格。
有着卵石屋顶的狭窄的教堂的面貌在很大程度上得到了恢复，但教堂周围的地区还是被忽视了。
At Rogoz
是联合国教科文组织名单上的八座教堂之一，它们是从分布在这一地区的大约90处教堂中选出的。当地获得了欧盟“法尔计划”（对中东欧国家的财政援助计划）提供的地区发展基金16万欧元，用来吸引更多的游客。
镇议会议员亚历山德鲁·尚塔说：“现在我们一个月只能接待3到4车外国游客，但根据我们提交的研究报告，我们一年可以接待3700名游客。”
一条土路蜿蜒穿过安静的村庄，通往这座建于1663年的教堂。参观者必须找到当地的牧师才能拿到钥匙，进去欣赏教堂内部多彩的壁画。教堂院子里还有鸡和鹅在墓穴之间跑来跑去。
尚塔说，欧盟的资金将用来铺设并照明道路，围绕教堂修筑藩篱；还要修建一个游客区，其中包括停车场、公厕和一个出售纪念品的传统风格的亭子。
（中国日报网站译） |
Updated: 2004-08-02 14:46