After arriving at Uncle Laci's house the night before, we began our second day with a big breakfast in the yard. Laci has a beautiful "garden" that includes many different flowers, fruit trees and vegetables. As is typical, he has chickens, so we were able to enjoy fresh eggs in the morning along with left over mics from the night before. Laci also has a water heater that is heated by burning wood. So before we could shower, he had to get the fire going. We were all disappointed that Laci's wife was in the hospital at this time, being treated for pneumonia. So she wasn't part of the family time.
It was another eighty-degree day to look forward to!
Our first stop on Sunday morning was a more modern catholic church in Csíkszereda. We were able to see inside this beautiful building just as the second mass of the morning was beginning.
Then we drove to the other end of town to see a more famous catholic monastery church with an interesting history. Csíksomlyó (the church in the center of the picture below) houses the wooden statue of weeping Mary. Prior to 1567, the original church burned to the ground, but the wooden statue remained unscathed. People began flocking to see this miracle, and every year since hundreds of thousands of Hungarian catholics make the pilgrimage on the Saturday before Pentecost. We climbed to the top of the hill outside of town to get a view of the whole city.
The services going on inside the church were also broadcast out into the adjoining park.
When the services were completed we came down to see inside the church. The statue of Mary is to the right of the pulpit.
Justin and Jack then relaxed outside the church while Cindy and Szilvi joined her parents and uncle in visiting her aunt in the hospital next door.
Here is a typical scene in this part of the world: the village stork nest. We just had to stop for this picture.
Another common sight is the "Székely" gate. In some villages nearly every home has one of these gates!
We just had to include this video Cindy took while traveling. We just want you to get a feel of what it was like to travel through the Transylvanian countryside with Domi and Mária. They were playing their favorite tape of Hungarian folk music, the windows were wide open because of the heat and we were rushing along through the villages taking in all the scenery.
After noon we were on our way to Gyilkos-tó (Murder Lake) and Békás-szoros (Frog Canyon). This is truly some of the most beautiful scenery we have experienced in eastern Europe. The lake was formed in 1837 when a massive section of nearby mountain broke off and dammed the river. Apparently some people died as a result, so the lake is the killer! Unfortunately the photos do not nearly capture the beauty nor the true height of the surrounding mountains.
Szilvi, our tour-guide, had planned for us to hike to the top of this mountain, and to be honest, we had our doubts. But the hike was relatively gradual, through forests and meadows, and after an hour an a half we reached the top. What an amazing view!
Some of the group looking over the edge--a sheer cliff.
Then we drove about ten minutes along the Frog River to the gorge. We were reminded of Zion National Park with the depth of the canyon and the sheer cliffs. Unfortunately, where there is great beauty, there is money to be made--hence the intrusive souvenir shops.
We had to back-track for over an hour through numerous hairpin turns to get back to the main highway, and then back to Szilvi's relatives' home in Székelykerestur, where we had spent our first night. We were greeted by her family and another delicious late-night meal!
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